King of the Hill - Season 4 [DVD]

If you are considering the fourth season of King of the Hill for your DVD collection you are probably already a fan of the show. The fourth season has some of my favorite moments from KOTH. Cotton's horror as he finds out that his newborn son is leaking milk, Connie having her period while staying with the Hills, Hank's thanksgiving turkey being destroyed by a bomb squaud at the airport, Peggy's feet being featured on a foot fetish website, Bobby seeing his female cousin naked for the first time, and the whodunnit murder of a very minor character voiced by Reese Witherspoon. These episodes are great without question but what is up with the special features department? The first two seasons had it all, comentaries, animatics, deleted scences, easter eggs, the whole shebang. But when I purchased the third season it was as if they put the release together the night before it came out. There were absolutley no special features, nada, zilch, zip. The discs were the double sided kind, and the artwork on the packaging sucked. It took only a few months between the first and second releases and we got two awesome sets, but it took another year before the third season was released and we got stiffed big time. But now it is time for season four to be released and I'm getting worried that it will be a repeat of the rush-job we got for season three. I already know it is going to be 3 double-sided discs and it is coming out only 4 months after the previous release. I just hope Fox doesn't do this half-assed. I would be willing to wait a few extra months to get this DVD if it would mean getting it done right.

Whew! From some rumors I heard, I was afraid season four of King of the Hill would not be released on DVD. What a relief to see it on my Amazon home page with its cool cover (a great improvement from previous covers; especially season three-who wants to see Hank, Bill, Boomhauer, and Dale's bulging bellies?). It looks like the powers-that-be for KOTH are also making up for lost time by releasing season four much more quickly than prior seasons. Of course, season 3 was released way behind schedule (I think about 6 months later than advertised!) so KOTH fans are due! The main reason I am looking forward to this release so much is for my second favorite KOTH episode of all-time right behind (so to speak) Hank's Unmentionable Problem from season one; a.k.a. the constipation episode. It is Flushed With Power. In this show, the residents of Arlen are frustrated by the restricted water usage caused by a draught. New low flow toilets are supposed to be the answer, but Hank discovers they actually use more water because they require more flushes to "thoroughly dispose of solid waste" (in Peggy's case, six flushes). What follows is so much like the absurd reality of life it is brilliant. I sell paint in California for a living and it is a similar situation. We know a product is better but we cannot sell it due to govt. regulations. When Hank goes to the home improvement store and asks the clerk if they "have any of the good toilets?" and the older and wiser clerk replies, "Nope, we don't offer the good toilets, only the low flows, and even if I had a good toilet, it is illegal to sell it in this county," it hits hilariously close to home.

Season four also moves KOTH into some serious territory. In the two-parter Hanky Panky/High Anxiety, Hank's boss Buck Strickland finds himself in some heavy trouble when he is kicked out of the house by his wife who is finally fed up with his cheating and then his mistress is found dead. Hank is dragged into Buck's sordid life style. For an animated comedy series, these episodes are pretty heavy. The first two-parter Peggy Hill The Decline and Fall/Cotton's Plot that continues the cliff hanger from season three where Peggy's parachute fails while sky diving is also pretty intense. The always over-confident Peggy thinks her rehab after spending time in a body cast will be a snap, but then she finds she is too weak to accomplish the easiest of tasks. She needs motivation and requests the services of her father-in-law: the misogynist, drill sergeant Cotton. Seeing her suffer as Cotton ridicules her is a little difficult to watch (even though I am not fond of the conceited Peggy). Her respect for Cotton is challenged when she discovers he has been lying about his war record. Hank then explains why he still respects his father even though he is a cruel son-of-a-gun. It is an interesting episode.

Other episodes include the following:
Bills are Made to be Broken: Bill doesn't have much, but he does hold the Arlen High football record for TDs in a season which is close to being broken.
Little Horrors of Shop: Hank is laid off and becomes a substitute shop teacher at Bobby's school. Will his popularity challenge Peggy's streak of Substitute of the Year trophies?
Aisle 8A: Connie stays at the Hills while her parents are away and males Hank confront some, well, feminine issues.
A Beer Can Named Desire: Hank can win a million dollars if can throw a football through a hole in a giant novelty beer can. He is torn between making the throw himself or choosing former NFL quarterback Don Meredith to do it for him. Meanwhile, The Hills and Bill stop at the Dauterive manor in New Orleans where Bill has a chance to get lucky with his, um, cousins and Bobby chooses [again] the wrong role model in the eyes of Hank. Great line: "I need a window seat because this flower is wilting."
The Hank's Giving Episode: The Hills and their neighbors become stranded at the airport. Highlight: Hank's prized turkey is taken for a bomb by airport security.
Not in My Back Hoe: Hank makes friends with a guy who shares a lot of his interests, habits, and moods [Drew Carey] much to the chagrin of Bill and Dale.
To Kill a Ladybird: Bobby finds a new friend in a raccoon he names "Bandit."
Hillennium: Great episode! Hank is as paranoid about Y2K as Dale. Unwilling to move into the New Millennium (well, actually 2001 marked the new millennium), Hank freaks out buying toilet paper and a grandfather clock to avoid the technological holocaust to come. His dream of being a mole in a mole-whacker where he gets advice from Tom Landry is brilliant..
Old Glory: Peggy and Bobby find themselves in a heap of trouble at school involving plagiarism and the destruction of Bill's prized American flag. Shows what a little display of patriotism can do.
Rodeo Days: Hank always wanted Bobby to be in the rodeo...but not as a clown!
Naked Ambition: Bobby accidentally sees Luanne naked and hormonal-charged Joseph wants a similar experience. While trying to help Joseph get a peak, Connie accuses Bobby of being a pervert.
Movin' On Up: Luanne moves in with some rowdy college students.
Bill of Sales: Peggy gets involved in a pyramid scheme and discovers Bill's knack as a salesman and, as one would expect, abuses Bill's skills to heighten her already-inflated self esteem.
Won't You Pimai Neighbor?: Buddhists come to Arlen searching for a Lama and Bobby passes the test. I love the ending to this one.
Hank's Bad Hair Day: Hank's long-time barber has gone completely senile and, reluctantly, Hank allows friend and Army barber Bill to cut his hair. All's well until he receives the govt-issued bill.
Meet the Propaniacs: Bobby encourages Strickland Propane to start a propane-related comedy act to promote its business.
Nancy Boys: Continuing the storyline Peggy's Headache from season three, Nancy starts to confront her affair with John Redcorn.
Transnational Amusements Presents: Peggy's Magic Sex Feet: Well, Peggy's big feet must be good for something!
Peggy's Fan Fair: Peggy insists Randy Travis stole her song "That's the Way God Made Me" and the story that went with it. Hank is skeptical of his egomaniacal wife who insists on calling her dish "spa-peggy and meat balls."

I love Khan.

As with anything that gets better with time, King of The Hill is possibly one of the best adult animated series out there. Surrounded by fellow alley-way bumpkins, Hank Hill's life is far from the everyday, ordinary, Texas American. With Dale's nuerotic antics, Bill's lovable yet pathetic slothness, Playa' pimp Boomhauer, know it all-know nothing wife Peggy, burst out into song, open minded son Bobby, this is a cast of characters which one doesn't outshine the other. Truely a hilarious series and one worth collecting.