Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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179 of 189 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Helen is the Andy I love:), April 12, 2005
**About the forced commercials on Disc One: On my DVD remote I merely pressed the >>I (next) button and skipped them one by one, it takes a couple of seconds but is able to be bypassed by my player. Hitting the MENU or FF won't do the trick though. Another easy way is if your DVD player has a "Last Memory" button; just before an episode ends or during the theme credits press Last Memory, and then turn the DVD player OFF. When you press "On" again, the player will resume at the end credits and from there you can select Menu:)**
This is when the series (almost) begins for me. I love the first season don't get me wrong (4 stars), but they seemed to try a bit too hard with the accents and the characters were just finding themselves, but I guess that's the way it's supposed to be. Then in Season 2 they ease the accents, the characters begin to form and all is almost there. This season has many more episodes I consider "classic" or "near classic" but we are not quite up to the Helen Crump "era" and to me THAT is the Andy I love.
Here's the Episode Guide for Season 2 PLUS mini review:
33. Opie and the Bully***
34. Barney's Replacement**** (near classic)
35. Andy and the Woman Speeder***
36. Mayberry Goes Bankrupt***
37. Barney on the Rebound**** (near classic)
38. Opie's Hobo Friend**** (near classic)
39. Crime-Free Mayberry**** (near classic)
40. The Perfect Female***** (classic)
41. Aunt Bee's Brief Encounter***.5
42. The Clubmen***** (classic)
43. The Pickle Story**** (near classic)
44. Sheriff Barney**** (near classic)
45. The Farmer Takes a Wife**
46. Keeper of the Flame**** (near classic)
47. Bailey's Bad Boy**** (near classic)
48. The Manicurist**
49. The Jinx**
50. Jailbreak***** (classic)
51. A Medal for Opie**** (near classic)
52. Barney and the Choir***** (classic)
53. Guest of Honor**
54. The Merchant of Mayberry****.5 (NEAR classic!)
55. Aunt Bee the Warden**** (near classic)
56. The County Nurse**** (near classic)
57. Andy and Barney in the Big City**** (near classic)
58. Wedding Bells for Aunt Bee***
59. Three's a Crowd***** (classic)
60. The Bookie Barber**.5
61. Andy on Trial**** (near classic)
62. Cousin Virgil***.5
63. Deputy Otis**** (near classic)
Solid, solid, solid. I found many of my favorite episodes here and with this series in general center around Barney, many but not all. In later seasons, Gomer and Goober came along to fill some of the spaces but early on most of the humor fell onto Don Knotts who amply filled this area. Only a handful of the episodes in Season Two were flat or were over-wrought like the Alan Hale "Farmer" ep. or the unquestionably unlikely "Guest of Honor" episode. Still, to say this is a must have is an understatement as it is so nice to see the TAGS (30-45 second conclusions) of so many of these episodes that were long ago cut to sell you more of what you didn't need, not to mention the packaging which once again is just perfect. I could have done without the commercials on Disc One, but Paramount is a business I guess and as far as extra's the promo "ads" are "interesting" but repetitive.
Just remember, when Season 3 hits is when this series hits full steam, so buckle up!! "That's CRUMP! C-R-U-M-P!"-Helen
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115 of 120 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"We were gluttons, gluttons, gluttons, glut--tons", April 19, 2005
The Andy Griffith Show, of course, is one of the greatest sitcoms ever made. While, I do not think most of the season 2 episodes are near their best, almost anything from this classic series (not including Mayberry RFD) is worth owning. Season 2 does offer Andy Griffith's favorite: The Pickle Story. Here is a brief summary of the 30+ episodes in this season:
Opie & the Bully: A tough kid keeps taking Opie's milk money. Andy helps Opie brave taking a punch to the eye with good humor (with a little patriotism thrown in for good measure). A little sugary.
Barney's Replacement: Barney thinks Andy is grooming anew man (Bob Rogers played by Mark Miller) to replace him as deputy.
Andy & the Woman Speeder: A pretty and charming big city lady (played by Jean Hagen) gets a speeding ticket and thinks she can outsmart the small town sheriff.
Mayberry Goes Bankrupt: The town people are shocked when they find out they owe the downtrodden resident with the eye-sore shack a ton of money.
Barney on the Rebound: A pretty young con artist and her husband try to swindle Barney in a breech of promise suit. Highlight: Barney giving the young, female stranger a police escort to the post office (just across the street) in front of a jealous Thelma Lou.
Opie's Hobo Friend: A ne'er-do-well vagrant played by Buddy Ebsen is a bad influence on Opie.
Crime-Free Mayberry: Andy and Barney are honored for achieving the lowest crime rate in the nation. Meanwhile, the Mayberry bank is being burgled.
The Perfect Female: Thelma Lou tries to set Andy up with her cousin-a champion skeet shooter.
Aunt Bee's Brief Encounter: Aunt Bee falls for a traveling handyman and old codger Henry Wheeler. Andy steps in before Aunt Bee gets hurt.
The Clubmen: Andy and Barney are guests at a meeting of the Esquire club, but only one of them is invited to join. One of the many cases where Andy does practically anything to spare his friend's feelings.
The Pickle Story: This episode is Andy Griffith's favorite. Aunt Bee is bent on beating Clara in a homemade pickle contest, but her family is afraid to tell her they taste like kerosene.
Sheriff Barney: Barney gets an offer to become the sheriff of Greendale, so Andy lets Barney be sheriff of Mayberry so he will get a taste of what it is like.
The Farmer Takes a Wife: Farmer Jeff Pruitt comes to town in search of a bride and fall for Thelma Lou (much to Barney's chagrin).
Keeper of the Flame: The meeting place of Opie's secret club burns down.
Bailey's Bad Boys: A spoiled, rich young man ends up in the Mayberry jail and expects his father to bail him out. He then sees Andy forcing Opie to stand on his own two feet and begins to question his sense of responsibility.
The Manicurist: A beautiful young lady (played by Barbara Eden) sets up a manicure booth in Floyd's barber shop and the wives of Mayberry are outraged when they see their husbands lined up to be customers.
The Jinx: After a series of mishaps, Henry Bennett gets a reputation in town as a jinx. The more Andy tries to dispel the rumor the deeper the hole gets. Eventually, Henry decides it would be best if left town altogether causing the townspeople to reconsider their unsympathetic attitude.
Jailbreak: The state police bring a rough prisoner to Mayberry who is soon broken out of jail by his girlfriend on Barney's watch.
A Medal for Opie: Opie is confident he will win a medal for a race. When he loses, Andy must teach him a lesson in sportsmanship.
Barney and the Choir: Barney can't sing a lick [but no one dares tell him]. Andy solves the problem by convincing Barney he will sing his solo in a super sensitive microphone that he blast his voice unless he sings below a whisper.
Guest of Honor: The folks of Mayberry pick the first out-of-state driver to be the guest of honor on Founder's Day. Of course, the guest turns out to be a convicted pick-pocket.
The Merchant of Mayberry: Andy and Barney help traveling salesman Bert Miller to set up a stand next to the local department store that is owned by the scrooge-like Ben Weaver.
Aunt Bee the Warden: The Mayberry jail is filled with moonshiners so Otis must serve his time at the Taylor's with a ruthless warden.
The County Nurse: Nurse Mary Simpson is trying to get all the farmers inoculated but the ring leader, Rafe Hollister, refuses. Andy then uses a little reverse psychology by praising Hollister as a martyr for the cause against protecting one's self from rusty saws.
Andy and Barney in the Big City: While staying in Raleigh, Barney believes he is witnessing a man casing the hotel. Of course, Barney tails a man that turns out to be the house detective.
Wedding Bells for Aunt Bee: Clara convinces Aunt Bee that Andy is not getting married because he does not want to leave her alone. Desperate for a suitor, Bee sets her sites on the unkempt dry cleaner Fred Goss. This episode marks one of the very few times Opie's mother is mentioned.
Three's a Crowd: One of the favorites. Andy explains to the ever-present Barney that he wants to be alone with new flame Mary. Barney, of course, concludes that Andy is planning to propose [how often did this happen in the series?] and organizes a party.
The Bookie Barber: A barber from Raleigh sets up shop in Floyd's shop. Andy becomes suspicious when he notices the new barber always serving the same three customers.
Andy on Trial: A reporter hired to dig up dirt on Andy poses as a college student and Barney, trying to impress her, spouts about how poorly run the sheriff's office is and how much better job he would do.
Cousin Virgil: Barney's cousin is a clutz. Barney tries to build Virgil's confidence by giving him tasks. When Virgil keeps failing, Barney gives up. Leave it to Andy to discover Virgil's true abilities.
Deputy Otis: Otis has been writing his brother and sister-in-law using courthouse stationery while serving his drunken weekends in the jail. When they decide to pay him a visit, Otis gets Andy and Barney to let him pose as a deputy.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
31 Episodes, And Not A Bad Apple In The Bunch! (A Few Rancid Pickles -- But No Bad Apples!), May 30, 2005
"The Pickle Story", "Keeper Of The Flame", "Barney's Replacement", "Crime-Free Mayberry", "Barney And The Choir", "The Jinx", "Aunt Bee, The Warden", and "Andy On Trial" are just a few of the standout episodes featured in this great 5-Disc DVD collection of "The Andy Griffith Show: The Complete Second Season".
This second year of "T.A.G.S." is really, really good. In addition to the episodes I mentioned above, there's also "The Manicurist", which is also one of my favorites. It features future "I Dream Of Jeannie" star Barbara Eden guest-starring as manicurist "Ellen Brown", who inadvertently stirs up a hornet's nest in Mayberry by just being her sweet (and ultra-fetching) self, causing a tad bit of jealousy among the wives of the barber shop-lounging men of Mayberry, who can't seem to take their eyes off of Ellen's obvious ... er ... curves. :-)
That episode also has Andy's terrific dialogue as he talks to the lovely fingernail-trimmer -- "Nature has been good to you, Ellen. I mean real, real, REAL good! I can't remember when I've seen nature spend so much time on any ONE person". (LOL!)
Luckily, the CBS censors weren't being too picky that week. Otherwise, that finely-tuned, roundabout sexual innuendo regarding Miss Brown's (Eden's) curvaceous shape just might not have been allowed to go over the early-'60s airwaves. :-)
Another very pleasing Season-Two 'Andy' entry is the episode called "Wedding Bells For Aunt Bee", which is one of the few tear-jerkers in the whole eight years the show was on the air. Aunt Bee becomes convinced she's hampering Andy's efforts to re-marry, so she decides she's going to marry the local dry cleaner (Fred Goss) in order to get out of Andy's hair.
"Wedding Bells" offers up some fine acting by Frances Bavier ("Aunt Bee"), and yields one of the most truly heartfelt and tender moments of any "TAGS" episode (when Andy finally catches on and thwarts Aunt Bee's plan).
Like the excellent first-season set, Paramount Studios has again hit a home run with this second-year Andy Griffith DVD boxed set. The video quality is very good, with each of these 31 black-and-white episodes (which were shot on "film" and not "videotape") coming through crisp, clean, and clear. Just beautiful. Or, as Andy Taylor might say -- "These shows look goooo-oooood!"
Video is the standard TV ratio (1.33:1), of course, just as initially shown on network TV back in 1961 and 1962. Audio sounds just fine through the Dolby Digital soundtracks used here (in 2.0 Mono; English only).
Unlike the first-season "T.A.G.S." set from Paramount, this Season #2 collection does contain some "Bonus" features -- all in the form of "Original Sponsor Spots" (i.e.: original commercial advertisements featuring the show's cast members).
And you might be surprised (pleasantly so), as I was, when you find out that nearly every one of these second-season episodes contains a different, original commercial ad (30 of the 31 shows have an ad included)! Very nice bonus indeed -- especially when considering the fact that Season 1 had no supplemental features at all.
Holy Mackerel! I hadn't even realized until watching these Digital Discs that Andy & Company actually filmed a totally-new and different commercial for the sponsor EVERY single week (at least for this second season of the series at any rate)! Can you imagine that?! I'll just be flat dogged!! :-)
None of these commercial ads have been "integrated" into the episodes themselves, however. To view them, you must select "Original Sponsor Spots" from the Main Menu on each of the five DVDs. There is, however, a "Play All" feature available for the Sponsor Spots; so you can watch all of them back-to-back if desired (there are five, six, or seven ads per disc, with each of them running approximately one minute). So, when you add 'em all up, there's approximately a full half-hour of bonus material on these discs! Not bad at all.
Products being pitched by Andy, Opie, Barney, and Aunt Bee include: "Sanka" coffee and various "Post" brand breakfast cereals ("They're goooooood!"). These advertisements are also "linked" to that episode's story line, which adds an extra level of entertainment value into these "Sponsor Spots".
These commercial spots also exhibit very good video quality too (pert-near as good as the episodes themselves, if not just exactly as good). There was obviously the same clean-up and/or restoration effort undertaken for these thirty commercial spots as was done for the full-length "Andy" episodes. Audio for all these sponsor ads is in Dolby Digital 2-Channel Mono.
Andy Griffith (as "Andy Taylor" in these ads) was a very good "pitch man" for the products he was endorsing. He makes me want to go and buy some Sanka coffee right now ("It's 97% caffeine-free, and you can drink as much as you want, any TIME you want!"). These are some of the best-written "cast member" sponsor plugs you're likely to ever run across. Really fun stuff here!
I applaud Paramount Home Video's TV-On-DVD division for electing to include a lot of these fun-to-see old-time CBS-TV commercials in this DVD set.
There are some other "ads" (of sorts) included on Disc 1 of this set -- those being: six different "Trailers" for other Paramount TV-On-DVD products (total run time of about 6 minutes; 6:10 to be exact). Only the first disc contains these DVD ads. I'm not thrilled about the fact that the "Menu" buttons on the DVD Player's remote control have been 'locked-out' during the playing of these trailers (which start up automatically when you load up Disc #1).
However, these trailers/ads CAN be very easily bypassed -- you're NOT "forced" to watch these six ads. To skip past them, press "Skip"/"Chapter Advance" (which is a remote button that has not, thankfully, been "locked" out) multiple times consecutively (six times precisely) to get to the Main Menu screen. A bit of a pain in the rump, true. But six quick keystrokes are better than being forced to watch the 6 minutes of DVD ads.
Other items, however, that appear when you first load up any of these discs -- e.g.: the Paramount logo screen and the proverbial FBI/piracy "warning" -- are NOT capable of being skipped quickly no matter what remote buttons you choose. So everyone is forced to wait until those things go by at their own speed. But those two things go by pretty fast; but it'd be nice if those, too, were skippable. But they aren't on this set.
I'm not wild about these DVD Trailers being included on Disc 1 (and the "Menu" button most certainly shouldn't have been disabled, IMO) -- but overall this is a very minor complaint, because this Andy Griffith set is fantastic in every (other) way.
BTW -- In case you're interested, the six TV DVDs being plugged on Disc 1 are: "The Brady Bunch", "Happy Days", "Laverne & Shirley", "Mork & Mindy", "MacGyver", and "Charmed".
To avoid the wrath of customers who hate these DVD ads more than Andy dislikes Aunt Bee's wretched pickles, my suggestion to Paramount for future "T.A.G.S." releases would be to place these DVD trailers in a separate section that can be accessed from the Main Menu (which is exactly how Columbia/Sony has presented ads of this nature on its DVDs). That way, the consumer can have the "choice" of viewing them (or not), rather than having the ads part of the automatic "load-up" each time you pop the disc into the DVD Player.
Here are some more of the particulars concerning this DVD boxed set..............
>> Number of Discs -- 5; All Single-Sided discs.
>> Episodes per disc -- Seven episodes on disc 1; Six episodes on discs 2-5. .... Episodes are laid out in "Airdate" order.
>> "Play All Episodes" option? -- Yes.
>> Chapter Stops included for each episode? -- Yes; 5 chapters per program.
>> Are the shows uncut/unedited? -- Yes; Running time per episode is between 25 and 26 minutes. All originally-aired "Epilogues" are intact on the DVDs. And the original "Fishin' Hole" whistling theme song is intact as well -- for both the opening and closing credits.
>> Menus -- Non-animated; No music; Main Menu doubles as the 'Episode Choice' Menu; A different background picture for all five discs (although why in the world a picture of "Deputy Warren Ferguson", who didn't join the cast until years later, has been used for the Disc-Three Menu is a bit of a mystery); Very user-friendly menu design, with quick response time when selecting from the menus; A "Sheriff's Badge" icon is used to navigate the various menu options.
>> Packaging -- The five DVDs are packaged inside three slim-style "ThinPak" plastic cases (two "double-disc" slim cases, plus one single-disc slim case). The three plastic cases then slide into a sturdy cardboard outer "slipcase" box.
This boxed set's physical "footprint" is really a space-saver. Those DVD collectors who don't like bulky TV-On-DVD collections should admire the dimensions of this set. It's just seven-eighths of an inch thick (approx.)!
I'm not real wild about the "Andy/Aunt Bee" (colorized) cover art used by Paramount for this DVD package. I think a better-looking front-cover image (or a series of composite pics) could have been used here. But, you can't have everything I guess. (I also have my doubts as to whether this cover photo of Andy is from the second season. I think it might be from a later season. But this cover-art matter is trivial and of very little overall significance.)
But, all things considered, I admire the look and design of this set's packaging a great deal. Each of the three slim cases features unique artwork, with Case #1 (which has Discs 1 and 2)...
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DVD ~ Andy Griffith
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