What is it? Sisters, Seasons 1-2, 29 episodes on seven discs from Shout! Factory
When? Tuesday
How much? $44.99
So this is about female siblings, then. Correct. Actually, it bears a passing resemblance to Little Women. The series follows the lives of the Reed sisters:
• Oldest sister Alex (Swoosie Kurtz) is the overachieving one with a perfect life -- successful husband (David Dukes), accomplished daughter (Kathy Wagner in Season 1, Ashley Judd in Season 2). But the facade doesn't last long.
• Teddy (Sela Ward) is the black sheep, a troubled, free-spirited artist and recovering alcoholic. She and her teen daughter, Cat (Heather McAdam), return from living in California and Teddy hopes to reconnect with her ex-husband, Mitch (Ed Marinaro), but her arrival spells trouble.
• Georgie (Patricia Kalember) is the steady, dependable one, married to unemployed John (Garrett M. Brown) and super-mom to two boys (Dustin Berkovitz and Ryan Francis). She's the peacemaker and problem-solver for everyone else but there are limits to how much she can handle.
• Frankie (Julianne Phillips) may be a driven, successful career woman, but in many ways she's still the baby sister playing catch-up. When the show starts, she's in a relationship with Teddy's ex-husband. That's going to go over well.
The story starts a few months after their father's death, as they're trying to help their mother, Beatrice (Elizabeth Hoffman), move out of the family home.
Over the course of the first two seasons, they face a variety of problems including sexual harassment, alcoholism, crumbling relationships and cancer.
While they bicker (a lot), they're also a united front when trouble strikes. As Bea reminds them, sisters are a part of each other's lives "cradle to grave."
What's it like? Sisters was groundbreaking in the early 1990s, considered to be the first female-centric drama series. It was also one of the early pioneers in the field of comedy-drama hybrids and in mixing fantasy elements into more traditional storytelling.
The younger, childhood versions of the sisters are characters as well, but instead of the more normal flashbacks, the adult characters often interact with their little counterparts. Dream sequences are also pretty common.
Despite the heightened reality and fantasy elements, and the number of tragedies and complications heaped on these people, it's a surprisingly realistic, easy-going show. They may go through a lot, but these characters as written and acted seem real.
Are there extras? There's what amounts to one long discussion between co-creators/writers Daniel Lipman and Ron Cowen. It's broken into three half-hour segments in which they discuss the creation of the series and challenges they faced, the casting and struggles with censors and the later years. It's a lengthy, relaxed and candid discussion in which they're both affectionate and honest (admitting they ran out of steam at the end) about their time on the show.
New this week: Aquarius, Season 1; The Big Bang Theory, Season 8; The Bold Ones, Complete Series; C.S.I., Season 15; The Carol Burnett Show, Lost Episodes; CSI: Cyber, Season 1; Empire, Season 1; Family Guy, Season 13; Lost in Space, Complete Adventures (Blu-ray); Midsomer Murders, Seasons 16-17; NCIS, Season 12; The Returned, Complete Series; Sleepy Hollow, Season 2.
Next week: Arrow, Season 3; The Flash, Season 1; The Gumby Show, Complete '50s Series; King of the Hill, Season 12; The Last Man on Earth, Season 1; Modern Family, Season 6; The Nanny, Season 4; The Red Road, Season 2.
Style on 09/13/2015