Six Feet Under - The Complete Fifth Season

Customer reviews:

Fade to White..., 2008-08-17
It's a struggle for me not to give this season my "10/10 Classic" rating, because the last handful of episodes--the ones I've seen most recently, so which naturally have the biggest impact--were nearly perfect. However, the season as a whole did indeed have some minor blips that keep it from being as great a collection as Season Three or as consistent as thefirst two seasons. However, as I said before, the way this season--and series--ends is quite beautiful, and those episode leading up to the pitch perfect swan song do, indeed, make up for the awkwardness of the way the season started.

After the somewhat weaker fourth season, "Six Feet Under" bounces back with more beautiful and hilarious episodes showing the Fishers and those around them struggling with death in brand new, heart-wrenching ways. As stated before, the first few episodes of this season do indeed have the directionless feeling that the fourth season suffered from. However, even when it's at its weakest, there is such intelligence and heart put into the writing and, at another level, a bubbling tension that makes you know they're building up to something bigger and tragic. And indeed they are.

From the shocking "Ecotone," to "All Alone," a perfect dissection of grief that, quite frankly, is better than any literature, to the series finale "Everyone's Waiting," this show hit its high note in the end, surpassing the brilliance that had been achieved in earlier seasons. By the time you're watching that final goodbye montage, you'll have forgotten all about the weaker moments earlier in the season. I very much recommend this, but only if the show is watched in order, from start to finish.

It's not a perfect season, and it's not a 10/10. But it's damn close. Perhaps it's not consistent, but each episode has something hilarious, something smart, and something beautiful, and even at it's weakest, it's better than most everything else on television. I'll miss this show dearly, because not only are the character's one of a kind, the show itself is one of the top five of all time. Creator Alan Ball has gained a life-time fan.

9/10

Everyone is Waiting!, 2008-08-05
This show will stay with you for a long time. The characters are quirky and likable. "Breathe me" by Sia will become a favorite. And the... slight spoiler here.... end - Nate telling Claire " You can't take a picture" it already happened will definetly find you wiping tears away! And gosh could the guys be any sexier? And good for her for being the one to go.