The Washoe County Sheriff's Department's finest, or at least funniest, are out of prison (see the second season, reviewed in VL-Online-9/05) and back on the force for another helping of screw-ups in Comedy Central's most arresting series. An added ingredient in this 2005 third season is the somewhat intimidating Deputy Kimball (Mary Birdsong), who describes herself as wooden on the outside but "more like pudding" on the inside. Reno 911! still blows away cop reality-TV show conventions with deadly comedic accuracy: witness the appallingly funny episode in which the squad tries to put its best foot forward for a local children's TV host, Reading Ron, only to reduce him to a gun-waving lunatic. The officers, led by shorts-bedecked Lt. Dangle (Thomas Lennon), are still the Rodney Dangerfields of Reno, getting no respect from bored schoolchildren sitting slack-jawed at an assembly, or the misfits, miscreants, and malcontents they encounter on the beat. A SARS outbreak, a botched drug sting, and a request to provide security for C.S.I. are just some of the new challenges that will test the officers' mettle in this 13-episode collection. Of course, the private lives of these oddly lovable characters also command attention: in the season-ending cliffhanger, for instance, Wiegel (the indispensable Kerri Kenney-Silver) is finally poised to marry Craig, the convicted Truckee River Killer—but his appeals have run out and he is scheduled to be executed. That these episodes are presented uncensored is a mixed blessing, since the more Reno 911! mimics Cops, with its bleeped profanities, the funnier it is (although the exposed body parts remain blurred to protect the innocent). DVD extras include audio commentaries, outtakes, and a handful of Easter eggs. Recommended. (D. Liebenson)
Reno 911! The Complete Third Season
Paramount, 2 discs, 278 min., not rated, DVD: $26.99 Volume 21, Issue 5
Reno 911! The Complete Third Season
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