The DVD Dissection: Home Improvement – The Complete Sixth Season
Posted by Chad Webb on 05.25.2007
The popular sitcom was past its peak by this season, but was still delivering the laughs.
Tim Allen: Tim Taylor
Patricia Richardson: Jill Taylor
Zachary Ty Bryan: Bradley Michael Taylor
Jonathan Taylor Thomas: Randall William Taylor
Taran Noah Smith: Marcus Jason Taylor
Richard Karn: Al Borland
Debbie Dunning: Heidi Keppert
Earl Hindman: Wilson Wilson Jr.
William O’ Leary: Martin “Marty” Taylor
Sherry Hursey: Ilene Markham
Created By: Carmen Finestra, David McFadzean, Matt Williams
Directed By: Andrew Tsao and Geoffrey Nelson
Season Air Time: 1996 – 1997
DVD Release Date: May 15, 2007
Full Running Time: 561 minutes
Individual Episode Running Time: 22-23 minutes (without commercials)/ 30 minutes (with commercials)
Rating: TV-PG
The sixth season was not an easy period for the Home Improvement clan. The series was definitely showing signs of age now. It was past its prime, but that did not stop the cast and crew from supplying the laughter in some masterful episodes. The ratings were declining, but still quite strong in the Tuesday slot. This was the last, undeniably good season. The following years would get hairy and peculiar.
If season five’s highlight was Jonathan Taylor Thomas, season six’s main attraction was Debbie Dunning as Heidi. She was at the height of her gorgeous powers at this point, and the bulk of the episodes resonate an air that she is a crucial member to the cast. Her pregnancy, the season finale, as well as many minor moments all expose how popular she was. Her calendar was also out at this point I think. I wasn’t complaining. She was one of my favorite parts of the show.
Basically the general premise of the show has not changed, or been altered. This season established a running theme. Since the boys were all older now, new plot threads could develop. Randy was beginning to date, and Brad had oodles of things happening in his life. He was driving, starting to think about sex, getting a job, etc. In other words, the two eldest Taylor sons’ were hitting puberty hard….no pun intended. The only person left behind, yet again, is Taran Noah Smith as Mark.
He is literally non-existent in certain episodes, but primarily he is there to utter one line, and that is it. Even “The Karate Kid Returns”, and episode that appeared to be based around him, was centered eventually on Randy. Mark had nothing to do on the show. He fell behind Zachary Ty Bryan and JTT because they were better performers for one, and more interesting to watch. Mark’s character suffered from being a pansy. He took karate, flying lessons, and all sorts of male activities, but he was still very feminine. He reminded me of the middle daughter on Family Matters. She disappeared halfway through that show, and people have argued with me that she even existed to this day. Every character on the show has an opportunity to shine, except Mark. No one cared, but we would be forced to notice him in the future as gothboy.
This season is filled with mediocre to average episodes, but a hefty handful are classics, no doubt about it. A few of the best are “Burning Love”, “The Tool Man Delivers”, “Totally Tool Time”, and “Something Old, Something Blue.” I felt this particular season had more well known guest stars than others. Janeane Garofalo, Drew Carey, Tom Poston, Mario & Michael Andretti, Pamela Anderson, and The Beach Boys are all featured.
1996 was also a year where Tim Allen and Jonathan Taylor Thomas were continuing their movie careers with revered comedies like Jungle 2 Jungle and Wild America. Overall, season six is a hit, and a hoot for that matter. It might not be the best, but it is most certainly not the worst.
The Episodes
DISC 1
At Sea (22:20) – Tool Time goes on location to the USS Constellation aircraft carrier where Tim causes havoc, but back at the house Jill finds Brad and Angela making out on his bed. Jill orders Tim to talk with him about sex. This was sort of a sluggish start, but it set the tone for the whole season. Tim’s wild antics for the Navy weren’t as satisfying as intended. 7.5/10.0
Future Shocked (22:03) – Jill becomes worried about Tim having to stick to a routine, and starts dreaming about how that will affect them when they are older. This was one of those episodes that was humorous just to see the characters in makeup as if they were old. The kids are barely in this, and Tim gains the most laughs. 8.0/10.0
Workshop Till You Drop (22:22) – Jill wants Tim to attend a couple therapy group with her so their marriage stays healthy. Tim agrees when he finds out Bud(his boss) has divorced. It seems the opening was a bit slow, but they are gradually getting better. This was some damn funny stuff with Tim in this therapy session. Solid Allen material. 8.5/10.0
Burning Love (22:39) – Randy is working on the school paper with Lauren, a cute girl who likes cars. Tim thinks Randy should ask her out immediately, but Randy finds out she is dating Jason, Brad’s friend. This was hilarious, with every cast member contributing key lines. Plus, Randy’s girlfriend gets hotter as the show rolls along. She was a nice addition. 9.5/10.0
Al’s Video (22:23) – Al has been chosen to produce an instructional video on stocking a tool box, and decides Tim should direct. He goes out of control, and gets bossy. Meanwhile, Jill gets a new computer. This was just average I thought. It was an interesting concept for a plot, but it didn’t overly impress me. 7.5/10.0
Whose Car Is It Anyway? (22:23) – When Jill receives money from an inheritance, she sets out to buy a sports car. When she picks one, she forbids Tim to drive it. The cars are a nifty aspect of this show, as most of them are legitimately good looking. This delivered the comedy as well as any other episode. 8.0/10.0
I Was A Teenage Taylor (22:23) - This Halloween, the Taylor’s have a war of pranks. Jill, Tim, and Mark team up against Brad and Randy. The Halloween episodes are consistently creative and hysterical. I have never seen one that wasn’t terrific. This is no different. 9.0/10.0
Jill and Her Sisters (22:39) - Jill invites her sisters to visit and help plan their parents 50th wedding anniversary. Problems ensue when they can’t stop arguing. Meanwhile, Tim and the boys are camping outside. I had forgotten how funny this one was. The camping and the women fighting were mixed very well. This was great. 9.0/10.0
DISC 2
The Tool Man Delivers (22:17) - Tim has been made Classic Car Guy of the Year, but when he, Jill, and Heidi are traveling to the banquet, Heidi goes into labor. This was a hysterical and brilliant episode. Tom Poston guest stars, and the humor was just top notch all around. 10.0/10.0
The Wood, The Bad, and The Hungry (22:30) – It is Thanksgiving, and this year, Benny is not invited to dinner. When Tim and Randy spot him at a soup kitchen, Tim gets into the spirit of giving. They used stop motion animation in this episode, and it was a marvelous touch I must say. This was another outstanding show for the whole cast. 10.0/10.0
Workin’ Man Blues (22:31) – Brad wants a car, so he lands a job at a sporting goods store. He is a natural salesman, and his work soon becomes his top priority. I enjoyed this topic because I worked a lot during high school myself. This was good stuff as usual. 8.5/10.0
No Place Like Home (22:25) – Tim and his brothers are helping their mother move out of the family home. Tim gets upset when the new owners plan to rip everything apart. We finally get to meet one of Tim’s other brothers, besides Marty. Leslie Bibb (The Skulls) can be seen as one of the owners btw. This was decent. It got a bit too sentimental, but not bad. 8.0/10.0
The Flirting Game (22:24) – Jill and Tim debate on flirting when Tim is persuaded to buy products from a sexy door-to-door sales woman. Jill then wants to flirt to get a job. Mike Starr (Dumb and Dumber) has a minor role as a cop. This was a bizarre and silly little episode, but was humorous where it needed to be. 8.0/10.0
The Karate Kid Returns (22:34) – Mark uses his karate skills to help Randy with a bully, but when the school newspaper finds out, Randy's reputation is damaged. Randy and Lauren have some shaky acting moments together, and that hurt this particular episode, but it was still entertaining. Also, The Beach Boys were cool to see. 8.0/10.0
Totally Tool Time (22:24) – Swedish investors are contemplating to buy Tool Time for Europe, so Tim and Al prepare a big show. This features the man’s gym, and Drew Carey. Carey and Allen together are unbelievably funny. This is what Home Improvementis all about. 9.5/10.0
A Funny Valentine (22:34) – Tim forgets where he hid Jill’s present. Also, a singer meets with Tim to talk about his father. Probably the worst episode of this season, but not too terrible. We’ve seen the mishaps with Jill’s presents before, and the whole angle with the singer was kind of lame. Her vocal stylings were weak as well. 6.5/10.0
Wilson’s World (22:38) – Wilson invites the Taylor’s to watch a stage performance on his life. When a critic gives him a bad review, Wilson starts acting like everyone else. It was comical to watch Wilson act differently, but it is a risk having the entire episode center on him. 7.5/10.0
DISC 3
Something Old, Something Blue (22:39) – Al and Ilene are finally getting married, but Al has cold feet the day before. This was yet another bravura episode. It was a shock that Al and Ilene did not get hitched, but I suppose Sherry Hursey (Ilene) couldn’t do the show anymore. Still this was great. 9.5/10.0
Communication Breakdown (22:22) – The boys are using the phone way too often. To remedy that, Tim gets Dennis, Harry’s son to install a second line. Harry’s wife, Dolores is irritating beyond belief sometimes. She almost killed this episode, but I did laugh at points. 7.0/10.0
My Son, The Driver (22:38) – Brad has a license, but Jill is paranoid about his first night driving on his own. When he gets into an accident, he lies about how serious it is. The writers have dug up some intriguing storylines for this season, and this was a simple, but good one to jump on. Tammy Lauren (Wishmaster) as Patty, Jill’s friend is hot as always. This was solid material. 9.0/10.0
Insult to Injury (22:26) – Tim is one show away from breaking Bob Vila’s record for consecutive shows. He then receives a separated shoulder which might prevent him from breaking the record. This would have been better with Bob Vila on it, but instead it was barely average. 7.5/10.0
Family Un-Ties (22:41) – Jill wants to spend some quality time with the boys while Tim is at a Hardware expo. Unfortunately, the boys have other plans. Sadly, parents do act like this. The slapstick gags with Tim and Al were funny, but the Jill storyline was not handled proficiently. 8.0/10.0
The Feminine Mistake (22:06) – Jill sees Brad’s girlfriend Angela doing everything he tells her to do. Jill forces Tim to explain equal partnership to Brad. Ahh, this was also the classic 3-D episode. I watched with my glasses on when this first aired. The writers took a gamble with a plot like this, but it was a success for the most part. 8.5/10.0
Taps (22:32) – Jill lies to her father to prevent him fro visiting because she’s under a lot of pressure. She gets very upset when he dies shortly after that. Home Improvement does about one serious episode every season, but they are so magnificent at it. This was excellent. 10.0/10.0
The Kiss and The Kiss-Off - The old Tool Time girl, Lisa, returns for a guest spot. Tim does not ask Heidi if she cares, so she quits. In addition, Randy and Lauren go on their first date. The season finale was perfect in every way, especially with Pamela Anderson and Debbie Dunning on the same show. 10.0/10.0
The Video
No complaints will be made here. The show looks crisp, vivid, and bright. The picture emphasizes the various colors of the Tool Time set, the man’s gym, and other areas beautifully. The show is presented in its original full screen ratio of 1.33:1, and with the absence of commercials, it is glorious to watch. All of these have been flawless transfers. This is not really different, although some episodes seem more pristine than others. No grain or soft spots will be seen, but the occasional blurriness is easily observable.
The Audio
Home Improvement falls into the category of shows that you do not buy for sound or even picture really. Regardless, the audio is consistent and thorough. The dialogue is understandable, the laugh tracks were not too loud, and the volume was steady and balanced. The portions where music is played in the background mesh properly with the acting. This has Dolby Digital 2.0 track, which is fine.
The Packaging
Ok, Buena Vista is getting mighty sloppy with the packaging of this show now. It started out with a slip sleeve cardboard casing with a fold out compartments. Also was a unique style and design for the artwork that is tough to explain. Now, they have changed to a single clear keep case, with a slip sleeve cover on top of that. Three discs are jammed into one standard keep case. The plastic that holds the disc in is flimsy and easily breakable. Oddly, the episode listing is printed so that the clear casing enables you to read them when the discs are not in the case itself.
Is it that expensive to stay with the normal packaging you have distributed for the first 5 seasons? Since the price tag has dipped, the packaging gets whatever is available. This makes me angry. It is evident they just want to release these episodes as soon as possible, and be as lazy as they possibly can while doing it. On top of that, the menus have remained exactly the same for all season sets. Inside is a sheet of paper advertising other television DVD releases. It hides disc one.
The Extras
Television shows on DVD have always had few, if any, bonus material. What is frustrating is the fact that plenty of documentaries exist on the show. Furthermore, I know the cast members would be glad to contribute some commentaries, or interviews, or something. The reason why they do not is because Buena Vista has not put any effort into the making of these sets. If they would put extras on the future seasons, it would be too little, too late. Only the loyal fans are going to buy the last seasons anyway.
Blooper Reel (6:37) – The routine outtakes session is very funny, but as the one and only extra, it lacks enough oomph.
Sneak Peeks - The start of the first disc has trailers for The Jungle Book: Platinum Edition, Scrubs: The Complete Fifth Season, Bridge to Terabithia, Desperate Housewives, and Kyle XY: Declassified.
The Episodes: 8.5/10.0
The Video: 7.5/10.0
The Audio: 8.0/10.0
The Packaging: 4.0/10.0
The Extras: 3.0/10.0
The 411: I recommend that fans of the show pick this season up, regardless of the inferior distribution. The episodes are almost all comical. Only a couple of them are bad. Even if you were a casual viewer, this season still has some truly impressive moments. At this juncture, the lack of special features does not bother me as much as it would others. I buy a lot of TV shows on DVD, and am used to no extras. Tim Allen’s film resume is not Oscar worthy, but this sitcom will always be on my list of favorite shows. His humor is constantly enjoyable, and this season expresses that, in addition to the strengths of the other cast members. This set should be cheap enough that it is easier to give in and buy it.
