DVD Review: The Beverly Hillbillies Season 3

After waiting over a decade to release Season 2 on DVD, CBS wastes no time in pushing The Beverly Hillbillies Season 3 onto shelves. Not much changes for the Clampetts here is their third outing. Their misadventures remain hilarious, Granny is still the show’s funniest aspect, and everyone is out to take advantage of this family who rarely realizes it.

The third season offers some great episodes (out of 34), including “Back to Marineland.” Here, Jethro is determined to become a member of the US Marines, so he heads to Marineland, which isn’t quite right. It’s the perfect example of how the show works on every level, giving each character something to do while exposing their friendly gestures and naïve nature.

Fans of the show should undoubtedly have this one their shelves. There’s little reason why it’s taken this long, but kudos for CBS for at least acknowledging this series exists. Season 3 continues the Clampett tradition without faltering, in line with this shows entire run up until it went off the air in 1971.

As with the first CBS release, this season looks exceptional. It’s incredibly sharp with a fine grain structure. Print damage is light and rarely a distraction. Some minor edge enhancement is visible (Jed’s hat being the worst), but won’t cause a problem for many. Some fine detail is visible, certainly well above the usual DVD standard. Artifacting is kept to a bare minimum.

While the video doesn’t need much restoration, the audio is in dire need. The famous theme song is strained and flat. The laugh track is scratchy and faded. While not much can be expected for a simple mono presentation, this is to the point of becoming problematic. Thankfully, dialogue is relatively free of hissing and popping, not to mention audible.

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Article Author: Matt Paprocki

Matt Paprocki is a 12-year movie and game critic. He currently freelances for Blu-ray review site DoBlu.com and video game site MultiPlayerGames.com.

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