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(More customer reviews)"The Show That Almost Wasn't."
That's the most surprising lesson learned about the nature of television production -- as told by the show's creator Amy Sherman-Palladino -- in the WB's stellar GILMORE GIRLS release: Ms. S-P had pitched a variety of programs for WB executives, and, when they asked for more, she made up an idea on the spot -- with no preparation or background detail -- which the executives took! Then, Ms. S-P had to go and create it.
GILMORE GIRLS arguably stands as a benchmark in television history. In some ways, the program is like SEINFELD: if you don't get it, you won't get it. In other ways, it's a high quality Hallmark Channel movie-of-the-week, currently stretching out beyond its fourth season and soon to be entering its fifth. Still, in more ways, there's absolutely nothing else like it on television.
GG is far more than just the story of Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter, Lorelai "Rory" Gilmore: it's the story of the fictional town known as Star's Hollow -- the dreamland for bed-n-breakfast businesses -- and the odd assortment of characters who happen to live, work, and breathe there. While the centerpiece is clearly the Gilmore family -- a contemporization of the BRADY BUNCH, if there could ever be such a thing -- the spin of the show is, to its benefit, the plethora of wonderfully imagined and uniquely quirky townsfolk who populate the secondary storylines.
And, yes, the acting is top notch. The direction is absolutely superb. The writing is, by far, some of the most deserving work being put up on the boob tube today.
Still, GG is on the WB, meaning that it will, more than likely, never find the kind of ratings the show deserves. Like STAR TREK, GILMORE will find its true financial potential in syndication and DVD releases ... much like this current release of the 21 1st season episodes.
To my delight, I'm just discovered these television characters. My wife has watched the show since the beginning, but I always dismissed it as a "chick flick," tuning it out to spend my time on other shows. However, she convinced me to give it a chance this past season (its fourth), and now -- here am I -- writing a review for Season 1 that we watched together virtually non-stop. Others here have raved about the quality of the writing -- the true lifeblood of the program -- and I wouldn't even attempt to do GILMORE a disservice in discussing it other than to add "every good thing that's been said here is absolutely not enough to sanctify how well, apparently, every episode is written."
Honestly, GILMORE is really that good.
Truth be told, the extras are surprisingly thin -- but of good quality -- on this 1st season release, especially considering the fact that the show is currently in production for the WB. Disc 6 includes a handful of deleted scenes; a mini-doc with some revealing insights from the show's creator, cast, and crew; and some scenes from various episodes edited together in a piece that tries to capture the 'essence' of what makes GILMORE GIRLS as remarkable a television achievement as it is. One would think that Warner Brothers would've offered more -- in-depth interviews with the series cast OR, minimally, an audio commentary or two -- but, sadly, that isn't the case. As a result, one could argue that the studio -- as Amy Sherman-Palladino points out in the scant 30 minute documentary -- has underestimated the intelligence of its audience, focusing only on the commercialism of the program and not feeding the fanbase brain.
The 6-disc set is presented in full screen format. The video quality is excellent. The sound quality is excellent (there are a handful of scenes that are hard to hear b/c of verbal pacing, not production issues). Overall, this is one great package only lessened by what they chose not to provide: audio commentaries.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Gilmore Girls: The Complete First Season (Digipack) (2000)
People often mistake Independence Inn's manager, headstrong single mom Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her equally willful teenage daughter, Rory (Alexis Bledel) for sisters. Lorelai and Rory cope with the same emotional ups and downs, including Lorelai's overbearing, old-money parents and the joys and frustrations of the male gender. But when Rory's attention turns from dreams of private school and Harvard to thoughts of boys and adolescent self-reliance, single mom Lorelai begins noticing more of her own rebellious youth-only 16 years ago-in Rory. This heartfelt, humorous drama appeals to young and old alike with its blend of traditional family issues and hip, contemporary attitude. Reacquaint yourselves with television's most appealing mother-daughter duo in this collectible six-disc DVD set, which contains all 21 episodes from the first season including the pilot episode.Gilmore Girls has been honored with an AFI Award and two Viewers for Quality Television Awards, and it was named New Program of the Year by the Television Critics Association. Series star Lauren Graham ("Townies," "NewsRadio," and "Bad Santa") was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series and received two consecutive nominations for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series from the Screen Actors Guild. Graham has also won two Family Television Awards. In addition, series star Alexis Bledel ("Tuck Everlasting") has won a Young Artist Award and a Family Television Award. The series, Gilmore Girls, won a Family Television Award for New Series and was named Best Family TV Drama Series by the Young Artist Awards, which also honored series star Keiko Agena in the supporting young actress category. Gilmore Girls is the first series to make it to air supported by the Family Friendly Forum's Script Development Fund. An initiative between some of the nation's top advertisers and The WB, the program is intended to offer a greater array of compelling family programming on network television. The strong, loving, mother-daughter relationship portrayed in Gilmore Girls reflects the growing reality of this new type of American family.
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Click here for more information about Gilmore Girls: The Complete First Season (Digipack) (2000)
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