'Married With Children - Seasons 7 & 8'
(Ed O'Neill, Katey Sagal, Christina Applegate, David Faustino, Amanda Bearse, et al / 4-DVD / NR / 2015 / Mill Creek Entertainment)
Overview: Loud-mouthed. Obnoxious. More Vulgar than ever. We wouldn't have thB any other way. This 4 DVD set is another hilarious helping of envelope pushing episodes as only the Bundy's can deliver!
DVD Verdict: To sum up 'Married With Children,' in general, as a TV show, Al Bundy is a misanthropic women's shoe salesman with a miserable life. He hates his job, his wife is lazy, his son is dysfunctional (especially with women), and his daughter is dim-witted and promiscuous!
With a cast starring Golden Globe nominees Ed O'Neill (Modern Family) and Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy), both for this series, 'Married' of course also stars Young Artist Award winner Christina Applegate (Anchorman), David Faustino (The Legend of Korra), Amanda Bearse (Fright Night) and Ted McGinley (Revenge of the Nerds).
In the seventh season, the writers introduced Seven (played by Shane Sweet) in an attempt to give the Bundys a third child. When the audience was unreceptive, he was removed from the series with no explanation other than being left at the D'Arcys' (Seven was last seen being told a bedtime story in "Peggy and the Pirates"). There is, however, a subtle reference to him in Season 8, episode 22, when he appears as the missing child on a carton of milk. Bud also loses his virginity during this season and he makes his first appearance with a beard (which was mistaken for dirt in the episode where Bud first notices he's growing a beard). Steve Rhoades also makes another guest appearance during this season, also Dan Castellaneta, as does Michael Faustino.
Also referred to as "Magnificent Seven," it is often criticized for finally resorting to the infamous fallback option for sitcoms of casting a younger kid to compensate for an aging 'young' cast. At least for the premiere, the creative staff is able to make it work, thanks to a versatile comedic script and excellent stunt casting. Guest stars Bobcat Goldthwaite and Linda Blair stand out as Peg's derelict cousin Zeemus and his flashy wife.
Season eight introduces many of Al's friends, including Aaron, Bob Rooney and Officer Dan (even though Officer Dan wasn't a character in the earlier seasons, the actor who played him also appeared in "Rock 'n Roll Girl" as the sheriff who issued Al a ticket for an insulting bumper sticker, "Weenie Tot Lovers and Other Strangers" as the police officer who arrested Al, and "The Egg and I" as the FBI agent searching for Steve). Al, Jefferson, Bob Rooney and Officer Dan (along with Griff and Ike, who are introduced in Season 9) all become members of NO MA'AM in the episode where the men fight back against a talk show host (played by Jerry Springer) known as "The Masculine Feminist".
This is also the season where Bud joins a fraternity. And, as mentioned above, the closest we get to an explanation for Seven's mysterious disappearance 14 months before is in the episode "Ride Scare," where a closeup on a carton of milk reveals a picture of Seven with the words "Missing." Al's plus-sized model friends simply look at it without comment before helping themselves, of course.
But season eight also contains one of my all time favorite episodes where Buck runs away and ends up in the dog pound. All of the dogs "talk" to each other. Very funny! Two other memorable episodes are "Assault and Batteries," where Al's plan to watch the John Wayne movie "Hondo" after he returns from buying batteries, of course goes awry. Another personal favorite is "How Green Was My Apple," with the Bundys and the Darcys going to war over a property dispute. This is a Widescreen Presentation (1.85:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs.
www.MillCreekEnt.com