The synopsis of Brothers & Sisters: The Complete Third Season can be boiled down into a few main points (possible spoilers ahead: skip this and the next paragraph if you have sensitive eyes!). First and foremost is the ongoing battle between the Walker family and Holly Harper (Patricia Wettig), the now co-owner of the Walker family business, Ojai Foods. Holly is a deceitful, conniving woman who, at least on the surface, appears to hate the Walker family and want them out of her life and out of commission as far as Ojai is concerned. Did I mention that the late William Walker (Tom Skerritt) had an affair with Holly and that her daughter was once thought to be the love child of the affair?
Another focal point within this season is that of Tommy Walker (Balthazar Getty) trying to save Ojai at all costs, including embezzling to push Holly out. The Walker matriarch, Nora (Sally Field), has to constantly hold the family together, and actually finds out the name of the real bastard child from William came from another affair, and Nora hunts down this "Ryan Lafferty" (Luke Grimes) to reach out to him and invite him into the household. Ryan, however, has issues of his own and turns out to be a bit more than the nice-guy that Nora thinks he is. Finally, Robert (Rob Lowe) & Kitty (Calisita Flockhart) find themselves not only preparing for the birth of their adopted baby, but also undergo marriage problems. These are some of the main plot lines throughout the third season, but there are many more subplots that it keeps delivering entertainment value.
There is a way about Brothers & Sisters: The Complete Third Season (and the series in general) that really has a knack for holding the viewer's attention and keeping things interesting. Admittedly, there were a few times when I felt like The Complete Third Season rehashed some of the old situations from the series, especially those of Holly trying to control Ojai Foods, but to the credit of its creators, the Brothers & Sisters series still finds a way to put new spins on the same old issues.
This six-disc set looks and sounds absolutely outstanding, especially when watched via an upconverting player to HD. The widescreen presentation of the episodes (and some special features) is perfect and the creators of the series do a great job in presentational style. There are really three notable special features included within Brothers & Sisters: The Complete Third Season, as well as some outtakes and deleted scenes. Of the notables, The Ojai Experience includes a handful of cast members traveling to a real-life Ojai, California winery to spend the day learning about the process involved in producing a quality wine before eventually sitting down "Walker-style" around the table trying numerous different types of finished wines. In-Between Scenes is a fairly quick featurette that takes a look at some of the behind-the-scenes antics that take place on the set during filming, including joking around and, of all things, a pull-up contest. Finally, The Mothers of Brothers & Sisters takes a candid look at some of the moments and personas of Nora, Sara, Holly, and the other mother characters from the show, as well as takes a moment for cast and crew members to discuss similarities in their own mothers and compare them with the characters from the series.
If you have never seen this series, but enjoy melodrama and situational problems, then Brothers & Sisters deserves a look. Admittedly, the best plan of action would be to go back and watch the first two seasons before breaking the seal on this one. Without that, you'll likely miss out on some of the character development that has taken place. However, if you do want to get into Brothers & Sisters: The Complete Third Season quickly and before the Fall show starts, there is a brief catch-up video that will at least help get you up to speed.
