Rating: 
Summary: Meet The Bunkers
Review: All In The Family debuted on CBS in January of 1971 and immediately ushered in a new era of television programming. Sitcoms that centered around families normally portrayed them as happy, loving families where mom cooked breakfast every morning and dad made a good living in some office. Problems were solved in a half-hour and everything was swell. The Bunkers were the opposite of all that. They constantly bickered with one another and rarely did they see eye to eye with one another. Carroll O'Connor stars as Archie Bunker, a working stiff whose views on life, America and ethnic groups fall to the right of right. He is at constant odds with his daughter Gloria, played by Sally Struthers, and her liberal husband Mike, played by Rob Reiner over politics, race relations and everything else. Archie's wife Edith, played by Jean Stapleton, is the in the middle of the two groups, a bit to dizzy to take one side or the other. The show took on countless subjects like feminism and homophobia that were taboo at the time as well as on a weekly basis examining the wide generation gap that was forming between the adults who were World War II veterans or of that era and their children who were anti Vietnam and the counterculture. Every week, Archie's narrow minded views were challenged by Mike and Gloria as well as Lionel Jefferson (Mike Evans) a young black man, whose father owned a cleaners that Bunkers used. The way Lionel plays along with Archie's comments on race are some of the funniest moments in the first season. One of he best episodes is when Archie finds out that his neighbor has sold his house to a black family. He tries to organize the neighbors to start a collect to buy the house so the black family cannot move in. He gets Lionel to try to help him by talking trying to talk the black family into selling the house back to the neighbors. Lionel plays along, but in the end reveals to a shocked Archie that it is his family that has purchased the house. The show could also be poignant as in the episode in which Gloria gets pregnant. Archie is at first upset over the news as Mike is an out of work college student and he fears that they will not be able to support the baby. Eventually, Archie warms up to the idea and comes home with a stuffed animal in hand only to learn that Gloria had a miscarriage. The final between Archie and Gloria is touching and a tear jerker. The show of course set off a firestorm of protests and boycotts, but the show evolved in a rating juggernaut and the show was a success at the 1970-71 Emmy Awards winning Best Comedy Series, Best New Series and Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Ms. Stapleton.
Rating:
Summary: WAITED FOR THIS FOR YEARS
Review: I was wondering when they were going to come out with something like this. I always knew that this type of product will go over real good, I would like to see all seasons of this program get put on VHS and DVD's. I waited for this for years.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best comedies ever made !
Review: It was so much fun to relive the memories of enjoying the lives of Archie, Edith, Mike & Gloria. The quality of the images you will see is expectional, not like the grainy images you see on TV reruns. It's really nice to pay a visit with the Bunkers again and take a stroll down memory lane. Order this DVD today. You won't be sorry!!
Rating: 
Summary: Those (really) were the days...
Review: What more can be said about this groundbreaking, controversial series? All In The Family evolved into one of TV's most successful series, and rightfully so.
During the first season, it is clear that Jean Stapleton's character, Edith, was not as developed as the others. Toward the end of the first season, however, Stapleton had turned Edith into the vibrant character that continued for the duration.
It is great to have an entire season, in chronological order, on one reasonably priced DVD set. Years ago, I purchased VHS tapes of the show, which grouped shows together by topic. As many other reviewers have noted, there is no extra material on these DVD's, and that is disappointing. I hope this changes when the second season is released! It would be great to see some outtakes!!!
Picture quality and sound are very good, although not outstanding. There really is not much difference between the DVD and VHS quality; however the DVD's undoubtedly will last longer, take less storage space, and are economical!
Rating:
Summary: Sale Price is the Way to Go
Review: Not much else I can say that others haven't said before here, but I will add this: Considering how this show was produced on video tape 30 years ago, the picture quality is a lot better than it could be. Sorta like listening to analog music on digital equipment, the flaws in the source will be obvious. Still, if you can find this puppy at a low SALE PRICE, it's worth picking up. ...The only reason I won't give this collection 5 stars is because they didn't include either of the first two 'unaired' pilots (one of which is still missing, according to most recent reports). And since I don't care about having audio commentaries, I wasn't disappointed about that feature not being offered. ...Still, for the hard-core fans, having commentary on at least a couple episodes by Norman Lear would be cool for the upcoming season sets.
Rating:
Summary: 2nd season
Review: Just wanted to say that it is great to bring to DVD, the complete first season of the funniest sitcom in television history, "All In The Family". I have been a fan since its incorporation in 1971. I hope that it will not stop there. I hope to see all 11 seasons of the show on DVD in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: Great content, despite poor recordings & no extras
Review: Well, the content is great - an ensemble of phenomenal talents in a groundbreaking series. I agree with most every viewer so far on the high quality of the performances, the writing, and the overall series concepts. Really great work. I'm glad to see All In The Family and other classic series coming out on DVD.I will jump to a bit of criticism though, because although the show was great, this collection is lacking... Note you will hear piano accompaniment to reinforce touching moments. It may be that it is an addition to the original series done many years ago. This may sound odd to some of you; my friends and I don't recall these musical touches in the syndication versions. The quality of the recordings - I don't know why it looks poor - the phrase "taped before a live studio audience" may give an indication (sounds like it wasn't "filmed" and so the quality of the originals may not be great). This surprises me however, because the currently broadcast versions (I saw "Gloria's Pregnancy" recently) look better on ordinary broadcast TV than from my new DVD versions. If they had trouble with the quality of the originals, I assume they would have provided notes indicating the archive process. (The quality is so vastly different that it's comparable to the South Park DVD - also with quality far below the broadcast versions). Given the quality, it is unclear why they are placing only four episodes on each of three disk instead of placing six episodes on each of two disks? Finally, I'm surprised anyone is putting out classic series for a collector's audience without any extras. No commentary, no old tv commercials promoting the new show, no interviews with the writers or actors or producer, no documentaries featuring academics or later television ground breakers (seinfeld, cosby, lily tomlin, richard pryor, matt groening, john cleese or terry gilliam ...). A shame. I expected more.
Rating:
Summary: Thanks, and PLEASE keep the seasons coming!
Review: What a thrill to have the first season of this pioneering TV classic on DVD. This is a true TV landmark, and the performances of the four incredible principals are even more impressive when seen today...truly classic TV. PLEASE keep the sets coming! There are dozens and dozens of timeless classic episodes in the seasons to come!
Rating:
Summary: When the dust has cleared, this is a period piece
Review: As a 30-something TV fan, I am as titillated as anyone at the prospect of having a whole season of this show in my home and getting a look at shows I haven't seen since I was a kid. But watching these 13, I was surprised to find that the show really doesn't hold up nearly as well as, for example, SANFORD AND SON or MARY TYLER MOORE. I did not find these shows "classic" -- rather, the show, though pioneering in its time, is now a period piece. For one, the show shows its descent from old-style sitcoms more clearly than many of its time. Gloria, one gradually realizes, does not work -- she's just a stay-at-home wife as one would expect in, say, HAZEL -- which had only aired a few years before, after all. The directors shuffle the characters all over the set during dialogue without motivation just for "flow" -- i.e. people getting up from dinner and crossing the living room to emphasize a point -- as old sitcoms often did because their directors came from the theatre world. We remember this show for its "relevance" and "freshness" -- yet in a couple of episodes, a "wacky neighbor" walks on and spouts some irrelevant "shtick" lines as if this were JACK BENNY. O'Connor and Stapleton, both fresh from stage careers, play to the rafters, with O'Connor even getting sweaty under the arms, giving many episodes an air of THE HONEYMOONERS. Which was, after all, only 15 years in the past at the time. Which is to say that this show was more a product of its era than we often remember, especially in these early episodes -- and when other shows of its time were less so. Yet I remember the electric effect the show had when it premiered (though I was too young to understand much of it). Each episode broaches a subject unheard of in a sitcom -- or often, television in general -- bigotry, homosexuality, "hippies", etc. That was great then -- it helped sitcoms grow up. But now that they have and we are so used to these things on TV, the seams show -- most episodes baldly hang "controversial" topics on typical sitcom mechanics. Example: one show has the Jeffersons (more properly Louise and her brother in law) come to dinner. Archie and the brother in law exchange angry barbs as the audience howls. Now, in 1971 that was rich stuff. But today, it's ordinary, even passé -- and the plot itself hinges on things like Edith having to fake a broken ankle too transparently to pass among intelligent people, and that is, really, I LOVE LUCY stuff. Of course Lucy was still doing this kind of thing on HERE'S LUCY while these shows were airing. But that just goes to show that this show is not as much one for the ages as we might remember. In another show, Gloria "discovers" women's lib -- but if she and Mike are so socially aware otherwise, how would she receive feminism as such a revelation in 1971? And then just for this episode, bleeding heart liberal Mike suddenly becomes a "male chauvinist" just to provide Gloria with a foil to fight against. This kind of blithe inconsistency in characterization does not a classic sitcom make, especially not in the seventies. And I must join some of the other reviewers in decrying the picture quality. ALL IN THE FAMILY need not look like THE MATRIX, but these prints are unusually muddy for a DVD -- they don't look any better than a home videotaping from NICK AT NITE. Videotape from this era can look sharper than this, and we are being a bit gypped by this schlock production standard. And NO extras? Bloopers? And where's that pilot? All in all, then, this show is more history than entertainment. It's hardly unpleasant, and I suspect later episodes are a little slicker and solider than these. But in terms of plunking down cash for these, I would walk rather than run.
Rating:
Summary: More "All In The Family" Please! ALL on DVD Please!
Review: To be able to view entire episodes of "All In The Family" on DVD is like being able to enjoy the series from an all-new perspective. I must be a genuine fan because even the background details of "All In The Family" interest me, i.e., seeing all the many curios Edith has scattered about the house is fascinating..when the show was on CBS the prevailing attitude towards antiques was far different then now. It's very entertaining to see Edith's many valuable items in detail because when the show was on CBS Archie's family was considered on the poor side insofar as their possessions were meant to be a reflection of their economic status. Now, even their bedroom furniture would be worth a small fortune! Times can and do change. If you purchase this DVD set you will not be disappointed with the picture quality, it is outstanding. As to no features, well if you make me choose I'm going to choose DVD's of "All In The Family" in all their unedited glory with no bonus features rather than VHS anyday. Like many other consumers I hope the entire series is made available on DVD and hope the manufacturers understand there is a viable market for the entire series even if it is without bonus features. DVD makes me acknowledge and appreciate how set designers perform their own art in reflecting the character's personalities through set design. The only genuine concern I have is WHY WASN'T THIS MARKETED AND PROMOTED MORE? I didn't even know it was available and bought it as soon as I saw it! Please, MORE "All In The Family"!
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