The Good

You gotta give them some credit, they were going out so they did it BIG.

The Bad

Me thinks this show has gone a bit too overboard in this final season.

I didn't expect it to end like this. I know that when this show first started it seemed to be a bit tame, almost like an After School Special in some ways. As time wore on, and the need to keep viewers and get new ones increased, something else had to be done. So much so that by the time we get to Dawson's Creek: The Complete Sixth Season, things have almost spiraled out of control.

Dawson (James Van Der Beek) ends up becoming a director on a horror movie (what person actually begins in Hollywood as an assistant director?), Pacey (Joshua Jackson) has gone to work at a bank and Joey (Katie Holmes) is in school. There are a lot more characters and interwoven plots throughout this season but to be honest these are the only three characters worth caring about. It's not that I think this show is bad, I think it got bad. I know that as people get older their lives change in different ways, I just found this final season a little hard to swallow.

Features

Commentary on the Series Finale

This is with creator/episode writer Kevin Williamson and producer Paul Stupin. Since this is two hours long and it's the final episode of the show that Williamson created, I really appreciate that he did this. I know for a fact that this show was very close to him and it was almost touching seeing him look back on what he'd created. He talked about the show, what he thought the characters would do in the future and even discussed aspects of his own life. Considering all the circumstances around this commentary track, I look at Williamson in a different light than I used to.

Bonus Scrapbook

This contained things like character bios, sample script pages, photos and trivia. To be honest, I was a little disappointed. Why didn't they have the main actors talking about the show or at least doing a commentary track? I know that this is the final season and that all the shows will most likely be released together, but these bonus features seemed almost bottom of the barrel.

Video

Full Screen - 1.33:1. I have almost gotten used to watching the newer shows in widescreen that I was somewhat surprised this show wasn't in that format. These episodes look really well compressed. It seems as if a layer of gloss or something has been laid over them because they seemed to sparkle on my 9" TV screen. They might not look as sharp or as concentrated on a bigger TV, but overall I think great care has been made to send off Dawson's Creek with a bang.

Audio

Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround. Everything sounded fine from an audio standpoint (lets not forget that I only have one speaker on my TV), I just had to turn up the volume on my set about 3/4's of the way. I am surprised about having to do this simply because this is a newer show but I guess that's how it goes. Also, I didn't feel like the actors were delivering they lines just to put across a zinger or make a statement. This cast genuinely seemed to just be acting.

Package

What a surprise, Katie Holmes in featured twice (and in much bigger pictures) than all of the other actors on this show. They probably already had the artwork in place before Michelle Williams reinvigorated her career with Brokeback Mountain. The back features some more shots from the show, a description of what this final season has in store for viewers, a "Special Features" list and some technical specs. The four discs that make up this set are housed inside this vinyl cardboard cover, with more artwork and pictures from the show inside.

Final Word

Okay, I gotta ask this because the question is just killing me... how in the world could Dawson choose Jen (Michelle Williams) over Joey? I know that I am reviewing this DVD (and what I am talking about happened in the Fifth season) and I certainly haven't seen every episode of this show, but it just doesn't make any sense to me. What were the writers thinking? I could see if for plot reasons or to shake things up they chose Jen for Dawson's tryst, but this is completely ridiculous. Now, I bring this up because I couldn't help but watch this final season and think about that every time Jen or Joey came on the screen.

Fans of this show (of which there are many) will no doubt laud the release of Dawson's Creek: The Complete Sixth Season on DVD. While I would happy if I was collecting the show (and had followed it more), I must say that I find the whole thing to be a slight let down.

However, the whole five years into the future idea is pretty interesting...

Dawson's Creek was released .