Product Description
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Hook up with what's coming down as the Core Four romances of
Ryan-and-Marissa and Seth-and-Summer may (or may not) go from
very over to very on, Sandy and Kirsten face choices that could
trainwreck their 20-year marriage, felon (and Ryan's brother)
Trey gives Newport living a try, Julie's lurid past comes back to
haunt her, and other new hunks and hotties become part of the
coastal scene. Live. Laugh. Lie. Cheat. Grow. Share. Connive.
Love. In California's beach paradise, they do everything under
the sun.
DVD Features:
Audio Commentary:Commentary on The Chrismukkah That Almost Wasn't
Documentary:Beachy Couture: How O.C. Fashion Is Made
Gag Reel:From Seasons One and Two
TV Special:The O.C.: Obsessed Completely Retrospective TV Special
.com
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The drama was poured on enty in the second season of The
O.C., as the sun-dappled denizens of Orange County found their
lives massively upended and then some. At the end of the first
season, the Cohen household had been reduced to two--parents
Sandy and Kirsten (Peter Gallagher and Kelly Rowan)--as the boys
had flown the coop, moody Ryan (Benjamin McKenzie) back to Chino
and goofy Seth (Adam Brody) for the wide expanse of the Pacific
(somehow ending up in Portland, Oregon). Once the prodigal sons
returned home, thanks to a lot of persuading, both tried to mend
relationships with their former girlfriends, Marissa (Mischa
Barton) and Summer (Rachel Bilson). While friendships were
solidified, everyone was dating someone else: Seth was with
sultry club manager Alex (Olivia Wilde), Summer with sensitive
polo jock Zach (Michael Cassidy), Ryan with smart girl Lindsay
(Shannon Lucio), and Marissa with her family's pool guy and a
bottle of vodka.
That's just the first half of this year of The O.C., and we
haven't even gotten to the adults yet. Both Sandy and Kirsten
found themselves tempted away by more-than-willing suitors, and
wicked Julie (Melinda Clarke), Marissa's mom, cheated on new
husband Caleb (Alan Dale) with ex-husband Jimmy (Tate Donovan).
An extremely tangled web was woven, one from which the show
almost didn't recover: the Lindsay storyline started out strong
but went nowhere, Sandy's ex-girlfriend (Kim Delaney) was a bit
of a bore, and the same-sex relationship between Marissa and Alex
never really gelled. All seemed like sure-fire character
additions, but it was the later peripheral characters, including
Billy Campbell as a magazine editor smitten with Kirsten and the
menacing yet sexy Logan Marshall-Green as Ryan's ex-con brother,
who injected The O.C. with energy, and helped steer the show back
on course. Brody, who became the show's de facto boy, got
to show off his comedic talents with the wonderful Bilson (who
rode the Zach-Seth-Summer romantic triangle most smoothly), and
the heretofore sullen McKenzie got to lighten up quite a bit,
until the show's violent yet effective season finale.
Forsaking a good a of its comedy for drama, The O.C. got a
little too seriously soapy, but its characters were so compelling
you couldn't stop watching--even waiflike Marissa grew some
edges. Clarke's scheming Julie was a constant pleasure to watch,
and Rowan turned Kirsten's late-season downturn into a steely yet
heartfelt portrayal. Despite the bumps, The O.C. remained one of
the most exciting shows to look forward to week after week, a
soap with smarts thanks to its fresh dialogue, gifted cast, and
careening plot arcs. --Mark Englehart