"Boy howdy, I bet the neighbors are just loving this!"--Mama
Mama's Family definitely gets five stars. One of my favorite shows of all-time, especially during its first two seasons with the occasional appearances of Eunice. What a stellar cast: Vicki Lawrence, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Dorothy Lyman, Ken Berry (How was it ever canceled in the first place?) I really liked the kids Buzz and Sonja, too.
The reason I am knocking a star off the score is that these episodes are edited. They are like the syndication edits that are still aired all the time. What's up with that??!! I've been waiting to see these episodes uncut for years. I know how much they've cut because I have an audio recording of "The Wedding Part 1" from when it aired back around 1985 (a rerun even, not the first airing which was 2/5/83):
1. They cut out the part about the hoochie coochie dancer in the kitchen scene with Mama, Buzz, and Vint.
2. When Sonja asked if she was a slave, Fran's comeback line "If you...
Warner Blew This Big Time!
Like the other couple of reviewers, I was also excited to hear Mama's Family was coming to DVD, but just minutes ago I found out in a Sitcoms Online review that the episodes are edited syndication cuts. I am so disappointed and feel so cheated. If I would have found out sooner I would have canceled my pre-order but it's now too late. Warner Bros. has some major explaining to do.
The show is a definite five stars, but I wish I could give this DVD no stars. A big fat raspberry to you, Warner!
Good show, but the DVDs are a TRAVESTY
I was extremely excited when this underrated gem of 1980s TV was announced for DVD, but then I saw the review on Sitcoms Online. The DVDs are not complete, not by a long shot.
The NBC era episodes originally ran about 24 to 25 minutes and featured introductions by Harvey Korman as a character called "Alastair Quince," spoofing Masterpiece Theater's Alastair Cooke. These are gone, along with three minutes of footage from each episode. They now run 21 minutes, as they do in syndication. The later episodes (seasons 3-6, which were first-run syndication) ran at this length originally, but the first 2 seasons did not. Enough footage is gone to equal about one and one half of an episode.
After the debacles with ALF, The Cosby Show, and Roseanne on DVD one would think that Warner would have tried to avoid this. Nope. They just slapped on edited episodes and hope fans wouldn't notice. That they didn't include the original 1982 special "Eunice" which spawned this show,...
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