The Addams Family: The Complete Series (DVD)

A great DVD series
I bought the complete series of The Addams Family and I have not regretted it. It is as funny now as it was then. I highly recommend this DVD series.

It good
 

Next Exhibit in Line to Prove Television was Once Great
I ordered this during the 2008 Christmas season so my young daughters could watch it during their time off during the holidays. We put in the first disc and watched the fist episode. From that point forward is was basically two months of a chant in chorus: “Addams Family! Addams Family!” They watched it straight through and then went through it again and again, perhaps a total of five times. They still won’t let me pack it away, they want it readily available.I didn’t complain too much, because to my delight I found that this show, like so many from the era, is simple astonishingly good television. I had enjoyed it as a kid, but I didn’t remember it as well as the Munsters (which is also, obviously, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED). The creativity of this production is just fabulous, and the acting superb. Lurch is fascinating, with his dead-pan visage, spontaneous appearances and harpsichord playing (backed by the genius Vic Mizzy). The same actor plays “Thing”–and he says so much with his animated hand movements. You can’t overstate the fundamental brilliance of Thing. Morticia is as glamourous as the living-dead (or whatever she is) can be. She is gorgeous, and quite the botanist with her collection of highly cognizant plants. The Addams’ life of leisure is quite enviable, as they always use their infinite time at home to fine-tune their various blue-blooded skills, and they prove themselves to be true Renassaince folk. Jackie Coogan’s Uncle Fester is out of control. Illuminating light bulbs in his mouth, getting stretched on the rack, he’s always up for a good time, and apparently oblivious to pain. Aleister Crowley, I suspect, would consider this zany character his most cherished legacy. And “Cousin It”? Wow, that character almost scares me. He, or It, I should say, is truly a psychedelic and sophisticated flourish which takes the show into a different realm of bizarre surreality.The real show-stealer is Gomez, played by John Astin. Good grief, the character he created here is just insanely funny. He is dynamic, eccentric, suave, outrageous, gallant, compassionate, dapper, forgiving, generous…I could go on with descriptors for an hour. I’ve told my wife I really need to become a lot more like Gomez. He is truly one of the all-time great television characters. I read somewhere that Groucho Marx was used as a reference point for the character, and it makes sense. John, if you by chance read this, my deepest thanks for all the happiness you have brought to the world. It must be immensely satisfying knowing that you have brought so many smiles to this planet.The scripts are extremely clever, with both an adult level and a kid’s level. I’m surprised how many of the issues the family deals with are relevant to today’s world: turbulance in the stock market; issues with school officials (who disapprove of the kids bringing weapons and dynamite to campus, etc.), taxes, dysfunction in government, etc.In the extras, there is an effort to remind everyone that this show was derived from the comic strip. That is generous, but I personally think this this show transcends and betters the comic strip in a multitude of ways. The debt of gratitiude should run to the show, not the other way around.What has happened to our world? Yeah, global warming, over-population, the economy…but also look at television as a micro-paradigm of societal decay. I know you will say there have been good shows recently, and there have been (some). But if you do a side-by-side comparison of, say, some good shows like The Sopranos, Frazier, Seinfield, and Friends and you compare them with The Wild, Wild West, The Munsters, Addams Family, Batman, Mission Impossible, The Night Gallery, Benny Hill, Leave it to Beaver…one gets the strong impression that creativity is really in decline. The sheer level of elaboration in the production values alone distinguishes the eras: the sets themselves were works of art. Television used to go full-out, now it is so frequently about compromise and cost-cutting. Are “reality shows” going to implant the wonderful visions into the minds of kids that these shows did? Instead, I get a migraine from “Survivor” and the like–and even “American Idol” has a chaotic, campy aspect which certainly doesn’t enrich the world much.But I digress. The Addams Family is one of life’s really good things. For the ten times the price, you would be well rewarded by what you get here. The pictures look great, and the fun is non-stop. Buy this for yourself and revive your own memories, or buy this for your kids or grand kids and create a whole new generation of memories. I am convinced: 200 years from now people will be watching this show, laughing until their sides split. This is television for the post-television age, televison for eternity. It will hold up for for as long as there are people, or ghouls.

Good
Good

Addam’s family is good clean fun. I didn’t watch them as a kid, so glad I know them now.My neighbour is as tall as Lurch lol

Série clássica excelente. Já dei muitas risadas. O elenco é maravilhoso.

No issues with the DVDSeries was enjoyable