The Dukes of Hazzard: The Complete Fifth Season (1984) - DVD Review

Film:
DVD:

Created by Gy Waldron
Starring Byron Cherry, Christopher Mayer, Catherine Bach, Denver Pyle, James Best, Sorrell Booke, Tom Wopat, John Schneider, and Ben Jones

Features:

• "Hazzard County Stunt Team: Reunited and in Your Face" featurette
• "Cooter's Place: Keeping the Dream Alive" featurette

Released by: Warner Bros.
Rating: NR (suitable for all audiences, some mild car chases)
Region: 1
Anamorphic: N/A; appears in its original 1.33:1 format.

My Advice: Skip it.

This time around, Bo (Schneider) and Luke (Wopat) have gotten a chance to race on the NASCAR circuit, so their two identical cousins Coy (Cherry) and Vance (Mayer) make a huge argument for redneck inbreeding and show up to help Uncle Jesse (Pyle) and Daisy (Bach) keep Hazzard County in order. Boss Hogg (Booke) and Sherrif Roscoe P. Coltrane (Best) are always scheming some way to swindle some money out of someone and/or just get those Duke boys out of the way once and for all. Oh yeah, you can also expect some cars to be driven around southern California as it pretends to be a county in Georgia. I'm pretty sure some cars will jump over some stuff, too.

Well, that summary can serve as the plot line for just about every single episode of this show--except the Duke Boys didn't trade out at the start of each episode. You know what I mwan. Let's face it, this show was not about the plot lines or the incredible acting. No, this show was about Bach in her trademark shorts and cars being driven fast all over the place and leaping over one another. What's special about this season of the show is that it was a direct result of Wopat and Schneider's contract dispute with Warner Brothers because they demanded a raise, claiming they were the reason for the show's success. They were then replaced by Cherry and Mayer.

Well, the ratings sagged mostly because they weren't on the show anymore, and partly because Cherry and Mayer sucked. Okay, I'd better not hold anything back. It was an absolutely horrible choice, but they each had a look the fit the mold of the Bo and Luke characters. It's an interesting season to watch because you can actually feel the writers trying to save the sagging ratings by writing these increasingly horrible plot lines as the season progresses.

Sadly, although this eight-disc set looks stacked, you've only got three episodes per single-sided disc. When you finally do get to the materials, they're really not worth watching. The first is a look at stunt coordinator/producer/director Paul Baxley. There are interviews with members of the original stunt team for the show and that's really about it. There is really nothing here that would add to your enjoyment of the primary material. The only other feature is a rather sad look at actor Ben Jones and what he's doing now. What is he doing now? Well, it seems that he's set up a...well...shrine to the show in Gatlinburg, TN. So, he's set up a tourist trap...er...museum so anyone who ever fell in love with the Duke boys to go by and pay their respects. A second Mecca? Perhaps. Only time will tell.

This disc does provide one little piece of entertainment. Watch these episodes with the French language soundtrack playing. Milk squirted out of my nose. And I wasn't even drinking milk at the time.

If you've never seen the show, start with Season One. If you are huge fan of the show, this season will probably not be your favorite. Grab it if you're a completist, but otherwise I say just skip it and move on.

Buy it from Amazon.
Buy the soundtrack from Amazon.
Buy the unofficial companion from Amazon.