- Release Date: May 26, 2009
- Publisher: Shout Factory
- Price: $29.99 on Amazon.com (Buy It)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Run Time: 535 minutes
- Special Features: “Designing Women: A Reunion”
- Starring: Delta Burke, Dixie Carter, Annie Potts, Jean Smart
- Genre: Comedy
Over the last couple of months, Shout Factory has introduced me to a lot of comedies that I have really enjoyed. Every month they put out a few great DVD sets that entertain me. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same thing about “Designing Women: The Complete First Season.” While it isn’t a terrible set by any means, it just really isn’t my style of comedy. For one thing, the title and the box art should probably be enough to tell you that the comedy is geared more towards women. Since I’m a guy, I obviously didn’t find a lot of the humor to be particularly funny since I can’t identify. I do know that “Designing Women” has a lot of fans though and they’ll definitely be pleased that the show is finally out on DVD.
For those of you who don’t know the concept of “Designing Women,” it is a sitcom starring four strong Southern women who run an interior design firm. Each of them is different but they are all still friends. Even though the show isn’t particularly old (it premiered in 1986), it was one of the first comedies to feature all strong female leads.
Unfortunately, this just really isn’t a comedy for guys. The show does improve later in the season but I still didn’t laugh nearly enough. I’m pretty sure most male viewers would agree with me when I say that the show is alright but just not funny enough for me. On the other hand, female viewers will probably enjoy the show quite a bit. It’s rare when I recommend a show specifically for one gender but this is one of those times.
The DVD presentation is pretty good overall but I was a little disappointed with the video quality on most of the episodes. They don’t really look that much better than they probably did on TV. They are definitely watchable though and so this shouldn’t be a reason not to pick the show up on DVD. The audio is a little better but still pretty average overall. Only one extra is included but it’s a pretty good one. The featurette is called “Designing Women: A Reunion” and features over 40 minutes of footage from a panel the cast and creator attended in 2006. Fans of the series will definitely want to take a look since the featurette is both informative and entertaining.
Even though the video and audio are a little disappointing, fans of the series will definitely want to pick this set up. I also think most female viewers should check it out. My rating is a little low since I am a guy so if you fit either target audience, you should probably add at least one full star to my review.
