Project Runway: The Complete 2nd Season (DVD)

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Emmett McCarthy, a 42-year-old menswear designer who uses old-fashioned methods like watercolors instead of computers to do his sketching.

John Wade, a 24-year-old fashion nerd who's not exactly lacking in confidence.

Marla Duran, a 51-year-old fashion boutique owner from Allentown, Pennsylvania who hopes to prove something to herself.

Watching this show you're guaranteed to learn something bout fashion, and since the models are also in competition you get to see a lot of model-designer interaction. But what makes the show fresh are the challenges themselves. They're far from boring, and each challenge produces a winner, sometimes with a prize that's awfully darned good.

For the first challenge, contestants have to work with "the hillbilly of fabric," muslin. The second one, they're surprised when they're told at a party that their next outfit has to be constructed, literally, from the clothes they're wearing. Then there's perhaps the coolest challenge, where they have to design an outfit for Barbie (and the winner gets his/her design actually marketed in a limited edition by Mattel with their face on the box). Then it's design a lingerie line with three looks (and a team effort), design a party dress for socialite Nicky Hilton (which Hilton will actually purchase and wear), design an outfit for Banana Republic (which will be sold in their catalog and in selected stores), design a costume for skater Sasha Cohen, design a garment inspired by a photo they've taken in New York, design a garden party dress using natural plants and flowers, and design an evening gown. The concepts are challenging, and the appearances by celebrities and the real pay-off for each challenge really adds to the interest and frankly makes the show more "real" than most reality shows. By the time that three finalists work on a 12-piece collection for Fashion Week, chances are that you'll be pulling for one of them . . . and crossing

Bravo has made the DVD more interesting by adding footage to each of the 13 episodes, making each a "never-before-seen" episode. Also included is a reunion special, in which the competitors who were ousted rejoin the three finalists right before Fashion Week. Finally, a word about the judges. Though various guests and experts rotate in, the anchors are flamboyant designer Michael Kors and Nine Garcia, the fashion director at Elle magazine, and each of them is fun to watch as they find ways to tell the designers what works and what doesn't. Add the severe time limits (even when they're shopping for material, with Gunn riding herd on them) and you've got a pretty tight, colorful and fun series. Special guests include Debra Messing ("Will & Grace") and Diane von Fustenberg.

Video: "Project Runway" is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio, and the picture quality is very good. There's very little distortion or foxing around the edges when the image is stretched to fit today's widescreen TVs. While there's a slight graininess, it's not enough to complain about, and I probably wouldn't have even noticed it if I wasn't looking for imperfections.

Audio: The English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo soundtrack is decent, with lively main speaker action that really separates the ambient noises in the work room from the conversation. It's a natural sound as well, presented with subtitles in English and Spanish—an achievement, given that often the contestants are filmed in the field and not studio conditions, while at other times they're "surprised" at their apartments.

Extras: Okay, fashionistas, is you like the show you get the chance to score a free "Project Runway" t-shirt. All consumers who follow directions on the DVD and use the code provided get a free t-shirt valued at $19.95, though of course you get nailed for shipping and taxes.

If you liked Tim Gunn (and what's not to like?), the professor kept a blog during the show that is reproduced here. It's a little more of a pain to read onscreen than online, but fun to have. I mean, here's a guy who has a flair for describing outfits both good and bad. My personal favorites? "Carrie Bradshaw visits Little House on the Prairie," "a quasi-Elizabethan collar that reminded me of a creature out of Jurrasic Park and an asymmetrical skirt that looked very Home on the Range," "S&M Disco," and "marzipan costumes for a Black Forest production of The Nutcracker."

If you watch the reunion show and see clips that you don't remember from the shows you watched, don't panic. Extended versions of the six most talked-about scenes are included here. I can't tell if they're unedited or not, but they're much longer, and fans will appreciate seeing the fuller versions. There's also a brief, edited "blooper" real that doesn't bloop a whole lot. It's just edited-out moments that didn't make the show flow.

A "Where Are They Now" feature on each of the three finalists will make fans wish that all 16 were represented, but you get a full taste of not just the contestants but also what it takes to draw the attention of reality show producers in an edited reel of audition tapes that the contestants mailed in. Rounding out the extras is a Season Three casting call feature that's edited using clips of all the wannabes standing in line and showing one of the Season Two cast sitting in the judges seat this time. All in all, a nice package of extras.

Bottom Line: You'd expect a show about fashion to have style, and this one does. It's well photographed, well edited, well conceived, and well populated with interesting people, whether it´s the contestants, judges, or special guests. "Project Runway" is like the contestants themselves—energetic, quirky, goal-oriented, but having the kind of self-deprecating humor you need in a profession where "one day you're in, and the next day you might be out." As reality shows go, this one is fashionably fun.

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