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| Available at Amazon.com |
Everyone knows that 2007 Writers’ Strike affected every scripted television show last year. One would think that dramas would be more affected than comedies, but that’s not necessarily true (look at my review of season 4 of The Office for an example of this). The real deciding factor in how much a show was hurt by the strike is whether or not that show relies on season-long story arcs. Most of your top dramas and comedies have season-long, and even series-long, storylines that carry over from episode to episode. These shows gain momentum each week. Those are the shows that were hurt most by the strike, which caused a long break between episodes. On the other hand, shows that rely less on season-long story arcs and have more self-contained episodic storylines were affected much less by the strike. Just take season three of Ghost Whisperer for an example of that.
Ghost Whisperer stars Jennifer Love Hewitt as Melinda Gordon. Melinda lives in the fictional town of Grandview with her husband Jim (David Conrad) and has the ability to see and communicate with the dead. Each episode of this series deals with one or more ghosts seeking Melinda’s help in relaying a message or completing a task that will put the spirit to rest, and allow them to “cross over” into “The Light”, a metaphor presented by the show as its conception of Heaven.
The main storyline of the third season revolved around the idea that Melinda came to Grandview for a reason. That reason being that all ghosts are somehow lead to Grandview. They have always been and apparently always will be for some unknown reason at this time. In addition, the third season revolved around the buried city under Grandview. In the second season, viewers saw a man in a hat take souls hostage, and take them underground somewhere. We learn during this season that the underground city is where he took them.
There are still plenty of heartwarming “Touched by an Angel” moments during the third season, but overall this series is getting darker with each new season. The main negative of the show is that there isn’t a lot of continuity from episode to episode. It’s almost like there is a rough overall outline of where the show is going, but some of the minor details get lost along the way. Fortunately, Jennifer Love Hewitt is still the glue that holds everything together. She and the rest of her small, but strong, supporting cast do an outstanding job on this show and make it watchable.
Ghost Whisperer is not an original show by any definition, but it’s the perfect show for Friday night. This is a show that doesn’t make you think as much about what happened on previous episodes and how it affects everything in the next episode. Friday nights should be reserved for strictly entertainment and Ghost Whisperer is an entertaining show that will scratch most people’s “scare” itch. The strike only affected the third season of Ghost Whisperer by forcing it to have fewer episodes. So ironically enough, the show’s main negative was also why the third season was just as good and strong as the previous two.
Episodes:
Disc One:
Episode 1 – The Underneath
Jennifer goes to Melinda’s store to sell some belongings that came from her deceased parent’s house. Melinda then helps Jennifer with her father who died when she was only a toddler. Someone takes photos of Melinda and they show something suspicious. Melinda finds that she has a hidden connection to Grandview while digging into her family’s past.
Episode 2 – Don’t Try This at Home
Melinda helps a group of college girls after one of their friends dies and begins to haunt them. Melinda must get Rachel to believe she is not Bloody Mary.
Episode 3 – Haunted Hero
Jim’s friend Matt returns home with memory loss after serving overseas in the military where all of his friends died. Matt’s comrades appear to Melinda to help Matt regain his memory.
Disc Two:
Episode 4 – No Safe Place
An attorney seeks Melinda’s help. Shane tells Melinda that the ghost is of his dead stalker. Melinda soon finds that Shane has not told Melinda the truth about the ghost and confronts him but Shane finds another way to deal with the situation.
Episode 5 – Weight of What Was
Gabriel returns to Grandview and Melinda learns more about what is lurking below.
Episode 6 – Double Exposure
Melinda and Professor Payne meet with another college professor who discloses that she had an affair with a student. That student just passed away after an accident.
Disc Three:
Episode 7 – Unhappy Medium
Melinda and Jim discuss a kidnapping where the family has contacted a psychic who Melinda believes is telling the family stuff that they want to hear just so he can make money off of them. Melinda goes and talks to the family and finds that something else has happened to the missing girl.
Episode 8 – Bad Blood
Melinda becomes involved with a couple of ghosts who refuse to cross over after she finds that they are causing trouble for a man and his daughter. The ghosts make Melinda play a game of twenty questions.
Episode 9 – All Ghosts Lead to Grandview
While Melinda and Jim are taking care of Becca, Melinda finds that Becca can also see the dead.
Episode 10 – Holiday Spirit
Melinda is at the house of young boy named Riley and as they’re hanging Christmas ornaments on the tree, Melinda tries to get him to open up about the strange things he has seen.
Disc Four:
Episode 11 – Slam (a.k.a. Slambook)
Melinda helps Ned at his new high were there are several different hauntings. In the process Melinda finds that she is investigating the intricate world of gossip and romance within the high school before she uncovers the reasons for the hauntings.
Episode 12 – First Do No Harm
Melinda helps a ghost who blames Jim for his untimely death in an explosion.
Episode 13 – Home But Not Alone
Strange happenings surround Ned’s new girlfriend and her family. Ned enlists Melinda’s help, who believes they may be haunted by their deceased father. Melinda gets to the bottom of it and helps keep the family together.
Episode 14 – The Gravesitter
After graffiti is repeatedly painted on Melinda’s shop doors, she seeks out the town blogger convinced he is the one causing the mischief in an attempt to expose her. Melinda is forced to encounter the dark side of Grandview in order to help the latest ghost cross-over.
Disc Five:
Episode 15 – Horror Show
Melinda investigates the haunting of a college student after the student sees a horror movie.
Episode 16 – Deadbeat Dads
Professor Payne meets Elliot, the brilliant son of one of his old girlfriends. When Payne discovers that the boy is almost 10-years-old, he realizes he may be the boy’s father. This angers his deceased wife. After watching Payne, Elliot, and the boy’s mother, Melinda tells Jim she wants to have a baby. Melinda meets with Carl, a detective she hired to trace her father’s whereabouts after he left Melinda and her mother. Carl stops by the house to give her the little bit of information he collected on her father and something strange happens to him while he talks to Melinda.
Episode 17 – Stranglehold
While trying to figure out the meaning of a dream, Melinda finds out some surprising news about her father.
Episode 18 – Pater Familias
Melinda discovers the truth about her family’s past through a series of bodily possessions.
The video is given in anamorphic widescreen color with an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, which is enhanced for 16X9 TVs. The transfer is pretty good with minimal grain. It’s slightly better than the original presentation on TV, but there are no major problems at all.
The audio included is in English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound. The dialogue and music come out loud and clear. No major problems here either and the overall quality is a little better than your average TV on DVD set.
Audio Commentaries –
There are 2 audio commentaries for 2 different episodes this season. John Gray (creator) and James Chressanthis (director) comment on “The Underneath” episode. P.K. Simonds (writer) comments on the “Weight of What Was” episode. These provide a lot of information, but they are not that entertaining since none of the cast is involved. Could have been better.
“Welcome To The Underworld” Featurette –
This runs 13 minutes and it’s all about the secrets that are buried under Melinda’s hometown. The cast and crew explain more about this aspect of the show. Intriguing, but nothing special.
“Bringing The Spirits To Life” Featurette –
This runs 11 minutes and it’s an in-depth look into what it takes to emulate an angry spirit. Fairly interesting.
“Evolution of Melinda” Photo Slide Show –
This is a photo slide show of Melinda Gordon’s different fashions from season one to three. Very disappointing actually, since the images go by so fast he can’t really see them for a single second.
“Payne’s World” Featurette –
This runs 7 minutes and Jay Mohr discusses his character in it. He also shares his experiences with ghost, both on the screen and off of it. This one is pretty entertaining.
The Other Side II Webseries –
There are 8 webisodes that total 21 minutes. The main storyline of this webseries is you see the world through the eyes of a ghost. So instead of seeing what Melinda sees on the show, you step into the ghost’s shoes so to speak. Pretty cool actually.
Animated Short –
This runs 2 minutes and it’s basically a series of animated scenes where we see what happened to Melinda between season two and three.
Interactive Haunted House –
This is the game where you take a ride through a haunted house.
Interactive Mashup –
Another game where you can create your own cemetery scene.
Melinda’s Haunted Diary –
Another “game” where you take a look inside Melinda’s diary and learn more about her.
Ghost Whisperer is not the best show on television, but it provides enough entertainment for the Friday night audience. Jennifer Love-Hewitt is engaging and it’s hard not liking any show she is in. So if you like being slightly scared, you should check this show out as a rental at least.
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Paramount Home Entertainment presents Ghost Whisperer – Season 3. Created by John Gray. Starring Jennifer Love-Hewitt, David Conrad, Camryn Manheim, and Jay Mohr. Running time: 796 minutes. Rated: NOT RATED. Released on DVD: September 2, 2008.
Available at Amazon.com
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