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Queer as Folk - The Complete First Season (Showtime)

Queer as Folk - The Complete First Season (Showtime)

List Price: $119.98
Your Price: $95.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Love it
Review: I didn't think I would like this show but it turns out I love it! I don't get Showtime so I had to rent the DVDs. This isn't your average 90210 show. It actually has good actors and great storylines. Hal Sparks who plays Michael has got to be the most likable character ever to be filmed. You'll wish you actually be his friend. All of the other actors are great too. There are some things I don't like about this show though. One being the opening. It displays a disgusting show of beefy men in tiny shorts and they are dancing around to horrible music with terrible music playing. They're awful dancers too. All the flashing colors probably make many unsuspecting people go into seizures. I also don't like the drug use in this show. Even Michael uses. And their theory on this is that it's ok to use as long as you don't get addicted. I don't like that. I love the rest of the show though.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excelent TV Series
Review: When I first saw it in Mexico, I could not believe it was there, unfortunately I only saw last episodes.. Now I had the change to get the full first season, and I have watched it a lot already; my conclusion Queer as Folk is full of emotional situations, some very romantic other sort of realistic, naughty, but at the end fantastic and exciting.

I just cannot wait to get second season.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fantastic. I can't turn it off.
Review: I don't have Showtime so I rushed to pre-order the first season of QAF. It arrived on my doorstep and now I'm obsessed.

The actors are great, the stories are great, the action and sequencing are great, etc., etc. I even watch the credits for the music!

The intimacy of some of the scenes (and not the sex scenes necessarily) is almost overwhelming at times. It's been a long time since I lost myself in anything on TV. This is one of those things. If you can't relate to someone on this series, then just who can you relate to?

If you're on the fence about this series, then invest 42 minutes and watch an episode. I think you'll be a believer.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: LOVE IT LOVE IT!
Review: I am a straight female and this show really captured my heart. The acting although some people believe crud and uninspirational I find honest and beautiful. The story is based on the British series which means plots and storylines will be the same, but for those of us who haven't seen the British series the American Queer as Folk is a treat! The boys in the show deal with real issues like safe sex and its consequences and drug addiction and try to put forth a positive message.I truly recommend this to anyone of any sexual preference. Gale Harold is Hot!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Openly straight guy review...
Review: As a straight guy, I can say that I love this DVD collection. I couldn't wait for Season One to come out on DVD, and, now that I have it, I have not been disappointed. The only thing related that I was anticipating more was the Season Two premiere episode. This Showtime show is definitely not for some people, and, if you can't handle it, that's your problem. The actors are great. The writing is great. Overall I feel it beats all of the other series on Showtime and HBO. As this includes 6 DVDs, I have not had a chance to watch all of them, including the bonus tracks, but from what I've seen, this is a truly enjoyable boxed set. Definitely a worthwhile addition to your collection if you enjoy the series as much as I do.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Anyone who doesn't love this show doesn't like Imagination. I loved this show the first time it aired on showtime and Just bought the DVD of the whole first season. I don't have cable anymore and I just hope they let the second season be on DvD also. If you like music, really good dialouge,and just plain fun then by all means buy the series.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Outstanding Cutting Edge Series on a Great DVD Collection
Review: Queer As Folk - The Complete First Season - Collector's Edition DVD Boxed Set.
A Showtime Original Series.

This is an excellent original series featured on an outstanding DVD collection.

I'll give you my condensed version: I enjoyed it a great deal. The acting is good, the stories are engaging and the characters seem real. I'm recommending it without reservation.

First, the packaging of this set is top of the line. The six-disc collection is a double-sided fold-in design. Each disc is colored with one of the rainbow pride colors-a very nice, and unexpected, touch. Also featured with this box set-a nice little rainbow pride disc place marker-it's a six-colored rainbow ribbon.

Before I get into my opinions, let me say that the discs themselves, quality wise, are outstanding. I watched every last minute of the six disc set, including the special episode editions and bonus material and had flawless picture and sound throughout.

Yes, I did enjoy the series.

I had never seen a single scene of Queer As Folk (QAF) before I got this DVD. That's not to say I hadn't heard about it, because I had. I've read a great deal about it: the sex, the drugs, the language, the lesbian bashing, etc.

What I found, upon watching it myself, was that I liked the stories and I liked the characters.

It's always difficult to forget what you've read when approaching a television series like this but I did my best to just approach it with my own personal life experiences as a guide.

To address the mini-points mentioned above:

There's sex and a whole lot of it. Much of it anonymous and much of it graphic. All of it gay/lesbian. Was I offended? No, not at all. As a matter of fact, the shear volume of sex actually makes it less shocking. The sex depicted in the series is not there to titillate (though it probably does); it's there simply as part of a story, part of the lives of these characters. Having watched the discs in long multi-hour blocks, it actually became a little numbing, though not to say uninteresting.

There's drugs and a lot of them. They're taken frequently and unapologetically. Again, they're presented as part of the story. Was I offended? Not at all. They're not preachy about what they're presenting and not every character takes illicit drugs.

"the language"-Actually this is where I get a little prudish (surprised it's with the language and not the sex?) because the mouths on these folks are trashy. I thought all the foul language was a little over the top.

"the lesbian-bashing"-A little explanation here. Quite a bit of press has been dedicated to the idea that the lesbian couple in the series is verbally derided and "bashed" by the gay male characters. I was a little worried about this, being a lesbian myself. I was a little weary of it because after one episode, I was really enjoying the series and didn't want to get offended as things went on. I found though, that I was more than 10 hours into the series when I realized that I hadn't been offended yet, not in the least. There's some name-calling, some use of words I'm not particularly thrilled with, but much of the name calling, was done in jest. I didn't find it offensive or at all "mean spirited" and I was looking for it. The one time a particularly graphic word is used in a negative and angry way, it is used by one of the lesbian characters.

The writer's have done a wonderful job with giving these characters expansive and full lives. These episodes deal with issues and problems:age of consent (by ignoring it), drug use (by using them), safe sex (by having it), lesbian moms (by portraying it), conversion groups (by lampooning them), school outings (by portraying them realistically), hate (by living through it), family dedication and confusion (by showing the impact of being yourself), excessive drug use (by showing the consequences).

I defy you to name another series which tackles these issues. It does not feel forced; these are issues that these characters deal with.

One complaint I've heard is that the "girls" have so little screen time. I'll remind everyone that there is a five man to two woman ratio so it's reasonable that the guys will be on screen more often. I'm just thrilled to have a lesbian couple featured at all. The fact that we get so much from them, with so little screen time, is a great indication of the fine writing and acting that we see here. For those wondering-we do get one sex scene between Melanie and Lindsay-its in episode 9.

Quick comment on the season finale- This is the most amazing episode. It is incredibly moving and romantic and terrifying. I don't want to give away too much, but it was well written and well acted. You will be moved.

On the believability scale-I'd give this series an "A.

The discs-some information on the discs themselves and they way they are set up.

Each disc contains 3 or 4 episodes. On each disc are six chapters you can use for scene access. Featured are each episodes "next on" promo-a feature which I liked a lot and which I was surprised to find. Each episode also contains a small summary of what the episode is about.

On disc1, disc 3 and disc 5 are "special edition episodes" which repeat a specific episode with commentary by the cast and producers. These are fun to watch and it's always great to hear the actor talk about the character they are portraying. These cannot, though, be watched INSTEAD of the episodes. They are strictly extra viewing. Episode 1, episode 11 and episode 18 are given this special treatment.

Disc 6 contains the last three episodes (20-22) and a great collection of bonus features listed in the Amazon page.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Realistic to the Third Power
Review: When it comes to their slogan, cable television's Showtime network definitely has "no limits." "Queer as Folk" (or "QAF" for short) was introduced into the network's lineup in January 2001. Following their first community-oriented series, "Soul Food" (aimed for African-Americans) and "Resurrection Boulevard" (Latinos), QAF was the first gay serial to debut on American television.

Based on the popular, yet controversial British series of the same name, QAF is a pioneering achievement for network programming. Before the rise of the gay rights movement in the 1990s, a gay-themed series would been unheard of in the United States. Unlike their European and Australian/New Zealander counterparts, American audiences tended to remain very closed to depictions of gay subculture for decades. However, with the emergence of gay culture and its' promotion in the media (e.g., Madonna, Margaret Cho, etc.) QAF debuted at a time that tolerance was becoming part of mainstream culture.

The show, which takes place in Pittsburgh (but actually filmed in Toronto, Canada) QAF revolves around four gay friends. Michael (Hal Sparks) is a manager at a local department store; Brian (played excellently by newcomer Gale Harold) is a heartless, nymphomaniac, yet very misunderstood advertisement executive; Ted (played by the adorable Scott Lowell) is a businessman who is the hopeless romantic; and finally Emmett (Peter Paige) a flamboyant retail worker with some of the funniest lines ever heard.

After a series of events at the local gay club, Babylon, Justin (Randy Harrison) a 17 year old student who is starting to debut in Pittsburgh's gay scene, becomes the fifth member of the quartet, pouring his affection and devotion to an unwanting, selfish Brian. Ted, who secretly is in love with Michael faces a near death experience after an accidental overdose. Emmett provides both hysterical and inspirational output in balancing the events in his friend's lives, and Michael deals with homophobia at work and meeting a new love.

Rounding out the cast are a handful of women who provide their support to their male counterparts. Sharon Gless, or television's "Cagney and Lacey" plays Debbie Novotny, Michael's mother with humor and grace. The show's lesbian couple (Melanie Clunie and Thea Gill) face trials and tribulations in raising a newborn son and the distance caused by Brian's (the baby's biological father) interference in raising their son. Others such as Makyla Smith (Daphne) and Jack Wetherall (Uncle Vic) add plenty of charm to a storyline that many might find hard to accept, especially when it deals with the show's soft-core depictions of gay sex.

Regardless of your tolerance level, QAF is as enjoyable and enthralling as many of today's cable series. Similar to a gay version of "Sex and the City," QAF has plenty of quality material not to only open eyes, but to stir mouths. For conservatives out there, I recommend them watching QAF as folk to have a comprehension of what gay culture and drug use are really like in today's America. For parents dealing with the coming out of their children, I recommend it due to storyline revolving around Justin's coming out to his parents (Sherry Miller does an excellent job of playing Justin's understanding mother) and their reaction to accepting it. Maybe by doing so, they will have a better view on the subject before casting judgment on those who are involved in it. Once again, this show is not recommended for those who cannot stomach graphic depictions of gay sex and full frontal nudity.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Queer As Folk is one of the most entertaining shows on TV.
Review: Queer As Folk is one of the most entertaining shows on TV. I have read many great positive reviews and yet some bad reviews. One thing I continue to notice about the bad reviews is that they are coming from people who know nothing about the gay lifestyle, and are focusing more on the sex scenes of Queer As Folk more than the plot of each show. The sex scenes are just a small part of this groundbreaking tv show, and many people have judged Queer As Folk on one show they saw out of the 22 first season episodes. I think this is a great Box set and encouarge any one who has an open mind to buy this. So far Official sales in the U.S. show that this DVD box set is expected to be the biggest selling gay DVD ever and one of the first truly gay TV shows to break in to the Top Ten DVD/VHS Sales Charts. Check out this entertaining show that makes you laugh, brings tears to your eyes, but always seems to inspire and give you hope. Please have an open mind and let the actual story touch your heart rather than just the sex scenes and watch more than one episode before you decide.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great acting and real characters.
Review: Being a straight woman I never would have seen the things the way I do now without this series. I have never been homophobic and have never looked at one of my many friends and a few family members differently because they were gay. Much to my surprise there were still hang up's that I had prior to this show that I didn't know I had.

The first episode of season one I stumbled across while channel surfing, and I have to say I was shocked. I just happened to tune in at the beginning of the first sex scene with Brian & Justin and it was very graphic. Immediately they worked in a safe sex message that was very cool since it involved a teenager. I tuned in every episode from that point on and I am now totally hooked. They tackle a lot of issues that are perceived to be unique to gay people but, in watching, they pertain to us all.

Yes, this series is a little campy and defiantly not for you if you are offended by sex scenes, foul language, and a lifestyle that is not your own. One thing I have to say is that by the end of the first season I realized I was looking at the characters, who by the way are all straight but two, for the character they were playing and it was all very touching and normal with real love, emotion, and great acting. At the season closer I was in tears for the last 15 minutes, it was very touching and tragic. You do have to see the whole series and follow he characters to get the emotion out of it

I watch Sex and the City, and Queer as Folk is similar to the point where there is parallel's in the characters. (Remember, Sex and the City has won awards.) I think this series is a must see!


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