Greed is good on television. Few things help heighten a drama than characters that are greedy for power, money or even second helpings of pot roast. Viewers don’t have to ponder why the characters do what they do. If the family fortune is at stake, there’s no questioning the motivation. Wouldn’t you screw over a bratty sibling to get control of your private Hawaiian island? Dynasty: Season One, Billions: Season Three and Soul Food: The Complete Series explores the levels of greed and the bonds that keep things in the family.
Dynasty: Season One is the revival of the ’80s series that currently airs on the CW. Why did they bring it back? That answer is simple in the 21st Century: because it’s easy. You don’t have to do much heavy lifting in naming the characters. Audiences have a clue as to what the show is about. But there has to be a little bit of originality to make viewers realize this updated version is necessary and pertains to our time. The new Dynasty keeps certain elements of the ’80s sensation while making it a bit more modern. The series still revolves around billionaire Blake Carrington (Melrose Place‘s Grant Show) and his troubles with money, power and love. The differences come quick since the new Carrington lives in Atlanta instead of Denver. His new bride Cristal Flores Carrington (Vampire Diaries‘ Nathalie Kelley) is Hispanic. “Sammy Jo” is now a man (Rafael de la Fuente) instead of Heather Locklear. Conniving daughter Fallon Carrington (Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll‘s Elizabeth Gillies) is still wanting control of the family’s company. She doesn’t trust Cristal and finds issues with the new mom’s past. And old mom shows up with Alexis Carrington (The Sure Thing‘s Nicollette Sheridan) ready to cause trouble like Joan Collins did in the original role. The show plays up the prime time soap opera angles that made the the original exciting. There are moments that it plays like The Real Housewives of Atlanta except with real actors instead of people faking their lives. The bonus features include deleted scenes on the episodes and a gag reel.
Billions: Season Three gets deeper into the battle between U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades, Jr. (Private Parts‘ Paul Giamatti) and Bobby Axelrod (Homeland‘s Damian Lewis) of Axe Capital. The second season ended with Bobby in cuffs, but are Chuck’s charges really going to stick? When dealing with the rich and powerful, they don’t seem to have the same playing field as a middle class schmuck trying to fight a red light camera. This seasons two big guest stars are Clancy Brown (Highlander) as the Attorney General of the United States and John Malkovich (Being John Malkovich) as a Russian billionaire. They add the necessary umph to a season that is all about Chuck wanting more political power and Axe Capital needed to rebound. Billions has become the most addictive series on Showtime even with the occasional BDSM scenes of Giamatti with Maggie Siff (Sons of Anarchy). The bonus features include “Billions Decoded” and Axe’s Penthouse Tour.
Soul Food: The Complete Series isn’t quite on the monetary scale of the previous films, but it is about family members doing their best to get the right seat at the table for Sunday dinner. The series adapted the hit ’90s film Soul Food. The Joseph family has a lot of things going on in the Chicago area, but they try to make time to meet up and enjoy Big Mama’s recipes. The series had a fine lineup of guest stars including James Avery, Tyra Banks, Jim Brown, Diahann Carroll, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Faye Dunaway, Babyface Edmonds, Dijmon Hounsou, Terrence Howard, Star Jones, Wynton Marsalis, Richard Roundtree, Michael Jai White, Mario Van Peebles, Rip Torn, Usher, Giancarlo Esposito and Idris Elba. They even have a very young Drake when he was still Aubrey Graham. Soul Food delivered the family drama for four seasons on Showtime.
The video is 1.78:1 for both Dynasty and Billions. The video is 1.33:1 full frame for Soul Food‘s first three seasons. The transfers let you see the desire in the characters’ eyes. The audio is Dolby Digital 5.1 for Billions and Dynasty. The audio is Dolby Digital Stereo for Soul Food. The levels are fine for all three shows. The episodes are subtitled.
CBS DVD presents Dynasty: Season One. Starring: Elizabeth Gillies, Nathalie Kelley, James Mackay, Robert Christopher Riley, Sam Adegoke, Grant Show & Nicollette Sheridan. Boxset Contents: 22 episodes on 6 DVDs. Released: September 25, 2018.
CBS DVD presents Billions: Season Three. Starring: Paul Giamatti, Damian Lewis, Maggie Siff, Malin Åkerman and Toby Leonard Moore. Boxset Contents: 12 episodes on 4 DVDs. Released: September 25, 2018.
CBS DVD presents Soul Food: The Complete Series. Starring: Rockmond Dunbar, Darrin Dewitt Henson, Boris Kodjoe, Aaron Meeks, Nicole Ari Parker, Malinda Williams & Vanessa A. Williams. Boxset Contents: 74 episodes on 19 DVDs. Released: September 25, 2018.
