Scott Baio is 46 and Pregnant DVD Review
Posted by Chris Connolly on 10.12.2008
Can the ultimate playboy survive marriage and a baby?
A special thanks to George Sirois, who provided me with more advice than I had a right to ask for in crafting my first review. Be sure to check him out every Thursday with The UBS Evening Movie News.
The obligatory introduction
I am not a big fan of reality TV. Most of them follow around people with no real talent or even one character trait that makes them a likable human being. When I stumbled upon the first season of this show, I thought that I found a jewel hidden in the sewage that is reality television. Well, the second season does nothing to change that initial feeling. In fact, it made that feeling even stronger. If you were looking for a show that takes you through the full range of emotions that a man can go through in starting a family and does it with real feeling and heart, this is that show.
The show
The second season of the show picks up where the first leaves off, with Scott proposing to Renee and her revealing to him that she is pregnant. From there the season is really broken down into two parts, the birth of their baby and then their wedding. The discs reflect this as well, as disc one ends with the baby being born and disc two follows the events leading up to the wedding. From there, you can really divide the show up even more, into Scott's relationships with his best friends, his "Daddies to be" group and of course Renee.
Out of all of his relationships, the one that doesn't really change much is the one with his friends. Throughout the first season, they were very supportive of him, and they stay that way throughout this season as well. Well, everyone that is except for Johnny V., who is perhaps the most self-unaware person on the planet aside from Spencer Pratt of "The Hills". While I think he was supposed to be the comic relief of the show, in reality he is the most obnoxious hanger-on in the history of celebrity friends.
Scott and the "Daddies to Be" class could have been a show all by itself. He takes the class at the advice of Doc Ally, who only shows up a handful of times in this season. At the start, Scott is pretty put off by the guy who runs the class, mainly because he is a new-age, in touch with his feelings kind of guy. At one point, he grows so frustrated with the charts and lists that he quits the group. Eventually, he comes back with a more relaxed attitude, and perhaps no relationship on the show changes for the better more drastically than Scott's with the group.
Of course the main focus of the show is on Scott's relationship with Renee. At the start of the season, there relationship is more like that of a mother and son, not a soon-to-be married couple. Scott is so neurotic, nervous and unprepared that Renee really spends most of the season not only preparing to have a kid but dealing with a 46 year-old one as well. After the birth of the baby, that all starts to change, as Scott really grows into fatherhood and seems to finally put all of his insecurities behind him.
Special Features
Actually, I should say "what special features?", since the DVD is really lacking in this area. Aside from deleted scenes from two episodes, there is nothing extra. From what I've read in other reviews, this seems to be a theme for almost all of the Vh1 shows. While I don't really get into special features, I still like to see some effort put into them. Is it really to much to ask of Vh1 to add some interviews or something?
The 411: Out of all the shows Vh1 has done for their "Celebreality" programming, this is without a doubt the one with the most heart. It really does show the good, bad and ugly that comes with both having a baby and planning a wedding. There is something for everyone here, and if it weren't for the lack of special features, I'd rate it even higher.
