Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 30, 2015

In any normal environment, the fact that King of the Hill ran for thirteen seasons would be seen as a monumental accomplishment, especially in the annals of prime time animation, where even a run of just a few seasons is often considered remarkable. Unfortunately for Hank, Peg, Bobby and the rest of the inimitable residents of (and visitors to) Arlen, Texas, King of the Hill had both the good luck and the misfortune to follow The Simpsons both literally and figuratively as part of Fox’s ballyhooed Animation Domination that became a broadcast mainstay on Sunday evenings. Though some of the total was achieved after King of the Hill left the air in 2010, Matt Groening’s iconic Springfield family is now firmly ensconced in its 27th season, more than twice the run of the Hill family, something that perhaps diminishes Mike Judge’s accomplishment, at least in perception if not in actual fact. The final season of King of the Hill is now out on Blu-ray, including the show’s transition from an “old school” 1.34:1 aspect ratio to that newfangled widescreen 1.78:1. Revisiting the show now after a few years is a largely enjoyable experience, for the strengths of the series—distinctive characters in an easily accessible setting—continue to ring true and, not so coincidentally, often hilariously.

King of the Hill fairly burst from the gate when it premiered as a mid-season replacement on Fox in January 1997, where it was conveniently sandwiched between The Simpsons (then already eight years old, but continuing to perform well) and a then very popular The X-Files. The show picked up steam throughout its first (half) season, and became something of a ratings juggernaut during its second (and first full) year, where it at least tied and in some cases outperformed The Simpsons. But then something a bit unusual happened—ratings declined rather precipitously, perhaps not so coincidentally at a point that co-creators Mike Judge and Greg Daniels curtailed their day to day involvement with the show, but also at least partially attributable to the perhaps boneheaded decision to move the show from its comfortable perch on Sunday evenings.

By the time the scheduling “experts” at Fox returned King of the Hill to Sundays for its fourth season, albeit in an earlier time slot, some of the momentum seemed to have been lost, and the show became a bit more routine, though the lovability of its grab bag of quasi- hayseeds continued to provide copious amounts of amusement. While the many “middle” seasons of King of the Hill are occasionally dismissed even by fans as being of lesser quality than the first couple of years, there are at least individual episodes that rise to unexpected heights of hilarity, while essentially staying true to some very distinctive characters.

One of the salient differences between The Simpsons and King of the Hill is that Hank Hill is not the screw up that Homer Simpson is, or at least not quite the screw up that Homer Simpson is. In fact, Hank remains the paradigm of the reasonable, well intentioned and generally well skilled guy who is the anchor of his neighborhood, workplace and (at least occasionally) his home environment. Many episodes of King of the Hill actually deal with Hank trying to solve problems caused by the many other characters in the show who are screw ups.

That “nice guy” quality of Hank’s is on display through many, maybe even most, of the episodes in this final season, including the season opener where neighbor Bill’s junk food habit turns him into a diabetic. Other episodes find Hank trying to (literally) clean up his boss’ mess at Strickland Propane, and a funny outing where Hank has to deal with the final wishes of his father Cotton, something that pushes his “nice guy” proclivities to the limit. Occasionally, though, Hank can be a bit less altruistic, as in one episode where an injury ultimately leads to a bit of narcissism.

While Hank and Homer may be cut from different cloths, their status as the paterfamilias to a sometimes dysfunctional family is shared. Also as with The Simpsons, there’s a varied and colorful supporting cast filling in the nooks and crannies of Arlen, and, along with the aforementioned Bill, various episodes highlight characters like Bobby’s bud Joseph or the sweet if slightly dazed Luanne (wonderfully voiced by the late Brittany Murphy). The real strength of King of the Hill resides in the wonderful and surprisingly realistic interplay between the disparate characters, and the series' depiction of a neighborhood "unit" of sorts is actually kind of significant in a way, a callback to a supposedly simpler time in American life when doors tended to be unlocked and everyone knew everyone else within a rather wide radius.

It’s a little sad that King of the Hill lost a bit of its pop cultural mojo somewhere along the way, for this final season of the series proves that the writing was (by and large, anyway) as precise and character driven as anything on any better known live action sitcom. This is a series that manages to have real heart while also regularly providing a hearty guffaw or two.

Note: This release contains the "bonus" episodes that Fox didn't air in the original broadcast run of the series.

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films with AVC encoded transfers in 1.34:1 (for episodes 1-7) and 1.78:1 (for episodes 8-24). As those variable aspect ratios suggest, this season was a transitional year for the series, but aside from the aspect ratio, there's really very little if any difference between other elements like sharpness or precision of line detail. The palette here is nicely vivid, indulging in both solid primaries like the guys' blue jeans or more subtle hues like some of pastels Peggy or Luanne wear. The image is typically sharp and stable, with elements that show very little if any signs of aging or wear and tear.

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season features a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix which provides great immersion for musical elements like the opening theme, or in individual moments like a carnival in one episode or some discrete placement of "wilderness" noises in an episode where Dale decides to go naked and afraid, or at least afraid. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly, and this is the rare Olive release with subtitles, an element that can come in handy when trying to decipher what it was that Boomhauer just said.

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

There are no supplements included on this three disc set.

King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Simpsons may have gotten the lion's (and/or Fox's) share of the attention over the years, but revisiting King of the Hill's final season proves what a smartly written, funny, sweet and heartfelt show it regularly was. The series is populated by instantly understandable and surprisingly realistic characters, and the wonderful interplay between Hank, his family, coworkers and friends pays consistent comedic dividends. Despite the lack of supplements on this release, technical merits are strong and King of the Hill: The Complete Thirteenth Season comes Highly recommended.