DVD Review: Home Movies - Season Three
Home Movies returns to DVD with the box set for the third season, and unlike last time for season two, this time I was actually looking forward to watching. Season three continues to use the Flash Animation style that the series adopted for the second season, which replaced the annoying squigglevision of the first season. Another thing season three continues on with is delivering the laughs. This DVD set is just as funny as the previous one, if not more so. At first I thought I was just me, but then my wife really dot into the show too, a lot more than the previous season where she just caught a few episodes here and there as I was watching it.
This time around, we still have all the same characters as last time. There's the star of the show, little eight year old Brendon Small (voiced by none other than... Brendon Small!), who continues to write, produce, direct, and star in his own "movies" with his home video camera. The films are often parodies or based on popular theatrical films, and feature his two best (and possibly only) friends, Melissa and Jason. Mostly we just get to see a few scenes from Brendon's films during an episode, with the remaining time being filled up with actual stories and plots... and rants, lots of rants, lots of hilarious rants... and people talking over each other... the comedy style is kind of hard to explain. It's just something you have to experience.
Personally, my favorite character is Coach McGuirk, the dirt-poor alcoholic school soccer coach who doesn't like kids and who doesn't know how to play soccer. Apparently a lot of other fans must like him too because he seems to have a lot more parts this season. But I have also really grown to like Brendon's mom, who seems like one of the coolest moms ever. Even Brendon has a hard time finding fault with her in one episodes where he tries desperately to find any excuse he can to justify his desire to run away from home so he can live in Europe, where he feels artist are more appreciated.
This box set contains three one-sided DVD's, with all 13 episodes of season three. They come in the thin plastic DVD cases which all fit snuggly into a nicely decorated box with a funny description on the back. Like last season, the commentaries are included as part of the special features, and although I haven't heard the commentaries for this season yet, I finally get around to listing to last seasons, and it definiely wasn't a chore like some commentaries (can you say Spaceballs?). New to the special features of this release is A Featurette For People Who Don't Necessarily Like Home Movies, a radio interview with Hon Benjamin and Loren Bouchard, and a dumb little "music video" which is just like sills of a fan convention set to music. Though even without the special features, this set is worth having.
And now, for your enjoyment, the text on the back of the DVD case:
Home Movies is about a family, but Home Movies is not a family show. It’s got kids in it, but it is aimed squarely at adults. The series spotlights third grader Brendon Small, a young filmmaker who writes, acts, directs and "co-executive produces" his "groundbreaking early work" along with friends Melissa (age 8) and Jason (age 7). The show also features Coach McGuirk, a youth soccer coach who hates soccer and isn’t all that crazy about youths.
The third season of this half-hour cult-hit comedy towers as one of the greatest seasons in the history of television;. It includes the nearly flawless "Shore Leave" (which won an award at some festival), the fan favorite "Guitarmageddon," as well as the episodes "Storm Warning" and "Renaissance," which have some really funny parts.
Season Three represents an already great show truly hitting its stride. If you’re a fan of the show, then this season is a "must see." And if you’ve never seen Home Movies, this is a perfect place to start. Then work your way backwards.
Home Movies - Season Three is being released by Shout! Factory on DVD starting (RELEASED}.