Season four has some entertaining moments, but when you begin and end the season with a multi-episode hostage crisis, it shows a lack of imagination.
11) "The Costume Party"—In a classic George Jefferson plot of ambition (and deceit), the cleaner arranges for a deliberate spill in order to land the account of a chain of costume stores. The theme is interracial marriage.
12) "Florence Gets Lucky"—In a funny episode where the zingers keep coming, George asks Florence to keep up with the back-sass because a businessman he's trying to buy property from thinks it's hilarious.
13) "George Needs Help"—Louise puts the screws on George to spend less time at the cleaners, so he hires a general manager.
14) "The Jefferson Curve"—When Marcus at the store tells a girl he likes he's George's son, word gets back to the Jeffersons, who worry that their son, Lionel, might be having an affair.
15) "984 W. 124th St., Apt. 5-C"—This time it's George who's under suspicion for having an affair, but Louise is surprised to find out why he's been secretly spending time at this address in Harlem.
16) "George and Whitty"—Another Jefferson scheme goes awry when a dropped ant farm ruins George's attempts to negotiate a lease.
17) "Lionel Gets the Business"—If George thought the manager he hired was bad, wait until his son finally caves into pressure and joins the family business. Lionel's radical changes really rankle George.
18) "The Blackout"—Racial profiling gets a workout in this episode where George and Marcus are arrested while trying to defend the store against looters.
19) "Florence's Union"—George gets caught between a rock and a hard-Florence when he allows her to let her maid's union use the apartment, much to the annoyance of Mr. Whittendale.
20) "George and Jimmy"—George's ego lands him in trouble again. In this funny episode, he tries to invite Pres. Carter to his home, but comes across sounding like someone the Secret Service had better investigate.
21) "Thomas H. Willis & Co."—Helen gets caught in an awkward position after a fight with George, when she learns that the feisty Jefferson co-signed on Tom's business loan.
22) "Uncle George and Aunt Louise"—A semi-delinquent nephew comes to stay with the Jeffersons and wreaks the usual havoc.
23-25) "George and Louise in a Bind, Parts 1-3"—The nephew stay gets prolonged, and so does the time that George and Louise spend together after burglar's tie them up and hold them hostage.
26) "Jenny's Thesis"—Worried about Jenny because of the research she's doing on street gangs, George and Tom secretly tail her in Harlem to try to protect her.
Video: The colors have that slightly faded look that '70s film stock is susceptible to, but the quality is really pretty good. Though it was produced by the same person, "The Jeffersons" has a sharper picture quality than "All in the Family," though there's still some graininess.
Audio: The soundtrack is Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono, with the center-speaker sound duplicated for left and right main speakers. The quality is decent—nothing extraordinary, nothing offensive.
Extras: There are no extras. Jive turkeys.
Bottom Line: More than "All in the Family," "The Jeffersons" is played deliberately over-the-top much of the time, with lines that make you conscious of them being lines spoken by actors rather than lines that make you believe the illusion of characters interacting, and performances that can seem as overly dramatic as a high-school or community theater play. The best episodes are actually the ones where the snappy lines completely take over, as when Florence gets a free pass to insult her boss all she wants, or episodes where the writers allow the characters to be more real and less caricatured. Season four has some entertaining moments, but when you begin and end the season with a multi-episode hostage crisis, it shows a lack of imagination—and that's the way this season plays out, for the most part.
12) "Florence Gets Lucky"—In a funny episode where the zingers keep coming, George asks Florence to keep up with the back-sass because a businessman he's trying to buy property from thinks it's hilarious.
13) "George Needs Help"—Louise puts the screws on George to spend less time at the cleaners, so he hires a general manager.
14) "The Jefferson Curve"—When Marcus at the store tells a girl he likes he's George's son, word gets back to the Jeffersons, who worry that their son, Lionel, might be having an affair.
15) "984 W. 124th St., Apt. 5-C"—This time it's George who's under suspicion for having an affair, but Louise is surprised to find out why he's been secretly spending time at this address in Harlem.
16) "George and Whitty"—Another Jefferson scheme goes awry when a dropped ant farm ruins George's attempts to negotiate a lease.
17) "Lionel Gets the Business"—If George thought the manager he hired was bad, wait until his son finally caves into pressure and joins the family business. Lionel's radical changes really rankle George.
18) "The Blackout"—Racial profiling gets a workout in this episode where George and Marcus are arrested while trying to defend the store against looters.
19) "Florence's Union"—George gets caught between a rock and a hard-Florence when he allows her to let her maid's union use the apartment, much to the annoyance of Mr. Whittendale.
20) "George and Jimmy"—George's ego lands him in trouble again. In this funny episode, he tries to invite Pres. Carter to his home, but comes across sounding like someone the Secret Service had better investigate.
21) "Thomas H. Willis & Co."—Helen gets caught in an awkward position after a fight with George, when she learns that the feisty Jefferson co-signed on Tom's business loan.
22) "Uncle George and Aunt Louise"—A semi-delinquent nephew comes to stay with the Jeffersons and wreaks the usual havoc.
23-25) "George and Louise in a Bind, Parts 1-3"—The nephew stay gets prolonged, and so does the time that George and Louise spend together after burglar's tie them up and hold them hostage.
26) "Jenny's Thesis"—Worried about Jenny because of the research she's doing on street gangs, George and Tom secretly tail her in Harlem to try to protect her.
Video: The colors have that slightly faded look that '70s film stock is susceptible to, but the quality is really pretty good. Though it was produced by the same person, "The Jeffersons" has a sharper picture quality than "All in the Family," though there's still some graininess.
Audio: The soundtrack is Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono, with the center-speaker sound duplicated for left and right main speakers. The quality is decent—nothing extraordinary, nothing offensive.
Extras: There are no extras. Jive turkeys.
Bottom Line: More than "All in the Family," "The Jeffersons" is played deliberately over-the-top much of the time, with lines that make you conscious of them being lines spoken by actors rather than lines that make you believe the illusion of characters interacting, and performances that can seem as overly dramatic as a high-school or community theater play. The best episodes are actually the ones where the snappy lines completely take over, as when Florence gets a free pass to insult her boss all she wants, or episodes where the writers allow the characters to be more real and less caricatured. Season four has some entertaining moments, but when you begin and end the season with a multi-episode hostage crisis, it shows a lack of imagination—and that's the way this season plays out, for the most part.
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[release]17047[/release]