Brothers and Sisters: The Complete Fourth Season – DVD Review

DVD Reviews, Reviews, Shows



Casting is an essential key to any television series. You can have the greatest premise in the world, but if you don’t have great actors to portray the characters that are written perfectly, it could fail to gain – or keep – an audience. Still a great cast is not always the answer to a successful show. Sometimes luck and the perfect timeslot help out as well. There is no doubt that Brothers and Sisters got the right timeslot on ABC, airing after Desperate Housewives on Sunday nights. Couple that with veteran actors like Sally Field, Calista Flockhart, and Rob Lowe, and Brothers and Sisters became quite the family drama.

The series follows the Walker family, an average upper-class American family that owns a major company known as Ojai Foods with lots of problems. At the center is matriarch Nora (Sally Field), who is most satisfied by knowing that the rest of her family is happy. Still her good intentions sometimes make her the typical overbearing mother. She has five adult children, who are more like friends than they are relatives. They include Sarah Walker (Rachael Griffiths), the working girl and mother who has tried to lead the family business as the company president; Kitty McCallister (Calista Flockhart), a former radio host who marries Senator Robert McCallister (Rob Lowe); Tommy Walker (Balthazar Getty), the other family businessman who constantly fights with his sister Sarah, and is married to Julia Walker (Sarah Jane Morris); Kevin Walker (Matthew Rhys), a successful lawyer and a gay man who always bails out his family when they need legal help; and Justin Walker (Dave Annable), the youngest of the family who joined the Army and went to Afghanistan. Returning home, Justin suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and also battled with his drug addiction. Despite all of their problems, the Walker family still always come together to support each other through the joy and heartache as they try to manage their professional, romantic and family lives.

Brothers and Sisters is all about drama. In the past three seasons, the family has had to deal with the death of the patriarch and business owner, William Walker (Tom Skerritt). Then, they learned the shocking truth that not only did their father have a mistress and an illegitimate daughter, but he also embezzled money from the company. Last season, the family even had to resort to teaming up Holly Harper (Patricia Wettig), the mistress of William Walker, in order to save their company.

Now in the fourth season, Robert is busy with his gubernatorial campaign, but things change when Kitty is diagnosed with cancer. Meanwhile, Kevin and his partner, Scotty (Luke Macfarlane), are working on trying to adopt a baby but Kevin is busy working for Robert and Scotty is busy working as a chef. Meanwhile, Tommy is still in Mexico and hasnít been heard of; Sarah is in France and meets a man that she has fallen for but doesn’t know if she’s ready to fall in love again; and Justin and his new fiance, Rebeccah (Emily VanCamp), are planning for their wedding but Justin’s mind is on trying to pass medical school. Finally, Nora meets a doctor who may have other intentions in why he’s trying to get close to her, and the future of Ojai Foods is still up in the air after Holly gets caught up in a Ponzi scheme, and nearly looses everything.

The main problem with this series is that it has a never-ending cycle of drama; everyone in this family has problems, and when those problems get solved new ones arise. You can’t help but feel tense while watching the show, because you know something bad is going to happen around the corner. With that said, though, Brothers and Sisters is still a watchable series, simply because the cast is great. The veteran actors mentioned above and the newcomers, everyone does an outstanding job with their characters. They are the reasons why the series continues to have a bright future. Hopefully one day the writers will run out of the dramatic storylines to recycle over and over, and finally bring some peace to the Walker family. Until then, Brothers and Sisters is the best family drama on television today, if you like that sort of thing.

Episodes:

Disc One:

Episode 1 – The Road Ahead
Kitty has a secret that could ruin her family. Nora and Holly plan an engagement party for Justin and Rebecca. While Sarah searches for a new business venture in France.

Episode 2 – Breaking The News
As Robert worries about news of his recent heart attack leaking to the press, Kitty struggles with an untold secret that will deeply affect their marriage and bring the Walker family together like never before. Meanwhile, Kevin and Scotty discuss the real possibility and challenge of surrogacy.

Episode 3 – Almost Normal
Kitty, Robert and Nora struggle to accept Kitty’s cancer and to come to an agreement on the best possible treatment, but as they prepare to share the news with the entire family, a surprise visitor from afar makes the burden a bit easier to bear.

Episode 4 – From France With Love
As Kitty begins chemotherapy, Sarah tells her about the summer romance she had with a man in France in order to take Kitty’s mind off of the treatment. At the same time, Robert lets his campaign fall apart in an act of self-sabotage so that he can be at Kitty’s side during her illness. Kevin and Kitty take matters into their own hands and hold a press conference. Meanwhile, Nora and Holly help Rebecca as she struggles to find the perfect venue for her wedding with Justin.

Disc Two:

Episode 5 – Last Tango in Pasadena
Sarah’s new lover charms the entire family except Nora; during a difficult time, Nora finds that her new French houseguest is a great comfort; Robert tries to distract Kitty from cancer; Kevin and Scotty stumble onto an unexpected surrogacy candidate.

Episode 6 – Zen & the Art of Mole Making
Kitty is excited to see a visitor. Sarah decides to tell the children about Luc. Holly recieves some help from Rebecca and Ryan with her finances.

Episode 7 – The Wig Party
Kitty is distraught with the side effects of her cancer treatment. Scotty’s father finally reveals the truth about his marriage.

Episode 8 – The Wine Festival
Ojai’s newest wine is submitted at a local festival; Justin and Rebecca keep life-changing secrets from themselves; Nora has a crush on a younger man; Sarah and Luc may not be as compatible as they thought they were.

Disc Three:

Episode 9 – Pregnant Pause
Justin has difficulty staying sober. Holly’s financial situation continues to spiral out of control. Sarah is envious of Nora’s budding romance.

Episode 10 – Nearlyweds
Justin and Rebecca’s beachside wedding has the Walker family stunned. Tommy risks everything to have his daughter beside him.
Watch Full Episode

Episode 11 – A Bone To Pick
The family finds about what Kitty’s been hiding about her lymphoma and pursue a new treatment. A private investigator brings out secrets Robert’s been hiding. Kitty’s old love letters bring shock to the family and Ryan makes a move to leave his anger behind.

Episode 12 – The Science Fair
Sarah takes a shine to a divorced dad at Paige’s school. Justin finds a way to overcome his learning difficulties.

Disc Four:

Episode 13 – Run Baby Run
For the first time since her divorce, Sarah has a new romantic interest who understands her all too well. Meanwhile, Kevin and Scotty await the outcome of their first try at surrogacy, and Kitty and Robert are once again at an impasse over politics when Kitty’s friend, Buffy, steps in where she doesn’t belong.

Episode 14 – The Pasadena Primary
Robert and Nora get to work as guest chefs in Scotty’s struggling restaurant to boost business, Kitty puts her idea to run for Robert’s senate seat up for a Walker family vote, and Sarah reaches a point of frustration with Roy but is quickly rewarded for speaking up.

Episode 15 – A Valued Family
The Walker family shares love and loss on Valentine’s Day as Sarah rediscovers the love of her life (guest starring Gilles Marini as Luc Laurent), Kitty makes a grand but heartfelt entree in to politics with her family and new campaign manager by her side (guest starring Cheryl Hines as Buffy), Justin and Rebecca face the struggles of impending parenthood and Holly makes a tough decision about what to do with her shares of Ojai.

Episode 16 – Leap of Faith
Luc’s visa issues cause monumental problems for Sarah, who not only struggles with her feelings for him, but worries that she might lose him again – this time to another woman. Meanwhile, Rebecca wrestles with Justin and with herself to move on after a huge loss, Kevin discovers breaking up with Robert is hard to do, and Holly thinks she has found the hidden value of Ojai Foods.

Disc Five:

Episode 17 – Freeluc.com
Kitty’s newfound fame creates havoc for Luc and Sarah, as Luc faces possible deportation. Meanwhile, Nora swallows her pride and reaches out to Tommy to help her save the company from the Walkers’ longtime nemesis, Dennis York.

Episodes 18 & 19 – Time After Time (Parts 1 and 2)
In an effort to get to the root of the secret that William’s nemesis, Dennis York, holds over their heads, the Walkers recall their memories, both good and horrifying, of their family’s days at Ojai Foods in 1986. Then, as they continue to flashback to their younger days, they finally recall the shocking secret and the shameful cover-up that led to York’s power play, and are forced to deal with the remorse of a tragic event. Meanwhile, Nora and Holly take an uncharacteristic trip, a la “Thelma & Louise,” to search for answers about Ojai’s hidden worth, and Justin and Rebecca finally get their happily ever after.

Episode 20 – If You Bake It, He Will Come
Kevin’s birthday arrives, and Nora’s attempts to summon the family to come fail. Robert is offered to take a job in D.C., but he can’t share what exactly he is doing with Kitty. Scotty tries to get Kevin to forget about his past indiscretions. Ojai faces extreme financial problems, and Rebecca generously donates $2 million to solve it. Meanwhile, the Walker men confront Dennis York, and Kevin uncovers how his father truly felt about him.

Disc Six:

Episode 21 – Where There’s Smoke…
More than one member of the Walker family thinks she may be pregnant; Saul and Nora face some tough decisions regarding their aging mother.

Episode 22 – Love All
Cooper acts out; Luc joins the family; Kevin tries to adjust to being unemployed.

Episode 23 – Lights Out
New opportunities and secret alliances develop as the Walkers prepare to close Ojai Foods for good.

Episode 24 – On the Road Again
One of William’s secret investments brings hope to the Walker family; a subversive business deal compromises Robert’s health and the safety of his family; Rebecca and Justin think about a trial separation.

The video is given in widescreen color with an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. It is enhanced for 16X9 TVs. Transfer is great with minimal distortion. Really about what you come to expect from a new series released on DVD these days. No major problems at all.

The audio included is available in English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound. There are subtitles available in Spanish and French as well. The dialogue comes out crisp and clear. No major problems here either.

“The Red Carpet” Featurette – This runs 8 minutes and it features the red carpet premiere of the first episode of season 4 at the Brothers & Sisters premiere party.

“Off the Clock” Featurette – This runs 11 minutes and it’s a “behind-the-scenes” look at what happens between the cast and crew when they are not filming. Footage of the show’s football game, art opening, and Malibu Triathlon are show. Neither featurettes are that interesting, but fans might still enjoy them.

Deleted Scenes – There are 22 scenes that didn’t make the final cut of the season and they total almost 30 minutes. Nothing that interesting, though. Still a nice collection for fans.

Bloopers – This is 2 minutes worth of the usual bloopers and mistakes while filming this season. Not really that funny.

If you love family dramas, this is the television series to watch. If don’t like drama, this is a show to pass on as the comedy is few and far between. But the cast is excellent, and worth watching because of that. So give it a rental to see if it’s your kind of show or not. If it is, this DVD is still not really a “must-buy”, because of the lack of quality extras.


Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment presents Brothers and Sisters: The Complete Fourth Season. Created by Jon Robin Baitz. Starring Dave Annable, Calista Flockhart, Rachel Griffiths, Ron Rifkin, Patricia Wettig, Sally Field, Matthew Rhys, Balthazar Getty, Sarah Jane Morris, Rob Lowe, Emily VanCamp, Luke Macfarlane, Ken Olin. Running time: 1035 minutes. Rated: Not Rated. Released on DVD: August 31, 2010.



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