Head Case: Season 1, Vol. 1

I am a Makeup Lady Except the Makeup Is for Your Head
We all know most of Hollywood have major mental problems so Head Case seems like a natural show. If you never have heard of Head Case it is probably because it is on Starz. The show features Alexandra Wentworth (In Living Color) as a psychologist to the stars that features actual celebrities, and legitimate ones too, not the kind ABC and VH1 trot out for their unwatchable reality shows.

Being semi-scripted, most episodes hinge on how well the stars can think on their feet, and while some can (Andy Dick, Jonathan Silverman) others fall flat (Good Charlotte's Joel Madden). And there is a special category for Greg Grumberg that makes me happy I stopped watching Heroes because I never want to see him in anything again after this. And I thought his super-hearing face was disturbing.

The show isn't all about the celebrities as we also follow Wentworth outside her practice to show just how she is the last person to give anyone advise as she has bad relationships...

Cool show; questionable presentation
This is a pretty funny show. I wouldn't say it's up to the level of the classic HBO programs like Curb Your Enthusiasm, but it's worth watching if you enjoy a twisted sense of humor. And it is very twisted -- they get into some rather freaky subject matter, along with a fair amount of swearing and occasional nudity. It's not for the squeamish.

That said, I have some issues with the DVD presentation. The picture and sound are fine for the most part; it's the way the set is organized that's a little strange. The show began as a series of 12-minute shorts, which were followed by eight 25-minute episodes. The eight longer episodes are on disc 1 as "Season One," while the shorts are on disc 2 as "Bonus Shorts." The material on disc 1 chronologically follows the "bonus" episodes on disc 2, so there are storylines that pick up in the middle if you watch disc 1 first. This is not a huge issue, but it is a little disconcerting, and it ruins some of the gags in the shorts...

Ali was born to play this role...
(PLEASE NOTE: Like "Head Case" itself, this review is brief)

At long last, a role that Ali Wentworth-Stephanopolous ;) was born to play. She's a fantastic comedic talent, yet was lost in the TV wilderness for years following her breakout role on "In Living Color".
Well, motherhood played a big role in her career path as well.

And speaking of those who were lost-and-now-found, Steve Landesberg is a true scene-stealer... where has he been in the **almost 3 decades** since Barney Miller???

Like many other reviewers, I agree both the show and DVD box set itself has problems (albeit slight) and huge potential. A five-year old must have been in charge of producing the discs, as the episodes are completely out-of-order... Disk 2 should be Disk 1, etc.

BOTTOMLINE, Buy or No-Buy: Buy. This title is reasonably-priced and the show is often quite hilarious. The David Allen-Grier (again, In Living Color) episode alone is worth it.

Ok, let...

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