Disgusted
G. Gratto | New England | 10/08/2005
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Bought this expressly for THE classic sitcom scene of all time, "Hit The Road Jack." Instead of this scene, a written apology appears, saying the scene has been excised due to licensing problems. Thanks for the apology ater you got my dough. Be warned, America!"
Highly underrated 1980s sitcom
Andrew Milner | Bryn Mawr, PA | 11/13/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I'd happily give it 5 stars had it included the "Hit the Road, Jack" sequence (a squeamish NBC shelved the original broadcast for several months, and I assume the Ray Charles estate charges a lot of money to use the song on a DVD today), but this is a brilliant dark sitcom. Dabney Coleman gives a still-stunning lead performance, and he's surrounded by one of the great ensemble casts in TV history. Much better than the vastly overrated "Murphy Brown" and a major influence on "The Larry Sanders Show.""
Superb show-unfortunate added laugh track
Byron | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 06/30/2009
(2 out of 5 stars)
"I remember this show fondly and was extremely excited to find it had been released on DVD. Unfortunately the episodes are marred by the fact that the producers of this DVD chose to use the syndicated versions that had canned laughter added a few years after the fact. The original episodes were broadcast without a laugh track and were never meant to have a laugh track. It totally destroys the intended rhythm and feel of the show. I can understand why people who have never seen it as it was meant to be seen would not get what all of the fuss was about. Try to imagine The Larry Sanders Show or The Office (either version) with insistent non-stop canned laughter destroying all of the uncomfortable silences. They wouldn't seem nearly as funny either. It would have been nice if there had been an option on the disc to turn off the laugh track. As it is, the show is almost painful to watch in this form since the laugh track is extra loud and obnoxious and impossible to ignore. I would like to think this would be rectified in a future edition but I know that's a pipe-dream since this is only a cult show. Maybe a deluxe Slap Maxwell/Buffalo Bill twofer? **Sigh** Never gonna happen."