During the Fifth Season, Deputy Weigel sells her newborn baby and Deputy Williams is showcased in "Strong Sista" magazine. Meanwhile, Deputies Junior and Garcia take a few days off to join the group "Strong Neighbors. Strong Fences." and help build a fence on the Arizona/ Mexico Border (only to end up paying four Mexicans to put it up for them... but hey, it was a hot day). Junior also runs for Commissioner of Dead Animal Carcass Removal and Lieutenant Dangle meets his black half-siblings.
The department also expands this season and hires a former sex slave as an office administrator, only to have a rash of petty crimes break out after word of her "special" booking procedures gets out. The ladies in the department get new Kevlar vests that end up giving them more than protection from bullets. The entire department also gets into the act and volunteers to train new recruits for the Iraqi Police Force.
Most of the main plot arcs are good, though the ride-along skits are the best parts of the show. Most feature a recurring cast of regulars, several of which are played by well-known comedians. The most frequent members of the rogues gallery are Terry, a roller-skating male prostitute and "Theoretical Criminal", who often approaches the Sheriff's Department about crimes he "may or may not have" committed. Michael Ian Black shows up as Kevin, a convicted sex offender, and Patton Oswalt appears as an arrogant movie buff. This is one of few season disappointments, at least personally, since Oswalt also plays my favorite Reno regular, Boozehammer of Galen, the city's resident D&D nerd and medieval expert.
A few other guest stars make appearances. Deidrich Bader (The Drew Cary Show) plays Tommy Hawk, a bounty hunter who is a spoof on Dog the Bounty Hunter and Ryan Stiles (The Drew Cary Show) plays an L.A. Cop who gives the department acting lessons to help with their undercover sting operations. During one such sting operation, Garcia and Jones run into Seth Green, who plays their strong-armed manager, George Lopez pops in as the mayor of Reno, Dan Castellaneta challenges Junior's office run as the seven-time incumbant and Christina Applegate helps bail Terry out of trouble as his girlfriend, Seeeeemji.
Most of the main actors are either former cast members of the long-forgotten (and completely awesome) MTV show, The State or members of other Improv groups, so most of the dialogue is completely improvised on the spot. This adds a hint of realism to the entire thing, but also results in language and jokes that really aren't appropriate for younger viewers. Nearly all of George Carlin's "Words You Can't Say on TV" find their way into the show, as well as numerous racial and sexual jokes - there's even a little bit of nudity when the crew responds to calls at the local strip club. It's all really funny stuff though, but again, it's probably best to watch after the kids are in bed.
As far as extras are concerned, Reno 911!: The Complete Fifth Season Uncensored features several deleted scenes, most of which come from the ride-along portions of the show. Some episodes also include Cast Commentary, which indirectly explains that most of the deleted stuff was useable, but since most stuff is made up on the spot, every take is completely different - sometimes resulting in really funny stuff getting the axe.
The feature "Cop Psychology: Inside the Minds of Reno's Deputies" is another great addition. The feature is a good introduction to the cast for newcomers to the show and offers good (and sometime frightening) insight into how the characters think.
Like most Comedy Central shows, Reno 911! is not for everyone. Some will find the department's antics funny, while others will probably walk away offended.
