Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
j m veira, 17 Oct 2008
Being a fan of good writing and the ever amusing Bill shatner ,a man who has re-invented himself so well in this series,i have enjoyed,with reservations this fourth season.
The scenarios are often challenging and always ride the gauntlet between thought provoking and simply entertaining.
The characters have continued to grow into people that we care about BUT,and here is the big BUT,the over political emphasis is starting to annoy and infuriate.When we the viewers can quite easily see the bias from the team of writers towards a particular party in an election year ,it makes us uncomfortable and cynical.The emphasis has moved away from barely hidden support for the Democrats to issue based programmes that are practically party political broadcasts!!I think that the average BL viewer is intelligent(notwithstanding the present writer !)and thoughtful and does not expect to be shouted at from the screen by someone elses desire to elect a democrat to the white house.
The term "this present administration" is used so often on the prog that it is nearly becoming a cliche in itself.
I guess what I am saying is don't be sooo didactic!we get it!entertain us and make us think by all means but don't preach at us Please!
Apart from that ,LOVE IT!
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52 of 57 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hate giving it such a low score, 23 Aug 2008
The idea of giving BL less than 5 stars is *unthinkable*, and yet I'm not sure season 4 even deserves 3.
Season 4 is a political propaganda machine, and an American one at that. It's overtly, staunchly and evangelically pro-Democrat, and to a Brit who watches BL for its genius, humour and absurdity, there are no words to describe the degree of disappointment.
Boston Legal has become increasingly political over the years: Boston Legal: Season 3 was fairly heavily weighted, but season 4 starts and stops with pro-Democrat evangelising. It is literally a season-long running advert for Barack Obama and a few episodes in, I grew weary of it. By the end of the season, the episodes were barely holding my attention.
There was one beautiful moment post-strike, when the strike is commented on and slyly lambasted - wonderful 4th wall breakage that is such a large part of BL's charm - but that is almost it. Can you imagine? An entire season of Boston Legal with less than a handful of moments that stand out? Genuinely unthinkable.
We're introduced to 2 new English birds, both of whom are fair enough. We also meet Carl Sack, played deftly by John Larroquette. He's such a welcome addition and a genuine joy to watch. However, the wonderful, wonderful Jerry is still making use of, and being ruined by, the *woeful* wooden cigarette that turns him into an arse. Further, Denny Crane has become simply unpleasant. He always straddled a line, but we knew he was actually a decent guy underneath all the Republican-gun-toting lunacy. In season 4, he's become a bit of a monster and seems to have no redeeming qualities whatsoever. He's now a flat-out bigot, presumably to hammer home the point that "Republican r BAD". Alan Shore is still a magical, wonderful character, but they've created a trend where he weeps a little during his closing arguments. The first time it happened, so powerful was the performance, I cried along with him. But when it happens again the week after, the effect is ruined, and it feels manipulative rather than moving - emotional pornography. Equally, he is given no opportunity to flex his comedy muscles, such is the incessant political content. And it really is incessant. His tears, incidentally, are always a result of a powerful, doubtless persuasive, political closing.
Ultimately, that's what it comes down to. This is election year and the writers of BL have taken the opportunity to wax Democrat extensively. Continually. Well... ok: as I said in the season 3 review, it's their show so they can do what they want with it. But they've now done it to the detriment of everything else: it's wiped out the humour, the warmth and the fun. It seems to have become a cruel show. The vicious swipes are no longer tempered by laughter and kindness, and it's fundamentally changed.
The special features of season 2 have an interview with Janet Leahy, one of BL's writers and executive producers. In it, she stated that if the audience see the show to be preaching, we "become ma-a-ad." So I can only surmise that somewhere along the way, the writers stopped caring what we think. BL is an intelligent show, and attracts an intelligent audience, so it's intellectually insulting when it feels the need to continually bash the audience over the head with its own particular brand of politics. After all, American BL fans are capable of deciding who to vote for without being harangued into it by the writers of the show. Fans from other countries, meanwhile, are left out in the cold altogether.
I know this review is almost entirely negative, and yet I've given it 3 stars. The 3 stars is because Alan and Jerry are still in it, Carl Sack is excellent and the post-strike jab really was a good one... mostly, I am still head over heels in love with what Boston Legal used to be. As things stand, Boston Legal only has another 13 episodes until it ends for good, and I pray that season 5 post-election BL rediscovers its soul. If it doesn't, it will have lost a die-hard fan.
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Boston D-party, 29 Oct 2008
Democrats good...Republicans bad! A message that even several thousand miles away we get is battered continually over the viewers head in season four of Boston legal. Yes it is annoying & yes it is overdone but in the end this is still Boston legal & it still has no rivals for sharp edge humour.
With the loss of Rene Aubejonois we get instead Carl Sack, a seemingly hard nosed partner, who is romantically involved with Shirley Schmidt. A situation that Denny Crane is incensed with.
William Shatner continues to steamroller all but James Spader before him as the hapless, gun toting & womanizing loon. He is, as another reviewer has pointed out, a little less likeable in this series. But not so much it spoils things much. As Alan Shaw James Spader continues to amaze. A more human side is shown to his character which was needed if he was to avoid being totally unrealistic.
The satellite characters of Jerry, Clarence, Shirley & Carl are all well used & hold their own. It's a pity so many of the characters from previous series have been removed, many as if they never existed.
The court cases are still interesting but they continue to be little more than the hook from which this great programmes humour is hung.
Yes season 4 has it's faults but they fail to dull what is still a very funny & sharply written & acted title.
While wearing it's pro-democrat heart on it's sleeve can at times be irritating this show continues to be more than worth the ride. Roll on season 5.
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