Married with…Children: Most Outrageous Episodes, Vol. 1

Famous for being the longest running show never to win an Emmy, Fox's revolutionary shock series Married…with Children spent a decade looking at the lives of the Bundys, a scandalous Chicago clan comprised of grumpy shoe salesman Al (Ed O'Neill), shallow showy wife Peg (Katey Sagal), thickheaded tramp daughter Kelly (Christina Applegate), and her grubby brother Bud (David Faustino). This five-episode compilation includes “A Dump of My Own,” in which Al is preoccupied with plans to build his very own bathroom with--most importantly--his own toilet, and “No Chicken, No Check,” in which Kelly and Bud pool their cash to pay for a car but learn a lesson about sharing after a double date ends bitterly. The collection also includes the two-parter “You Better Shop Around,” in which the Bundys beat the heat (after their decrepit AC drains the whole neighborhood of electricity) by moving into a local grocery store--ultimately battling for a $1,000 shopping spree they didn't deserve (Jerry Mathers guest stars as a celebrity host of the competition, poking fun at his Leave It to Beaver fame with the line “Somebody please just put a bullet to the ol' Beav's head!”). Finally, “I'll See You in Court,” a so-called “lost episode,” finds Peg and Al being filmed by voyeuristic inn owners. Dependent on crude, raunchy jokes centered around sex, slothfulness, and bodily functions, this inane collection is a strong optional purchase only because of the show's immense (and baffling) popularity. (J. Williams)