The Closer – The Complete Second Season

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: C-     Episodes: B-

 

 

I had not seen or heard much about the TV show The Closer, but it turns out to be a surprise cable TV hit that turns out to not be so bad and in the case of Kyra Sedgwick, is a breakthrough role that shows just how good, consistent and strong an actress she can be.  Holding her own against a mostly male cast and strong group of character actors in a show that is written smartly, especially after so many other police dramas, she is good indeed and in The Complete Second Season may have only become better.

 

This four-DVD set has fall fifteen episodes of the show, offering more unaired scenes in more shows than not.  Yes, there is some melodrama in covering the lives of the various characters but the show is smart enough to never weaken the characters so this gets soapy and that is why people enjoy it as much as they do.  It “keeps it real” and is only become more popular as more people discover it, including from DVD sets like this.  No, it is not groundbreaking, but by just respecting the intelligence of the audience, the show goes a long way.

 

The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image is not bad, but is shot in digital High Definition and can look both rough and color limited.  Detail and depth can also be an issue and this is not just because of anything we could blame on the style of the show.  Despite offering Dolby Digital 5.1 mixes for each show, the surrounds are only so often used for this dialogue-based show and the recoding is good, but could improve a bit.  Extras include a making of featurette and gag reel.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo