Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)First up--Brenda Johnson has made me confess with her wily ways--the second season of "The Closer" is equally as good as the first. There are some plot developments that may season two unique though. First up, Brenda's mom (Francis McDormand)visits. Fritz moves in. Then movies out because Brenda's mom will be staying. As usual Brenda makes the bad guys talk whether it be the bizarre (the case of the cop and the psycho killer who mysterious killed each other at exactly the same time)or unexpected (a juror drops dead from cardiac arrest during a trial where the jury had been threatened).
I love this show with its mix of the quirky character of Johnson (who constantly fights the urge--not successfully I might add--to eat junk food)and her ability to figure out a crime. Unlike "Monk" this isn't focused more on the comedy elements but integrates them into a rich, suspenseful dramatic series. Sedgewick deserves to be nominated for an Emmy for her portrayal.
A fun and fascinating mystery ride, "The Closer" focuses on Deputy Chief of Police Brenda Leigh Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) is a fish out of water lured from Atlanta to L.A.by Assistant Police Chief Will Pope (J.K. Simmons J.J. Jameson from "Spider-Man" and "Spider-Man 2") lead an elite unite that tackles high profile murder cases with her unusual approach to solving crimes. Her Georgia accent immediately sets her apart from her colleagues. She's much savvier underneath her down home accent than many give her credit for allowing her, like Columbo to tackle crimes that others might not be able to solve. Like Columbo and Monk she's got her own quirks (an addiction to junk food, she shows up at a crime scenes with her sick cat--named Cat--in a paper back and her southern charm can't quite hide her abrasive personality). It's a marvelous TV show with a terrific supporting cast (Jon Tenney, Robert Gossett among others).
"The Closer" looks extremely good in this presentation with all 14 episodes (the finale is a two hour episode or two-parter however you want to look at it) episodes on four DVDs. The first season box states that the show is presented in full screen but we get the original letterboxed images as broadcast on TNT. "The Closer: Season One" isn't anamorphically enhanced which results in it being presented on my widescreen TV with bars everywhere (to the sides, on the top and bottom).
For the first season there are no featurettes (for example he superb set that Universal put out for "Monk" has a lot of background on the show)on the development of the series, how Kyra Sedgewick became involved in the show, interviews with the supporting cast or a glimpse into the creative process of the show. We get deleted scenes for the bulk of the episodes (they were clearly cut for time constraints) presented with the time code at the bottom of the images so clearly most were cut prior to the final assembly of the show.
The second season comes with a good featurette on the show and the season gag reel. The second season is anamorphically presented so it fills a widescreen TV without the black bars.
No commentary tracks which is disappointing but the price is right for the show and it's presented in thin packs making it easier to store the DVDs without taking up much room.
Well written, performed and directed "The Closer" looks solid in its DVD presentation but could be improved significantly for the second season. I'd suggest that Warner present the show anamorphically enhanced and include some featurettes or commentary tracks in addition to the deleted scenes. This top notch show one of the best of the season deserves a deluxe treatment but because it's on TNT and has a smaller audience it's unlikely we'll probably see either one of these improvements for future sets.
Click Here to see more reviews about: The Closer - The Complete First Two Seasons (2005)
Studio: Warner Home VideoRelease Date: 05/29/2007
Click here for more information about The Closer - The Complete First Two Seasons (2005)
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