Search - Home Improvement - The Complete Second Season on DVD

An excellent representation of an excellent show

Some Gravity | Indiana, USA | 07/31/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I have loved "Home Improvement" ever since I was seven years old,and I think that everyone was excited to see the first four seasons of HI being released on DVD. Truth be told,while shows like "Home Improvement" really do not get made that much anymore,HI is a good reminder of what good television was about back in the early 90's (which was when this show aired)--and this DVD set is surely to bring back good memories,laughter,and entertainment for all fans of "Home Improvement" who purchased this set.

What you have right here is the second season for "Home Improvement"--every second of every episode from the second season of HI,on a three disc set. And while the first season of "Home Improvement" may be the ultimate season of the show,the season of the show that is displayed here is both funny and strong in several ways. This DVD set shows all of the challenges that Tim Taylor (Tim Allen)and his wife Jill (Patricia Richardson)faced as parents,with their oldest children Brad (Zachary Ty Bryan) and Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas)going through puberty,while their youngest son Mark (Tarah Noah Smith),who,while he may not being going through puberty,happens to be a target of both Brad and Randy (which follows hillarious results that are displayed in pretty much every episode that is here). There are several other highlights here--"Overreactive Glance" finds Jill and her friend Karen giving Tim a hard time about looking at other women,even if it happens to be just an accident (Debbe Dunning,who was the "Tool Time Girl" once Pamela Anderson had left the show,even made a guest appearance on this episode),"Howards End" shows how Brad and Randy would do anything to get out of trouble and the problems that can come along with having your first girlfriend,while "The Great Race" (which,as a matter of fact,was the last episode of the second season of "Home Improvement")shows how Tim Taylor knew how to be a good person--while he was getting revenge towards another person at the same time!!!! I won't give away everything that is too be found here,but if you miss the days from when "Home Improvement" was on,and enjoy a good laugh and nostalgia every once in a while,this DVD set is for you to own.

My only complaint is that the only bonus feature here is called "Loose Screws Part 2",which takes ten of the funniest moments from some of the episodes that were included in this DVD set. While the second segment of "Loose Screws" (which takes off on where the first segment of "Loose Screws" on the DVD set for the complete first season of this show)is as interesting as it is funny,this set would have been just a little bit better if there was a behind the scenes segment for this show,or maybe even some previously unreleased scenes for some of the episodes that were included here. But hey--with the first four seasons of this show being available on DVD as of now and with only four more DVD sets for this show to go (this show ran for eight seasons),there definitely will be more room for more extra feautures on future DVD sets of "Home Improvement". The producers of this show have a good start for not only this DVD set,but also for the other three sets of this show that have been released on DVD.

Overall,one of the best television series to be released in its complete season on DVD,and I look forward for the fifth,sixth,seventh,and eigth season of "Home Improvement" seeing the light of day on DVD,as well. As someone else mentioned............there are two words that are appropriate for this DVD set........MORE POWER!!!!!!!"

A funny, yet formulaic sitcom...

Britt Gillette | Chesapeake, VA USA | 07/27/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Nominated for 9 Golden Globes and 34 Emmys, including 2 for Outstanding Comedy Series, Home Improvement was the number one family-friendly comedy for most of the 1990's decade. Created by three writers who worked on wide range of sitcoms, such as The Cosby Show (1984) and Roseanne (1988), Home Improvement is one of a number of 1990's smash hit sitcoms built around a lead character who stars as a stand-up comic in real life. Some of the other series include Seinfeld (1990), The Drew Carey Show (1995), Everybody Loves Raymond (1996), and King Of Queens (1998) among others. One of the trailblazers in this area, Home Improvement ranked in the Top 10 among Nielsen-rated shows for seven of its eight seasons (it ranked #11 in Season 7). One notable tidbit of trivia is that Sears was approached to sponsor the show which would've put Craftsman tools in the hands of Tim "The Toolman" Taylor (as opposed to the fictional "Binford" brand), but Sears rejected the offer because they feared Tim Allen's prior conviction on a drug charge might be interpreted as unfriendly to families (funny, since Home Improvement later fell under the moniker of the Walt Disney Company)...

Home Improvement centers around the life of Tim Taylor (Tim Allen), a home improvement expert who hosts his own local TV show "Tool Time" on cable access. Tim and his wife Jill (Patricia Richardson) live in a house in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan with their three boys Brad (Zachery Ty Bryan), Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), and Mark (Taran Noah Smith). On "Tool Time," Tim is flanked by the flannel-clad, easy-going Al Borland (Richard Karn) who is often the butt of Tim's jokes and harbors a neurotic tendency toward perfectionism. At home, Tim's numerous domestic missteps lead him to continuously seek the advice of his well-traveled, near-perfect neighbor Wilson (Earl Hindman), whose lower face is never seen (only his eyes)... Marked by Tim's abundant clumsiness as a home improvement guru and his inept ability to display sensitivity toward his wife, Home Improvement is a classic sitcom that relies on formulaic episodes of slapstick humor and zinging one-liners. It's a formula that works, but grows tiresome as the show progresses...

The Home Improvement (Season 2) DVD features a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere "Read My Hips" in which Jill plans a romantic evening at home for herself and Tim, but Tim throws a wrench in her plans when he spends the evening hanging out at a bar with Al and the guys from A&B Construction. When he finally returns home, Jill is upset, fearing that the romance has left their relationship. Meanwhile, Brad ponders the true meaning of Jennifer's physical assaults. Does she really want to kiss him? Other notable episodes from Season 2 include "Where There's a Will, There's a Way" in which Jill finds out that Tim never put the finishing touches on his legal will, and "Shooting Three to Make Tutu" in which Jill insists that Tim take Mark to the ballet despite the fact that he has front-row tickets to the Pistons game...

Below is a list of episodes included on the Home Improvement (Season 2) DVD:

Episode 25 (Read My Hips)
Episode 26 (Rites and Wrongs of Passage)
Episode 27 (Overactive Glance)
Episode 28 (Groin Pulls)
Episode 29 (Heavy Meddle)
Episode 30 (The Haunting of Taylor House)
Episode 31 (Roomie for Improvement)
Episode 32 (May the Best Man Win)
Episode 33 (Where There's a Will, There's a Way)
Episode 34 (Let's Did Lunch)
Episode 35 (Abandoned Family)
Episode 36 (I'm Scheming of a White Christmas)
Episode 37 (Bell Bottom Blues)
Episode 38 (Howard's End)
Episode 39 (Love is a Many Splintered Thing)
Episode 40 (Dances with Tools)
Episode 41 (You're Driving Me Crazy, You're Driving Me Nuts)
Episode 42 (Bye Bye Birdie)
Episode 43 (Karate or Not, Here I Come)
Episode 44 (Shooting Three to Make Tutu)
Episode 45 (Much Ado About Nana)
Episode 46 (Ex Marks the Spot)
Episode 47 (To Build or Not to Build)
Episode 48 (Birth of a Hot Rod)
Episode 49 (The Great Race)

The DVD Report"

More Power ! More Fun ! More Entertainment ! RRRRRRR !

Richard Persky | Killeen TX | 08/23/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As a huge fan of the program since it began in 1991, this is the ultimate in entertainment and fun. Without going into detail about each episode as others have done so well, it's the "how to and how not to" of lessons in being a family, as so many episodes mimic real life family situations. From the wisdom and counsel of Wilson Wilson Jr. given Tim from across the fence, to the everyday problems encountered by most families and couples in a relationship, to Tim's inclination, with all good intentions, to royally mess things up, to Tim and Al hijinks, to the often hilarious outtakes at the end of each show, this a fun way to spend time in front of the tube. My hope is all eight seasons will be available soon, as I plan to spend a part of my retirement with these most enjoyable offerings. Here's hoping those of you who buy these enjoy them as much as I do. Oh, do I ever tire of watching these over and over? I don't think so Tim. MORE POWER !!!
"

A Good Representation of the Second Season

Roy Wilbury | 08/14/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When it comes to shows like "Home Improvement" that are aired in syndication seemingly a dozen times a day in any given market (when you account for cable and local station airings), it becomes very important for the DVD presentation to provide something extra.

Thankfully, this set provides the most important thing first: UNCUT episodes. As most fans by now know, most if not all shows are edited down when put into syndication. Usually, a couple of minutes are trimmed. This, as well as the first and presumably all seasons sets of "Home Improvement" feature unedited shows as they originally aired. This is important, because over the course of a season's worth of episodes, about two episode's worth of running time is cut when two minutes are clipped from each episode.

Visually, this set looks as good as it possibly could. Early 90's videotape. It sounds just fine as well.

There really aren't any extras on this set. The "First Season" set had three commentary tracks. This set has none.

The "Loose Screws" montage is, as with the first season set, not really an extra, as it simply slices up little bits of footage from the actual episodes.

Apart from the almost complete lack of extras, this set is perfect."