After his wife's death, Dr. Andrew Brown (Treat Williams) moves to Everwood, Colorado with his kids Ephram (Gregory Smith) and Delia (Vivien Cardone). Many of the show's main plotlines, especially those in Everwood: The Complete Fourth Season, focus on the rough relationship between Andrew and Ephram.
Before delving into the Fourth Season, it is important to retrace the main plotlines in the previous two seasons. In the Second Season, Ephram got his girlfriend, Madison (Sara Lancaster), pregnant. Rather than tell Ephram, Madison confides in Andrew, who offers to pay her expenses as long as she leaves town and doesn't tell Ephram. Fast-forward to next season and Madison decides to tell Ephram about the child, omitting the deal she made with Andrew. Ephram tells Andrew, who says he knew about the pregnancy. The news destroys Andrew and Ephram's already shaky relationship, and Ephram decides to leave Everwood to backpack across Europe.
At the start of Season Four, Delia begs Ephram to return to Everwood. In an effort to smooth things over with his son, Andrew tells Ephram he is free to live at home, but he is on his own if he decides to live anywhere else. Ephram disagrees, claiming Andrew owes him after the incident with Madison. Desperate to salvage some sort of relationship, Andrew offers to pay Ephram $50 for every family meal.
The plan sets up the season's main theme: Andrew and Ephram finally repairing their relationship. Andrew's plan is helped along when Ephram gives piano lessons to a less-than-enthusiastic high school freshman, Kyle (Steven R. McQueen). The road to repair is also edged along when Andrew's affair with his neighbor, Nina (Stephanie Niznik) gets serious.
Meanwhile, the rest of the town is dealing with their own issues. Nina's boyfriend, Jake (Scott Wolf) falls off the wagon, Ephram's friend Bright (Chris Pratt) debates getting into a relationship with Hannah (Sarah Drew) because she doesn't believe in premarital sex, and Amy sifts through her on-again, off-again feelings for Ephram. The town even gets its turn in the limelight when a local writes a book about the town.
Everwood falls to all of the usual clichés and foibles found in other prime time dramas, though it also manages to present something a little different. Although the plotlines drift towards the more risqué plots found in shows like Gossip Girl, they never feel as seedy. Yes, stories go a little too far in the name of drama, but most of the problems are relatable and grounded. At the same time, they never get overly wholesome either. Instead, Everwood manages to carve out a fun place for itself. The actors are good, and the characters are fun to watch. Though it is a drama first, the show isn't above tossing in a few comedic elements to lighten the mood.
Considering the questions surrounding the show's future past Season Four, an extra ending was filmed just in case the series was able to nab an additional season. The DVD set includes both endings, showing a planned cliffhanger involving Madison's return to Everwood. Also included is an extra 40 minutes of unaired scenes, which is a nice bonus for fans of the show.
Everwood: The Complete Fourth Season was my first experience with the show, and I'm glad I was able to watch it. I usually don't go for this sort of show, but the set made a fan out of me. Long-time fans should jump at the series, while newcomers looking for something new on DVD might want to give the series a shot. You'll have to start from the beginning, but it is worth the time.
