In the first of two columns that are up on NJ.com this morning (and the one that's in the paper today), I review the series finale of "King of the Hill," which made me a bit wistful for the end of a show that debuted way back in my first season as a TV critic. If you liked the show but haven't watched for a while, you'll want to be there for the end on Sunday night.
Friday, September 11, 2009
'King of the Hill' says goodbye - Sepinwall
In the first of two columns that are up on NJ.com this morning (and the one that's in the paper today), I review the series finale of "King of the Hill," which made me a bit wistful for the end of a show that debuted way back in my first season as a TV critic. If you liked the show but haven't watched for a while, you'll want to be there for the end on Sunday night.
I really don't understand why Fox can't just air the four remaining episodes instead of making us wait until syndication or DVD to see them. I know this was a situation similar to Dollhouse where the studio produced episodes that the network didn't order, but I'm getting a little sick of that trend. I realize it helps sell DVDs to have "lost episodes" on them, but the point of DVD extras was supposed to be that they were EXTRAS, not new episodes.
ReplyDeleteIt's especially grating with KOTH seemingly no longer in FOX's DVD rotation. They stopped releasing them after Season 6 and haven't shown any inclination of resuming.
ReplyDeleteI've heard the other four episodes might turn up on Adult Swim.
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of a shame that I only recently started to really appreciate this show.
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh when, on the Slate Culture Gabfest, one of the participants said that Mike Judge is kind of cursed, giving as an example that King of the Hill has been canceled in its fourteenth season.
ReplyDeleteI love and will miss KoTH, but that's kind of an unusual curse, having a show canceled after more than a decade.
I must remember to set my DVR to try to catch the four lost episodes on Adult Swim.
I'm glad the forgettable season finale from earlier this year won't be our last memory of the show, and that the last episodes will showcase King of the Hill's strength: an honest, hardworking fellow trying to adapt to the changing world he doesn't quite understand, including his son. Farewell and good luck to the Hill family!
ReplyDeletestarted watching from episode 1 when i was 14...
ReplyDelete*sigh*
this show will always be one of my favorites.
A nice send-off to a true gem of a show! I'm sorry to see it go.
ReplyDeleteSniffles. I stopped watching even semi-regularly after Lucky appeared but I'm glad I saw this post in time to Tivo the episodes. Awww Bobby/Hank bonding. This show, at least the better years, will be missed. Good stuff.
ReplyDeleteI choked up a little during that last shot, too. Gonna miss this series :(
ReplyDelete"Yes, we know about Rancho Unicorno".
ReplyDeleteClassic line, classic show. I'll miss it
That last scene, with the King of the Hill theme playing while all the characters joined together, choked me up, too!
ReplyDeleteStill, the ground this episode covered was better handled by the Propaniacs episode. Hank and Bobby bonded naturally and learned to appreciate each others unique gifts (Bobby's comedy and Hank's propane). Last night had Bobby miraculously becoming a beef expert, which was a little hard to swallow. Plus, it required nothing of Hank.
Its probably best it ended with dignity instead of going on forever like a certain other animated TV show.
"Last night had Bobby miraculously becoming a beef expert, which was a little hard to swallow. Plus, it required nothing of Hank."
ReplyDeleteIt hinged on Hank explaining beef to Bobby when he was an infant and a toddler, and showed how much Bobby admires and respects Hank even though he's virtually nothing like him.
Anyone up for a Boomhauer: Texas Ranger spinoff?
"It hinged on Hank explaining beef to Bobby when he was an infant and a toddler, and showed how much Bobby admires and respects Hank even though he's virtually nothing like him."
ReplyDeleteBased on everything we've seen of Bobby over 14 years, a thirty-second montage of Hank brainwashing Bobby with meat industry propaganda doesn't hold up. :-)
Seriously, the best Hank/Bobby episodes had the two finding common ground that brought them together. You can add the "Chip Block Ventriloquism" episode to the one I mentioned in my last post. This episode had Bobby coming 100% over to Hank's side.
Based on this, you can see Bobby selling "Propane and Propane Accessories" instead of becoming a "Prop-Comic with a whoppie cushion in Wichita Falls." That part of his identity was totally ignored in this, the final episode.
But I don't want to take this too seriously. It was still one of the best shows on TV! (As for Boomhauer: Texas Ranger. Not a bad idea, but too bad FOX is fast becoming the Seth MacFarlane network...)
Your tribute article was beautifully written. Fox kinda kicked the show around in its last few years, but by my measure, it's one of the most solid shows of the last twenty years.
ReplyDelete