Promoting family values on television is lacking today. That’s one reason I gave up television 13 years ago. Shows like Games of Thrones or Supernatural mark the television screen with gratuitous violence and sex.
However, I must confess I returned to television last year because one of my favorite books is now an episodic cable show. It is the only show I watch on television. It’s on Starz and has violence and sex. However, the TV version promotes honor, keeping one’s promise and staying devoted to your loved one. It is the only show I watch, and I justify watching it because I read all the books first and love the story.
I am trying not to write about violence, sex and Outlander. I am trying to tell you about a tremendous new Blu-Ray/DVD on the market.
Without further fuss, let’s look at Little House on the Prairie. They also based the series on a book, and it is one of those shows in the late 1970s where you knew violence or sex didn’t play a role in the storyline. As a matter of fact, there wasn’t much violence or sex on television in those days at all — it was unheard of. There were lessons learned, and the characters were polite and caring. Families could watch television together. Now, NBC is releasing Little House on the Prairie on Blu-ray and DVD as remastered and restored to broadcast length.
Just released is Season 5. It is the trendy season, with the storyline moving the whole family away from Walnut Grove to be closer to Mary’s school for the blind in Winoka. Mary and Adam even get engaged and married.
However, there is a drawback to a lengthy television series that last five years and beyond. They become cookie cutter or listless, lacking stories to fill an entire season. More medium shoots are filmed versus master shots to cut the production down and get the crew home for dinner. I heard two cinematographers discuss cutting production time down on a long-running TV show by not moving the camera. He pushed the other actor into the place of the former actor in front of the camera instead of moving the camera and keeping the background obscure. He said it supported the actor’s happiness. I think you see a bit of “cheating” in the final seasons of Little House on the Prairie. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a great show, and the fact that it lasted almost a decade and is still popular today, over 40 years later, says a lot about the quality of the production.
I have broken down Season 5 episodes for your enjoyment. The summaries show the wholesomeness and family values portrayed on the award-winning show.
As Long As We’re Together (2 Parts) – Poor economic conditions cause the Ingalls to move closer to Mary, who is now teaching at the Blind school in Winoka. Charles befriends Albert, an orphan who Laura catches stealing from the hotel they manage. Fabulous, the producers could include a moral message.
The Winoka Warriors – A blind student feels useless and is reluctant to participate in school. He gains self-confidence when he joins the football team and becomes the quarterback. This episode is contemporary because I doubt this happened during our frontier history.
The Man Inside – Amelia, Laura’s new friend, feels ashamed of her overweight father. He works at the blind school, where the students are very fond of him. Laura learns an important lesson when she ridicules him with the other children in her class.
There’s No Place Like Home (2 Parts) – The Ingalls, along with Albert, the Garvey and the Oleson, tire of the bustling city and return to Walnut Grove. They discover that someone has severely neglected the town after they left town. Together, they begin work immediately to organize the city back to its former glory.
Fagin – Albert runs away after overhearing Charles and Caroline discussing how Laura feels ignored and left out because Charles spends so much time with him.
Harriet’s Happenings – Harriet Oleson tries her hand at journalism when her cousin visits Walnut Grove. Her cousin starts a newspaper with Harriet’s column “Harriet’s Happenings” in it. Charles steps in when she writes unpleasant things about his family.
The Wedding – Adam finally asks Mary to marry him. She has second thoughts when her parents remind her of when she was a child.
Men Will Be Boys – Albert and Andrew are tired of being treated like kids. They want to be treated like “men.” Charles and Jonathan decide to teach them a lesson and permit themselves to go through the woods to Sleepy Eye. They figure it’ll take the boys a few hours to give up. The fathers follow them all the way. The boys end up having an uneventful trip. Charles and Jonathan are the ones who have an eventful journey. Wonder what happened?
The Cheaters – Mrs. Garvey, embarrassed by her son’s grades in school, hires Nellie to tutor him. Nellie reveals her secret about how she gets good grades. She forces Andy to keep her secret.
Blind Journey (2 Parts) – The blind school in Winoka is forced to close down. The citizens of Walnut Grove donated an old building so the school could transfer to Walnut Grove. Harriet Oleson decides she needs to be present to bring the children to Walnut Grove with Charles. The two of them together prove to be an exciting trip!
The Godsister – No one is available to play with her. Carrie makes up a friend of Alissa. It is a kind of cute story that the hold family can watch.
The Craftsman – Albert works for an old Jewish man as an apprentice. All the children call him “Jew-Lover.” He embarrassed even Laura. He soon develops pride in his work, and the two become best friends. Another good message makes the show popular with a storyline about prejudice.
Blind Man’s Bluff – After he is involved in an accident, Jordan, Laura and Albert’s friend, pretends to be blind to keep his parents together. I am unsure who pretends to be blind, but it is a fun show.
Dance With Me – Laura and Albert become matchmakers just in time for the upcoming dance.
The Sound Of Children – Mary finds out she is pregnant and writes to her father-in-law. She thinks he and Adam are becoming closer. But she loses the child and finds that her father-in-law is just interested in the baby.
The Lake Kezia Monster – Kezia refuses to pay her taxes. Mrs. Oleson buys her land, and Kezia, who has nowhere to go, gets roped into being Oleson’s maid. Laura, Albert, and Andy are mad that Mrs. Oleson bought the place. So they make up a monster tale to scare Mrs. Oleson and her rotten children off the site. Sounds like a fun ending.
Barn Burner – The price of wheat drops, and the farmers agree not to compete against one another by charging the same fee. One of them breaks the bargain, and Andy gets hurt. Mr. Garvey takes action.
The Enchanted Cottage – The Ingalls hope Mary is regaining sight when she believes she can distinguish light from dark. Sounds like a tearjerker.
Someone, Please Love Me – Charles is asked to prevent a divorce from the children of a troubled couple.
Mortal Mission – Sick mutton gets around Walnut Grove, and everybody seems to turn for the worst. Jonathan and Charles are sent to get some medicine in Sleepy Eye but are robbed on the way back.
The Odyssey – Dylon is dying of leukemia and wants, more than anything, to see the ocean. Albert and Laura decide to run away and help him achieve his goal. A heartfelt story means learning the value of friends.
Did you recognize any episodes you’ve seen before? The DVD set also comes with Special Features: An interview with Dabbs Greer (Reverend Alden), an Interview with Allison Arngrim (Nellie Oleson), and an interactive quiz for Season 5.
As I said, Little House on the Prairie brings families together—something we miss so much on television today. The entire family could see the whole series. Whether you buy it or rent it, make sure you are watching it with your closest friends and family.
The story begins with Henry (Ben Rosenfield), a street singer in New York City, getting disastrously hit by a car. Franny, (Oscar winner Anne Hathaway), Henry’s sister, is in Morocco working on her anthropology project. She receives the news and immediately returns home. Her brother is now in a coma with their mother (Mary Steenburgen) coping as best she can. As a family, I sense they were once very close, but Henry left college to become a singer. Franny disapproved and wedged the family apart. Being the responsible one, while her mother and brother are more informal and unconventional artists, Franny struggles with the life her brother follows, wants to understand his choice, wake him up from his coma and apologize.
