Customer Reviews

Weeds: Season Six

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

After the rather low key Seasons 4 and 5 (great in their own right, but vastly different from Seasons 1, 2 and 3), Weeds seemed like it was heading for it's end. In all honesty, where could this series possibly go? Well, the answer awaits in the immensely rewarding 6th Season.

After the shocking events in the 5th Season's finale, Nancy and the gang (minus Celia, which is a blessing since the show didn't need her anymore), are off on the road. Sending the characters on the run was a risky but inspired move because it exhausts them dramatically, puts them in contact with some wacky people and locations (adding much of the humor missing from Season 5), adds a real sense of urgency and danger and keeps the pace brisk and engaging.

What works best about sending Nancy and Co on the lam is that it also lets the show backtrack it's history, letting the characters come to terms with what they have done over the years. It's in that self reflective nature that the show brings in a wholly unexpected emotional level. The finale here is not necessarily shocking in terms of plot, but shocking for what Nancy does emotionally, when you see it, you will never think she had it in her. Season Six of Weeds is decidedly different in almost every aspect, but it also brings all of the shows past seasons into a greater light.

Since we finally get to really see what is going on under the surface with Nancy, Andy, Silas, Shane and yes, even Doug, we begin to understand their past (before the show started), their actions during the series and then how they react during Season Six. With the writing in such top form, the acting is even better. Mary-Louise Parker is as riveting and unlikeable as ever as Nancy Botwin (though the frustration you feel with her during the season is specifically calculated and snaps into focus during the finale). Justin Kirk really takes the front seat as a father figure and leader, being the emotional ground for which the family stands. Hunter Parrish as Silas gives a haunting, aching performance showing how he is really questioning his role in the family and what he truly wants in life. Alexander Gould as Shane is as dark as can be, but we also get to see beyond that facade and into the soul of a tortured young boy. Kevin Nealon as Doug is not exactly needed but adds some nice comedic touches and the send off (for now at least) of his character is rather poignant. Season Six also has a fantastic array of guest stars including Linda Hamilton, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, a very memorable and funny Richard Dreyfuss and a slew of returning cast members from previous seasons (how these past characters are integrated into the story is very clever).

If you are a long time fan of the series, Season Six of Weeds will be vastly rewarding and emotional for you, it's a complex, decidedly different, and introspective season that rewards in spades. A great show that just keeps getting better.

This Season Six set contains the episodes:
- Thwack
- Felling and Swamping
- A Yippity Sippity
- Bliss
- Boomerang
- A Shoe for a Shoe
- Pinwheels and Whirligigs
- Gentle Puppies
- To Moscow, and Quickly
- Dear-Born Again
- Viking Pride
- Fran Tarkenton
- Theoretical Love Is Not Dead

Warning: contains mild spoilers.

Weeds first started out simply, pot-dealing soccer mom Nancy Botwin tries to make ends meet by introducing the herb in her suburb. However, as Nancy finds her way crawling up the drug-world grapevine, danger and comedy are ensured.

This season was one of the 'lesser' seasons, it did lack focus and seemed like a real road trip at times. The season begins to pick up once Nancy returns to her hometown, ready to flee the country to escape the Mexican Mafia, FBI and her husband who wants her head on a pike, Esteban (Demain Bichir), and his betrayed henchman, Guillermo (Guillermo Diaz).

From Seattle to Colorado and Michigan, we follow the Botwin's on an escape, living off the lam since Shane (Alexander Gould) bludgeoned Mexican VIP and queenpin, Pilar Zuazo (Kate Del Castillo) after she makes her intentions clear in season five's shocking finale.

I like to grade the series by episode for a full analysis of the season.

Episode 1: Thwack!

Fleeing Ren Mar during the aftermath proves to be difficult for Nancy & co. Andy cuts it off with Audra (special guest star Alanis Morissette) and Nancy and her family begin their life on the run. (B+)

Episode 2: Felling and Swamping

The Botwin's assume new identities and head north to hide from Esteban, now on hot pursuit of them. (B+)

Episode 3: A Yippity Sippity

Starting over in Seattle proves hard for the Botwin's as they try to manage their double lives. Silas (Hunter Parish), Nancy (Mary Louise Parker) and Andy (Justin Kirk) get jobs at a Space Needle hotel. Oh, and Shane steals a baby stroller for Stevie/Ahvi! (A-)

Episode 4: Bliss

Nancy gets back into dealing and makes two new friends, a pot-growing lesbian couple (guest starring Linda Hamilton and Sugar). Low on money, she gets a new idea, bubble hash. Nancy's mind just never stops. (A)

Episode 5: Boomerang

One of the best episodes of the series. It had a multi-flustercluck involving Latrice, a hotel maid who finds out Nancy's secret, and Shane gets some blowback from confining in housewives with no lives. Which you should never trust anyway. Seriously. (A+)

Episode 6: A Shoe for a Shoe

A somewhat disappointing conclusion to Shane being kidnapped by Cesar, but overall a strong episode. Ties everything up and feels kind of like a mid-season finale. (B+)

Episode 7: Pinwheels and Whirligigs

A rather plain, and in my opinion the worst episode of the series. Fluffy and light, it lacked the darkness that has been lingering around the Botwin's. Oh, and Doug (Kevin Nealon) officially is freed and with the Botwins. (C)

Episode 8: Gentle Puppies

Forging new identities, the Botwin's become the newest born-again's in Pioneer City 2010. Nancy makes a new friend, and ends up letting her sex drive ruin the Botwin's plans. (B)

Episode 9: To Moscow, and Quickly

Problems with Stevie make Nancy more self-conscious about her questionable decisions and parenting styles. Andy proposes they leave the country... and the plot begins to thicken. The FBI remains to keep an eye out for Nancy. (B+)

Episode 10: Dearborn-Again

Nancy reunites with her eccentric pedophile math teacher who has obsessed about her since she was 15, Mr. Shiff (Richard Dreyfuss) and Shane and Silas start to dig into how Nancy was as a kid. (B+)

Episode 11: Viking Pride

Silas comes to a revelation after learning Judah (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) might not be his real father. Andy creates a new drug, and the search for passports begins (A)

Episode 12: Fran Tarkenton

The crap starts to hit the fan for Nancy, as she no longer has anywhere to run. The whole family is ready to leave the country... but not without Nancy. (A)

Episode 13: Theoretical Love is Not Dead

In this twisty season finale, Nancy makes a decision to finally bring everything full circle. Gin Wigmore's "Hey Ho" plays in an unforgettable montage. Excellent finale. (A+)

Season 6 had some strong episodes, but overall lacked a focus. I like how they came full-circle with the final 4 episodes. Season 7 will begin in Summer of 2011.

Also, I couldn't help but miss Celia (Elizabeth Perkins) and her family (Allie Grant & Andy Midler) after they built her up last season to rival with Nancy.

Overall score: 87% B+

Rated: TV-MA; Strong sexual content, course language, adult situations, violence and mature content including drug references.

Weeds has certainly changed alot over the years. It started out with poor widow Nancy Botwin secretly dealing dime bags to her suburban neighbors, and then she started carrying on with a DEA agent, who she marries. She then begins to grow marijuana, and starts to sell her own strain. She's held at gunpoint, her DEA husband is murdered, and she begins to pay a debt to a drug dealer named U-Turn, who eventually dies. Her neighborhood of Agrestic (a high-class suburban neighborhood that she has pretty much dominated over the years) burns down in a wildfire which she inadvertently, sorta-kinda caused. She then moves with her family down to Ren-Mar where she begins trafficking drugs for the Mexican mafia. She falls in love with Esteban Reyes, a mayor of Tijuana. She discovers that her cover business is being used for human trafficking, so she squeals to the DEA, and the tunnel is shut down. People find out that she squealed, so she is almost killed, and then BAM - she's pregnant with Esteban's baby. So, she has the baby, gets married to him, and begins to settle down into her new life. Soon, she discovers that there's a woman named Pilar Zuazo who is Esteban's boss, who wants Nancy out of the picture. Tension between them ensues for quite some time, and then in the finale, Nancy's 13-year-old son Shane kills Pilar, knocking her in the head with a croquet mallet, leaving her to fall into a swimming pool, and bleed from the head, to death.

So, here we are, season six. Nancy and the family are on the lam again, and they stay on the lam through out the whole season, while Esteban and his crew are on their tail through out practically the whole thing. Like every season of Weeds, this one has a few slow-burning episodes in the middle of the season, that leads to an eventual spectacular finale, that makes you excited to see where it will go from here. Throughout the season, Nancy and her family settle in Seattle, each of them working minimum wage in a hotel. They then go to Nancy's hometown of Dearborn, Michigan. They impersonate religious fundamentalists, Nancy hooks up with the guy who played Zack Morris on Saved by the Bell, Silas has his long-overdue college experience, and the family makes some big plans.

One thing that I love about this season is that every character is brought into some kind of illumination. Each character realizes how crazy the things they've done over the years are, and what kind of person they become because of their actions. Especially Nancy, who has seriously tricked fate over the years, she (finally) takes responsibility for her actions, and realizes what kind of person her actions have made her. And, we (the audience) realizes that she has always been a wild card, making decisions that are risky and possibly self-destructive. I won't elaborate more, other than saying that the season ends with a selfless act that makes Nancy a much more likable character in the long run.

One thing that I really didn't like about this season, is that Elizabeth Perkins' character Celia isn't around anymore, when Kevin Nealon's Doug is still on the show, for what reason, I don't know. While Celia's story was getting lame over the years, they gave her a great cliffhanger in season five, which will probably never be resolved. And, at certain points in the season, the direction feels kind of aimless, like they don't know where to go with what they have. However, that proves to be untrue, as the season progresses.

Bring on season 7!

I'm torn over this season of "Weeds." Season 5 had an amazing cliffhanger, and this season definitely has its moments, but it just wasn't as good as years prior. Nancy, Andy, Silas, and Shane take the baby and run after Shane's, ahem, incident by the pool. The Botwins assume new identities and scrape by working odd jobs and selling hash as they traipse around the country, hiding from Esteban and his cronies. Although there are some truly hilarious moments, many of which include special guest star Richard Dreyfuss as Nancy's former lover/high school math teacher, I really, REALLY missed having Elizabeth Perkins (Celia) on the show this season. Also, the final few episodes were kind of out there. The whole Silas/Lars thing came out of nowhere, and the final few moments of the finale threw me for a loop and were not near as good as the last few finales have been. Still, I'll stay loyal to "Weeds" and look forward to seeing what next season will bring.

Let me start by saying that I used to loooove this show, that is before the writers of season 6 completely destroyed it with dreadful writing, abrupt character introductions/exits, and poorly developed storylines! This season was all over the place, never really took off, and lacked a solid plot driven storyline. As a matter of fact, the best episode of the season was the last, an episode in which I nearly missed due to the hollow, vacuous, and mindless nature of the rest. I mean seriously, being on the run and taking an unexpected road trip should have been easy for the writers to work with. They could have introduced the reporter storyline earlier and developed it throughout the season (would have been entertaining seeing Nancy/Natalie manipulate that situation to her advantage)or worked in Celia's character instead of Doug's; Doug's character is annoying at best, and Celia...well Celia's character has always been entertaining, nonetheless. Perhaps they could have, in some complete twist of Weeds like fate, come across Heylia James and/or Conrad. That would have been interesting and I can only imagine how that would have played out. Oh, and then the whole thing with Silas and Judah??? Seriously, give me a break. Keeping the above in mind, while considering the weakness of the previous TWO seasons(4&5), I can't believe this show hasn't been pulled yet. It's truly sad to see such a great show like Weeds go down in flames simply due to indigent, lazy, and idle minded writing. I'll still watch season 7, but only because I'm certain it will be its last. SO WITH THAT SAID,GOODBYE WEEDS: MAY YOU BE REMEMBERED FOR WHAT YOU ONCE WERE, AND NOT WHAT THOSE PISS ANT WRITERS AT SHOWTIME ALLOWED YOU TO BECOME!!!!

I'm a fan of Weeds and Mary Louise Parker .... but this show has run it's course! Not good!

LOVED SEASONS 1-3. HATED SEASONS 4-6. And Season 6 may be the worst season of all. The actors seem like they're sleeping walking through their roles, and who can blame them? The writing is absolutely pathetic this season. Season 6 has the Nancy & Family on the run and, boy, do they run. They never stop. Anytime the season starts to get even remotely interesting, like when they get hotel jobs in Seattle, boom, they're gone and on the run again. There's weird random graphic sex scenes with characters who have nothing to do with the story and which leads no where. In fact the whole season is pointless and really leads no where. No great new charaters introduced. No fun juicy dramtic new stories to really get into. Just the family on the run being chased by drug dealers and the FBI. Really??? That's the best you TV writers can do? An entire season of that??? Boring. Totally boring. You get an F.

DVD packaging in now just the cheap plastic cover with paper insert, all other seasons were the quality open up covers, much better

For better or worse, Showtime's hit series, "Weeds," has certainly changed over the years. As each episode twists and turns, the Botwin clan (led by the indispensable Mary Louise Parker) -- as well as the show -- somehow manages to adapt and evolve in ways that are truer to real life than the average drama, despite the extreme situations they often find themselves in. At this point, you really have to love and identify with the core characters to really enjoy the show. Sure, they may not be living in little boxes selling little baggies, but you can sure bet there is enough juice left in this dramatic-comedy to leave you drooling for the next season by the time this one wraps up in typical cliffhanger fashion.

True to form, season six of the show finds the family in yet another setting; this time the Botwins are on the run thanks to some misbehavior by the budding psychopath Shane (Alexander Gould) at the end of season five. With the engagement of Uncle Andy (Justin Kirk) dissolving, he decides to tag along, as per usual. Together they flee from Nancy's husband (Demián Bichir) and commence upon a road-trip that takes them through Seattle to the Midwest, where the family business turns to selling hash and the Botwins actually (gasp!) get jobs. One particularly amusing detour finds the clan blending in with a commune of fellow fugitives while Nancy gets a Zack Attack from Mark-Paul Gosselar and Andy seems to have found his blessed calling. The season wraps up with the family unearthing some major secrets in Michigan while reconnecting with an old friend (Richard Dreyfuss) and ultimately devising a plan to flee the country altogether for what a quaint paradise that seems inevitably out of reach.

Like seasons before, season six of "Weeds" is almost as addicting as the drugs its characters peddle. It'd be so easy to knock out all 13 episodes in one-sitting, and you can chalk that up to good writing and phenomenal performances by the cast. Although certain characters are left behind (most notably Celia Hodes, as portrayed by Elizabeth Perkins), the core group more than compensates. Parker is excellent as always playing the sometimes selfish and sometimes oblivious mother than you can't help but feel sorry for. Although most of the narrative is driven by the actions of Shane, it is big-brother Silas (Hunter Parrish) who is finally given a bit more depth and the show feels the stronger for it. Kevin Nealon returns as Doug, a wholly useless character in the scheme of things, but it's great to have him along for the ride and Nealon delivers solid chuckles throughout, as always. Other noteable appearances come from the likes of Linda Hamilton, Peter Stormare and Patrick Fischler.

Season six of "Weeds" is best appreciated with the knowledge that you can never go back. Agrestic was left for dead three seasons ago, and hoping for a return to form will only lead to disappointment. Rest assured, these 13 episodes will keep you on your toes while simultaneously beefing up some of the principal characters (yes, even Doug). If creator Jenji Kohan is to be believed and season seven truly is the last, then you can bet it'll go out with a bang and that many of the detractors of these last few seasons will miss it when it's gone.

I recently purchased the entire "Weeds" series currently available. I had seen it all in some capacity on Showtime, but in light of news about Season 7, I had to give it one long, season-to-season rewatch. Season 6 felt a little uneven plot-wise(creator Jenji Kohan all but admits this in an interview about the finale) but thanks to the well-crafted characters the show has amassed, you can pretty much watch the Botwins and Doug Wilson do anything.

The season was definitely one of taking stock in where the characters were after their crazy Mexican mishaps. Nancy's descent into the most selfish person ever continues to entertain. Andy, after falling out with his fiancé, is still earnest in having a meaningful life, and it of course can't happen with Nancy. Shane, the killer, gleefully takes on a faux-hardcore protector role, believing his headshot to be the beginning of a brand new him. In what is probably the most shockingly entertaining of them all, however, is Silas' growth and desire to break away from the insanity. I honestly couldn't stand the Botwin children during the Agrestic years, but burning the city down really grounded the two of them more than I would have expected. I walked away hoping Silas will get the normal, complacent life he longs for. Doug has lost everything, and is really only clinging to the Botwins as they're all that's truly left.

A notable missing link in this season is Celia Hodes, played by Elizabeth Perkins. She was a great character, and it seemed like they were setting up a real arc for her, but Kohan states it just wouldn't have been organic for her to follow Nancy across the country. I, dishearteningly, agree. As fun as Celia was, she didn't have anything to do in the fourth and fifth seasons, so the writers just tortured her.

The Botwins go on a road trip this year running away from Nancy's kingpin husband, Esteban Reyes. I really got the feeling what hurt this season was new writers. They're obviously being guided by Kohan and producers Roberto Benabib and Matt Salsberg, but the jokes dialed back their punches and the drama is more spelled out to us. Benabib says it himself in commentary on the sole episode he co-writes with Salsberg; they're digging for storylines. Little hints at a larger plot tie themselves together towards the end of the season, and they do an alright enough job at letting us know Nancy is not without her remorse, and you might find yourself confused at how you can still sympathize with her. Alas, we seem to be gearing up towards the end. I would say the only season this manages outrank is the first one.