Brileys-blog

A good send off for OZ

Not the best season of Oz [That would be season2} but much better than the long and confusing 5th season. many lose ends are cleared up and issues with the various cons, hacks, and politicos are finally resolved, like the beef between Beacher and Vern, And what ever happened to the reverend who got buried in the wall? A good send off for the series. DPM

Disappointingly average.

Season six of Oz proudly continued the shows traditions of shock value, heavy subject matter and great acting. Unfortunately, it lacked most of the heart that made earlier episodes so good.

The season opener was particularly weak, with a series of incidents meant to be suspenseful that came across as over the top, needlessly vile and pointless. While the series rebounded for awhile on disk two, the high didn't last. Despite a few good scenes, the finale was filled with problems and ultimately unsatisfying. Clearly trying to end the series with a bang, Mr. Fontana wrote the finale to be poignant and dramatic. Sadly, most of the storylines wound up confusing, sappy and/or melodramatic instead.

These problems weren't limited to the opening and ending. In an earlier audio commentary, Mr. Fontana mentioned one reason he ended the series was because he wasn't sure what else to do with the characters. It shows. Much of the violence this season felt less like it was to advance the plot, and more like Mr. Fontana was desperately trying to find a way to top the previous seasons in shock value; the result was often ridiculous. Also, to move the plot along, many characters came down with an extreme case of Stupid ("Hey, Schillinger was responsible for most of the rapes and many of the murders in Oz, right? I know, let's let him out of solitary!" "Jaz Hoyt has been trying to kill Timmy Kirk for a year now. Why don't we let them out of their cells with no guards close by and see what happens?" "No really, it's a great idea to sleep with my co-workers ex-wife!" "Hmm...I've been raping and debasing James Robson for months. I think I'll let him put a noose around my neck for fun. What could happen?"). It was like watching a bad horror movie.

Even worse, many interesting friendships were tossed aside, making the characters and their lives less interesting. Even Hill's monologues (told with guest stars this year) were tired and redundant. I finished the season only hours before writing this review, and I can't remember a thing about any of his speeches except one.

To be fair, there are some great episodes in the middle, and a couple of stand-out plotlines. Particularly of note are two stories involving side characters James Robson and Stella, the new Oz librarian. Robson, a heretofore villainous Aryan is reduced to a victim this season. Watching how the experience transforms him is haunting and yet oddly hopeful. Meanwhile, Stella's effort to get young inmates to read and her budding friendship with long-time inmate Bob Rebadow was funny, touching and insightful. Both plotlines end beautifully, in just the way Mr. Fontana said he wanted: leaving the audience wanting more, and yet still satisfied with what we'd seen. Be sure to watch the special extended cut of the series finale to get Robson's entire story. For some unfathomable reason, most of it was left on the cutting room floor when originally aired.

Overall, this season is for big fans that are willing to wade through a sea of plot holes and silly storylines to see their favorite characters one last time. Casual fans and curious viewers are advised to rent first to see if it's worth spending the money.