BOSTON LEGAL: SEASON 3 - DVD review

Whether you like this popular TV dramedy will largely depend upon how much eccentricity you can tolerate. For me, three puffy-faced, middle-aged white guys with weird fetishes is just too much. And with "Boston Legal," I think David E. Kelley isn't able to maintain the tricky balance of eccentricity, humor, and drama that he juggled so successfully in "Ally McBeal" (the first two seasons, that is) and, to some extent, "Picket Fences" and "The Practice."

There's so much emphasis on quirkiness and aberrant behavior this season of "Boston Legal" that when serious moments finally surface, they seem superficially inserted, and it's tough to actually take them seriously. Because the show has a near-cult following, I know there will be more than a few juries out there that will disagree with me. But that's how I see it.

The tone (and level of outrageousness) is set with the first episode this season, which has attorney Jerry Epenson (Christian Clemenson) pulled over for driving in a car-pool lane and the full-sized female doll he had strapped in the passenger seat was confiscated. Turns out Jerry has quite the thing for this doll, and reacts when the cop touches her thigh as if he and the mannequin were in "Crash." But that's nothing compared to the senior partner at Crane Poole & Schmidt. Denny Crane (William Shatner). Jerry's doll is "Platonic," and his problem a fear of intimacy with females, which is treated by a sexual surrogate arranged by lawyer Alan Shore (James Spader), who has used the surrogate himself. But Denny? His doll is custom-made to look like his law-firm partner, Shirley Schmidt (Candice Bergen), and he's caught bumping away on the doll in a supply closet. Funny, or just plain creepy? You be the judge.

For some, moments that that will add zest and life. For others, like myself, they detract from a show that could have benefited from a little more restraint when it comes to the insertion of quirky details. This season, newcomer Jeffrey Coho (Craig Bierko) joins such regulars as Paul Lewiston (Rene Auberjonois), Brad Chase (Mark Valley), and Denise Bauer (Julie Bowen).

Twenty-four episodes are included on seven single-sided discs that are housed in double-sided clear plastic keep-cases and tucked inside a sturdy cardboard slipcase. Full episode descriptions and airdates are included on the backs of the keep-cases for easy reference.

1) "Can't We All Get a Lung?"--Denise and Shirley defend a cancer patient (guest star Michael J. Fox) when his plan to buy a healthy lung collapses. Meanwhile, Alan defends his attorney friend Jerry, who has been caught in public with a "sex doll."

2) "New Kids on the Block"--Jeffrey Coho jumps into the deep end by taking on a high-profile murder case. Meanwhile, Alan represents a transvestite who was fired for taking a maternity leave, and Denny has his own quasi-parallel problem.

3) "Desperately Seeking Shirley"--Alan is hired to invalidate a postnuptial agreement that Shirley drafted, Jeffrey flaunts the law while gathering info, and Denny faces his diminutive nemesis, Bethany Horowitz (Meredith Eaton).

4) "Fine Young Cannibal"--A murder case is grabbing city-wide headlines, but Alan and Shirley are busy trying to defend a homeless man who's accused of cannibalism. And Alan and Denny wrestle over Shirley's bones.

5) "Whose God Is It, Anyway?"--Jerry needs help again, this time because he fired a Scientologist. While Alan's defending him, Denny finds himself falling a bit for his nemesis.

6) "The Verdict"--Jeffrey's murder case is still grabbing headlines, and this episode finds him rocked a bit by new allegations from Scott Little's father. Alan, meanwhile, takes up with Sally (Lake Bell).

7) "Trick or Treat"--The trick is that Jerry is on trial again, this time for perjury, and while Alan defends his friend yet another time Denny meets Bethany's mother, and it's no treat either.

8) "Lincoln"--So, in the aftermath of what we learned in the last episode, Denny is impatiently waiting to find out if he's really dating his daughter. And Jeffrey and Brad (Mark Valley) come to blows over the murder trial.

9) "On the Ledge"--Shirley is abducted by Lincoln Meyer, a client who began behaving erratically in the previous episode-though with so much aberrant behavior, how can you tell?

10) "The Nutcrackers"--Alan defends a mother trying to get custody of her white-supremacist daughters, who just happen to be stars of American Idol caliber, while Denny has his own mother to help--the mom of an anorexic girl who wants her freedom.

11) "Angel of Death"--A road-trip to New Orleans leads to a defense of a doctor who is accused of euthanizing five people after Hurricane Katrina.

12) "Nuts"--A teacher is charged with the wrongful death of one of her students, and Denny ends up on the No-Fly list and takes on Homeland Security.

13) "Dumping Bella"--Denny's latest fling is targeted by animal rights activists, just as Denny is thinking of dumping her. Meanwhile, Brad wonders about his own relationship with Denise.

14) "Selling Sickness"--The non-so-likable Denny's homophobia presents problems in a case that has him helping a judge who's suing a firm for failing to "cure" him of his homosexuality. Denise becomes pregnant, but paternity questions arise.

15) "Fat Burner"--Denny is arrested for trafficking in human fat, which he planned to use as a fuel source, while Denise decides to keep the baby.

16) "The Good Lawyer"--This time the quirkiness involves UFOs, while Bethany works on helping Denny get in touch with his spiritual side. Good luck.

17) "The Bride Wore Blood"--Still in her gown, a bride is accused of murdering her groom, while Denny tries to figure out why Bethany thinks he's a bigot.

18) "Son of the Defender"--An old murder case is retried when a man who holds a grudge against Denny takes the firm hostage. As if that's not enough, Alan ends up in jail over his defense of a prostitute.

19) "Brotherly Love"--Alan defends a man accused of covering up a murder committed by his brother, and wants Denny's help. Brad, meanwhile, refuses to sign a "love contract," and it might cost him his job.

20) "Guise 'n' Dolls"--This time Alan faces off against Jerry over a department store that's being sued for selling sexually explicit dolls to children. What is it with dolls and sex this season??

21) "Tea and Sympathy"--A man miraculously cured of HIV seeks Shirley's help in holding legal ownership of his blood. Denny, meanwhile, falls for another female, this time a judge who faces drug charges.

22) "Guantanamo by the Bay"--It's Alan vs. Uncle Sam as he represents someone who claims to have been tortured for two years at Guantanamo Bay. Jerry begs Shirley to give him his old job.

23) "Duck and Cover"--Brad and Denise hopes to marry before their child is born are jeopardized when their priest is arrested for giving shelter to illegal aliens. Jerry, in his old job, defends a woman who's being evicted because of an unusual pet.

24) "Trial of the Century"--Alan and Denny combine to defend two brothers accused of murdering their abusive father.

Video:
"Boston Legal" is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen, and the picture quality is quite good. It's not as sharp as some of the best TV-on-DVD I've seen, such as the "King of Queens" releases, but the graininess is at least slight and the colors are bright, with sharp edges.

Audio:
The audio is a no-frills English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround with subtitles in English (CC), Spanish, and French. But the show is mostly dialogue, so there's no need, really, for effects speakers. Most of the sound emanates from the front main and center speakers.

Extras:
Two short bonus features are included, "Out of Order?" and "Character Witness." The first focuses on actors who played judges on the show, while the second features guest stars who were defendents. For short-short features they're well done, but they'll leave fans wanting more.

Bottom Line:
I suspect that "Boston Legal" is an acquired taste. If you can get used to the quirkiness and the odd tonal competition that results from the juxtaposition of dramatic and just plain silly moments, there's enough here in the characters and the storylines to pull you in. But frankly, this show doesn't seem to be able to decide whether it wants to be another "Ally McBeal" or a "Night Court" with a few "Perry Mason" moments thrown in.