Mama's Family - The Complete Collection DVD Review - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TJ · 09-30-2013, 01:14 AM

Well, good Lord! Thelma Harper, along with Vint, Naomi, Aunt Fran, Buzz, Sonya, Buzz, Iola, Bubba, and the more than just slightly crazy rest are back on DVD with the "whole hog" in Mama's Family - The Complete Collection! The first season, of course, was released by Warner Home Video in 2006, and was heavily criticized for being heavily edited. Now, StarVista Entertainment brings us the entire series, with only a few minor issues, but with plenty of special features for fans to enjoy.

For those unfamiliar with the series, it debuted in January 1983 on NBC. The series took a series of sketches that previously aired on The Carol Burnett Show featuring Vicki Lawrence as Mama and turned it into a weekly TV series. Mama had changed a bit from those sketches, though, and became a somewhat more dynamic woman dealing with the challenges of living at home with her sister Fran (Rue McClanahan), son Vint (Ken Berry), daughter-in-law Naomi (Dorothy Lyman), and grandchildren Buzz (Eric Brown) and Sonya (Karin Argoud). Also appearing every now and then were Thelma's daughters Eunice (Carol Burnett) and Ellen (Betty White). The series had a lot of challenges on a network that was transitioning from being on the verge of collapse into the top network of the '80s, and after only two seasons, it was canceled.

Mama was nowhere to be seen beginning in the 1984-1985 TV season, and could have easily faded into the memories of American TV audiences when it was nowhere to be seen in the 1985-1986 TV season. But in fall 1986, Joe Hamilton came together with Lorimar to bring Mama back to TV in a format that was really just starting for new series at the time: first-run syndication. Of course, in the intervening time, some of the cast members (most notably Rue McClanahan and Betty White, both of whom moved on to The Golden Girls, but also Carol Burnett who had just gotten out of a bitter divorce with producer Joe Hamilton) were unable to return. The characters were all written out of the show, although Betty White did make one returning guest appearance. Additionally, the grandchildren Buzz and Sonya were deemed to be too "typical" for a dysfunctional family sitcom, and were sent away to somewhere else in the normal sitcom world. This necessitated new cast members. Beverly Archer was brought in as Iola Boylan, the nutty neighbor and busy homemaker who lived with her incredibly obese and unseen mother, and Allan Kayser as Bubba, Eunice's son who'd just been released from reform school.

This revamped series ended up lasting four seasons, and took the series from obscurity to one that fans really came to love and enjoy, and in fact it was where the series gained prominence and actually gained popularity. Now, for the first time ever, all six seasons are available on a 24 disc set from StarVista Entertainment.

Read our review by skees53 here:
http://www.sitcomsonline.com/mamasfa...dvdreview.html

09-30-2013, 01:14 AM	#1
TJ Site Owner Administrator Forum Star Join Date: Feb 03, 2000 Location: Marietta, GA Posts: 10,694	Mama's Family - The Complete Collection DVD Review Well, good Lord! Thelma Harper, along with Vint, Naomi, Aunt Fran, Buzz, Sonya, Buzz, Iola, Bubba, and the more than just slightly crazy rest are back on DVD with the "whole hog" in Mama's Family - The Complete Collection! The first season, of course, was released by Warner Home Video in 2006, and was heavily criticized for being heavily edited. Now, StarVista Entertainment brings us the entire series, with only a few minor issues, but with plenty of special features for fans to enjoy. For those unfamiliar with the series, it debuted in January 1983 on NBC. The series took a series of sketches that previously aired on The Carol Burnett Show featuring Vicki Lawrence as Mama and turned it into a weekly TV series. Mama had changed a bit from those sketches, though, and became a somewhat more dynamic woman dealing with the challenges of living at home with her sister Fran (Rue McClanahan), son Vint (Ken Berry), daughter-in-law Naomi (Dorothy Lyman), and grandchildren Buzz (Eric Brown) and Sonya (Karin Argoud). Also appearing every now and then were Thelma's daughters Eunice (Carol Burnett) and Ellen (Betty White). The series had a lot of challenges on a network that was transitioning from being on the verge of collapse into the top network of the '80s, and after only two seasons, it was canceled. Mama was nowhere to be seen beginning in the 1984-1985 TV season, and could have easily faded into the memories of American TV audiences when it was nowhere to be seen in the 1985-1986 TV season. But in fall 1986, Joe Hamilton came together with Lorimar to bring Mama back to TV in a format that was really just starting for new series at the time: first-run syndication. Of course, in the intervening time, some of the cast members (most notably Rue McClanahan and Betty White, both of whom moved on to The Golden Girls, but also Carol Burnett who had just gotten out of a bitter divorce with producer Joe Hamilton) were unable to return. The characters were all written out of the show, although Betty White did make one returning guest appearance. Additionally, the grandchildren Buzz and Sonya were deemed to be too "typical" for a dysfunctional family sitcom, and were sent away to somewhere else in the normal sitcom world. This necessitated new cast members. Beverly Archer was brought in as Iola Boylan, the nutty neighbor and busy homemaker who lived with her incredibly obese and unseen mother, and Allan Kayser as Bubba, Eunice's son who'd just been released from reform school. This revamped series ended up lasting four seasons, and took the series from obscurity to one that fans really came to love and enjoy, and in fact it was where the series gained prominence and actually gained popularity. Now, for the first time ever, all six seasons are available on a 24 disc set from StarVista Entertainment. Read our review by skees53 here: http://www.sitcomsonline.com/mamasfa...dvdreview.html