All in the Family: The Complete Second Season

Norman Lear's groundbreaking sitcom not only avoided the dreaded sophomore slump, several of the episodes from All in the Family's second season rank as series benchmarks, including "Edith's Problem," in which the Bunker family struggles to cope with Edith's oncoming menopause, "Sammy's Visit," in which Sammy Davis, Jr. pays a visit to Hauser Street and plants a kiss on Archie (cause for one of the longest laughs in television history), and "Cousin Maude's Visit," in which Archie meets his match in Bea Arthur's formidable Maude. The second season also continued to mine rich human comedy from such provocative, hot-button topics as impotence ("Mike's Problem"), and race relations ("Edith Writes a Song"). Better still were the episodes in which these characters found their beliefs severely tested, as when freethinking Mike has second thoughts about Gloria posing in the nude for an artist, or Archie finds himself stuck in an elevator with a black man, a Puerto Rican and his pregnant wife, and a hippie (what are the odds?). Other notable episodes, including "Mike Meets Archie" and "Archie and Edith Alone," brought us closer to the Bunkers. As with the first season DVD set (VL Online-5/02), one laments the absence of commentary by Lear or surviving cast members on this extras-less offering; still, this second collection offers a time capsule record of a classic American TV series just as it's hitting its stride. Highly recommended. (K. Lee Benson)