The Cosby Show: Season 1

Airing from September 20, 1984 to May 9, 1985, The Cosby Show Season 1 was the beginning of one of the most groundbreaking sitcoms in television history. The first season of The Cosby Show starred Bill Cosby as Dr. Heathcliff "Cliff" Huxtable, Phylicia Ayers-Allen as Clair Huxtable, Lisa Bonet as Denise Huxtable, Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Theodore "Theo" Huxtable, Tempestt Bledsoe as Vanessa Huxtable, and Keshia Knight-Pulliam as Rudy Huxtable. Season 1 focused on doctor Cliff Huxtable and his attorney wife, Clair, raising their five (four in the first episode) children in Brooklyn. The children consisted of stylish, popular 16 year-old Denise, who seemingly had a different boyfriend every week and was very rebellious, 13 year-old (14 later in the season) lazy, only son Theo, nosy 10 year-old (11 later in the season) Vanessa, and the youngest, precocious, adorable little 5-year-old Rudy. In season one, the Huxtables dealt with a daughter dating an older man, a son struggling in school, a child crushed over the loss of a favorite pet and more. Later on the season in the episode "Bonjour Sondra," we were introduced to a fifth Huxtable child, 20 year-old oldest Sondra (played by Sabrina LeBeauf), who's off at Princeton. There were other characters this season, including Russell and Anna Huxtable (played by Earle Hyman and Clarice Taylor), Cliff's loving parents, and Peter (played by Peter Costa), Rudy's silent but lovable friend, known for running out of the house in times of trouble. The Huxtables went through many things, all while making the viewers laugh. On August 2, 2005, the Huxtables came to DVD for the first time with the Urban Works release of The Cosby Show Season 1, which included all 24 episodes of the first season and "The Cosby Show: A Look-Back," a 2002 special where the cast memebers of the series look. However, there was one problem, Urban Works released the first season with the episodes in their edited syndicated format instead of they way the were originally broadcast on NBC. Fans were understandably outraged, but fortunately, Urban Works corrected this with their 2006 release of The Cosby Show Season 2, which contained uncut episodes. Urban Works Entertainment was eventually taken over by First Look Studios, who took the distribution of The Cosby Show DVD releases and released the remaining six seasons in the span of a year, along with The Cosby Show 25th Anniversary Commemorative Edition, a complete series with new special features, including a 2-part interview with Bill Cosby, a 1990 bloopers special, and a digital photo gallery including pictures from all eight seasons of the series. Plus with the complete series release, Season 1 was uncut. However the set soon went out of print due to manufacturing errors. In 2011, Millennium Entertainment re-released the The Cosby Show Season 1 uncut with the original look-back special and with the special features from the out-of-print complete series set and that is the set I'm doing my review on. The menus are great. You get the option of playing them all or choosing the episodes individually. When you choose them individually, you can choose the acts. You get the options of Opening, Act I, Act II or Closing. Not only does this set contain uncut episodes and the look-back special, but it contains New Interview with Bill Cosby, a digital photo gallery, and "Outtakes From The Cosby Show," a 1990 blooper special. The 2-part interview is something nice as it shows Bill Cosby talking about the show, how it happened, how he felt about it, his favorite and least favorite things about the show and more. The photo gallery is great. It shows nice pictures of the cast as the kids grow up throughout the series. The Look-Back Special is wonderful. It shows 2002 retrospectives with cast members, who include Bill Cosby (Cliff), Phylicia Rashad (Clair), Sabrina LeBeauf (Sondra), Malcolm-Jamal Warner (Theo), Tempestt Bledsoe (Vanessa), Keshia Knight Pulliam (Rudy), Raven Symone (Olivia), Geoffrey Owens (Elvin), Deon Richmond (Kenny/Bud), Peter Costa (Peter), and Earle Hyman and Clarice Taylor (Grandma and Grandpa Huxtable). Noticeably absent was Lisa Bonet, who played Denise. The 1990 blooper special is hosted by Phylicia Rashad, Lisa Bonet, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Tempestt Bledsoe, Keshia Knight Pulliam, and Raven-Symone and shows hilarious bloopers. Bill Cosby is hilarious. It's the set to buy, but you have to be careful when buying and you have to make that the copyright says 2011, because if it says 2005, you get the edited version and it only shows the Look-Back Special. The packaging is one of those Digipak cardboard foldout cases. There are quotes from Bill (Cliff) Cosby on the packaging. This set has 4 discs (but be careful with them, because they overlap), there's a character on each disc. Disc 1 contains episodes 1-8 and has Bill Cosby as Cliff Huxtable. Disc 2 contains episodes 9-16 and has Keshia Knight-Pulliam as Rudy Huxtable. Disc 3 contains episodes 17-24 and has Tempestt Bledsoe as Vanessa Huxtable. Disc 4 contains the bonus material (including "A Look-Back" special) and has Phylicia Rashad as Clair Huxtable. Here is a list of the episodes on the set:Disc 1Pilot Presentation *Goodbye, Mr. FishBad Dreams * (episodes with * next to them are my favorites)You're Not a Mother Night (aka) Knight to NightIs That My Boy?Breaking with TraditionOne More TimeA Shirt Story *Disc 2Play It Again, Vanessa *How Ugly Is He? *Bonjour SondraFather's Day *Rudy's SickIndependence Day *Physician of the YearJitterbug Break *Disc 3Theo and the Joint *Vanessa's New ClassClair's CaseBack to the Track, Jack *The Youngest WomanThe Slumber Party *Mr. QuietCliff's Birthday *Disc 4Bonus Material:New Interview with Dr. Bill Cosby Part 1New Interview with Dr. Bill Cosby Part 2Digital Photo GalleryShow BloopersThe Cosby Show: A Look-BackI recommend this DVD to anyone of literally all ages. Little girls and boys will relate to Rudy and Vanessa, and teens will relate to Theo and Denise. Adults will of course relate to Cliff and Clair.

It's 1984 and the NBC Network is at something of a low by insisting one of their bread and butter the family sitcom is "dead". Well along comes Bill Cosby with a fresh idea involving a fictional family from Brooklyn Heights named the Huxtables who mimicked to a degree with he and wife Camille's real life family. The father's a doctor,the moms a lawyer and we have have five (well four in the pilot) children who would appeal to all age groups. The show skyrocketed NBC back to the top and was the #1 show in the country for five entire seasons. And it did so with an innovative concept that relied on comedy based on the real life serendipity of family life rather than shock and toilet humor. So it was a family friendly show that was funny to parents and children for different reasons and the characters were very relatible.Honestly I DON'T CARE if these shows are edited. I'd have preferred to see the full shows but it's so good to see these shows together. We have three girls as the main characters this season: Denise is a free spirited high schooler with a unique dress sense,Vanessa (the middle child in the beginning) is entering her "tweens" and is very intelligent and insecure and there's her youngest sister Rudy,an adorable preschooler who provides a lot of laughs and general cuteness this season. There's also Theo,the only boy in the family with an easy going if mildly underachieving demeaner. Just about every episode this season is a classic but there are some sure fire stand outs. Two of my favorites involve Theo:in "The Shirt Story" he finds himself in the possition of Dennise making a replica of a $90 shirt he's forced to take back (or so he thinks) and the result is one of Theo's most comical moments in the series. Later on in "Theo And The Joint" he's forced to contend with a student planting a joint on him,which concerns Theo as much as his parents as he is NOT into drugs and makes it abundantly clear.During this season the Huxtables are by and large a charming,engaging family unit. In later seasons the reality of life would harden some of the characters to some degree even if the show always remained family friendly. Even so this particular season has a special charm to me seeing these characters we lived with every Thursday night for eight seasons at such a young age,especially the first three episodes when Theo actually still sounded like a little boy when he talked-this is especially obvious in the pilot. So even if these are the syndicated versions of the shows it's worth having for the quality of what's year and the excellent bonus features,including a looking back-style documentary.

Frankly, I'm just thankful that I've got easy access to the memories this season inspires without commercial interruptions. Not knowing how many networks air the show (and wondering how many show the full-length renditions), I say, "There's plenty of joy and soul in what's here for everyone!" This collection contains everything I've always enjoyed about the beginning of The Cosby Show, including some pieces I dudn't remember before I found this set. These include great episodes like "Bon Jour Sondra," "Kight to Night" and "One More Time."I grew up with this show; the pilot first aired when I was four, and my whole family watched the show right until the finale of Season 8. And, Dr. Cosby (yes, he's a doctor of education) proved time and again throughout the series that education is as important to everyone as entertainment.Of most significance to me in the here-and-now (2008) is the hour-and-a-half documentary from 2005, The Cosby Show: A Look Back. (Even without Lisa Bonet, that special is just that, special.) That DVD, combined with all the memories of the regular series kept me captivated when I first happend onto it. My copy arrived March 11, 2008, and I watched it at least a little bit every day for eight days afterwards. It won't grow old anytime soon.Also, as a musician, I have a great appreciation for the series score, including all the neat Stu Gardner tidbits with the saxophones and phase-shifted Rhodes piano. If I've got any real interest in Jazz, it largely stems from the music of this show.[One thing I didn't realize during the series run is how much Dr. Huxtable's job seemed to be a kind of sideshow, in which all these silly characters materialized. This element appeared in episodes like the pilot, "Rudy's Sick," "Theo and the Joint," "Father's Day" and "Physician of the Year," along with multiple episodes from following seasons.]Someday, I'll get the coveted Columbia House set. For now, I'm sticking with these. (It would be nice to know if the full-length cut of the pilot includes an example of Dr. Cosby's macho breathing taken (like much of the pilot material) from the HBO special, Bill Cosby Himself.)

It is an awesome buy!Discs all work.I enjoyed watching all the videos.It was sad hearing about Malcolm Jamal Warner.The videos are great memories to enjoy.

Dr Bill Cosby is remarkable in this sitcom. My three kids and I watch two episodes every night before we go to bed. This is clean, moral educational entertainment that actually teaches parents how to deal with the various challenges and problems that arises in the family on a day to day basis. My kids can't get enough as they are all very eager to go to bed so that they can take in the program. This sitcom has staying power ( It will never die or be irrelevant to the times ). The manner in which Cliff ( Bill ) cherishes and respects everyone in the family, hearing them out before he makes a decision and acting fairly is quite refreshing in these times.....And I must say that when my seven year old daughter Kaleah compared me to Bill Cosby I felt really honoured. This sitcom reaches all ages, races, backgrounds and ideals and is perfect for family viewing.......... Thanks a lot Bill Cosby!

Hey Everyone,My name is Karen and I have been a long time fan of The Cosby Show.I purchased season one and can can tell you first hand that there is absolutely nothing wrong with this first season of the Cosby show.I (almost) did not buy this set because of some of the negative reviews that people were writing.I am soooooo glad that I followed my heart and bought season 1.Don't listen to those negative reviews because if you do,you are going to miss out on some awesome and special moments.They are going to rob you of a lot of Joy and laughter.I cannot wait until season two comes out because I am going to buy that one too.I don't know if two minutes are missing or not, but if they are, I sure could not tell.Go ahead and buy the set.You will be sooooo glad that you did!Just as The Cosby Show brought Joy to us on T.V.You will find that same joy in season one.Karen ShowellMichigan

We ordered the Cosby Show to watch together as a family. My wife and I enjoyed this growing up and thought it would be fun.The Cosby is fantastic! We have three boys (10, 7, and 3) and each of them loved the Cosby Show. Our favorite episode is where Cliff's parents celebrate their 49th Wedding Anniversary and the Huxtables to a lip synch to Ray Charles' (Night Time Is) The Right Time. This was amazing.Since watching the first season we've also ordered the 2nd and 3rd seasons.Cliff and Claire have a nack of showing the challenges and joys in rearing children and how to keep their own romance alive.I highly recommend this season for any family.

The Cosby Show is one of the best shows ever on television. There are many fun times to be had in this first season, like Cliff giving Theo an economics lesson with Monopoly money, Vanessa sounding awful on the clarinet, and Theo getting mad when he finds a joint in his geography book. All the episodes are funny, and the extras are a pleasure to watch. The discs are packaged really well, and the set even comes with an essay on the show. The bad news is that these shows are edited. They are the same as what you can see for free on TBS and Nick at Nite. I was very hesitant to buy this set because of that, but I'm glad I did anyway. The episodes are fun despite being truncated. Missing footage or not, this is a great set.

Cosby love! The greatest show on earth!

Che dire!!stupendo questo completo pacchetto della serie.l’unica pecca che non é in lingua italiana.Comunque consigliato.

20年くらい前に日本で民放で吹き替え放送されていて、笑い転げながら見た覚えがあります。それからN★Kの衛星放送に移動してしまって、衛星放送を契約していないうちは見られなくなり、残念でした。　それが今また何度でも見られるなんて感動です。子どもができてからだとまた違う視点からのおもしろさがありますね。リージョンコードの制限がありますが、パソコン（とりあえずmac）のDVDドライブだと問題なく見られました。保証はできませんが、かなりのパソコンで同様に見られるらしいです。ただ当然ながら日本語の吹き替えはなく、メニューをさがしてみましたが英語字幕もないようです。

Box was a bit bashed up, but overall, received everything as it should be - DVD's work great, and also received the episode guide inside. I love this show!

学生の頃からずっと、待ちこがれていた「コスビーショウ」のビデオ（ＤＶＤ）！　お話しの中は、いつも笑いと愛情があふれていて、本当に心温まるものがあります。ビルさん演じる　産婦人科医のハクスタブル先生、そして美しくて聡明な弁護士の奥様　クレアさん。元気いっぱいの子ども達が５人。（ちっちゃなルディと、ティーンエイジャーのテオ、バネッサ、デニース、そしてサンドラ）日常生活の中で繰り広げられる様々なシーンや親子の深い愛情が、最初の放送から２０年以上たった今も色あせることなく生き生きと伝わってきます。オススメの作品です。