Despite the relative unpopularity of “Felicity” in 1999, Buena Vista recently released the drama’s second season on a 6-disc DVD set. While surpassing its predecessor in special features, the newest edition of this college melodrama lacks the heroine’s signature mass of curly hair, a plot twist that damaged ratings and dismayed fans.
The show is presented in crisp fullscreen format with Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and even has a Spanish language track. However, fans of the first season’s DVD menu will be disappointed by the unattractive muted colors and awkward silhouetted photos of cast members on this version.
Luckily, this set is packed with extra features to distract from what many might say was a bad hair year. Five episodes include commentaries. The first, “Sophomoric,” showcases the ramblings and giggles of Amy Jo Johnson, Greg Grunberg, Tangi Miller and Amanda Foreman. However, shows narrated by Keri Russell, Scott Speedman and Scott Foley are funny and personal, as memorable stories are shared and Russell finally puts to rest hair cutting rumors.
On the sixth disc, Keri Russell’s screen test is included along with the original pilot presentation created for the WB network. Both features are interesting but would have better supplemented the season one set.
Finally, a short parody made for the Emmy awards is a humorous bonus. These special features make the set far more interesting than the first, but unfortunately are unmarked on the DVDs, leaving the viewer to hunt them out.
Rating:
Show: 3 stars.
Picture/Sound: 3 stars.
Features: 4 stars.
– Katie Marie Gates