Party of Five Season 4

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1990's, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jeremy London, Lacey Chabert, Matthew Fox, Neve Campbell, Party of Five, Party of Five Season 4, Paula Devicq, Scott Wolf

We rejoin the Salinger siblings navigating through new challenges that life presents in Party of Five Season 4. It may not reach the heights of Season 3, but it still has its moments to treasure. Be warned, spoilers may well follow in my review of this fourth season of the dramatic show.

Bailey(Scott Wolf) is on the mend and getting back to himself after his crippling battle with alcohol last season. He has been supported by Sarah(Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has forgiven him for involving her in the near fatal car accident months back. But Sarah’s parents don’t see it that way, they file charges of DUI against Bailey. As the trial gets underway and seeing that everyone is willing to sacrifice things for his mistakes, Bailey accepts a plea bargain which leads to a suspended sentence for him. Yet even though he’s making amends, he still finds that the impact of his actions follows him around and won’t let go. Luckily, he does discover a job that also ties in with what will happen to Sarah. Sarah moves out from her parents, feeling that they have victimized Bailey unfairly. Finding out that life independent can be difficult, she finds a place where she enlists Bailey to help her be a manager to an apartment block. The two are now pursuing a platonic friendship as they become managers and maintenance to the tenants of the building. Around this time, Bailey meets Annie; one of the residents who is also a recovering alcoholic. Yet is Bailey ready to commit to a relationship just as his recovery is starting to go well? Charlie(Matthew Fox) is now properly head of the family, having grown up into the role he never really wanted. As the season starts, he is annoyed that he can’t find some romantic happiness. He also bumps into Kirsten(Paula Devicq), who is now remarried to a doctor and back on track following her depression. And though Charlie begins a brief relationship with someone else, he still carries a torch for her. This however takes a backseat as Charlie’s tiredness that he thinks is down to his overworking is diagnosed as Hodgkin’s Disease. he at first only confides in Kirsten. His anger and scared mind are laid bare as he undergoes treatment and the family rallies around, though it proves to be a strain. Julia(Neve Campbell) and Griffin(Jeremy London) are married, with Julia returning from travels to life as a wife. Yet while happy to be married to Griffin after all the struggles, she is still attempting to find her identity. She must also deal with the fact that she feels a bit disconnected from her family, having spent so much time with them yet wants to cut out on her own. This leads her to try new things, yet ultimately makes her get a little bit selfish. Griffin meanwhile discovers his new business is not a cakewalk as he finds a cash flow problem and makes the mistake of accepting a loan off a seemingly helpful man, who becomes something of a loan shark. This leads to money woes for the two, with Julia having to do what she can to provide and Griffin attempting to get them out if this hole. All of this puts a massive strain on their union. Claudia(Lacey Chabert) is now in high school and trying to fit in, and finding it a hard slog. She is tired of people treating her like a small child and wishes to be taken more seriously. Finding that she must grow up more herself, especially after her hopes of romance with a boy are dashed, Claudia still resentfully acts out to get her family’s attention and due to a feeling of loneliness. Can the family hold it together and weather the storm?

Coming off such a dark and engrossing last season, I think it was inevitable that Season 4 might not measure up, it still has plenty going for it. Though I found some of the stories lacked the pull of past , there is still something immensely watchable about Party of Five. The main stories that I didn’t appreciate or enjoy was the one of Bailey getting with Annie, whose many troubles only posed more or a burden for a recovering Bailey . For one, Bailey had already gone through hell and back with his alcoholism, so why did they have to include Annie? It isn’t that the story is bad, it’s just that alcoholism was dealt with so realistically and honestly in Season 3, that it feels a bit superfluous to use it again. Other little sub-plots are decent and sometimes diverting, yet some of them go nowhere and end up superfluous. I did like later on when Charlie starts a romance with Daphne, an uninhibited woman who works as a stripper. They are opposites, but I liked the unpredictable vibe they have. The saving grace here is the overall impact of Charlie’s illness that bears heaviest and most deeply on Season 4.

The Salinger family repeatedly drift apart and then come back into closeness, just like any family does. And while the individual stories have their moments, the subject of family and its many facets is still the successful force of Party of Five. It’s been the main selling point and chief weapon in its arsenal and one that is still prevalent in the fourth season. The reliability and sometimes hard sacrifices are evident here, as the siblings realise how much their lives have changed and how things have turned out differently for each of them. Charlie’s battle with Hodgkin’s  and the reactions of the family to it are a manor dramatic high point, sensitively observed and credibly performed. Even though everyone has a different way of coping with the news, they all see that banding together, despite differences, is the only way to get their brother through his trying time. It feels like how a family would react; with obvious worries, trepidation and uncertainty, but all unite by a common love for their sibling. Plus, the inevitable fall out of these pressures, particularly confused Claudia’s acting out and skipping school, gives an emotional depth and honesty to it all. The Salinger’s are frequently at the brink of being pulled apart, but somehow manage to get through a hell of a lot. The writing ensures that we do care about their struggles in the long run and boy the show still knows how to get your emotions working. And special credit must be given to ‘Go Away’, the finest episode of the season. While Charlie awaits news of a crucial batch of tests, he, Bailey and Julia travel to a cabin they frequented as children. Claudia confides in Kirsten about her fears of Charlie dying, while at the cabin, the rest of siblings are dealing with their own struggles. old wounds are opened and slowly some resolution looks like it could be on its way, after much revealing conversation on how their lives have been impacted by their parent’s death. It’s one of those episodes that really allows things to be eventually expressed and for a bigger meaning to come in.

The ever dependable cast is on hand for great work that registers beautifully. Matthew Fox movingly displays the leadership Charlie has gained that is curtailed by the devastating blow of illness. He doesn’t want to admit that he is sick, but simply carry on as normal. Which is obviously going to be difficult, but you do feel bad on Charlie mainly due to the sympathetic work of Matthew Fox. Scott Wolf successfully charts Bailey’s recovery, that isn’t easy, but is worthwhile in establishing him again as a caring guy pulling his life back together. While he still has struggles, Bailey is now back to the amiable guy he was before, albeit one who has been through hell and managed to get himself sorted out. Neve Campbell is up to the task of making Julia both selfless and alternatively selfish, and yet you still can’t hate her. Julia is at the biggest crossroads of her life( wrestling with doubt and pangs of regret)  and feels that she has sacrificed enough for everyone else, making her occasional bout of self-absorption pretty reasonable. And as Campbell is adept at depicting the frequently misguided but longing Julia, you do feel for her. Lacey Chabert continues to impress as troubled Claudia, who is really having a rough time with everything that has transpired. She has for someone so young been through the wringer and Chabert is a mature performer who pulls off the melancholy confusion of Claudia. Jennifer Love Hewitt isn’t given as much to do as before, but her sweetness and sensitivity playing Sarah are still there in lovely fashion. And with regards to Jeremy London as the hopelessly unlucky Griffin, while the issue of him never amounting to anything is overplayed, London finds sympathy in there too. Paula Devicq returns more frequently here, and captures how Kirsten may be married, yet still has a love of Charlie that won’t ever go away.

So while it lacks some of the pull of past seasons, Season 4 of Party of Five has enough to recommend on the dramatic front.

Party of Five Season 3

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1990's, Alexondra Lee, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jeremy London, Lacey Chabert, Matthew Fox, Neve Campbell, Party of Five, Party of Five Season 3, Paula Devicq, Scott Wolf

We return to the dramas of the Salinger family in Party of Five Season 3 . With more strife and issues at play than ever before, Season 3 is probably the best season so far, due to the astonishing maturity and how it isn’t afraid to grapple with weighty and dark subject matter. Be aware, spoilers may follow in this review.

Bailey(Scott Wolf) has graduated high school and is heading to college nearby. The thing is he’s feeling lousy and worthless as his best friend Will is leaving for a better college. Also present are the latent feelings of being inadequate over opportunities he’s had to sacrifice, like using his money to pay for tuition to save the restaurant at the end of Season 2 and having to settle for a college closer to home. He moves into a dorm and meets free-spirited Callie(Alexondra Lee), who he impulsively sleeps with and deals with his own shortcomings. After dutiful girlfriend Sarah(Jennifer Love Hewitt) learns of this and saddened by is increasingly erratic behaviour, she breaks up with him. All of this spills into a dependence on alcohol that amounts to dangerous levels. Charlie(Matthew Fox) and Kirsten(Paula Devicq) are finally making another go of things and it looks pretty rosy for once. That is halted when it is revealed that Kirsten has manic depression which started after the botched wedding several months back. It comes to the surface when her dissertation reveals that she copied work from somewhere else, resulting in her losing her prized job and PhD that she worked hard for. She starts to slip worryingly into the wraps of depression and out of control as an unprepared Charlie flounders. Eventually, Kirsten’s parents arrive and after a tug of war with Charlie, she is taken away psychiatric help. This leaves Charlie deeply saddened and lost, though he finds some companionship in a social worker called Grace. Still it’s Kirsten that Charlie wants most of all. Julia’s(Neve Campbell) love life and future are in doubt, with Griffin(Jeremy London) bailing again(before returning late in the game with a more positive and driven attitude). With high school soon to be over, Julia reconsiders going to college and living up to the label of always by the bookish one in favour of something different. The only thing is she doesn’t know what to do, after being so well so for so long academically. Claudia(Lacey Chabert) begins to feel left out of things and as the family is at loggerheads, she tries to bring them back together( for the sake of youngest brother Owen who as a toddler needs looking after) even though it shouldn’t be her responsibility. All of these events combine and threaten to tear the once close family completely apart.

As I’ve covered in the past when discussing Party of Five, it is a show that works on the emotions well. Yet it doesn’t feel contrived or overly manipulative because of the clarity of writing and content. Season 3 is no exception, albeit that is traverses darker territory than before. The Kirsten depression story line is honest and heart wrenching to watch as she slips into darkness and is eventually taken away for help, which devastates Charlie. It’s sad because Charlie wants to deal with it himself but is clearly out of his depth, despite the fact that he wants to help. If you don’t shed tears when Kirsten is taken away for treatment, you clearly need to examine yourself.

And big praise should be extended to the dealing with of Bailey’s drinking arc; which gradually begins to unravel, as opposed to all at once. The fact that time is taken to establish the slope that Bailey goes down through one drink here and a knock that influences a binge there, is exemplary and believable in how it tackles the insidious effects of alcoholism. A massive wallop and clout comes through in Season 3, with Bailey’s story the most dramatically and challenging one. Take for example ‘The Intervention’, which for my money is the standout episode of not just this season, but so far the show. the family, along with Sarah and Grace, confront Bailey and attempt to make him realise his destructiveness and drink problem. A real gut punch is present as everything comes spilling out with the strained family trying to save one of their own, but who may be beyond the point of rescuing. Things don’t go as you think they might in this heartbreaking episode that feels like a stage play, through the enclosed setting that scarcely leaves the house and the sheer intensity of the piece. Trust me, this episode will emotionally exhaust you with how deeply it pierces and how it doesn’t take the easy way out. And what follows as Bailey endangers Sarah makes for equally soulful and shattering viewing.

All in all, Season 3 darkest and most mature season so far. It starts slightly slow and some of the sub plots don’t quite add much at first, but gets into the groove of things quickly and with a sensitivity that’s been its chief asset. it still retains some of the earnest humour it has always had, but Season 3 is by far the most emotionally and bleak series so far and all the better for that. By the far the biggest theme that permeates from Season 3 is change. Whether it be Bailey’s spiral to Charlie’s growing backbone and Claudia’s reluctant maturity, transformation and challenging growth are the name of the game. Heck, even slacker Griffin returns and adopts a more positive and hopeful attitude than his usual

Scott Wolf delivers his most impressive performance so far as Bailey, who goes from the fun yet mainly responsible sibling to pathetic and angry drunk in devastating fashion. He honestly conveys the descent and feeling of being worthless that Bailey feels, as he’s always been the one to help but never really thought of himself. The boiling frustration reaches a maximum when his drinking spins out of control and Wolf’s tragic and heartbreaking performance only adds to the dramatic intensity. Matthew Fox turns in a sympathetic portrayal if Charlie, who is finally getting to be responsible after so long being anything but. Fox finds a genuine care in Charlie, that despite his stubbornness and less than ideal sense of support in the past, is still very apparent as he fights to keep the family in one piece. Neve Campbell hits the effective beats of capricious and mixed up emotions excellently, showing Julia as wanting to change and feel some form of release. After being the studious sibling for a long, she wants to let her hair down and live in the moment. Lacey Chabert as Claudia grows up quicker and assume some control, albeit of the reluctant kind that any young kid shouldn’t have to deal with. It’s something that weighs heavy on Claudia and Lacey Chabert is heartbreaking and strikingly precocious in how she presents the unwanted responsibility that Claudia must take on to preserve her family. And damn if she isn’t emotionally convincing when the drama hits. Appearing largely in the first half of the season and making a big emotional impact is Paula Devicq playing the depressed Kirsten. Trust me when I say she inhabits that crippling impact of the condition with moving clarity and pain, that it doesn’t even feel like she’s acting sometimes. Genuine decency and a capacity for forgiveness can be difficult to portray without becoming parody, but Jennifer Love Hewitt beautifully finds a convincing way to do it as supportive Sarah. Even though Bailey hurts her, she still wants to help him as she knows there is good underneath his drunken state. Alexondra Lee successfully appears as the free-living Callie, who isn’t as uninhibited as she makes out and grows weary of Bailey’s drinking. Jeremy London finally gets to be a bit more than scowling and handsome, finding a desire within Griffin to finally make something of life and not just be a lay about.

A dark and dramatic third season, Party of Five is at the top of its game with powerful acting and genuine heft. This allows it to be the best season so far.

Party of Five Season 2

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1990's, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jeremy London, Lacey Chabert, Matthew Fox, Michael Goorjian, Neve Campbell, Party of Five, Party of Five Season 2, Paula Devicq, Scott Grimes, Scott Wolf

We return to the journey and lives of the Salinger clan in Season 2 of Party of Five. Building on the set up from Season 1, this sophomore installment is just as good in how it deals with tough themes and explores relatable events. Be warned, spoilers will follow.

Charlie(Matthew Fox) and Kirsten(Paula Devicq) are now engaged after many hiccups in their relationship and thinks seem to be improving. Yet more upheaval and chaos throws a spanner in the works and a multitude of things stand in their way. It culminates in Charlie getting cold feet and callings off the wedding, despite the fact that they love each other. Bailey(Scott Wolf) is still struggling to come to terms with the death of Jill, despite the best efforts of buddy Will(Scott Grimes) to bring him out of his shell. At first he largely doesn’t notice sweet Sarah Reeves(Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has an obvious crush on him. But even when he begins to date her, it becomes clear that Bailey is wanting to escape his life that he sees as hopeless. Sarah also has her own struggles, but thankfully brings out some happiness in Bailey. Julia(Neve Campbell) experiences a crisis of the heart regarding her nice boyfriend Justin( Michael Goorjian)and the bad boy Griffin(Jeremy London). Justin breaks up with her after finding out about her tryst with Griffin, then things become more complex for her and Griffin. Julia doesn’t know how to deal with her emotions that are tangled to say the least. It appears that she finally gets a grip on her love life once and for all by reuniting with Justin. Then something really drastic happens and Julia is thrown into a massive tailspin. Claudia(Lacey Chabert), who has now entered junior high school, finds it difficult to adjust to being older and the pressures of puberty. Hanging out with a troublemaker at school, Claudia begins to rebel a lot. And baby Owen is finally starting nursery, while still needing the mature caring of his siblings in the place of parents. It’s another eventful journey for the Salinger’s as life poses a lot on them, but hopefully through unity they can survive.

Just like I predicted, Season 2 expands on what the debut season set up, finding firm footing in giving more attention to the individual characters, as well as the whole thing of family. The arcs of the characters have depth and honesty to them, tapping into themes of change, lying, love and even the return of their long lost grandfather. And issues faced with honest rendering and impactful force are sexual harassment, teenage pregnancy and commitment, showing the show dealing with complexity and intimacy in a way it knows already in this early stage to manage. Balanced among this is healthy doses of humour that enliven events, yet never get too over the top and take away from the moving stories at its heart. While I don’t think there is anyone who has gone through all of the issues mentioned in such a short space of time, Party of Five boasts a gravity and slices of realism to ground it in the most effective way. You do give a damn about these people and it isn’t a chore to watch the tribulations they must do battle with. Even if some of the stories don’t work as well as others, the overall impact and high quality rise it above just common teen drama into something more moving.

The episode of the wedding is a pretty effective one of highs and lows as Charlie and Kirsten attempt to salvage something but are ultimately at different ends of the spectrum. It’s a real heartbreaking episode as you know the two are meant to be together but are both unsure of what the future holds. Reconciliation could be on the cards, but if so it’s not going to be an easy ride for either party. Equally as wrenching is the episode of Julia discovering she’s pregnant and faced with a very difficult decision. We get to see how everyone reacts to this news and how it impacts on young Julia.  Eventually settling on having an abortion, Julia then experiences a miscarriage that devastates her. As she has no female role model to confide in, she finds unlikely support in the form of the usually not so helpful Charlie. An honest and authentic atmosphere is present throughout this episode, highlighting the issues of teen pregnancy and abortion sensitively.

Scott Wolf rocks it playing the frustration and pain of Bailey, while imbuing a charm and energy that could be the characters saving grace. Once more, Wolf allows Bailey to be troubled, but not so much as we can’t relate to him on a personal level. Matthew Fox impresses again as Charlie; whose coping mechanism of pushing those he loves away makes for drama. scared that his while life has been planned our for him already and wanting escape is rendered excellently by Fox. Neve Campbell hits the right notes with an emotion driven performance as mixed up Julia. You genuinely buy into her turmoil and gamut of unfortunately difficult events she encounters. Campbell nails the intelligence of Julia, but like most people, the pangs of confusion, guilt and unfortunate turbulence are all evoked in her more than capable hands for us to see. Lacey Chabert mixes childlike innocence with playful maturity as Claudia, whose finding out that growing up and all it entails is rough business. Jennifer Love Hewitt joins the cast as the sensitive Sarah, who provides a love interest for Bailey. Possessing an adorable smile and a gentleness, Hewitt is touching and charming in equal measure. She immediately gels with the other members of the cast and slots in nicely as a kind-hearted girl. The main chemistry between the main cast is as splendid as the first season, boasting a deep believability that these people are related. Paula Devicq steps up as Kirsten. I mentioned in my last review that she was a tad wooden last season, but she really shakes at off here with a very good performance. She’s got a sensitive depth and emotive ability that is on full display and shows Kirsten becoming more conflicted over her feelings with Charlie that are frequently challenged and come to a dramatic head. Good support and humour is glimpsed with Scott Grimes returning as loyal best friend Will. Michael Goorjian and Jeremy London provide the two very different love interests for Julia; the sarcastic Justin and rebellious Griffin.

Another impressive season of Party of Five, this second part is an emotionally invested and finely tuned triumph, benefiting from the fine cast and writing.