The Good

A solidly crafted, superbly acted show.

The Bad

No Special Features at all.

This is simply a great show. Doug Heffernan (Kevin James), Carrie Heffernan (Leah Remini) and Arthur Spooner (Jerry Stiller) are a terrific comic team. In this, the King of Queens: The Complete Fifth Season we are treated to Doug curing his insomnia by sleeping with Arthur, Carrie dealing with shopping too much and Arthur learning to live with a dog. This show takes things that could be done in a very serious way and turns them on their ear to create comedy.

For example, there is the "Prints Charming" episode in which Carrie and Doug pick up the wrong pictures and then they start examining their own lives. This has all the makings of an indy film but these characters play it in such a way that the comedy is always there. Like all truly great sitcoms, this show retains it's edge by being just funny enough to not take itself too seriously.

Features

No Extras came with this DVD.

Video

Full Screen - 1.33:1. Simply lit, this show is really a performance piece for everyone involved. I found that the DVD's compression over the three discs was solid if not spectacular. All of the colors that need to be brought out were brought out, and the look of these DVDs rivals that of the newer shows that play today.

Audio

English (Dolby Surround). Dolby Digital - Mastered in High Defintion. Close Captioned. This is one of those shows that provides joke after joke but it is done in a way that is truly organic. The audio does a very good job over the course of these three discs, keeping all of this together, although lets be honest, the sound design in a sitcom is not something that is going to jump right out at you.

Package

The three main cast members of this show are presented on this front cover with an obviously photoshopped in background. The back features more shots of the cast that were obviously taken at separate times. They provide a well written description of this show's story and storylines as well as some technical specs. All three discs fold out with artwork featuring all the main characters, and the discs that have been placed in such a way that they are actually part of the background as well. There is a threefold booklet that lists out each episode and gives a description of it also.

Final Word

I really love the dynamic between Kevin James, Leah Remini and Jerry Stiller. In fact, I think it is a real coup for Stiller to have gone from a show like Seinfeld into a show of this caliber. While the two shows are quite different, there is a throughline with Stiller's character that he never overplays. He is just annoying enough to be lovable. I also find that I believe the relationship between James and Remini. By this, the Fifth Season, all of the characters, even the ones in recurring, supporting roles are really superb.

The King of Queens was released .