Amazon.com

When Ally McBeal premiered on the Fox network in 1997, the series was already riding high on critical praise, with its upscale mix of savvy humor and hot-topic legal drama. Created, produced, and written entirely by the amazingly prolific David E. Kelley, the show immediately found an appreciative audience of women drawn to the title character's frank perspectives on dating, sex, and career objectives, and men lured by a cast full of attractive, outspoken women with vibrant personalities and flattering wardrobes. (If you think that's a sexist observation, you haven't tuned in to the show's brilliant balance of male chauvinism, feminist attitude, and hilariously turbulent office politics.)

This two-disc compilation of episodes from the show's first season is aptly titled, because Ally McBeal--a Boston lawyer played by Calista Flockhart--is defined by her seemingly perpetual singlehood, her sexual and emotional yearnings, her professional passions, and--by one of Kelley's creative masterstrokes--her flights of imagination (often visualized via amusing computer-generated effects) that give the series a constant, unpredictable edge of humor and emotional depth.

These well-chosen episodes offer a comprehensive summary of the first season's major developments, including the emotional history shared by Ally and her now-married colleague Billy (Gil Bellows); the notorious "dancing baby" (in "Cro-Magnon") symbolizing the insistent ticking of Ally's biological clock; the amiable quirks of John "the Biscuit" Cage (Peter MacNicol); and the dubious pearls of wisdom known as "Fishisms." Here we witness the sublime chemistry of the ensemble cast, and each member is given ample time in the spotlight. Regular guest star Dyan Cannon is strongly featured in "Silver Bells," prior to the second-season addition of Nelle (Portia DeRossi) and Ling (Lucy Liu). That leaves plenty of room to establish Ally McBeal as the lively focus of the series--confused, opinionated, sexy, neurotic, frustrated, ecstatic, intelligent, emotional... and never, ever boring. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (58)

Do you want every bit of Ally? Come to the UK!!!
Ally McBeal is an American TV show so I do not understand why Americans have only been given this small bundle of episodes when over in my home country England we have ALL the seasons available with special features!

For you hardcore Ally fans I'll give you some handy advice. Save up for a multi-region dvd player or a computer that plays dvds. Go on over to amazon.co.uk and purchase the season box sets!

Good luck!!!

UPSET!
I love the show Ally Mcbeal, and I am upset that there is only one season released here in the US! I ordered three seasons from the UK website only to get them in the mail and find out that they are not compatible with the systems of the U.S. so either way I am still with out any of the episodes!It cost me $32.00 to send it back to the U.K., and I'm not even sure amazon.uk will refund the cost of the sets! So I am out of over $100.00 trying to buy the series of this wonderful show. I am upset at the entire situation!

What an insult!!
While I might be inclined to believe that the seris was a cult fav, it still was extremely popular. This DVD release is an insult to all the faithful followers and just a tease to those who are unfamiliar with the ironic yet hilarious humor. There is a bit of Ally in all of us. Does Fox even know how frustrating it is to know that Ally is available in just about every country but the U.S.? I had to buy season one off a jerk on ebay and it was burnt and it sucked! I did get season four from a fabulous person in another country. Expensive song rights or not, give your loyal fans what they deserve and make it good with deleted scenes and lots of special features!!!!

ally mcbeal boxed set PLEASE
i am a fan of ally mcbeal and would love to be able to buy the entire series of episodes on dvd. i see sex and the city, friends, buffy, etc...there are so many people that love ally mcbeal, i would LOVE to see this set put out.
becky

Where's the rest of the seasons???
I was planning on buying this cd as a gift for an Ally Mcbeal fan but after reading the reviews I changed my mind! This show was great, I cannot believe the entire collection is not out on DVD, I'm going on amazon.co.uk to see what I find? ... Read more

Amazon.com

For a while, Designing Women captured some of the spirit of Hollywood's silkiest and smartest, Golden Age sophistication. Debuting in the fall of 1986, this half-hour sitcom--about four Atlanta belles who either owned or worked for an upscale interior design firm--seamlessly blended an understated glamour with razor-sharp dialogue, polished Southern grace, and a ripened female perspective--a sort of perfumed but unequivocal feminism for college-educated women over 30. The core cast of stage and film veterans--Delta Burke, Dixie Carter, Annie Potts, and Jean Smart--was unusually strong, and their characters' problems and conflicts were unique to adulthood rather than the protracted adolescence common among today's comedies. The five episodes on this disc represent some of the show's strongest material, including season two's "Killing All the Right People," which--for its time--was bold in introducing a character dying of AIDS complications. Also quite witty is "Reservations for Eight," in which the Georgia quartet and their lovers bicker over gender stereotypes. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (27)

Four Southern Belles Sitting on a Veranda
From 1986 to 1993, Desiging Women aired weekly and caught the attention of millions of viewers. Now the series can be seen on Lifetime. But what better than to own a piece of one of televisions' funniest comedies!?! The original cast of Designing Women were one of televisions best combinations of their time. To be the first release for Designing Women...This one has to be a smart one. It is a very clever way to show everyone who wants a little taste of the series just what Designing Women is all about without paying the big bucks for a complete season. This Show, by far, has touched on many topics that have shown a different look at the silly and the sad times of our lives. From Mary Jo's desire to get bigger breasts...to dealing a friend who is H.I.V. positive...to dealing with the coping of weigh gain, the girls of Sugar Bakers' have been through it all. Although "all" of my favorites aren't included on this DVD (simply because it would be hard to put a low enough price on a "top 25" dvd) this DVD is one that fans of Desiging Women will cherish. I recommend to anyone who is just wanting a good laugh and to set back and see just how funny life can be...GET THIS DVD!!!

The Rest Of The Episodes on DVD Please!
When I was 21 Designing Women first aired on TV and I thought it was a very clever show with witty dialogue and interesting characters, Charlene, Julia, Suzanne, Mary Jo, Anthony and Bernice. I'm glad the show is on DVD but it only seems to be one DVD and it's just a best of DVD, I think the whole show should be on DVD in season sets. I have a lot of favorite episodes from this show but two of my favorites are the episoodes with Dub Taylor as Daddy Jones, the first one where they go to a cabin in the woods and go to the local bar and meet Daddy Jones and his crazy sons and they make the ladies dance with them to The Charlie Rich song Behind Closed Doors and Mary Jo gets a little tipsy and starts making fun of them thus making them pretty mad and I like the one where Daddy Jones shows up at Julia's place during a hurricane and hits it off with Bernice and gets the guy who played Les on WKRP drunk and he winds up running around the house in the underwear acting like he's a chippendale dancer, I would definitely love to have those episodes on DVD!

Love it! Want all episodes on DVD, as well as Bloopers!
I just found out this DVD is available and will run out and get it tomorrow! I don't have to see it to know it's wonderful. This is truly one of the classic comedic TV shows of all time.

I'm sure I speak for all fans when I say that I want every last episode on DVD, as well as a bloopers DVD!

I WANTED MORE FROM THIS DVD
I AM SPOILED! I LOVE MY DVD'S THAT HAVE EXTRAS IN THEM! TAKE "FRIENDS" EVERY EPISODE HAS SOMETHING NEVER BROADCAST ON TV! I AM HAPPY THAT THIS DVD IS OUT THERE BUT I WOULD OF LIKE TO HAVE SEEN INTRODUCTIONS BY THE CAST AND BY LINDA BLOODSWORTH THOMASON OR PLEASE LADIES AN AUDIO COMENTARY! IN 1990 I WAS AT THE MUSEUM OF BROADCASTING AND THEY SHOWED A 80 MINUTE REEL OF HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE SHOW ( NOW EDITED DOWN TO 43 MINUTES FOR TV BROADCAST) THIS WOULD MAKE A GREAT EDITION TO ANY FUTURE DVD RELEASES. THE 5 EPISODES ON THIS DVD ARE SOME OF THE BEST BUT NEXT TIME GIVE ME A SEASON! THE SHOW IS A CLASSIC AND TV NEEDS SHOWS LIKE THIS AGAIN!
THE SHOW HAD AN OPINION AND WAS NEVER AFRAID TO GIVE IT! THE SHOW STILL HOLDS UP TODAY! WILL YOU EVER BE ABLE TO SAY THE SAME ABOUT "BECKER" OR "KING OF QUEENS" OR "YES DEAR" I DON'T THINK SO

One of the Best Comedy Ever
The best of Designing Women on DVD was a terrific buy. This show is a clasic tv show that was truely hilarious then and even now. I can remember watching this show and loving it in the 80's when I was a little girl. This show like the Golden Girls deserves to be on DVD, not just as the best of but as a box set by season. Delta Burke made this show as well as Meshach Taylor. All the ladies were wonderful but they're characters are what I believe made the show so popular. What would it be without Dixie Carter's getting fired up on a subject as well, or Annie Potts drinking a few drinks and getting macho talking. Jean Smart and all her beau's that never seemed to work out except her husband Bill and all her crazy thoughts. These ladies worked and clicked well together. This is Classic TV at it's best and like I said it should be put on a boxset by season not just the best of designing women. All the episodes were the best. For example the episode where the whole gang goes on the beach weekend with the boys and Ursula is the baby sitter and in hiring her the girls become jealous while the guys druel. The episode where the girls go with the boys on the camping weekend and run into Daddy Jones and his boys and get in a fight. The episode where they have a tornado and Elmer a client of the sugarbakers comes in without his wife who is a crazy fanatic and Daddy Jones shows up to by a nice piece of furniture and meets Elmer. They go out to drink some moonshine during the tornado. Bernice gueststarred in that episode as well as crazy Vanessa, "a mind is a terrible thing to waste". The episode where Julia and Suzzanne's niece comes to town and she is a spoiled brat. The episode that Suzanne shoots Anthony. The episode of pornography and Julia runs her car into the billboard that is on the street 3 times because she despises what it stands for. The episode that the girls design the whitehouse or the governors mansion and Suzanne gets her head stuck in a banister rale that has been there for Decades and they have to saw her out of it and they piece it back together and it breaks lose later on in the show. The episode where Julia and Mary Jo take up jogging and Julia becomes a fanatic and makes a fool out of her self. The episode where Vanessa tries to transform her look and takes up an inventory counting job at Sugarbakers to get closer to Anthony. Meanwhile Anthony is with this stuck up lady who calls her BMW a beamer and Vanessa thinks a beamer is a zit. The episode where Anthony dresses up like Suzanne's maid Consuela and has to pass through INS and take a test dressed up like her so that she could stay in this country. Who could forget his hillarious laugh when he gets nervous. The episode where the design firm has that gel bed in the living room that was supposed to go to two sex crazed newly weds and they don't show up to get it and instead they don't so they end up donating it to the Salvation Army. The Salvation Army asks why the people didn't show up for the bed and Julia says that she doesn't know but that maybe they found a sandbox that they liked better. Mary Jo acts crazy and sits on the bed with Anthony and says that sitting on the bed is like sitting on a fake breast and that they should displace all the gel so when Anthony wakes up he would be on a great big mound. And there are tons more episodes that were outrageously funny. This is a must see and I give it 5 STARS. ... Read more

Description

This 2-disc set contains the entire first season of 22 fullepisodes including the pilot!Get ready for romance and hilariousbickering in the Big Apple.Join Jamie and Paul Buchman (Academy Awardwinner Helen Hunt and Paul Reiser) as they navigate marriage in this 6time Emmy Award winning series. ... Read more

Reviews (55)

An Awful Way To Treat a Great Show...
While "Mad About You" would go on to become one of the definitive sitcoms of the 1990s, its first season was a little rocky. To be certain, much of the later greatness could been seen (especially at the beginning and end of the season), but rotating characters and a few truly awful episodes made for a rocky start for this series.

The first season showed that Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt had great chemistry together as newlyweds Paul and Jamie Buchman, but many of their friends had difficult beginnings - especially Paul's friends Selby (who disappears by episode 13) and Ira (who appears, initially, as an even less-likeable version of the eternal bachelor Selby). The episodes that really stand out from the season are the ones that deal with Paul and Jamie's newlywed issues - how they met, whether Paul should give up his old bachelor pad, their first anniversary - but there are also some truly unfortunate episodes from the season, especially Jerry Lewis' execrable turn as an eccentric billionaire. Likewise, the first episode featuring Paul's father shows only a little of the depth that his family would later have. All that aside, though, the first season is definitely strong enough to want to buy - unless, of course, you look at the discs from a technical perspective.

While the price for the series is great, I would happily have seen them add another ten or twenty dollars to the price tag to have another disc. Not only is the set devoid of any extras (save multilingual tracks), but the compression of 11 episodes on to each disc makes each look impressively bad on a laptop or HDTV system. On a normal TV from six feet or more away, it looks fine, but I pity the person taking this set with them on an airplane flight.

All in all, it'd hard not to be disappointed in this release. I'm always glad to see more TV series released in full-season formats on DVD, but presentations such as this make you very disappointed in the companies that release them. Maybe Columbia-Tristar will get the hint for Season 2 and put out a much better release. It would be a shame to see them stop with this season just because they did a bad job with it technically.

The First Season
I recently bought the first season of "Mad About You" on Amazon.com. A great buy - all 22 episodes on two great discs, in fantastic packaging, and what a fabulous price! I just hope they keep releasing the seasons as it would be a shame not to.

This is a great show, and as I've only ever seen the first season, I'm not aware of the discrepancies many have mentioned between it and the latter seasons.

Essentially a claustrophobic (but in a good way) sitcom featuring 2 neurotic New Yorkers in love, slowly but surely finding their way through the pitfalls of the first few months of marriage. It can be somewhat annoying at times, and over-talkey, but essenitally it is a charming little show.

The weakest episode of the first season is 'The Billionaire', featuring a loud and extremely irratating guest appearance by Jerry Lewis, this is an unfunny and basically boring episode - although guest star Steven Wright along with the regular cast do their best to make it work; unfortunately, Lewis just blows them all away with his attention-seeking performance.

'Pilot' is a great episode, a nice introduction to the series, and paralells well with the finale 'Anniversary' (Jamie and Paul - played by the excellent Helen Hunt and the very funny Paul Reiser respectively - have sex on their kitchen table again, leaving their friends in the living room).

'Swept Away', 'The Man Who Said Hello', 'Weekend Getaway', 'Sofa's Choice', 'Sunday Times' ... and more - they're all excellent.

21 fantastic episodes (and even the awful Lewis episode has one or two moments) in a great collection. More please!

Oh and by the way, best line of the first series, issued by Jamie regarding Connie and Warren: "It's like a David Lynch version of WHEN HARRY MET SALLY". Excellent, and so very true!!

A true classic of 1990's comedy
The early years of Mad About You were some of the finest half-hour comedies around in the 1990's. It was refreshing to see a series about a young couple who were going through the early stages of a marriage, as opposed to so many series about well-established marriages. Paul (Paul Reiser) and Jamie (Helen Hunt) were two very well fleshed out characters that you could believe in, and more so when they went through all the little ups and downs a real life couple goes through. (i.e. buying a couch as a couple as opposed to as single people) And while not everything about the show was their realistic (the size of their apartment), you believed these really could be two real-life people.

The fact you were watching a show about newlyweds though was reinforced even more by the other married couple on the show, Mark (Richard Kind) and Fran (Leila Kenzle). This was your established couple. The couple who had gotten over the initial romance of the first few years of marriage, had had a child, and were now dealing with how to keep their marriage still interesting. Without giving away to much about the first season though, their characters probably had the most significant character arc of the first season as they end up in a much different place in their lives at the end of the season.

A contrast was also added for Jamie's seeming perfection in the form of her older sister, Lisa (Anne Elizabeth Ramsay). A serial dater with more perceived psychological problems than you could shake a stick at, she was almost like the Anti-Jamie. She was a great character, and luckily used in moderation. If used much more then she was, she could have quite quickly irritated the viewers.

The first season was not all smooth waters though. The character of Paul's best friend, Selby (played by Tommy Hinkley) never seemed to mix correctly with the rest of the cast, or really fulfill any purpose. For some reason though, when they reinvented the "trouble making" character as Cousin Ira (John Pankow), it worked like a charm. I hate to blame Mr. Hinkley, but you have to wonder why it didn't work.

While the show is top notch, the DVD presentation leaves something to desire. Non-existent extras is a notable flaw. At least some commentary tracks would have been nice. The most notable flaw though is the order of the episodes. While episode 2 being shown as episode 4 is somewhat forgivable, the reversal of episodes 21 and 22 is not. If you buy this set, make sure to flip the last two episodes, because as presented, the fake 21 references the fake 22 heavily. So again, make sure to watch 22 and THEN 21.

While I give the show itself 5 stars, I can only give the DVD set three.

Whoo-hoo
There's nothing like staying at home and watching Mad About You, no matter what season it is. I can't wait for the third season to come out.

Good!
Mad About You was one of my favorite sitcoms in the 90s and I think the first season was pretty good and I think Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt are terrific as Paul and Jamie and I recommend this show. ... Read more

Description

When down-on-her-luck country girl Shirlee Kenyon (Dolly Parton, STEEL MAGNOLIAS) walks through the wrong door at the right time, she accidentally becomes Chicago's newest talk-radio celebrity and turns the Windy City's hottest radio station upside down! With her homespun wit and down-home advice, Shirlee immediately wins listeners' hearts -- but causes hilarious confusion for her ratings-conscious boss (Griffin Dunne -- MY GIRL) and comical havoc for the investigative reporter (James Woods -- 40 DAYS AND 40 NIGHTS) trying to uncover her mysterious past! If you're looking for no-nonsense advice on what hit movie offers you pure entertainment -- you'll love every comical minute of STRAIGHT TALK! ... Read more

Reviews (21)

Straight nonsense!
Not Dolly's best and definitely not James Woods' best, who obviously needed some extra cash at the time. The pairing of Dolly and Woods makes no sense - it's hard enough to believe that they simultaneously act - but in the same movie? Also not to sound perverted but Dolly's characters are always the same - the cocky, wisecracking, yet down home and innocent cowgirl played out long ago. Straight Talk, unfortunately offers little laughs.

Excellent movie, but DRAB DVD package :(
If you've seen Straight Talk, you're no doubt a fan. This light-hearted movie is such a pick-me-up! I just love finding a movie I can watch several times and still laugh out loud!! I just love the scene where she loses her $20 bill on the bridge and James Woods comes to the "rescue"! The soundtrack is even good with songs written and performed by Dolly.

The DVD falls short though. No extras, no inner liner notes and it's ONLY available in full screen - YUCK!! Hollywood Pictures Home Entertainment should be ashamed of themselves for putting out such a poor product. Maybe this film wasn't a total blockbuster, but it sure deserved a better presentation than what it got.

Movie *****
DVD **
Overall ****

From the author of Tales of Ancient Xenar
I don't consider myself much of a movie watcher, so its rare for me to review a movie. But this film has earned a rare honor of having a review done by me. I have to say that hands-down this is one of Dolly Parton's best performances (better than 9 to 5 and far better than the Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.) In the film, she gives Chicago radio listeners good old southern down-to-earth advice. I wish the city I live in has a radio columnist like her. But I'm sure a lot of you who have seen this film and enjoyed it agree with me. We all should have an advisor like Dr. Shirlee (oops, I mean Shirlee.)

Good.... But No Extras!
I loved this movie! Shirlee Kenyon was a down on her luck country girl, when a mistake turns her into a big time radio doctor. I thought that her boss was kind of an a hole... He goes by the impression that people who have been married 3 times are losers, or those that have something real to say, He would write them off as losers..

This film shows off Dolly's spicy side of things! She had quite a few one lines... "I am like a one legged man in a butt kickin' contest!' Plus you get to see an early appearance of Terri Hatcher! (Lois & Clark The New Adventures of Superman)

I would like to have seen the trailer. as well as the music videos and even a commentary would have been nice... Aside from that, I still love the film....

No OAR = No Sale...
A fun movie for sure; but where's the theatrical widescreen edition? Sorry, but I only purchase DVDs displaying the film's ORIGINAL ASPECT RATIO. ... Read more

Description

Five second-grade kids who don't follow strict rules by their school principal Brinway are dubbed "Stinkers" by him.On the class visit to an aquarium, the Stinkers decide that a sea lion called Slappy doesn't feel too good there, "free" him, and plant him into Brinway's hot tub. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Same movie?
Dear hell! Did you people see the same movie? Did I miss something? "Well acted"? "Great for kids"? For the love of all that's holy upon this green earth this has to be one of the worst traveling road shows caught on film! People in the theater were jumping off their chairs praying audibly that they might be lucky enough to land on their necks and die!!! Whole families were bidding tearful goodbyes to one another before leaping to their collective doom.

One weary parent told me to take my children and leave: "Someone's got to tell the story of what happened here!" Luckily I did, otherwise no one but the ushers would know of the horror known simply as "Slappy and The Stinkers."

A Great Kid's Movie
I bought this movie for my younger sister, who is eight, and she just loves it.Even the grown-ups laugh along with this movie.

Reviewed by12 year old Mara
I've been in love with this movie ever since it released in 1997!!! The movie is about a group of kids who are called the stinkers named by their opera obsessed school principal who takes the school to the kids to the aquarium and they meet Slappy. He seamed depressed and they make up their minds to free him not knowing the adventure they're getting into. Believe it or not only 3 out of the 5 become famous the dark haired weird talking boy becomes Otto Rocket of Rocket Power, the dark skinned boy becomes a old friend of Ren on Even Stevens, and the chubby hat wearing boy appears a few times on the Amanda Show.

Slappy and The Stinkers
Well,My family borrowed the movie, Slappy and the stinkers for our local Library.Mom just thought we would like it because there was a seal and children in it. It looked like just an ordinary Childrens video.
My family loved this movie, we have watched it over and over again. I have asked for this movie for Christmas with high hopes I will get it.Unfortunately we have to return the movie back to the Library today.
I think the part where the kids and the seal use Mr.Brinway
house to keep the seal and to give the seal a place to swim and eat because he doesn't get home until late.The kids and Slappy have a real fun time until they almost get caught by Mr. Brinway.The funny thing is Mr. Brinway gets locked out of his house while checking the door after the doorbell rings.(He is in a very skimpy bathing suit.That is a very funny part . I also like the part when the kids are running from the mean guy who they think is trying to kill them and they get away on the luge with the boat they made from an bathtub and curtains. It is so funny. It is deffinately a family movie for all to enjoy.

Slappy and The Stinkers
Well,My family borrowed the movie, Slappy and the stinkers for our local Library.Mom just thought we would like it because there was a seal and children in it. It looked like just an ordinary Childrens video.
My family loved this movie, we have watched it over and over again. I have asked for this movie for Christmas with high hopes I will get it.Unfortunately we have to return the movie back to the Library today.
I think the part where the kids and the seal use Mr.Brinway
house to keep the seal and to give the seal a place to swim and eat because he doesn't get home until late.The kids and Slappy have a real fun time until they almost get caught by Mr. Brinway.The funny thing is Mr. Brinway gets locked out of his house while checking the door after the doorbell rings.(He is in a very skimpy bathing suit.That is a very funny part . I also like the part when the kids are running from the mean guy who they think is trying to kill them and they get away on the luge with the boat they made from an bathtub and curtains. It is so funny. It is deffinately a family movie for all to enjoy. ... Read more

Description

Mary and Rhoda from television’s The Mary Tyler Moore Show are finally reunited. Mary returns to her native New York City following the death of her Congressman husband in a rock climbing accident.Similarly, Rhoda returns to New York City from Paris where she has just recently left and divorced her husband, Jean Pierre.Both Mary and Rhoda are trying to deal with their college-aged daughters.Mary’s daughter Rose is a student at New York University and Rhoda’s Meredith is pre-med at Columbia.They now face the challenges of motherhood and reestablishing their careers in a very difficult time.Once again, Mary and Rhoda take on these challenges by trusting their intuition with that distinct sense of humor and sophistication they made famous in the original television series. ... Read more