Studio: Sony Pictures Home Ent Release Date: 09/20/2005 Run time: 302 minutes Rating: Nr

When Married... with Children debuted on Fox TV on April 5, 1987 (followed by The Tracey Ullman Show a half-hour later), the grungy sitcom became an instant flagship for Rupert Murdoch's upstart network. The program's much-publicized working title, Not the Cosbys (a dismissive reference to the cheerful vitality of Bill Cosby's hugely popular television clan on NBC's The Cosby Show) was a dead giveaway. Married... with Children was going to be a trashier, raunchier, and far more cynical view of the American nuclear family. But it turned out the series actually fell into other caustic-domestic entertainment traditions, notably the Don Ameche and Frances Langford radio comedy series from the 1940s, The Bickersons, and Jackie Gleason's TV classic, The Honeymooners.

The jokes were savage, key relationships were marked by ennui and indifference, and the Bundy family name couldn't help but make one think of America's most notorious, real-life serial killer at the time. Yet the show had a hint of Golden Age Hollywood gloss, a retro-screwball feel that one could detect in the snappy verbal warfare between husband Al Bundy (Ed O'Neill) and wife Peggy (Katey Sagal). The characters, and the show, eschewed sentimentality, which certainly opened the floodgates to comic cynicism but also kept a door ajar for moments of genuine sweetness. A decade later, however, by the time Fox cancelled the increasingly expensive series, Married... with Children's first-season tone would be considerably different, replaced by a stronger reliance on running jokes and character stereotypes, particularly concerning Bundy children Kelly (Christina Applegate) and Bud (David Faustino).

That evolution makes watching Married... with Children's first 13 episodes, once again, quite instructive. Those programs are all on this two-disc set, including the startling pilot, in which Al and Peggy lock horns over marital politics and enlist naive new neighbors Steve (David Garrison) and Marcy (Amanda Bearse) in a battle of the sexes. There's also the classic "Whose Room Is It, Anyway," concerning the Bundys' competition to connive Steve and Marcy into building a recreation room, and "Thinnergy," a very funny piece about a diet that supposedly boosts sexual interest. --Tom Keogh

The first episodes were truly bad. But the writers got better with time. By episode 5 things got to where I remembered they had to be. Good comedy

Some TV series take a while before they find their stride, but Married...With Children does great at having a real funny first season. There are a lot of moments from this season that had me laughing out loud a lot. One of my favorite moments from the first season is when Al shoots Marcy and Steve's new dog and Steve has to describe how he knows the dog is dead. Hear Al shout "Freeze creep!" is hilarious on its own.

What makes this season so interesting is that it has a different take on their daughter Kelly. She isn't as dumb as she eventually becomes, and is more like a spoiled brat. It being only 13 episodes is the only downside about this DVD. You can watch the entire season in one sitting, I almost did. It is very addictive and you will find the season over real fast. So, I highly recommend this DVD and I would also recommend you buy the rest of the series that is out so far. Once you get finished watching this season, you are going to want more and it only gets better from here!

Married With Children was my favourite show as a kid and today would still rate in my top five of all time. My rating of this first season DVD is not of the show itself by any means, it is of the poor overall DVD package. We fans deserve better than what those who owned the rights to this show have delivered. They rely on the fact that this show has a huge fan base and that we will buy this DVD regardless of the fact that it comes with no commentaries or any special features except for the Married With Children Reunion Special which was filmed a substantial number of years before this was put on DVD I might add. We also only get half of that special anyway, David Garrison (who played Steve) tells us we'll be right back after the break only that is when it ends, they don't come back at all. You can't help but feel a little bit, well a lot ripped off!

How hard of expensive would it have been to grab at least one of the actors for each episode to commentate with some behind the scenes person as well? I don't think I've even watched a DVD with a TV show's pilot that doesn't at least have commentary for that episode. It would not have cost or taken much time but those who owned the rights couldn't be bothered. For shame! Viewers might as well have taped these when they aired on TV and watch them on your old video player as there's no advantage to owning the DVD.

Season one aired with 13 episodes and even though most classic Bundy moments come from later seasons, season one is certainly worth watching. In season one most of the on air time revolved around Al and Peggy and to a lesser degree their newly wed neighbours Steve and Marcy. Bud and Kelly are of course here but obviously being younger child actors they didn't appear much so there characters aren't as well developed as they will be in later seasons. Bud even has friends in this season and is certainly a lot cooler than he will be as he gets older and even Kelly isn't as bimboish as she will later become. Other aspects of the Bundy life that will change in future seasons are that the Bundys have food in the house, Al is not interested in sleeping with other women when given the opportunity and there are also other staff at the shoe store who will change in future seasons. There are classic lines such as in the pilot Al telling Steve if I wanted people to know what I was thinking, I'd be talking to them".

Hopefully with future seasons those who own the rights give a bit more respect to the show which boldly turned TV on its head in an era of the what did we learn today family shows. It pioneered the way for later dysfunctional family shows such as The Simpsons, Roseanne, Malcolm in the Middle and My Name is Earl and much more respect should given to this great important in TV history show when putting it on DVD!

Start Of A Classic And All Time Favorite Of Mine Its Timeless Best Of All Funny

My favorite show. Al Bundy is an American Legend up there with John Wayne. This show was unstoppable and always will be. Every family should give this one a try and laugh some.