Mill Creek Entertainment takes viewers back to Capeside, Massachusetts as Dawson’s Creek makes its way to Blu-ray for the first time. The hit teen drama ran for 6 seasons/128 episodes on The WB, from 1998-2002. The story centers around 15-year-old Dawson Leery (James Van Der Beek), a precocious, aspiring filmmaker who dreams of being the next Stephen Spielberg. He’s been best friends with tomboy Joey Potter (Katie Holmes) since they were children, and she still climbs a ladder up to his room to watch movies and spend the night. While their relationship has always been purely platonic, they are getting to a certain age where sharing a bed is starting to feel a bit odd to Joey, especially as she’s starting to realize that she has feelings for Dawson. However, he’s still too clueless to realize this. Dawson’s other best friend is Pacey Witter (Joshua Jackson), who’s always been a bit of a class clown. Just before the teens are about to begin their sophomore year of high school, the beautiful Jen Lindley (Michelle Williams) moves in next door to Dawson. Jen was a bit of a wild child back in New York, and her parents sent her to live with her devout grandmother, Grams (Mary Beth Peil), in hopes of cleaning up her image. However, Dawson is immediately smitten when he lays eyes on his new neighbor, making Joey a bit jealous. And so begins the show’s first of many love triangles.
Here’s a quick rundown of the six seasons:
- Season 1 (1998) – Set during the teens’ sophomore year. Joey realizes that she has feelings for Dawson, but his eyes are on new girl Jen; Pacey starts an inappropriate relationship with his teacher, Ms Jacobs (Leann Hunley); and Dawson discovers that the relationship between his parents, Mitch (John Wesley Shipp) & Gale (Mary-Margaret Humes), may not be as picture-perfect as it seems.
- Season 2 (1998-99) – The second season picks up right at the big moment we left off at the end of season one, and covers the second half of the teens sophomore year. The season introduces siblings Andie (Meredith Monroe) and Jack McPhee (Kerr Smith). Andie is a slightly high-strung over-achiever—the complete opposite of Pacey, and the perfect balance for one another. Meanwhile, Jack gets a job working with Joey and the two hit it off, but Jack soon starts to realize something about himself that will change everything. And mean girl Abby Morgan (Monica Keena), who was first introduced in season 1, becomes a bad influence on Jen, causing her to revert back to her old ways.
- Season 3 (1999-00) – Set during the junior year.
Dawson meets stripper Eve (Brittany Daniel) on his bus ride back to Capeside, and as her name suggests, she tries to tempt him. Meanwhile, Dawson’s father Mitch becomes the new coach of the high school football team. Jack joins the football team, and tries to navigate his new lifestyle. Jen starts a new relationship with football player Henry Parker (Michael Pitt). Joey starts a family bed and breakfast business. And Pacey seems to have some sort of a relationship with all three of our core female Capesiders. - Season 4 (2001-01) – It’s the summer before their senior year and Pacey and Joey have just returned from spending 3 months sailing away together, but now coming back to reality tests their relationship. Dawson starts to date Pacey’s older sister Gretchen (Sasha Alexander). Andie’s mental issues come to a head in a way that causes a rift between friends Jen and Jack, and sends her off the series. And Mitch and Gail get a big surprise.
- Season 5 (2001-02) – Picks up in October of the teens’ freshman year of college. Dawson is in LA for an internship and USC film school. Joey is attending Worthington University, where she’s taking a creative writing course taught by professor David Wilder (Ken Marino), who encourages her to get out of her comfort zone. She’s living with promiscuous roommate Audrey Liddell (Busy Philipps), who eventually becomes a great friend. Jen and Jack are attending nearby Boston Bay College while living in Grams’ new Boston apartment. Pacey is also secretly in Boston, working in the back of a restaurant. And Grams has a new boyfriend, Clifton Smalls (Afemo Omilami).
- Season 6 (2002-03) – Joey starts off the season by giving viewers a quick rundown of what everyone did over the summer. Then we head into the sophomore year. Joey makes a bad first impression with her professor Greg Hetson (Roger Howarth), and things only get worse from there. Fellow student Eddie (Oliver Hudson) also doesn’t seem to initially like Joey, or maybe he does. Jen learns that Grams is now her classmate. Jack has a crush on his new professor, Mark Freeman (Sebastian Spence). Meanwhile, Dawson moves to Boston to work on a film project that is quite similar to the events of the first few seasons, and Pacey tries to make his own path in Boston. The 2-part series finale jumps ahead 5 years to see what the future holds for our Capeside family, but a tragedy serves as the impetus Joey needs to finally make her decision between Dawson and Pacey.
I watched Dawson’s Creek religiously when it first aired, and I was once again sucked in when I revisited the series on this box set. The characters have this unique, fast-paced, overly-sophisticated way of talking that may not be very realistic, but it has an iconic charm to it. I had forgotten just how much the writers constantly mixed up the relationships between the core characters, trying pretty much every iteration under the sun, some multiple times. While Joshua Jackson was probably the most recognizable from his work on The Mighty Ducks, the series introduced most viewers to James Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes and Michelle Williams, all of whom have gone on to have amazing careers. The success of this show is due in large part to these four actors, who really bring their characters to life and make you care about them and what they are going through.
The series deals with a lot of serious topics, including sex, drugs, mental illness, gay bashing, depression, alcoholism, sexual violence, loss, and more, but still manages to keep things light and fun a lot of the time. The titles of the first season episodes are callbacks to famous films, and there is a great detention episode that pays homage to The Breakfast Club, and another first season episode that makes references to series creator Kevin Williamson’s big feature film break, Scream. There are also some episodes that stick out by following a non-standard format, each telling four different stories. The first of these is the third season episode “The Longest Day,” which feels like it was inspired by the movie Go, telling the same story four different ways. Later episodes use the format to tell 4 separate vignettes. But even the non-special episodes feel special as they tell the memorable ups and downs in the lives of these friends and they try to navigate love and life.
Throughout the six seasons, the characters are allowed to grow and develop, each at their own pace. Some of the relationships were great, such as the initial romance between Pacey and Andie—though I wasn’t really a fan of the direction Andie’s character took later on. The storyline with Jack discovering his true self was also handled amazingly. But at the core of the series is the constantly shifting, on-again/off-again love triangle between Pacey, Joey and Dawson, which is finally answered in the show’s satisfying (even if I personally didn’t agree with Joey’s choice) but sad finale. Over the course of the series the show introduces some wonderful guest stars and recurring characters, who instantly become favorites. People like Jen’s grandmother Grams and Dawson’s parents Mitch and Gayle become a large part of the heart of the series. Some of the show’s other recognizable guest stars over the six seasons include Eion Bailey, Eric Balfour, Scott Foley, Jason Behr, Rachael Leigh Cook, David Dukes, Mädchen Amick, Robin Dunne, Adam Kaufman, Bianca Lawson, Alexandra Breckenridge, Sarah Lancaster, Julie Bowen, Harry Shearer, Peter Jurasik, Christian Kane, Jane Lynch, Tony Hale, Andy Griffith, Chad Michael Murray, Brenda Strong, Pauley Perrette, Jordan Bridges, Jennifer Morrison, Mercedes McNab, Meredith Salenger, Sherilyn Fenn, Jensen Ackles, Bianca Kajlich, Eddie Cahill, Ray Wise, Sarah Shahi, Geoffrey Lewis, Seth Rogen, Taylor Handley, Paul Gleason, Mimi Rogers, Jeremy Sisto, and Drew Pinsky, Adam Carolla & Jack Osbourne (playing themselves).
One issue that has had fans riled up about the show’s home video releases over the years is that the music has been changed, particularly the show’s iconic theme song. Paul Cole’s “I Don’t Want To Wait” was replaced with the show’s international theme, Jann Arden’s “Run Like Mad”, for the home video releases after the first two seasons. The good news is that Mill Creek’s new box set restores Paul Cole’s theme song for every season. The bad news is that other music changes made for the previous the DVD/streaming releases have not been restored. For example, Dawson and Joey’s kiss in the rain scene in season 2 still uses the DVD replacement music of Tommy Holmes’ “If You Came Back”, rather than the perfect original broadcast needle drop of Billie Myers’ “Kiss the Rain”. However, not all of the show’s recognizable tunes have been replaced—there are still plenty of other memorable songs throughout the series, and I often found myself singing along to the background music.
One welcome change from the previous DVD and some streaming releases of the series is that Mill Creek’s Blu-ray finally gives viewers the chance to watch the show in widescreen format. However, instead of stretching or losing some of the picture on the top and bottom to make the broadcast full frame picture fit, there is actually more of the frame that can be seen on either side of the picture. So it is like watching a whole new show, with more to every scene. The Blu-ray video presentation is a bit mixed bag, and a bit inconsistent. Sometimes it looks phenomenal with an excellent level of detail in faces, but other times it can be a bit overly grainy, or seemingly smoothed out. Colors and skin tones look bright and natural and the picture is generally pleasing—any imperfections didn’t really detract from my enjoyment of the series. The audio presentation is pretty solid, providing clear dialogue, and making use of the surround channel to provide a somewhat immersive experience. This is more noticeable in larger scenes with crowds, such as parties or classrooms. My one gripe is that there are no English subtitles offered for those who may need them.
Mill Creek’s Blu-ray release ports over almost all of the bonus material from the previous DVD releases, which includes audio commentaries on 10 episodes, over 30 minutes of featurettes with the cast and crew, and some deleted/alternate scenes from the pilot. Some of the items that didn’t get ported over from the previous DVD releases are an interactive map of Capeside, some interactive trivia games, and a short CD soundtrack that was included in the complete series collection. However, new to this release is an excellent 55-minute 20th anniversary EW special with the cast/creator.
The show’s 128 episodes/six season are spread across 20 discs, which reside on trays in two thick 10-disc Blu-ray cases, which are placed inside a carboard slipcover.
What’s Included:
Episodes: (5577 min)
- All 128 episodes of the TV series spread across 20 discs:
- Season 1 (1998), 13 episodes
Disc 1: “Dawson’s Creek”, “Dirty Dancing”, “Prelude to a Kiss”, “Carnal Knowledge”, “Hurricane”, “Baby”
Disc 2: “Breakfast Club”, “Escape From New York”, “In the Company of Men”, “Modern Romance”, “Friday the 13th”, “Pretty Woman”, “Breaking Away” - Season 2 (1998-99), 22 episodes
Disc 3: “The Kiss”, “Crossroads”, “Alternative Lifestyles”, “Tamara’s Return”, “Full Moon Rising”, “The Dance”, “The All-Nighter”
Disc 4: “The Reluctant Hero”, “The Election”, “High Risk Behavior”, “Sex, She Wrote”, “Uncharted Waters”, “His Leading Lady”, “To Be or Not to Be…”, “…That Is the Question”
Disc 5: “Be Careful What You Wish For”, “Psychic Friends”, “A Perfect Wedding”, “Abby Morgan, Rest in Peace”, “Reunited”, “Ch… Ch… Ch… Changes”, “Parental Discretion Advised” - Season 3 (1999-00), 23 episodes
Disc 6: Episode 301: “Like a Virgin”, “Homecoming”, “Non of the Above”, “Home Movies”, “Indian Summer”, “Secrets and Lies”
Disc 7: “Escape from Witch Island”, “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner”, “Four to Tango”, “First Encounters of the Close Kind”, “Barefoot at Capeside”, “A Weekend in the Country”
Disc 8: “Northern Lights”, “Valentine’s Day Massacre”, “Crime and Punishment”, “To Green, with Love”, “Cinderella Story”, “Neverland”
Disc 9: “Stolen Kisses”, “The Longest Day”, “Show Me Love”, “The Anti-Prom”, “True Love” - Season 4 (2001-01), 23 episodes
Disc 10: “Coming Home”, “Failing Down”, “Two Gentlemen of Capeside”, “Future Tense”, “A Family Way”, “Great Xpectations”
Disc 11: “You Had Me at Goodbye”, “The Unusual Suspects”, “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang”, “Self Reliance”, “The Tao of Dawson”, “The Te of Pacey”
Disc 12: “Hopeless”, “A Winter’s Tale”, “Four Stories”, “Mind Games”, “Admissions”, “Eastern Standard Time”
Disc 13: “Late”, “Promicide”, “Separation Anxiety”, “The Graduate”, “Coda” - Season 5 (2001-02), 23 episodes
Disc 14: “The Bostonians”, “The Lost Weekend”, “Capeside Revisited”, “The Long Goodbye”, “Use Your Disillusion”, “High Anxiety”, “Text, Lies and Videotape”, “Hotel New Hampshire”
Disc 15: “Four Scary Stories”, “Appetite for Destruction”, “Something Wild”, “Sleeping Arrangements”, “Something Wilder”, “Guerilla Filmmaking”, “Downtown Crossing”, “In a Lonely Place”
Disc 16: “Highway to Hell”, “Cigarette Burns”, “100 Light Years from Home”, “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”, “After Hours”, “The Abby”, “Swan Song” - Season 6 (2002-03), 24 episodes
Disc 17: “The Kids Are Alright”, “The Song Remains the Same”, “The Importance of Not Being Too Earnest”, “Instant Karma!”, “The Imposters”, “Living Dead Girl”
Disc 18: “Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell”, “Spiderwebs”, “Everything Put Together Falls Apart”, “Merry Mayhem”, “Day Out of Days”, ” All the Right Moves”
Disc 19: “Rock Bottom”, “Clean and Sober”, “Castaways”, “That Was Then”, “Sex and Violence”, “Love Bites”
Disc 20: “Lovelines”, “Catch-22”, “Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road”, “Joey Potter and the Capeside Redemption”, “All Good Things…”, “…Must Come to An End”
- Season 1 (1998), 13 episodes
- 1080p / 1.78:1
- Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: None
Extras:
- Audio Commentaries on Select Episodes
The producers and one cast member provide fun and informative commentaries on 10 episodes of the series. The pilot is probably the most interesting one, with producers Kevin Williamson and Paul Stupin sharing a lot of behind-the-scenes stories about the production.- 101 – “Dawson’s Creek” (44:22)
Writer/producer Kevin Williamson and producer Paul Stupin - 113 – “Breaking Away” (43:59)
Writer/producer Kevin Williamson and producer Paul Stupin - 201 – “The Kiss” (44:13)
Executive producer Paul Stupin - 222 – “Parental Discretion Advised” (44:39)
Executive producer Paul Stupin - 310 – “First Encounters of the Close Kind” (43:45)
Executive producer Paul Stupin and star Kerr Smith (“Jack McPhee”) - 322 – “True Love” (43:16)
Executive producer Paul Stupin and star Kerr Smith - 401 – “Coming Home” (43:18)
Executive producer Paul Stupin - 423 – “The Graduate” (43:27)
Executive producer Paul Stupin and consulting producer Alan Cross - 623 – “All Good Things…” (43:21)
Writer/producer Kevin Williamson and executive producer Paul Stupin - 624 – “…Must Come to An End” (42:35)
Writer/producer Kevin Williamson and executive producer Paul Stupin
- 101 – “Dawson’s Creek” (44:22)
- Dawson’s Creek: From Day One (8:21)
Producer Paul Stupin and writer/producer Kevin Williamson talk about how the series came about, casting the actors, filming in Wilmington, NC, the fan reactions to the series, the media’s fascination with the sex on the show, and more. Incudes clips and behind-the-scenes footage. Presented in full frame 4:3 format. Originally created in 2003 for the DVD release of the first season. - Time Capsule (6:53)
1988 EPK featurette for the series featuring behind-the-scenes footage, clips, and interviews with stars James Van Der Beek (“Dawson”), Katie Holmes (“Joey”), Joshua Jackson (“Pacey”) & Michelle Williams (“Jen”). Presented in full frame 4:3 format. Originally appeared on 2003 DVD release of the first season. - Original Pilot Ending (1:09)
In this alternate version of the final scene of the pilot, Dawson also sees that his mother is having an affair with her coworker. Presented in full frame 4:3 format. - Deleted Scenes from Pilot (4:32)
Three extended scenes from the pilot. The first is an alternate/extended version of Dawson and Pacey walking in on Dawson’s parents in the living room, with a different actor playing the father. The second is an alternate version of Pacey meeting Tamara at the video store. And the third is a scene of Dawson talking to his father (with the other actor playing the father) about everyone’s obsession with sex. Presented in full frame 4:3 format. - Entertainment Weekly‘s 20th Anniversary Reunion (55:12)
This 2021 retrospective featurette looks back at how the groundbreaking series came about, the cast and their previous roles before the series, the characters and their storylines, love triangles, the finale, and more. The cast try to remember the theme song lyrics, talk about fan reactions, crying memes, and more. Includes a reunion couch of cast members Mary Beth Peil (“Evelyn ‘Grams’ Ryan”), Busy Philipps (“Audrey Liddell”), Michelle Williams (“Jen Lindley”), James Van Der Beek (“Dawson Leery”), Katie Holmes (“Joey Potter”), Joshua Jackson (“Pacey Witter”), Kerr Smith (“Jack McPhee”) & Meredith Monroe (“Andie McPhee”). Also includes interviews with creator Kevin Williamson, and EW staff TV critic Kristen Baldwin, senior editor Breanne L. Heldman, senior producer Robyn Ross & senior writer Tim Stack.
- Creek Daze: A Conversation with Kevin Williamson (17:35)
Writer/creator Kevin Williamson talks about his inspirations for the series, how the show came about, casting the actors, the character storylines, the dialogue, and more. Presented in full frame 4:3 format. Originally produced in 2009 for the Complete Series DVD release.
Final Thoughts:
I was so excited to revisit Dawson’s Creek on this new Blu-ray release as I hadn’t seen the show since it ended 20 years ago. I quickly found myself falling in love with the series all over again, anxious to keep binging through the episodes. It was wonderful to finally see the show in widescreen format, and in a way that didn’t just chop or stretch the original full frame broadcast picture. While the release doesn’t restore all of the show’s original music, it does give fans back Paula Cole’s iconic theme song on every episode, which was a welcome change. The Blu-ray video presentation is a bit of a mixed bag, but still quite enjoyable and an improvement over the previous full frame DVDs. Mill Creek has also ported over all of the non-interactive bonus material from previous releases while also adding a highly entertaining reunion special. This is a must own for fans of the series, and a great way for new viewers to check out the show and the early careers of its four leads.
DAWSON’S CREEK: COMPLETE SERIES BD
$59.99 $59.55 (as of April 26, 2024 16:56 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
DAWSON’S CREEK: COMPLETE SERIES
$35.00 $29.19 (as of April 26, 2024 16:56 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
