To say “The Love Boat” was silly escapist fantasy would be selling it short. “The Love Boat” was silly escapist fantasy WITH an ever changing cast of Hollywood luminaries. Where else could you tune in week after week to watch your favorite A-list through D-list stars acting out various romantic interludes on a cruise ship? Back in the late seventies and early eighties, this was a big thing! And yes, I have to admit that it was a guilty pleasure for me to watch every week, even though I was a teenager and was supposed to be dealing with my own inner turmoil and angst and not care a whit about whether or not Gopher would ever find love in all of the ten seasons the series aired, or wonder just where Dr. Bricker got his medical training or even whether or not Julie McCoy would come back after season seven … but I did… I think I even remember all of the lyrics to the theme song. Last year, Paramount began releasing “The Love Boat” on DVD. Being that it is a guilty pleasure I do still enjoy sitting down and watching an episode every now and then, if for no other reason than to ‘star’ gaze.

While I applaud Paramount’s willingness to release this series, I do wish they would stop breaking seasons into two sets. I understand the idea is to keep costs down and get consumers to buy the smaller and less expensive sets, but I simply prefer collections of full seasons.

That said, Paramount is releasing the 2nd volume of the 2nd season of “The Love Boat” this month and one again we are treated to a gaggle of silly romantic stories. But for those of you with a limited memory, all of the stories on the series were not so silly. Occasionally, the writers would turn out some episodes that were actually quite serious; it is just that the show is not remembered for those. This set offered several reminders.

Amongst those are stories starring Richard Dean Anderson as an old medical friend of Dr. Bricker who recently lost and arm in an accident and his wife, played by Diana Muldaur, who blames herself for said accident. Even Gopher gets in on the act with a highly emotional reconciliation with his estranged father. As I said, all is not necessarily played for laughs.

All 12 episodes of the second half of the season are presented here, though the only extra features are episode promos. Again, I know this is to keep the cost of the sets down. Still, the show is entertaining, the stars are fun to watch… and I dare you not to sing along with the theme…

Episodes:
My Sister Irene / The “Now” Marriage / Second Time Around
Gopher’s Opportunity / The Switch / Home Sweet Home
Second Chance / Don’t Push Me / Like Father, Like Son
Alas, Poor Dwyer / After the War / Itsy Bitsy / Ticket to Ride / Disco Baby
Best of Friends / Aftermath / Dream Boat
A Good and Faithful Servant / The Secret Life of Burl Smith / Tug of War / Designated Lover
Love Me, Love My Dog / Poor Little Rich Girl / The Decision
Funny Valentine / The Wallflower / A Home is Not a Home
Ages of Man / Bo ‘N Sam / Families
Murder on the High Seas / Sounds of Silence / Cyrano de Bricker
April’s Return / Super Mom / I’ll See You Again
Third Wheel / Grandmother’s Day / Second String Mom

Starring: Gavin MacLeod, Fred Gandy, Ted Lange, Lauren Tewes, Bernie Koppell
Extras: Episodic Promos
Specifications: Full Screen, English Mono
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 8/4/2009
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
http://www.Paramount.com/homeentertainment

We'll give The Love Boat: Season 2, Volume 2 a C.