The fourth
season of Showtime’s hit series, Queer as Folk, has been
released as quickly as possible, making it possible for fans
to keep up on the action despite inability to watch the show
as it is aired.
Queer as Folk made quite a splash when it first came on air
in 2000. The show features only gay and lesbian characters,
with only minor straight characters passing through their lives,
often with hate and resentment. Perhaps one of the most
shocking elements of the show was its graphic sex scenes. It
seems that in the fourth season they have taken the shock factor
as far as it can go, and
the storyline becomes more important instead. The only problem
is that once we take away the shocking element of the show,
ultimately all that is left is a gay soap opera for late night
television.
The show began by centering around Brian Kinney, a character
who is not always likable, but in the fourth season many of
the characters have
branched off with their own story lines as well. This seems
to help the show as well as be a disservice as well at times.
Often having many different
stories helps, because there is bound to be one which is interesting
to you, but the problem is that there never seems to be enough
focus on the one
plotline you really care about.
In season four we see more of Brian’s relationship with
Justin, as it has its ups and downs, but perhaps a more interesting
storyline is the one
involving Michael and Ben. Michael and Ben deal with deal with
Ben’s sickness at the same time Michael finds success
when his gay superhero comic book is bought to be turned into
a movie.
The melodrama in the show’s examination of homosexual
lifestyles in Pittsburg is not nearly as exploitative as it
could have been made to be, or
even as it was in the first couple of seasons, but despite claims
that this show will appeal to all audiences, many people may
find the amount of drama in these character’s lives to
be a bit extreme.
For fans who have watched the show from the beginning these
shortcomings may be easier to take, but new viewers might find
it hard to become involved this late in the series.
With the amount of special features that were on the previous
seasons, this box set may disappoint some fans, despite the
lack of features on nearly
every television show released. It seems that they desperately
tried to add things to please the fans, even though many of
them are not even involved in
the show. This box set may also disappoint fans because of the
fact that there are only fourteen episodes in this season. Although
season three was near the same, the first two had more, and
this may leave consumers feeling as though quality and quantity
has gone downward.
The special features include:
Behind the
Babylon-Los Angeles
The Wardrobe Closet
Behind the Scenes of Peter's Directorial debut, "Say Uncle."
Peter's "Say Uncle" trailer
Sneak Peek of Michelle's and Gale's laterst movie, "The
Unseen."
Photo Gallery
Biographies
Win an Atlantis Cruise
Previews
