B&S: The Complete Fourth Season jumps straight into the drama from the opening minutes of Disc 1, and continues to the final scene of the final episode. This season brings with it a lot more of the Walker Family turmoil, so fans will likely not be disappointed. There is something about the way this season (and the series in general) is presented that can cause one to be almost instantaneously sucked in. In fact, I can honestly say that even without a tight turnaround time for this review, I would have still had a hard time pulling myself away from any of the 24 episodes on the discs.
[Note: Possible spoilers follow!]
One of the strongest running themes in Season 4 has Kitty (Calista Flockhart) finding out that she has developed Lymphoma, and that the cancer has already begun spreading throughout her body and has reached stage three. While we learn that cancer to this degree is sometimes quickly fatal, there is a chance that Kitty can pull through. When failed chemotherapy has no noticeable benefit for her, Kitty's last chance lies with her devious half-brother Ryan (Luke Grimes), but will his bone marrow be compatible, and will he be willing to undergo the procedure to help save Kitty's life?
Another major running theme is that the family business is struggling quite badly in the economy, and that the Walkers, including Nora's brother Saul (Ron Rifkin) and nemesis Holly Harper (Patricia Wettig), can't seem to get the numbers back in the red. However, after Holly's daughter Rebecca comes up with a plan to mix Ojai Food's excess grapes with inferior grapes and sell the resulting wine for bargain prices to drive some revenue, the family and the company begins the process of turning their spoils into their profits. The first step is to enter a wine contest. However, like all good things (and good Brothers & Sisters drama), it comes to an end when all of the wine spills from its vats through a serious act of sabotage.
As all of this is going on, Justin (Dave Annable) and Rebecca (Emily VanCamp) are planning their wedding. The stress this causes on top of Justin's failing medical school grades causes a lot of friction between the two, driving them further apart. One thing after another also leads to failed wedding attempts that eventually break the young couple apart, including Hurricane Zelda that hits Hawaii at the time when they are supposed to recite their nuptials. The solution? Elope. Oh, and by the way, did I mention she was pregnant?
Sally Fields also puts on another magnificent performance as Nora Walker, mother of all of the chaos that happens from episode to episode. Although she has kept a skeleton in her closet for years, the truth is finally revealed and it affects the lives of all of those around her, but especially her son Kevin (Matthew Rhys). As fans will know, Kevin Walker is married to husband Scotty (Luke Macfarlane). The show's creators also insist on taking this homosexual marriage to a level that may make people feel uncomfortable, but it's not that surprising with all of the other drama going on around them. Unfortunately, instead of being tastefully done, the on-screen intimacy feels like it is sometimes being forced onto the viewers.
Rob Lowe also reprises his role as Robert McAllister, Senator and husband to Kitty. After he finally decides to pull out his race for the Senate and retire from politics, we find out that Kitty has had a long-time dream of campaigning, so she actually directly attempts to take her husband's place, not running on sympathy votes but instead on her principles.
Another Walker sibling, Sarah (Rachel Griffiths), finds romance across the ocean when she falls head over heels for a hot Frenchman named Luc (Gilles Marini). While she tries to hide it from her children, the secret eventually comes out and causes a bit of friction between them and her new found lover. Tommy Walker (Balthazar Getty) also enters the picture again to try and be a part of his child's life, despite the hatred that he receives from his ex-wife.
In all, Brothers & Sisters: The Complete Fourth Season is an outstanding set of discs that also include some bonus features like deleted scenes, bloopers, and a couple of short behind-the-scenes looks at the cast and crew. While these two featurettes aren't that great in video quality, they are entertaining in their own right. Either way, the finally episodes will certainly leave you with a taste for more, craving next year's release of Season 5. If you haven't seen the first three seasons, I highly recommend taking a look first, but Season 4 can also be viewed from newcomers who are looking to spice up their TV-lives a little bit.
