Customer Reviews

7th Heaven - The Complete Second Season

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The WB's ultimate secret ratings weapon has always been the little, unassuming family drama that chronicles the lives and all the things that come with it, in the big family circle of the Camden clan. Dad Eric(Stephen Collins), is a minister, and mom Annie(Catherine Hicks) is a super mom/housewife, and they have 5 kids, Matt, Mary, Lucy, Simon, and little Ruthie. Season 1 showcased that well meaning family shows are still appreciated and needed, and so season 2 keeps up the sweet momentum that season 1 started. I am used to writing for shows with seasonal arcs, but 7th Heaven has never really had seasonal story arcs, although they may have a story that could carry over for some episodes. The premiere, "Don't Take My Love Away", is a nice opener, and carries over a few things from last season's ender, like Lucy with Jimmy Moon, and the aftermath of Mary's surgery. Season 2 doesn't stop short of season 1's message episodes. Season 2 will deal with issues like IRS problems in "Red Tape", The importance of hearing those special words in "I Love You", or the opposite, hearing those fearful words in "I Hate You", a powerful episode that also deals with Simon learning of a neighbor's time in a concentration camp. The unfair and hurtful tags that some people get pigeonholed in are examined in "Like A Harlot", where Matt takes a girl with a less than stellar reputation to the prom. The show, like in it's debut season, continues to show that they, and the writers, have a strong hold on young kids, to pre-teens, to teenagers, and things that can come with it. The young actors who portray the kids seem like real kids, although not all of them are up to par with their acting. Some get better over the course of the seasons. The solid foundations that the show is built on and continued to be carry on thru to the present seasons, are Stephen Collins and Catherine Hicks, as Eric and Annie. They are old veteran pros who give the show it's validation in the acting department. Some other powerful and strong moments this season has to offer is "Rush To Judgement", which deals with sexual harrasment from a teacher. Who gets harrassed?. Just watch. The best episode of the season is "Who Knew", the show's first big "drug" episode, and still the best. The moments with Eric and Matt fighting are strong, and is just one highlight from a great episode. The danger of gangs and being in one hits close to home in "Girls Just Want To Have Fun", and a storyline about a friend's death really hits close to home for Bevery Mitchell(Lucy), in the outstanding "Nothing Endures But Change", which was based on a real life experience for her. She is great in this episode. The two part finale, "Boyfriends" and "...And Girlfriends" are two fun and frenetic episodes with some surprising and life changing events. It's best finale to date. One thing that is odd is the second ep, "See You In September", and the first day of school. It would fit more as a premiere, and the title doesn't make sense since it is September. It would of made more sense as the title for a season finale. Oh well. Once the show got into it's 7th season and onward, the writing fell flat and became 'off', but in these priceless early seasons(up to season 6), the show and it's episodes and plot lines, message filled or not, are heavenly indeed. The show is not preachy, it just tells things how they are and the rest of it is up to you. Why do I like such a show as 7th Heaven?. It's nice, it's sweet, it's homey. It's great comfort food to know that the Camden family are there every Monday night, and are now on DVD for fans to return home time and time again.

After watching this show stand firm and successful on the air for nearly 10 solid years, it is absolutely refreshing to go back to these early seasons. Those who have been keeping up with the show know where all the characters stand and what the Camden kids have grown to become, and as much as I have enjoyed the series' 10-year run in general, my favorite thing is returning to happier times with the early years, where Matt was a teenage searching for his role in life, Mary was a driven young lady with basketball serving a very valid identity for her, Lucy was an emotional 13-year-old trying desperately to be confident, Simon was a sweet and inquisitive preteen with the whole world at his feet, Ruthie was just an adorable little girl, and Eric and Annie were young, vibrant, affectionate parents. Since then, the show's message of faith and love has held up well, but everyone's roles have changed and the family has spread out. In addition, numerous outside characters have been woven into the plot, taking precedence over some of the core Camdens that added so much charm to 7th Heaven in its early days.

A lot of noteworthy episodes represent the freshness of 7th Heaven's second season, which aired way back in 1997. Matt's sudden involvement with drugs prompts Annie to reveal a dirty secret from her past (and let's not forget that Stephen Collins' performance in this episode is arguably one of his very, very best in the entire series). Mary's romance with teen dad Wilson heats up and prompts a shocking development in the season finale. Sweet and insecure Lucy continues her struggle to be popular and have a relationship (Jimmy Moon, anyone??) and learns a tough lesson in immortality through the tragic death of a classmate. Simon discovers a thing or two about the chilling reality of the Holocaust (and today, that episode remains one of my personal favorites), and in-between starting first grade and getting trouble for wearing a backwards hat on the first day, Ruthie gets an early dose on the impact that cruel words have on people (any mother who has ever had their precious baby say "I hate you!" to them, and any child who remembers saying this to their own parents, will most likely find this episode very touching). Then, of course, there's Eric and Annie, who maintain a healthy and loving relationship amid the craziness of raising five kids. Eric continues to counsel and support many community members (the one with the teenage girl in the gang is particularly effective), and in the season finale the lovebird Camden couple get the deligtful news that their family will be growing with a brand new addition (or should I say two new additions?)

All in all, if you are an avid 7th Heaven fan who, to this day, still tunes in every Monday night to watch the show's newest episodes (die-hard fans will be pleased to know that an 11th season has just been confirmed for 2006-2007!) I strongly recommend you buy the first two seasons on DVD and enjoy reliving the youthful innocence that the show began with ten years ago. I sometimes have a hard time believing that I was in fifth grade when this show began, and I have been tuning in since pretty much the very beginning. I think a lot of people will be shocked to look back on how many years they've been enjoying 7th Heaven and witnessing a true keeper of a series that, with a historical 11th season on the way, beats out previous long-running classics like "The Waltons" and Michael Landon's "Little House on the Prairie." How's that for success? (Keep in mind also that all three of these phenomenally popular shows all share one major premise: the story of a large, tight-knit, Christian family that goes to Church every Sunday and is always striving to help others. Maybe these themes aren't as ignored by the public as some may think.)

As all die-hard fans know, 7th Heaven made history by filming 10 solid seasons and has now defied all odds by introducing a Season 11 to the Fall 2006 lineup. Everyone has their own opinion about this, and I personally feel that their stubbornness in letting it bow out with grace has harmed the initial charm and freshness of it all, and even when the show does end they will almost definitely bring a spinoff or two into the fold. 7th Heaven is a lighthearted mirror of innocence and will always be a series about a loving family with a faith-filled core, but sometimes the sign of a true class act is one that will bid farewell before the public gets a chance to grow tired of them (look at shows like CBS's "Everybody Loves Raymond" for a good example of that dignity).

The release of Seasons 3 and beyond have not been announced since Season 2 came out over a year ago. Originally, it looked as though sales were going great and they were planning to get all the seasons out on DVD in a timely manner, but since then it appears that sales must not be high enough. Hopefully, once the series wraps up in May with a good even 10 seasons, people may be more inclined to start their DVD collections. Seasons 3-5 were really groundbreaking, as the family began changing and Mary started undergoing her problems after an immature team prank barely afforded her the opportunity to graduate high school and destroyed her chance to go to college on a scholarship. That, in my opinion, was the most well-written and dramatic part of the show--truly its peak. I am very hopeful that we will soon get the entire series on DVD, but until then, just keep buying the first 2 sets and pray that they go ahead with future releases!

7TH HEAVEN, the crown jewel of the WB Network for a whopping ten seasons, is a wonderful and literate family TV drama. We live these flawed and realistic characters; the writing, mostly by Sue Tenney and creator Brenda Hampton, is truthful and thoughful and free of profanity. The entire cast is magnificent. Only a too lenient TVG rating on every episode of a show this mature and adult seems ludicrous. I'd give it a TVPG or even TV14 for realistic, mature themes.

So why are we only up to season two on the DVD boxed sets? Let's get some action going with production of more 7TH HEAVEN seasons on DVD! There are seven full seasons to bring out!

This is one of my favorite shows on the WB network so I have just added this to my library of DVD's. Looking forward to owning the third season.

Okay, so that no one gets confused the only reason why this hasn't been given five stars is because it hasn't been released yet and so I haven't seen it and can't say it's going to be perfect for sure. But having seen lots of "7th Heaven" I think it will be.

The Camdens are a close-knit family with five kids (later seven), a stay-at-hom mom, a pastor dad, and an adorable white dog named Happy. The children range in ages from eighteen to six, and have very vibrant personalities. Their names are Matt, Mary, Lucy, Simon and Ruthie in descending order of ages.

This show was produced by Aaron Spelling and created by Brenda Hampton. It has survived nine seasons of marriages, births and deaths. There are episodes when I laugh like crazy and others when I want to cry.

I will admit, "7th Heaven" is moral crazy, but it's something this immoral country needs nowadays. It discusses everything from drugs to teen pregnancies. Sometimes the episodes don't even have a moral like the long-awaited January 24th show when Lucy Camden-Kinkirk finally had her baby girl. The only moral we learned was don't go into labor when the elevator isn't working and don't buy your wife a house without her knowing anything about it.

this has been a good series and I'm looking forward to more in the future on DVD

This is a terrific show. In a world where you struggle to tell a realistic family story within the parameters set by a television network, this show hits the mark. The second season is the 1997-1998 television season. The show is currently filming the TENTH season. Each season you see each Camden kid grow and evolve plus you get insight into the relationship between Reverend Eric and his wife Annie. It is a show you can watch no matter what age group. I'm 29 and I watch it with my mother and I purchase the dvd's to save for my kids. It is especially great for kids who have trouble finding a tv "kid" to parallel to. With 5 Camden kids, you can find one that your child could relate to.

This TV series is so much fun to watch in a concentrated way! It is great fun to watch the characters develop as well as notice the repeating themes that one might not pick up on a weekley basis. As a good wholesome show, I'm sure Season three will be a big seller.

Tell the distributers to get cracking!

Brenda Hampton has such a creative mind! I am going crazy waiting for season 3. The show couldn't get any better and I know that the show has something up thier sleeve. I am so excited about season 10 and this show highly deserves this rate.

This show is all I watch! The actors and actreses are the best! I exspecilly like Lucy "Beverly Mitchell." The thing about this show is they make it have the problems of every day life.From drugs to boyfriends. It is so real I can picture myself being in the show or having the same problems.i went through season one and two in two days it was so good!i cant wait for season three. I have already put money aside to by it and you should too. I hope this review helped.