You can take the Ingallses out of Walnut Grove, but you can't take Walnut Grove out of the Ingallses. Season five of Little House on the Prairie begins with a satisfying story arc that charts the Ingallses' brief but memorable stay in Winoka, a hustling, bustling Pottersville of a city that is anathema to proud patriarch Charles (Michael Landon). The two-parter that opens the season, "As Long as We're Together," and the two-parter that returns the family to a devastated Walnut Grove, "There's No Place Like Home," are benchmark episodes that are also available separately on DVD. Based on Laura Ingalls Wilder's cherished books, the beloved series tackles some heady issues in this fifth season, including racism (both in "Barn Burner" and the two-part "Blind Journey") and, in "The Craftsman," anti-Semitism (this tearjerker finds adopted orphan Albert befriending an elderly Jewish carpenter who takes him on as an apprentice). Landon even gets in a few licks against his nemesis, the tabloids, with "Harriet's Happenings," in which the hated Harriet Oleson writes a gossip column that humiliates and denigrates the locals. She gets her comeuppance during an impassioned sermon Charles delivers to the chastened townspeople (on this series, there was never a separation between church and primetime). Other memorable hours include: the rites-of-passage episode "Men Will Be Boys"; "The Wedding," in which Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson) marries Adam; and the comical "The Lake Kezia Monster," which finds the kids concocting tales of a sea monster to scare the Olesons off unethically (if legally) acquired land. Fans of The Wizard of Oz will cherish "There's No Place Like Home" and "Dance with Me," episodes featuring Scarecrow Ray Bolger in the twilight of his 50-plus-year career. This is another exceptional season for one of television's most timeless family hours. DVD extras include interviews and a trivia challenge. Highly recommended. (D. Liebenson)
Little House on the Prairie: Season 5
Goldhil, 6 discs, 1,200 min., not rated, DVD: $49.95 Volume 19, Issue 5
Little House on the Prairie: Season 5
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