Weeds: Season Three – DVD Review

A successful sitcom has settled into a routine by the third season. They have established their characters, locations and story beats. The audience knows what to expect from their TV pals. “Don’t mess with the formula” is the producer’s mantra. They can’t ruin their chance to lockdown that golden fifth season by creating an extreme change. Weeds bogarts the old rules. Its third season didn’t even come close to play it safe from the first episode to the final cliffhanging moment. This is a show that brings catastrophe to its characters.

There are times when it’s hard to describe a series without spoiling way too much. This is one of them. It hurts to even give minor hints of what went down during season three since odds are you’ll want to be surprised at the insanity. Since this series airs on Showtime, there’s a major chance that you might not know about the show. The risque topic also makes it a seldom discussed topic around the water cooler. What are the odds that the guy who talks each week about marijuana dealers gets picked for the company’s random drug test? While Weeds has gained a pop culture following, it’s one that has a low profile fan base. This is not The Sopranos or Seinfeld. You have to be extremely comfortable with someone to recommend Weeds.

What can be said without ruining your potential viewing buzz? The third season continues the comic struggles of Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker). How can this widow raise two kids in their posh town of Agrestic with the little cash her husband left behind? She supplements her income by dealing marijuana to select neighbors. She farms her own crop instead of relying on the harvest of others. She and Conrad (Romany Malco) make a splash with their special “Milf Weed.” The season two cliffhanger involves a major deal going seriously wrong on so many levels. Did that spoil anything?

This season kicks off with Nancy no longer being an independent operator. Her life is constantly threatened by various dealers ready to grab her turf. She makes an alliance that leads to a serious reevaluation of her future plans. The season ends on a flaming note. Did that spoil too much? There are several new faces rolled into the cast. Guillermo Díaz (Half Baked) arrives as a Latino drug lord. Matthew Modine (Full Metal Jacket) develops a new town while tearing up turf with Nancy and Celia Hodes (Elizabeth Perkins). He doesn’t understand that he’s dating double dynamite. The double weirdness kicks in when Nancy encounters her latest husband’s ex-wife played by Brooke Smith. Do you recognize her as the girl in the hole from The Silence of the Lambs? Mary-Kate Olson comes on board as a devout Christian girl who loves to smoke up. What a shock. Finally, an Olson related series that the whole family can’t watch.

Weeds is amazing as a dope show that doesn’t require you to be high to get all the laughs. Nancy is a small businesswoman struggling to make her nut. She could be having the same problems if she was selling Tupperware. Maybe not all of the same problems. The DEA wouldn’t be breathing down her neck for pushing rubber storage bins. This series isn’t merely a rehash of Cheech and Chong jokes. Although the stoner humor from Kevin Nealon, Andy Milder and Justin Kirk is a contact high. This is the best comedy on the cable box. If you haven’t experienced Weeds, consider this peer pressure to start. And if you’ve only seen the first two seasons, hopefully this review won’t spoil the fresh crop of episodes in this boxset.

The Episodes
“Doing The Backstroke,” “A Pool and His Money,” “The Brick Dance,” “Sh*t Highway,” “Bill Sussman,” “Grasshopper,” “He Taught Me How To Drive By,” “The Two Mrs. Scottsons,” “Release the Hounds,” “Roy Till Called,” “Cankles,” “The Dark Time,” “Risk,” “Protection” and “Go.”

The video is 1.78:1 anamorphic. The clarity is so fine that you swear they really are grawing milf weed. The audio is Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX. Several of the episodes have commentary tracks with the cast and crew including “Doing The Backstroke” and “Go” with Jenji Kohan, “Sh*t Highway” with Mark Burley, “Bill Sussman” with Justin Kirk, “Grasshopper” with Hunter Parrish & Alexander Gould, “The Two Mrs. Scottsons” with Craig Zisk & Michael Trim, “Release the Hounds” with Ernest R. Dickerson and “Protection” with Roberto Benabib. The subtitles are in English and Spanish.

Gag Reel (5:57) lets us know how difficult it is for an actor to focus when eye level with an adult film star’s chest. Justin Kirk gets away with a major flirt moment at the end. This is one of the better gag reels.

Trivia Tracks are subtitles that give background on “A Pool and His Money,” “The Brick Dance,””He Taught Me How To Drive By,” “Roy Till Called,” “Cankles,” “The Dark Time” and “Risk.”


Little Boxes Music Montages (3:50) is four different versions of the theme song.

Uncle AWOL (6:59) has Justin Kirk give his view of the show. His two female assistants allow him a chance to dish out Dean Martin charm. It’s like he’s auditioning for Big Love with the ladies.

Mary-Kate Olson Bio (2:46) reminds us how she went from Full House to the hippie house.

Randy Newman – Little Boxes (2:32) has the singer of “Short People” perform the theme song. Creator Jenji Kohan talks about the history of the song.

Soundtrack Sampler is 30 second clips of the songs on the album.

G.M.A. – Good Morning Agrestic! (33:35) is the public access morning show for the folks who live in the Weeds neighborhood. These six shorties are hilarious. The best bit is Paul Kirk’s “Wake and Bake” cooking segments. This is better than Fernwood Tonight.

Weeds: Season Three sets the bar extremely high for shows that deal with dope. The series dares to push the sitcom conventions as it refuses to settle into a viewer friendly routine. Nancy’s life is always in flux. Yet no matter how strange it gets, there’s always a laugh.

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Lionsgate presents Weeds: Season Three. Starring: Mary Louise Parker, Elizabeth Perkins, Justin Kirk, Romany Malco & Kevin Nealon. Boxset Contents: 15 episodes on 3 discs. Originally Broadcasted: August. 13 – Nov. 19, 2007. Released on DVD: June 3, 2008. Available at Amazon.com