Boston Legal: Season 5

Entertainment personified.

Should never have been cancelled!

The final season. The best season. I still miss these two characters. Was delighted to acquire the DVD, for my personal collection.

The genius that is David E Kelly and Boston Legal. There have been a handful of shows that I consider to be the very best of what television has to offer and Boston Legal is at the very top of the list.At the centre of the show is the relationship between Alan Shore and Denny Crane. These charachers have so richly been brought to life by the remarkable talents of James Spader and William Shatner.Who would have thought William Shatner of all people would go on to play one of the truly wonderful and eccentric characters on TV. You never know where the character is going to go, but you know you're in for one unbelieveable ride!He is equally matched and more so in my eyes by that of James Spader. He continues to amaze me as to how he delivers superlative performances episode after episode. It's just staggering to watch his talent at work and it has been an absolute pleasure to have watched him in all his Alan Shore glory. During the 5 year run, he was at the very best of his game and not many could truly match him in this regard.The relationship between the two is what makes the show truly great. Having watched the characters develop over the years, starting with "The Practice" has been pure joy and something that doesn't come along often.I have also enjoyed watching the other characters througout it's run. It's great to see Candice Bergen display her wonderful talents yet again on the small screen. She gets better as she gets older! Her first episode on the show, "Schmidt Happens" is still one of my favourites and the banter between Bergen and Spader is one to behold.Christian Clemenson and Tara Summers both deserve a special mention for both drawing out and making the characters of Jerry and Katie all their own. I could so easily watch both of them in their own spin-off!And finally, the show would not be what it is without the glorious writing talents of David E Kelly. I just marvel at the writing and without it, there would be no Boston Legal.As much as I hate to see the show disappear from the small screen so soon, it is better to get out on top and that is where it will always be!

I give this DVD set 4 stars more because these characters feel like old friends, rather than for the series breaking any new ground. Previous seasons focused on cutting edge legal dramas ripped from the week's headlines. This truncated season is more like our friends from the show playing hookey. But it's all in good fun.As with the previous seasons, this show is one long campaign commercial for the Democratic party, and even works overtime to promote the Democrat line after Obama is elected president! Watching Candice Bergen urge the formation of a "Tea Party" to protect our freedoms is quite humorous, given what happened since this originally aired. There are also many (unintentionally) humorous moments where Alan Shore (James Spader) complains about Bush administration policies that his Democrat successor continued without apology. Oops!The show gets a bit hokey trying to tug at our heartstrings over the cast being laid off at the end of the series, forgetting all the cast members they fired as the seasons went by. And why is Alan Shore lecturing us every week about electing a black President, when his law firm fired the only black guy on the cast (cross-dresser Clarence)?René Auberjonois (Deep Space Nine, Benson) rejoins the cast when needed. John Larroquette really surprised me as his regular replacement. He is a fine dramatic actor, and had to play the straight man to class clowns Denny and Alan. He was a great addition to the cast, it turns out.So what is there here? Melvin Palmer has two great turns this season ("You're a hoot, that's what you are!"). First on a trip to the dude ranch for our heroes, then in a touching Thanksgiving episode. (Hint: This is more of a Roseanne Thanksgiving than Waltons Thanksgiving.)For our heroes, there's more fishing at Nimmo Bay, and a double wedding finale! It's worth the trip for those who watched the previous seasons, and if you haven't done that, check out season one.

Love this show. Funny as heck and the characters are awesome

My wife and I hit upon the Boston Legal series when it was in reruns. Don't ask me where we were but we missed it when it originally ran on TV. Why on earth didn't this series last 8 or 10 seasons is a mystery to us. We have the DVD's sitting on the cabinet next to the TV. When the usual garbage comes on we resort to the Boston Legal DVD's. and watch the next episode or two. Boston Legal is especially good if you are depressed about the news, weather, or just life in general! Both my wife and I always get a good laugh and I think we are probably in our 4th or 5th time watching the series. Of the hundreds of DVD's we own this series is the most watched and enjoyed. Usually lawyer shows are stuffy and what not! But Boston Legal is something else. My only regret is that the likes of William Shatner and others are probably too old to resurrect this series. I grew up with William Shatner's "Star Trek" and love that very much, but Shatner's performance in Boston Legal is out of this world and better! And why we don't see more of James Spader is another mystery to me. He is great!

A very fast delivered outstanding product.

Ah, the bittersweet moment of watching a boxset of one of your favourite TV shows when you know it is the last series they'll make.It can be quite hard to be objective, as you inevitably watch it through rose tinted glasses.However, in this case, I have no doubt it's worth a full 5 stars. The plots for the main characters are tied up nicely, with Denny and Alan reaching their logical (and very amusing) conclusion.Some of the episodes are fantastic. The first part of the 2 part finale is fantastic, and the thanksgiving dinner episode easily ranks as one of the funniest episodes of the show.Only slight downside was that I expected more of a wrap up from some of the other characters - disappointing not to see Brad or Denise for the finale, for example. Judge Brown should also have made an appearance I think. But that's a minor criticism compared to the numerous high points.I awarded Boston Legal 4 a four star rating, as I felt it wasn't as strong as the previous ones - but the final season is a superb return to form. Just a shame it's all over!

If you're going to watch any Boston Legal start with Season 1. The show is as good as anything I've ever seen and at the same time, I've never seen anything quite like it and this season reminds me what a gem it was.You need to have seen the previously Seasons to really 'get' this last season as the shows producers knew they were ending their run, I think they designed this seasons to keep the regular fans happy, revisit previous ideas and tie up some loose ends.If you know what has happening at the time these episodes were being aired (specifically in relation to the production of Boston Legal) you'll enjoy it a lot more. Throughout all the series they make a few jokes at the expense of themselves.The show was famously moved from different week nights and different times in order to try and find a bigger audience. While it never quite reached the huge audience figures required to keep a prime-time show in a prime-time slot it did attract the most affluent audience of any television show aired before or since (according to figures from Nielsen).An intelligent show for an intelligent audience. Fingers crossed for something similar in the near future.

I have been a big fan of Boston Legal for many years now; I think the series started around 2004. It is so well written, I can't remember another TV show, which comes anywhere near. The interactions between the characters (especially Denny Crane and Alan Shore - William Shatner and James Spader are truly magical. Other characters have been added along the way and all have slotted in remarkably well due to the highly skilled writing.The 5th and (as far as I'm aware) final season was shown some 2 years ago and even in this David E Kelly has shown the good sense not to do a successful formula to death. I have bought all 5 seasons dvd and I must confess, in all honesty, I have and still enjoy every single episode.

One of the best series draws to a close in style: trust me it would be a crime to miss this swan song. The scripts have consistently delivered and with a brilliant cast who seem to really enjoy themselves, it will be a long time before the pure brilliance of this series fades into the distance. For anyone yet to catch this series, I feel really jealous because every series has consistenly delivered. Prepare to scream with laughter at the irreverence of William Shatner and James Spader. This is how comedies should be: disgracefully funny.

A fantastic end to the Boston Legal series - sad that it came to an end (may the fleas of a thousand camels infest the armpits of the maker of this stupid decision, and may their arms be too short to scratch!) but what a way to go.I won't spoil the ending for you, but I will say this is just as good as any of the previous seasons, and it will be sadly missed and thoroughly mourned.