Carstairs Considers....: TV Show Review: The Mary Tyler Moore Show

Monday, May 13, 2013

TV Show Review: The Mary Tyler Moore Show - Season 5

Stars: 4 out of 5
Pros: Wonderful characters and timeless laughs

Cons: The packaging for the set itself

The Bottom Line:

Flaws in packaging

But shows themselves remain great

You'll laugh at them all

"We Should Stop Them in the Streets and Say 'Thank You, Mr. Mugger. Thank You Mr. Thief.'"

It amazes me that I am still collecting season sets of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. While most of the famous classic shows have already been completely released, we are finally getting season five of this gem. The episodes themselves are as funny as ever, but the packaging definitely leaves something to be desired.

The joy of a good ensemble comedy is the fact that you do have good strong characters to build upon. Mary Richards (Mary Tyler Moore) is still living in her one room apartment next to neighbor Phyllis (Cloris Leachman, who only has four episodes this season). Her work life, where she is associate producer for the 6 o'clock news at WJM, seems to overtake more of her personal life. For example, boss Lou Grant (Ed Asner) moves into Rhoda's old apartment at one point. Anchorman Ted's (Ted Knight) girlfriend Georgette (Georgia Engel) stops by to visit on a more regular basis. Heck, even happy homemaker Sue Ann (Betty White) shows up quite a bit more. And good ole Murray (Gavin MacLeod) is by Mary's side every day at work.

As with the previous seasons, this show features some classic episodes. My favorite is "Not a Christmas Story," which finds the gang snowed in and mad at each other. Absolutely hilarious stuff. Lou turns into a softy after he throws Ted through a door. Murray struggles with his feelings about only having daughters. Mary gets a promotion to producer and tries to go it alone with the news. Sue Ann almost gets replaced by a much younger fan. Phyllis tries to find a job after a bad economy destroys the family budget. And in another favorite, Ted finally asks Georgette to marry him, in the middle of the 6 o'clock news.

Even when this show gets serious, like the season opener with finds Mary facing jail time for not revealing a source, it never forgets it is a comedy. There are plenty of laughs.

And if you are wondering about that title, Mary says it as she bemoans the fact that people only tune in to watch bad news. It's one of my favorite quotes from the series.

Season 5 is always a mixed bag for me. This is the season where Rhoda has spun off to her own show set in New York City. There are several references to her, and it's nice to see she hasn't been forgotten. But I still miss her presence on the show itself.

Fortunately, the rest of the cast easily picks up the slack. The characters have always been strong, and that continues here. In fact, they are one of the reasons why the show is still funny almost 40 years later. The comedy comes from the characters and the situations, making it truly timeless. True, there are some dated cultural references, but they never become the basis of the humor.

For the characters to work, the acting has to be great, and that's certainly true here. It feels like a family that truly enjoyed working together. Those relationships come through on the screen, making it more fun for us. Even the guest stars are perfect in their parts. You can't fault the acting one bit.

I'm going to take a minute to praise the writing. It's the writers who keep the characters strong and the jokes flowing. And they don't miss a beat here. True, there are a couple of poor episodes, like the season finale, "Anyone Who Hates Kids and Dogs." But even those episodes have some funny moments in them.

So what isn't at all praise worthy is this set. Yes, we get all 24 episodes on three discs in their original full screen. They look and sound fine. They could have been cleaned up a little, but I don't think they are worse than the previous sets. However, the set contains no insert with an episode guide or description. And the episode titles aren't on the discs. If you want to find a particular episode, you have to go to the internet to look it up. Sorry, but how much could that have cost. While the cast photo on the back of the set is accurate, the cast list is from the first season. And they cut out my favorite part of "The System," a disclaimer voice over that ran during the closing credits. Best I can tell, everything else from the episodes is there, but it has been so long since I've seen them, I could be wrong about that.

Even if the packaging keeps the set from being perfect, the episodes themselves truly are. The Mary Tyler Moore Show was a classic from start to finish, and season five shows us exactly why.

Season 5 Episodes:

1. Will Mary Richards Go to Jail?

2. Not Just Another Pretty Face

3. You Sometimes Hurt the One You Hate

4. Lou and That Woman

5. The Outsider

6. I Love a Piano

7. A New Sue Ann

8. Menage-a-Phyllis

9. Not a Christmas Story

10. What are Friends For?

11. A Boy's Best Friend