All Rise...

Judge David Johnson's horse has been talking @#$% lately. He better watch his #$%^&@ mouth!

Editor's Note

Our reviews of The Best Of Mister Ed: Volume One (published March 24th, 2004), The Best Of Mister Ed: Volume Two (published August 3rd, 2005), Mister Ed: The Complete First Season (published September 16th, 2009), Mister Ed: The Complete Fifth Season (published July 27th, 2011), and Mister Ed: The Complete Third Season (published June 21st, 2010) are also available.

The Charge

"Wilbur! Go get me some f—--—oats!"

The Case

You know, we tend to scoff at and deride those goofy sitcoms that employ ridiculous gimmicks and guest appearances to goose their ratings, but if you think about it, isn't that what Mr. Ed, as classic and revered and iconic and blah blah blah as it may be, really is—one extended goofy gimmick?

Of course, but whatever. The geniuses who conjured up the concept own the ridiculousness and in Season 4, the writers have belched out a truly memorable series of episodes that place Wilbur and Ed into increasingly bizarre situations.

Shout! Factory's set brings all 26 Season 4 episodes on four discs:

Disc 1
• "Leo Durocher Meets Mister Ed"
• "Wilbur Post, Honorary Horse"
• "Ed Discovers America"
• "Patter of Little Hooves"
• "Be Kind to Humans"
• "Don't Laugh at Horses"
• "Getting Ed's Goat"

Disc Two
• "Oh, Those Hats!"
• "Taller Than She"
• "Home Sweet Trailer"
• "Love Thy New Neighbor"
• "Ed's Christmas Story"
• "Ed Gets the Mumps"

Disc Three
• "Ed's Dentist"
• "Ed the Shish Kebab"
• "Ed in the Peace Corps"
• "Ed the Desert Rat"
• "Ed the Donkey"
• "Ed Visits a Gypsy"
• "Ol' Swayback"

Disc Four
• "Mae West Meets Mister Ed"
• "Ed the Chauffeur"
• "Ed the Musician"
• "The Prowler"
• "Saddles and Gowns"
• "Moko"

That's a lot of equine comedy bang for your buck. My favorite example of the writers' creativity has to be the first episode, featuring some very special guest appearances by the LA Dodgers, capped by probably the single greatest sequence ever broadcast on television: Mr. Ed hitting a home run off of Sandy Koufax!

Episodes look and sound fine (full frame and stereo). A vintage promo for U.S. bonds starring Mr. Ed is the only extra.

The Verdict

Not Guilty. Ludicrous, sure, but I cede Mr. Ed it's classic status. Not Guilty.

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