Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Weeds: Season Three Blu-ray Movie Review

Should you take a puff of 'Weeds: Season 3'?

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 20, 2008

The other day, while thinking about some of my upcoming reviews, my mind wandered to Weeds: Season 3. Color me surprised that I actually remembered the name of the show's lead character, Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker, The Spiderwick Chronicles). I don't watch all that many television shows, and remember even fewer of the characters portrayed thereon. I can easily remember the names of some of the legendary figures from shows I love, such as Jack Bauer, Tony Soprano, Cigarette Smoking Man, Miles O'Brien, and Bobby Hill, but I couldn't tell you the name of one character from Tour of Duty, Oz, or The Office (the British version), even though I've seen every episode of those shows. Weeds must have stuck with me for one reason or another, even though I found myself entertained by but not enamored with the show's first two seasons, quite contrary to the shows listed above where I failed to recall a name but find them all superior to Weeds. It was with a somewhat elevated excitement level that I received Weeds Season 3 and screened the entire season in rapid succession to see just how my feelings towards the show would be cemented, and I leave the season cautiously optimistic and wanting more.

Nancy watches her pot business go up in smoke, again.

The third season of Showtime's mega-hit series Weeds reunites the entire cast and introduces a few new characters, picking up immediately after the mind-boggling events of the last episode of season two. Nancy Botwin finds herself indebted to one of the thugs holding her at gunpoint at the end of season two, U-Turn (Page Kennedy), who demands a massive payment after one of Nancy's enemies, Celia (Elizabeth Perkins), drowns her stash of weed in a swimming pool. To help pay the debt, Nancy is forced to get a real job and finds herself in the employment of Sullivan Groff (Matthew Modine, Full Metal Jacket), a man in the employ of the rival city of Majestic where poor planning has caused the city to petition Agrestic to allow their waste to flow through a new sewer system Majestic will install under Agrestic. Nancy's fortunes rise and fall numerous times throughout the season as she deals with new earners, her deceased husband Peter's ex-wife Valerie (Brooke Smith), the troubles her sons and brother-in-law Andy (Justin Kirk) find themselves in, and the various pitfalls of pot.

While the third season of Weeds is an entertaining one, the plot lines are beginning to delve into the ridiculous and ultra-convenient. Weeds is a great concept that is teetering on wearing out its welcome and becoming cumbersome and dull, but only if contrivances and highly unrealistic plot lines are not kept to a minimum in future episodes. What this third season does well, however, is to continue to bring each of your favorite characters from Agrestic deeper into the darkness that lies underneath their shiny, yuppie veneer as they become more privy to not only the business Nancy runs, but also as they maneuver one against the other for leverage, power, money, status, and a piece of the pot pie. The third season continues in its soap opera spectacle as twists and turns, almost too numerous to remember, permeate the story and continue to throw each and every character for a loop and Nancy's weed business into upheaval. Character development continues to be a strong suit of the show, and at less than thirty minutes each, individual episodes are easily digested and serve as a fine time killer, and the season as a whole is short enough to sprout an entire Weeds Marathon over the course of a lazy day. If season four can match the pace and freshness of this season, it should be a solid watch. However, the show in this third season does show signs of venturing too far out into left field. In my humble opinion (having binged today on season three), only by continuing to build on the solid foundation and level-headed writing present in the first two seasons, and for the most part in the third, not charting new territory that takes the characters out of their element and the audience out of its comfort zone, will Weeds continue to rate "high" among its dedicated fan base.

Weeds: Season Three Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Weeds: Season 3 is presented on Blu-ray high definition in a 1080p, 1.78:1 framed transfer. The strength of this video transfer is in its clarity and colors. The image has a generally realistic appearance and there are many times where you'll experience that wonderful feeling of actually being in the many locales around Agrestic. Black levels are as solid as to be expected, although most of the show is bright, well-lit, and features little opportunity to showcase any deep blacks. A nighttime scene at a gas station in episode two is one of the better examples of solid blacks, but the scene is still lit by the bright lights of the station. Detail is solid in every episode. Check out Nancy's denim jacket worn about halfway through episode two, and the Army fatigues and dress uniforms seen in various places throughout the season. The color is great, and the stitches, buttons, patches, and adornments on clothing all stand out wonderfully. Background detail is a bit soft, but the overall quality here is very high. Flesh tones are somewhat pink, and the image is somewhat flat. Grain isn't visible over most shots, but a few exhibit a rather heavy grain field. Check out the 25:40 mark in episode one for an example. Lionsgate has delivered another winner, and this is the best looking season of Weeds on Blu-ray yet, barely surpassing season two.

Weeds: Season Three Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Weeds: Season 3 passes on smoking your system despite its full-fledged DTS-HD MA 7.1 soundtrack, arguably overkill for a dialogue-heavy television show, but give credit to Lionsgate for going all the way on this release. As expected, this track is front heavy. Dialogue, focused in the front and flowing from the center speaker with grace and authority, at an approriate volume in relation to the music, is always audible and crisp. Minor ambience and atmospherics are heard at times, like the chirping of birds, but such niceties are placed squarely in the front of the soundstage, leaving the rears mostly barren. The popular music heard in the show lacks punch and fidelity, evidenced by the rather flat sounding song heard at the end of episode two. The end of episode nine does provide a bit of bass, finally, but it is more the exception and definitely not the rule. Unfortunately, there is little to say about this dull soundtrack. It does nothing more than move the show along, sonically, but as a half-hour comedy/drama, this one sounds fine.

Weeds: Season Three Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Weeds: Season 3 deals out some serious extra dope for this release. Extras are spread across both discs in the set, and I'll list them by disc.

Disc One

Five commentary tracks are available on the first disc for the following episodes: Doing the Backstroke with Jenji Kohan, Sh*t Highway with Mark Burley, Bill Sussman with Justin Kirk, Grasshopper with Hunter Parrish and Alexander Gould, and The Two Mrs. Scottsons with Craig Zisk and Michael Trim. Kohan, the creator of the show, is the most interesting listen, particularly concerning how to resolve the cliffhanger from season two. In fact, nobody had a clue what to do when it came time to get back to work on filming season three. Three episodes -- A Pool and His Money, The Brick Dance, and He Taught Me How to Drive-By -- offer pop-up trivia tracks. Following the commentaries and trivia tracks is an enjoyable gag reel (1080p, 5:57). Little Boxes Montages (1080p, 3:47) is a series four brief psychedelic montages featuring stills and characters from the show. Little Boxes - Randy Newman (1080i, 2:32) is a brief promotional piece that examines the use of this famous song in the show. Next is a Mary-Kate Olsen biography (1080i, 2:47), followed by the final extra on disc one, a sampling of various tunes from the soundtrack (complete set available now!).

Disc Two

Three more commentary tracks are to be found on this disc for the episodes Release the Hounds with Ernest Dickerson, Protection with Roberto Benabib, and Go with Jenji Kohan. Also, four more trivia tracks are available on the episodes Roy Till Called, Cankles, The Dark Time, and Risk. Next is a feature entitled Kush Kush and Away, presented in 720p. This is a basic interactive game where players move Nancy Botwin around the screen, collect marijuana, and return it to another individual while avoiding authorities. It is fun for a few levels but not worth spending more than several minutes playing with. Uncle AWOL (1080p, 7:00) is a humorous short with the show's star, Justin Kirk, and a look at his character's best moments from the show. Finally, G.M.A. -- Good Morning Agrestic (1080i, 33:04) is a six-part mock morning show that brings you several humorous vignettes with the stars from the show, from cooking Bake Apple Potbellies with Andy and Silas Botwin to a discussion about illegal immigration with Nancy Botwin's housekeeper.

Weeds: Season Three Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Weeds: Season 3 is solid entertainment that is decidedly adult-oriented and likely to offend more conservative and faith-based audiences who may choose to give the show a chance. A fantastic concept to be sure, the excellent cast, generally solid writing, and entertaining plot lines keep the show mostly fresh and highly watchable, and Weeds is solid entertainment for mature audiences. Lionsgate continues their upward trend as one of Blu-ray's best studios with a release that offers fantastic video quality, a serviceable lossless soundtrack that does all it can with the source material, and a generous helping of extras. Weeds: Season 3 is recommended to fans of the show who come into it having seen the first two seasons.