Customer Reviews

The Mary Tyler Moore Show - The Complete First Season

5 star:		(137)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Mary Tyler Moore Show ran from 1970-1977 and was an instant classic. Mary Tyler Moore was absolutely charming and hysterical in her role as Mary Richards. This DVD set of the first season is a fabulous treat for fans of show. Plus, there's lots of extra features, like commentary and a behind the scenes look at the making of season one.

In this collection you will get the following episodes:

1. "Love Is All Around"- Thirty year old Mary Richards moves to Minneapolis and gets a job at WJM-TV, a small local station.

2. "Today I Am a Ma'am"- Mary and Rhoda commiserate about being single. Letting depression cloud their judgment, they invite two men over for dinner without knowing that one of them is married.

3. "Bess, You Is My Daughter Now"- Mary baby-sits Phyllis's daughter, Bess and decides that she wants Mary to be her new mom.

4. "Divorce Isn't Everything"- Mary and Rhoda discover a club that offers a discount rate on a trip to Europe. But there's a catch. It's a club for divorced people.

5. "Keep Your Guard Up"- Mary meets an ex-football player at the station. She thinks that he'd be perfect for the sportscaster position that's open. Think again.

6. "Support Your Local Mother"- Rhoda's mom, Ida, comes to visit her estranged daughter, but Rhoda doesn't want to see her.

7. "Toulouse-Lautrec Is One of My Favorite Artists"- Mary is smitten with a man she meets at the office (who was sitting when she met him) and agrees to go out on a date with him. After he stands up, Mary realizes he is "height-challenged."

8. "The Snow Must Go On"- Minneapolis is hit with a terrible snowstorm on the night that WJM is scheduled to provide election night coverage. The staff, with Rhoda volunteering on the toteboard, can't report the returns, so they have to fill airtime any way they can.

9. "Bob and Rhoda and Teddy and Mary"- It's the evening of the Teddy Awards and Mary is nominated for her first Teddy, but she's more concerned about Bob, an attractive guy who has eyes for her and who also happens to be Rhoda's date.

10. "Assistant Wanted, Female"- It's not enough that Phyllis bugs Mary at home. Now she gets hired as Mary's assistant at work. And for the gang at WJM, it's hate at first sight.

11. "1040 or Fight"- Mary goes out with an auditor from the IRS. His attraction to Mary complicates matters when he has to audit her taxes.

12. "Anchorman Overboard"- Phyllis wants Ted to speak at an organization where she's the program chairperson. But Ted's performance turns out to be a disaster.

13. "He's All Yours"- Lou asks Mary to look after Allen Stevens, a new WJM cameraman. Although Allen is younger than Mary, that doesn't stop him from flirting with her. Just when she's had enough, Mary discovers that Allen is Lou's nephew.

14. "Christmas and the Hard Luck Kid"- Mary tries to bring joy to her unhappy coworkers, who are stuck at the office on Christmas.

15. "Howard's Girl"- Mary begins dating her ex-boyfriend's brother, Paul, but she can't get away from his parents.

16. "Party Is Such Sweet Sorrow"- Mary accepts an offer she gets to work at another station, but has second thoughts after her farewell party, where she sees how much they care for her at WJM.

17. "Just a Lunch"- Mary's latest flame is a dashing foreign correspondent. He's handsome, charming and... married! But this doesn't keep Mary from seeing him.

18. "Second-Story Story"- Mary is burglarized two days in a row and she's so scared, that her friends take matters into their hands and try to capture the thief themselves.

19. "We Closed Minneapolis"- A play Murray's written is being produced and Ted is cast in the lead.

20. "Hi!"- Mary's in the hospital to have a tonsil removed, but she has to share a room with Mrs. Khune, a grumpy woman who's laid up with a broken leg and an ulcer.

21. "The Boss Isn't Coming for Dinner"- There's trouble in paradise, as Lou tells Mary that he's been having marital problems with his wife.

22. "A Friend in Deed"- Twinks, the new WJM receptionist, swears she met Mary at summer camp when they were kids, but Mary's too embarrassed to admit she doesn't remember her.

23. "Smokey the Bear Wants You"- Rhoda begins to think that the man she's been dating is Mr. Right. When she finds out the he's planning on becoming a park ranger, she passes on an opportunity to join him.

24. "The Forty-Five Year Old Man"- The newscast ratings are horrible, so Wild Jack Monroe, the station's owner, fires Lou. Guess who helps Mr. Grant get his job back?

This set is a beautiful time capsule of the entire first season of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," complete with several episode commentaries, an excellent documentary filled with interviews from both in front of and behind the camera participants, and on-air promos that I haven't seen since 1970...not to mention the marvelous first season rendition of the theme song, which to this day remains my favorite.

I wish that Fox would re-consider releasing subsequent volumes of the show, at a price close to what they've been asking for series such as "M*A*S*H." I can't help but feel that they would see a big increase in sales, and not simply because of a price reduction. "Mary Tyler Moore" is one of those rare series that actually improved in quality in later seasons...and now it looks as if we'll never be able to enjoy some of those wonderful later episodes on DVD, not to mention superb characters that were added during those later seasons, such as Sue Ann Nivens.

Fox, please reconsider and give it a try. The first season has some wonderfully memorable episodes and I'm grateful to have them on DVD--but the first season is not "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" at its peak.

This new DVD set is a perfect example of how to do TV DVDs correctly. The episodes look terrific: crystal clear, sharp and with bright, vibrant colors. A truly welcome change after some of the more washed out, fuzzy prints on VHS over the years. The menus are simple and each episode is broken down into several chapter stops for easy navigation to your favorite scene(s).

And the extras are truly wonderful. The entire 4th disc is extras, the centerpiece of which is a new, nearly 90-min documentary on how the show came to be and developed in its first season. All the players, both in front of, and behind, the cameras are here and the information is fascinating to both fans of MTM as well as TV productions in general. This is no flimsy excuse to show clips from the show, sandwiched between generic sound bites from the makers, but an honest-to-goodness feature-length documentary that imparts terrific behind-the-scenes info.

Also on the extras disc are clips from the Emmy Awards for the 1970-71 season, showing the acceptance speeches of MTM Show winners. (One very small quibble: would have loved to have seen the reading of the nominees for each award, not just the announcement of the winners.) There's also a quick and easy trivia quiz, made memorable by the fact that the questions are read by the cast and crew, which takes it up a notch from the usual trivia games, usually used just as filler. And there are 3 commentaries on various episodes. And there's terrific news on a little card inside the set that the Complete Season Two is scheduled to be released early next year!

If only all TV DVD sets were this well done...

I deleted my original review of this dvd set because I want to share the news from tvshowsondvd.com that season 2 is coming this summer! If you get yourself on their e-mail list, they will let you know by e-mail any information that comes out on this series. No specifics on exact date, price, or artwork, but keep on checking tvshowsondvd.com for further info. This is the best news the fans of this series have heard in years!!

Like many people, I was thrilled to hear that Fox was going to put out this set, but wondered exactly how well the final product would come off. After purchasing the set and watching a good portion of it I can certainly say that it met or exceeded all my expectations. The show itself, of course, is excellent, groundbreaking comedy with strong endearing characters and funny yet sophisticated writing.

But beyond that, Fox has done an excellent job in bringing this show to DVD. I am extremely picky when it comes to picture quality, and I'll have to say the film transfer is absolutely beautiful, with razor-sharp focus, rich color, as well as deep blacks and clear highlights. I have never seen this show look so good. Generally the condition of the film seems excellent with only minor pinhole spots and a little dust. It's hard to believe the film is in such good condition after 30 years of storage and use. The quality of the audio is not quite as good, but this seems to have more to do with the acoustics of the original sound stage and not with the mastering of the DVD.

The packaging is great, well designed and functional. There is a nice little booklet with all the expected information in it, as well as a nice note from Fox telling us we can expect the second season set to come out in March 2003.

There are some really nice extras, including a substantial and insightful doucmentary on the making of the show, rare Emmy Awards footage, as well as some CBS promo tags and a small photo gallery. There are a few episodes with commentaries from David Davis, Ed Asner, and others affiliated with the show, and these are quite good, giving the viewer a solid understanding of the production process as well as the show's concept and casting decisions that led to the hiring of the now-legendary actors. I only wish every episode had a commentary.

Overall, I cannot imagine anyone being disappointed with this DVD set. Even if you are not an avid fan of the show, you'll learn so much about the basics of good sitcom writing, pacing, acting, and prodcution, that it may be worth picking up this set just for that knowledge. The show's characters and style of humor really can grow on you. And if you already like the show, you'll love this set.

I really hope that Fox will next turn their attention to The Bob Newhart Show, which is another excellent sitcom from MTM Productions made only 2 years later, with many of the same writers, directors, and producers. The Bob Newhart Show deserves this same top-quality treatment they have given Mary Tyler Moore.

What more can I add that hasn't already been stated? Very simply, this show is OUTSTANDING! Clearly the vote--and there are many---is unanimous: WE WANT SEASON TWO---NOW!

I, too, was depending on Fox to make good on its claim to release the follow-up season. Surely the integrity of a company lies in its patrons being able to depend on the information they receive from it. Naturally, if this were an issue of financial loss I could understand. However, there is clearly a large demand for subsequent seasons.

I don't want to speculate on political issues here. Let's just conclude with a very simple lesson in economics:
great demand = great potential profit (especially when the supplier has a monopoly on the item, which in this case it does)...hmmm...so where's the supply??

GIVE US SEASON TWO!!

The problem with the "Best of Season One" DVD is that the majority--if not most--of the fans of the show have already bought the complete Season One DVD set. They won't need the "Best-Of" disk. So then, when the "Best-Of" disk doesn't do much business, Fox can say, "See, there's not much interest," and use it as an excuse not to release Season Two. A much better test would be a Best of Season TWO disk.

When you see the god-awful crud that's being released on DVD (Fear Factor?? Survivor??), you just know there's more going on in the business of these shows than appears on the surface. "WKRP in Cincinatti," which I believe has some of the same corporate relationships as MTM, has also not been released on DVD. It would be nice to know what the real problem is.

I absolutely *adore* THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW first season box set. WOW! The presentation and packaging is simply perfect. The episodes themselves look better than they have since they first aired on CBS. I makes me wish the rest of the seasons would be released quicker than every six months! (The second season is due in March 2003).

Assuming they go this route in terms of design and extras with every season in the future, this undoubtedly will be the most supreme television series collection on DVD EVER! This release is aready one against which all other classic series' packages will and should be judged. The fact that other classic series haven't received the same kind of treatment is a testament to just how beloved "MTM" is not only by fans, but the people who were involved with the show all those years. My only quibble is they used way too much music in the documentary and it was a little distracting. But that is so minor compared to all the joy that is elsewhere in this set.

By the way, listen to the French audio track for an instrumental version of "Love Is All Around!" This set makes me further proud to call THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW my favorite show of all time.

Nearly everything about this release is superb: picture quality, sound quality, format, and extras. What I cannot understand is why these episodes are EDITED!! The cuts are skilfully done, but are done nonetheless. In the closing credits, while the credits roll over scenes from the episode that has just been shown, there are scenes that do not appear in the episode as presented on these discs. Why are these cuts made? Why are the episodes not presented as they were originally aired?! I thought that this series would be presented in its original form, and not edited in the same manner that one sees on cable television. Can anybody answer the question as to why cuts are made? I fully expected unedited episodes, and I feel cheated!! WHY ARE THE EPISODES OF TELEVISION SERIES, AS RELEASED ON DVD, EDITED??!!!

I have had this DVD since it was first released and have, like everyone, waited for the release of the follow on seasons. For anyone who lived through the seventies Mary Tyler Moore was the show that you watched. I look at it now with nostalgia. It reminds me of my childhood when things were filled with hope and promise...we all had our hat in one form or another and were all waiting to throw it up in the air.I have watched the disgust and disbelief of customer who have been disappointed by Fox's refusal to release any further season.I am not surprised.Fox unlike MTM is not what you would call a classy network.Hell it makes WJM-TV look first class.They churn out trash and make shows that appeal to the publics lowest and basest instincts.Fox you have witheld my memories and witheld my friends from me...because after seven seasons thats what Mary,Rhoda, Lou and all the gang were.It seems incomprehensible to me that we are now seeing season two released of "The Dukes of Hazzard" & "Gilligans Island" and this series languishes in a vault ignored.From a Television history point of view alone this series deserves to be on disc....but I guess money will always truimph over what is deserving.At least I have my video tapes for however long they will last.Fox I give you the one finger salute.It is more than what you deserve but at least I should honour you for living up to and staying true to your reputation of quality.