Dynasty: Season Three, Vol. Two

High art it isn’t, but one thing’s for sure: Dynasty is ass-in-seat television. Launched in 1981, the John Forsythe-Linda Evans-Joan Collins starring vehicle crossed lines and took chances few of its contemporaries were willing to take. For several years Dynasty defied conservative conventions with sordid tales of extramarital affairs, catfights, and the hot-button issue of homosexual parenting. It’s this last issue that is featured so prominently in Dynasty – The Third Season, Volume Two.

Those of you who are uninitiated to the Dynasty saga have nothing to fear, as each script is weighted heavily with expository dialogue sure to catch you up in no time. (“If Blake loves you, Krystle, then why did he humiliate you by castigating you that day we fought in the lily pond” – Alexis Colby) Of course, the show’s quality suffers as a result, offering ridiculous conversations involving participants who should damn well know exactly what just happened to them, especially considering the weight of their experiences, without the need of another character explaining things. In fact, about 40-50% of every conversation is retread from a previous episode. Incidentally, the acting is terrible, but one must wonder if the actors could have done any better with the material they were given. While exposition can certainly be a necessity, especially in an hour-long ongoing series, the convention is best used in very small doses at the beginning of a story, not throughout every segment between the commercial breaks.

Most of the pleasure in watching this series comes from the “so bad it’s good” school of execution. Nevertheless, the gutsy handling of taboo topics within a stricter national code of morality gave this night-time soap opera an admirable, rebellious quality. Add to it the guilty pleasure of watching Linda Evans occasionally beat the crap out of Joan Collins, and you’ve got the early days of “must-see TV.”

Video

Presented in 4:3 full-frame, the source material has held up very well, but it doesn’t seem Paramount took any further action with the transfer. Accurate color schemes leap off wild eighties fashions, reminding us the shows are 25 years old, and occasional flashpoints and artifacts solidify the point. Still, these are good-looking discs, and everyday viewers won’t spot anything that disrupts their experience.

Audio

Paramount provides two audio tracks, both monaural (one English, one Spanish). Action and dialogue play out with equal volume, and speaking of volume, levels stay high throughout the whole of the presentation with no washing out for intimate scenes, or low talkers. Shouldn’t give viewers any problems.

Special Features

I’d give it a negative if I could. It’s bad enough there are zero supplements. Fans of the show will also be annoyed to learn they’re buying a half-season. Not sure which studio started this abhorrent practice, but I’m sure many DVD-philes will agree it’s one that has to go.

Final Thoughts

Video and audio presentations didn’t receive any TLC from Paramount, but luckily, they didn’t need much. What the set could have used are some extras… or at least the decency of being accompanied by the first half of its season in one release. Other than that, cue up the slow-play button on your remote control: Linda and Joan are at it again!