The Osbournes - Series 1 (DVD)

THE OSBOURNES

The Osbournes began life on MTV in America in 2002 and has since been shown in many countries around the globe. In England it was shown on mainstream television on Channel Four. As the programme contains plenty of obscenities and adult themes it was shown late in the evening initially. It is one of the few fly on the wall type programmes that I have watched and enjoyed. So much so that my husband bought me the DVD of ...
...do not know, who are the Osbournes?

The Osbourne family is made up of Ozzy Osbourne, lead singer of British, heavy metal, rock band Black Sabbath and eccentric character to say the least. Sharon, his wife, has recently become quite famous in her own right being a panel member on shows such as the X Factor, appearing in adverts and as a guest on chat shows. The two children Jack and Kelly have both gone on to have their moments of fame. ... more

THE OSBOURNES

The Osbournes began life on MTV in America in 2002 and has since been shown in many countries around the globe. In England it was shown on mainstream television on Channel Four. As the programme contains plenty of obscenities and adult themes it was shown late in the evening initially. It is one of the few fly on the wall type programmes that I have watched and enjoyed. So much so that my husband bought me the DVD of the first series which is a two disc collection.

So, in case you do not know, who are the Osbournes?

The Osbourne family is made up of Ozzy Osbourne, lead singer of British, heavy metal, rock band Black Sabbath and eccentric character to say the least. Sharon, his wife, has recently become quite famous in her own right being a panel member on shows such as the X Factor, appearing in adverts and as a guest on chat shows. The two children Jack and Kelly have both gone on to have their moments of fame. Both the children these days are trim looking individuals with their own careers.

The Osbournes centres around the day to day life of this family in their Los Angeles mansion home. They share this home with some staff members and a pack of pet dogs with the odd cat thrown in. Although I guess some of the antics are staged a little and of course there will be selective editing it makes for interesting viewing.

THE OSBOURNES-THE FIRST SERIES.

The cover and disc labels show this family attempting to look as dysfunctional as possible. Not hard. The DVD is totally uncensored whereas the television series was censored in some countries. In the States the swearing was bleeped which must have been funny. After all there would be more bleeping than actual vocabulary. There is a warning on the outer cover and it is rated 18 and so is strictly for adult viewing.

Series 1 is made up of ten episodes so the full viewing time is around 210 minutes. When it first hit British television screens it certainly shocked many. The bad language is frequent and of the worst kind. There are references to drugs and very personal experiences. However it was an instant hit, was viewed by many and became a firm favourite,

This foul mouthed family were, despite their surroundings, fame and wealth just so human. Despite Ozzy’s bad language to his children, who at the time were only young teenagers, his love for them shines through. Above all you can tell that Ozzy and Sharon love their kids and care about them. Yes, some of the sensationalism would be to attract and keep an audience, but on the whole it seems natural fro the Osbournes.

The dogs are all loved and spoilt but generally a pain. As a dog owner I find the lack of control amazing but to each his own. These small dogs use this home as their toilet and we see Ozzy constantly being driven to distraction attempting to rectify this.

DISC 1
When you put Disc 1 into your player the Osbournes are sat on a sofa in front of this show. You can play and select a particular episode or just play them all.

EPISODE ONE-A House Divided

The Osbournes are introduced to the viewer in all their glory. From the start there are no illusions and what you see is what you get. They are moving into their new home and the air is blue. Gawd help the neighbours. As Ozzy says at the beginning to his family:-
I love you all, I love you more than life itself but you are all f___ing mad.

EPISODE TWO-Bark at the moon

The family get to grips with their new home starting with the new vacuum cleaner which no-one can work. I know that feeling well. As the dogs take over and set about taking over their new home Ozzy finally loses it with them. In the midst of all this Sharon tells Ozzy that Kelly is thinking of buying a new cat and he blows his top. You can imagine his reaction when she finally tells him that she is getting a therapist for the dogs.

EPISODE THREE-Like father like daughter

Ozzy has to get togged up for a special event and does nothing but moan and swear about the limousine and the clothes he has to wear. One thing though Ozzy is popular with all ages and his fans love him. When he gets to the venue he is cheered and greeted well.

So you get the general drift. The other episodes are:-
EPISODE FOUR-Won’t you be my neighbour
EPISODE FIVE-Tour of duty
EPISODE SIX-Break a leg
EPISODE SEVEN-Get Stuffed
EPISODE EIGHT-No vagrancy
EPISODE NINE-A very Ozzy Christmas
EPISODE TEN-Dinner with Ozzy.

DISC 2

I am not usually one for the extras and additional discs but I thought I would check this one out. I had to anyway as Episode ten is one this disc. It also includes:-

Bonus footage-
Which is a selection of brief clips of unseen footage.

Conversations with the Osbournes
Ozzy and Sharon talking about touring, the family, the idea of the show and the security guard.

‘Too Ozz’ for TV blooper reel’
Spills, falls and accidents plus other stuff and nonsense.

Season Highlights
The parents advice, and the kids and Lola the dog’s best moments.

Ozzy’s ten commandments
Get up late.
Call your mother names.
Shock your dad for taking drugs.
Don’t work
5-7 deal with getting your Dad’s money one way or another.
Force mum to contemplate suicide.
Make dad stay outside in the rain.
Make dad sell popcorn.

Of course this is a toned down list and just Ozzy feeling hard done by.

A Photo Gallery
As you would guess.

Set top games.
Rubbish really. One involves the dog poo and the other enables you to edit a scene.

RECOMMENDATION?

I would say forget about the extras unless that is your thing. They are okay I suppose but to my mind a waste of time and disc space.

The episodes were very funny when first shown as this series was so totally unexpected and became compulsive viewing. Of course it ran out of steam eventually and the final episode, of the final season, was aired in March 2005. By this time we had got to know the Osbournes well and had watched them change over the years experiencing lives ups and downs.

I still find this first series very funny, especially if I have not watched it for some time. If you have never seen it before it should make you laugh. However it is not for anyone easily offended. Some of the swearing seems a little contrived at times and initially Ozzy and Sharon come across as rotten parents. Their children appear out of control and are just as foul mouthed. However as I said earlier the family love does come through, somehow.

I recommend this DVD as it is entertaining, a little different, has great characters and is just as silly as life can be. As theme tune says 'Crazy, that's how it goes'

Thanks for reading
© Eiley 2008

I was surprised to see that this double DVD is still a hefty £19.99 on Amazon.co.uk but I would think you should be able to pick it up cheaper elsewhere. 

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