DVDFile

Everwood in its prime was engaging melodrama counterprogramming to other family-oriented primetime soap operas. Not as squeaky Tiger Beat as One Tree Hill, not as rat-a-tat as Gilmore Girls, perhaps not entirely as peachy-keen as 7th Heaven, Everwood was bigger-than-life emotional television that was as comparatively 'wholesome' as it was engagingly gossipy.

Case in point: The pregnancy. At the end of the show's second season, not only did young Ephram (Gregory Smith) knock up his ladyfriend (Sarah Lancaster), but when said chica told Ephram's dad, the venerable Dr. Andy Brown (Treat Williams), Andy acted perhaps a bit provocatively: He told the girl that if she left town in her 'condition' that he'd pay for everything she'd possibly need, just as long as she kept everything under wraps. Let's just put it this way: Things don't end up quite the way Andy planned.

And in this Complete Fourth Season set, we see the young, strapping Ephram return to town after a long stint, and the shaky relationship between him and daddy is no better. Dr. Andy lets Ephram stay at his house, for sure, but he'll never lend the kid any money again (and - in reference to the Season Two example above, he insists that Ephram go over and 'apologize' to his now-distant ex about his actions). We also get a particularly poignant multiple-episode story arc involving Irving (John Beasley), Edna (Debra Mooney), a hit book about their hometown and an untimely death. Drama is a-brewin' here, folks.

Everwood never ended up being anything much more than a slightly more risque 7th Heaven (with some One Tree Hill overtones),  but for those of us who love the tingles of melodramatic television, it goes without saying that Everwood has its moments. Double- and triple-crossings, misinformations, lies, affairs, misplaced sexual attractions - it's not exactly As the World Turns, but there's nevertheless a well-worn vivacity to Everwood's histrionics that make it easy television to find yourself addicted to.

It was a good run, Everwood. Not bad. Not bad....