Come on… admit it. When you read about polygamists in the newspaper you secretly wish you could have 2, 3 or 4 wives. Sounds like quite the life if luxury doesn’t it? But think about it. Don’t you constantly hear about how terrible life is being married to ONE woman (which is only the case if one of you is a loser), can you really imagine being married to THREE? Nagging times THREE… henpecking times THREE… getting hit in the head with a rolling pin for coming in late times THREE. And all without the benefits that you might imagine come with the territory. If you watch most network television you'll notice all manner of dysfunctional families, but honestly I cannot remember the last time I saw one that involved a polygamist family. Leave it to HBO, who has become one of the leading cable channels for highly creative original programming, to plant one right smack dab in front of our faces.

"Big Love" stars Bill Paxton (the lucky so and so who gets to hang out with James Cameron and travel to the real Titanic…) as Bill Henrickson, the average, everyday owner of a large, successful home improvement store. He's a good family man who loves wife and kids… or I guess I should say 'wives.'

Living the polygamist life in Salt Lake City, Bill is husband and provider to Barb (Jeanne Tripplehorn), Nicki (Chloe Sevigny) and Margene (Ginnifer Goodwin). Now, I'm not sure how real polygamists live their lives, but here Bill has three separate homes that he uses to house each wife and subsequent children (seven in all). Aside from the typical problems one must face with having just one family, Bill finds himself moving further and further ideologically from the cult that he is a part of. A good portion of the money his business earns goes back to the cult, which in turn allows him to live a very comfortable lifestyle outside of the main compound. As the first season progressed, Bill decided to try and open a second store without the knowledge or consent of the cult's leader Roman Grant (Harry Dean Stanton). AS you might imagine, this led to all sorts of upheaval.

Interestingly enough, the idea of polygamy started out almost taking a back seat to the actual goings-on in ""Big Love." If this piece of fiction is to be believed, there is just as much back-stabbing, spying and all around lying going on in this idyllic world as there is in ours. It shows that despite our differences in beliefs, people are alike all over in the fact that most will do anything to get what they want, no matter who it hurts or how bad. "Big Love" point this out in spades all the without conforming fully to the role of drama or comedy, much like real life.

“Big Love” has so far made it through 3 successful seasons, the most recent of which was recently released on DVD. The beginning of this season finds Bill trying to branch out from owning hardware stores to trying his hand at building a casino. But as if that doesn’t offer him enough to juggle, he’d also like to add a 4th… that’s right 4th… wife. All of this is set against a backdrop of a country that does not view polygamy as an acceptable standard. These views are in no way changed by the actions of the Roman, who is going on trial for offenses related to polygamy in regards to younger girls. It is the repercussions of this trial, Bill’s need to add a wife, and his business ambitions that share center stage in this very powerful season.

I have to admit to continuing to convert to being a fan of the series as each season has grown stronger and more interesting. I’ve gone from liking it to loving at and look forward to a 4th season (much as Bill looks forward to a 4th wife). The performances across the board are terrific, without a weak link to be found. The writing is strong, with only a handful of shortcomings scattered throughout the seasons.

This DVD release offers the show's 10-episode 3rd season in a very nice looking widescreen package. The video is spectacular, as is always the case with any of the made for HBO shows. There is also a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, but admittedly this particular series doesn’t really have a broad enough sound track to fully appreciate it. I was surprised to see only a very few features, however. Here we only have some first person recaps of what has happened on the show so far by four of the main characters. The other feature involves three mini-dramas, which are best watched after you watch the episodes on this set.

"Big Love" doesn’t necessarily carry the power that shows like "Deadwood" or "Carnivale" did, but it ranks close to the style of entertainment I used to get from "Six Feet Under." All in all, a solid DVD set.

Episodes:
Block Party
Empire
Prom Queen
On Trial
For Better or Worse
Come, Ye Saints
Fight or Flight
Rough Edges
Outer Darkness
Sacrament

Starring: Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny, Ginnifer Goodwin, Harry Dean Stanton
Extras: Our Story Up Until Now; Mini-Dramas
Specifications: Widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: HBO
Release Date: 1/5/2010
MPAA Rating: NR
http://www.hbo.com

We'll give Big Love: Season 3 a B+.