3pc Box: Series 3 - a Fine Rom

Do Mike and Laura appear to be in shambles in the final eight episodes of this beloved 80s Britcom starring Oscar®-winning Dame Judi Dench and her real-life husband, the late Michael Williams? Dench s Laura is much more sympathetic and vulnerable in these poignant episodes (she won Britain s equivalent of the Emmy) as she contends with Mike s reluctance to become a parent, his new girlfriend, and ultimately, his shouted marriage proposal. A final crisis involving their dream farmhouse seems to be the final reckoning for the luckless couple. Not to worry: A Fine Romance ends on a welcome and satisfyingly graceful note. At the heart of this low-key series are Dench and Williams s keen chemistry and the integrity of their lived-in characters, who are never sacrificed for the sake of a joke, so you won t see many big laughs here. The writing is lovely, as when at one defeated point, Laura asks Mike where he envisioned the couple would end up. Nowhere for a long time, he replies, and then somewhere together. Like the song says, this truly was A Fine Romance. --Donald Liebenson

Best of the Series - I am a great fan of great writing for television. I am also a great fan of great acting. I am therefore not easily pleased with comedies written today or the actors illuminating them. This third set of A Fine Romance was, however, very pleasing to me. Bob Larbey was really just warming up as I have seen more of his work after this show. Many will know, As Time Goes By as his better work, and on many levels I believe this to be true as well. This set, unlike the others, really present a geling of characters and script. Unlike set 2, this set was not lacking in humor. Like set 1, the plot lines keep you interested. Infact I believe this type of timeless humor could be compared fairly to other timeless television comedies. My only complaint, if you want to call it that, was the unity of time during this set. We jumped six months from episode 19 to 20. I, of course, understand the need for this but they had set up this convention of only a few days or weeks having passed. It was all too rushed, and episode 20 lacked the time to catch us up. Judi Dench and Micheal William were wonderful but both were just warming up as each continued to grow after this series. The other couple in the series was really played down and the parents, who I found to be fabulous actors, were played down as well.All in all I enjoy the complete series and while I have only purchased set 3, I do have plans to purchase set 1 as well.

Stars still great, series running out of steam somewhat - I have already had the occasion to review the first two sets of the Britcom called ",A Fine Romance", with Judi Dench and real life spouse Michael Williams as a goofy couple who meet, fall in love, cohabit, but never quite get around to the question of marriage. In fact, their failure to communicate what is on their minds motivated the earlier episodes as much as Hamlet s indecision is the basis of that story. At the time, I commented how refreshing it was to see Dame Judi play a less than mature woman who solves problems by hiding in closets or running off to Europe. Indeed it is with a sudden trip to Brussels that episode 19 begins and the next seven involve the dithering attempts of Williams to propose finally (under the most Monty Pythonesque of circumstances) and her attempts to cope with the final commitment. Unhappily, the basic joke is stretched far too long over the 8 episodes in this set, and the two become merely annoying after a while. Granted, Dench can set the table at a roar with the slightest movement of an eyebrow, and some of her double takes are classic. However, even she cannot carry a storyline stretched far too thinly. So I go to only 4 out of 5 stars on this one, but I assure you that there are still more laughs per tape-inch in this 3rd set than in most juvenile American sitcoms.