Plot: What’s it about?
Ted (Jay Harrington) is the head of research and development at Veridian Dynamics, one the world’s largest and powerful corporations. As such, he oversees a wealth of projects that range from weapons to food to robotics and beyond. Some of the brightest scientists around work in the Veridian labs, but intelligence doesn’t mean everything. Ted spends a lot of time making sure his lab folk are content, even if that requires some unusual methods. At the same time, his boss (Portia de Rossi) is an alpha female who will do whatever it takes to keep upper management pleased, so Ted often has to do damage control. He also has to juggle his home life with his daughter, as well as a romantic spark with a co-worker (or two). But all this somehow manages to stay under control, though can Ted keep it up forever?
I missed this show when it was broadcast, but the word of mouth was quite positive, so I was eager to check out Better Off Ted on home video. I will not miss the second season however, as this first season is so much fun, I can’t wait to see what the next season has in store. The premise is simple, but offers ample room to branch out and deliver offbeat entertainment. You could jump in at any episode and not be too lost, but there are continuing threads woven in as well. The writing is quite good and hits near genius at times, with some of the quirkiest content on television right now. The laughs are consistent throughout the episodes, with no real bad episodes in this thirteen show collection. The cast is fun to watch as well, with Portia De Rossi in particular being a blast to see in her role. Better Off Ted is one of the better comedies to pop up on network television in a while, so if you like to laugh, check out this first season.
Video: How does it look?
The episodes are presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. While I would prefer a high definition release, this looks about as good as possible for standard resolution. The image is sharp and clear, with no issues aside from some light noise in a few isolated instances. The colors are natural, contrast is consistent, and no compression woes creep in. As I said, I think we’d all rather have this in high definition, but this looks great for a DVD edition.
Audio: How does it sound?
This is a dialogue driven comedy, so the audio has no real duties outside of the show’s main element, vocals. So the theme music sounds good and the basic sound effects come through, but the sole spotlight here shines down on the vocals. From Ted’s soothing remarks to his boss’ quiet rage, all the vocal work is in excellent form here. The whispers even sound clear as a bell in this release, so you won’t miss a single one-liner. This release also includes a Spanish language track, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This release includes no bonus materials.
