Merry Sitcom!  Christmas Classics From TV's Golden Age (Shout! Factory DVD)

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: D     Episodes: A

 

Merry Sitcom is a collection of holiday-themed episodes: That Girl, Father Knows Best, The Flying Nun, The Donna Reed Show, McHale's Navy and Bewitched.

Each episode features excellent performances and solid stories.  When I finished viewing this collection I wiped a few tears from my eyes and became angry.  For years programs such as the ones featured on this DVD have been attacked by critics for featuring an unrealistic portrayal of families or being just
plain silly.

Of course nuns can't fly but a spirited young woman using her special talent to make an elderly woman happy is unrealistic?  (The Flying Nun).  A housewife deciding to put hospitalized children's concerns before that of her spoiled family is silly?  (The Donna Reed Show).  A family finding the holiday spirit in a little cabin should be ridiculed?  (Father Knows Best).

Despite the constant criticism many of these series have endured over the years they still hold up today.  A bonus holiday themed episode of Window On Main Street is included.

The 1.33 X 1 image and Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono are pretty good for their age, if showing their age, but we get good reproduction throughout.  There are no extras, but each episode (though some are edited) is enjoyable for the entire family to
watch.

 

 

-   Fred Grandindetti