Scott Kimball
Screenwriter
- Joined
- May 8, 2000
- Messages
- 1,500
Keen Eddie - The Complete Series
Studio: Paramount
Year: 2004
Rated: NR
Length: 9 hours, 37 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1 English; English Stereo
Closed Captioned in English
Special Features: None
SRP: $40.00 USD
Release Date: September 7, 2004
Keen Eddie was a summer series on Fox. Debuting in June, 2003, its run was over in very short order.
Not being much of a TV watcher in the summertime (the Maine summers are too short to stay inside and watch TV), I only managed to catch this show once in its initial run. Finding it a fresh and original show, I made a mental note to look for it again. Alas, it was gone before I had the chance.
Eddie Arlette (Mark Valley) is a down on his luck NYPD narcotics detective. In a typical day, his dog eats his remote, he almost catches his apartment on fire, and he blows the drug-bust of a lifetime - allowing a huge shipment of drugs to leave for England.
Eddie’s boss sends him across the pond to London, where he must team up with the reserved detectives of Scotland Yard. Not only does his brash New York personality conflict with the Brits, but the flat the he rented has someone else staying there - so he finds himself sharing the place with a beautiful, though hard-to-get, flat-mate.
Using what, for Scotland Yard, are... unorthodox (but successful) techniques to get the job done, he raises the ire of the chief of detectives, there. It cannot be dismissed, however, that Eddies methods are more effective than theirs in certain areas, so he is offered a permenant job.
Keen Eddie is a one hour cop comedy with dramatic setups, and will be more pleasing to the comedy-lover than to the cop-drama crowd.
Video
Keen Eddie is in its original television aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The picture has a very slightly soft look to it, offering up average detail. Grain is sometimes an issue and appears more a budgetary concern than a stylistic choice - but seems not to be an issue with the transfer.
Colors are accurate, and not heavily saturated. Contrast is very good, with deep blacks that preserve detail in the shadows.
All in all, I’d call this an average quality TV transfer.
Audio
Keen Eddie has a Dolby Digital 5.1 track that offers up some pleasing bass response, and a decent use of surrounds. This isn’t reference quality stuff, but it is adequate, and about what you’d expect for a TV show budget.
The packaging indicates that some music has been replaced on the DVD release - apparently due to a music rights issue. I’m not familiar enough with the show to comment further, except to say that what I heard didn’t sound at all contrived or out of place.
Final Thoughts
In my abbreviated review (I watched only a few episodes), Keen Eddie seemed like a fun cop show - unusual and fresh in its approach to the genre. I hope to sit down with the rest of the episodes soon. The audio and video, while not reference quality, are perfectly adequate.
