Bewitched - Season 7

Fantastic! Having stuck with this DVD franchise for the first seven seasons, here comes the penultimate series. I guess that means things are looking promising for an R2 release of the eighth and final season of this fantastic period comedy series. And who knows, maybe we'll see an R2 release of the Tabitha spin off series too.

After Dick York's tragic suicide, from which even Samantha's magic couldn't retrieve him, new boy Dick Sargent settles into his second season and seems to be increasingly at home with the role. This season sees the show enter the seventies, and though it's formulaic stuff, you can already feel the impact of a new era on the show.

Things haven't changed much in the household since Series 6 and the basic premise of the show remains the same. Modern 'witch' Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery) is married to advertising executive Darrin Stephens (Once Dick York, now Dick Sargent).



But despite a career in advertising, Darrin wants to live an honest and clean life, free from any help from his magical wife and interfering mother-in-law, Endora. Only Endora doesn't see it that way and constantly contrives to make life as complex as possible for the permanently perplexed Darrin. In real terms, these 'inconveniences' can be as wild as turning him into an ape or an old man, or just screwing up an advertising campaign seconds before it's presented to the client.

The advertising connection is one that I've always enjoyed tremendously as it's a business I have spent some years in myself. There's a practice advertising known as 'Darrining' in tribute to Darrin's constant post-rationalisation the hoof to excuse some problem with what he's delivering. It usually goes something like this. Darrin presents a new campaign, but as he reveals it, it becomes apparent that there are cat's footprints all over the face of the model in the advert. The client will then look quizzical and say 'I don't get it'. At which point Darrin's boss will say something like, 'Yes Darrin - perhaps you could explain to Mr. Hackenbacker why we've chosen to add footprints across the model's face...'. And then Darrin starts....suggesting that it's to bring in a comic element that appeals to the nations love of cats and therefore puts the product in a warm light. There's always a pause followed by Mr. Hackenbacker (or equivalent) stating: 'I Love it!. And as Darrin's boss leaves the room he'll whisper to Darrin, 'Well done Darrin. I gotta admit I thought you'd lost it there. Could be a nice bonus in this for you...' Hence the term 'Darrining'. So now you know...!



Season 7 kicks off with an ambitious eight-part story arc involving Samantha and Darrin visiting Salem, Massachusetts. This gives the show more visual variation than previously with shots supposedly in Salem, and certainly not just in the confines of their generously proportioned American house.

There are also digs at the establishment, references about bigotry and intolerance and there's generally a liberal air afoot with the witch community seeming almost happily bohemian in their approach to life. There's even a dig in one episode about a Witch finder machine being used to dowse out suspected liberals. What?! Bewitched has suddenly gone 'All in the Family'.

There's a lovely episode which veers dangerously towards the Black and White Minstrels in its approach, but which was clearly intended kindly, where Tabitha decides that if she can't be sisters with her black friend that she'll simply turn her whole family black instead. When a client of Darrin's turns out to be a bigot who thinks the black child is Darrin's, Sam puts a spell on him so that now sees everyone as black. Typical Bewitched tomfoolery - but now with added moral fibre.



The good news is that despite Doug Sargant' slightly lacklustre performance when compared to York, and the inclusion of lightly political material, the show is still damned funny. The fabulous Paul Lynde turns in another classic performance as Uncle Arthur with his distinctive 'Funky Phantom' voice delivery.

The show never looked better either. In common with other Screen Gem outings (like The Monkees and The Partridge Family) this has beautifully saturated colours, enhanced with some fairly psychedelic swirly clothing, making this really hot stuff for nostalgia freaks like myself.

Despite a fall in the ratings at around this time that meant this Season would be its second to last, I felt that little was lost when compared to previous seasons. The material is as good as ever. Maybe every comedy has its run and despite the quality, eventually has its day.



Sadly these discs have no extras, which is a disappointment.

All in all though, another winning season. Roll on season eight!





There are 28 episodes on four single-sided discs. Here's a published list with a brief synopsis that shouldn't be enough detail to spoil things for you.

1) "To Go or Not to Go, That is the Question." Endora summons Samantha to attend the witches' convention in Salem, Massachusetts, but Samantha has a condition: Darrin has to come along.

2) "Salem, Here we Come." Continues the first episode. High Priestess Hepzibah moves in with the Stephens to observe mortal life and decide whether the Stephens' marriage should be dissolved. Pretty dumb episode.

3) "Salem Saga." On a tour of the House of the Seven Gables, Samantha gets chased by an enchanted bedwarmer that (big surprise) takes a dislike to Darrin.

4) "Samantha's Hot Bedwarmer." Part two of the bedwarmer episode finds Darrin in jail accused of stealing the darned thing, and Samantha looking to find the spell that will restore the bedwarmer to the warlock it apparently was.

5) "Darrin on a Pedestal." Serena pops in to join her cousin in this episode that begins with Sam and Darrin touring Gloucester and ends with Samantha trying to figure out how to get her husband out of the Fisherman's Memorial Statue that her cousin blinked him into.

6) "Paul Revere Rides Again." Larry Tate (David White) bothers Darrin on vacation and wants him to court a client who's a big history buff (Jonathan Harris, "Lost in Space"), with a Revere teapot the focal point.

7) "Samantha's Bad Day in Salem." Larry thinks Samantha is having an affair when he sees her behind the House of Seven Gables with an old beau.

8) "Samantha's Old Salem Trip." When Samantha is accidentally transported to 17th-century Salem by Esmeralda, Endora sends Darrin back in time to rescue her. Second of another multi-part episode.

9) "Samantha's Pet Warlock." Darrin brings home a strange-looking dog, which turns out to be a warlock who wants to court Samantha and take her away from all this.
10) "Samantha's Old Man." After all these years, people are still trying to convince Samantha not to tie herself to a mortal. Endora changes Darrin to an old man in order to show her what it would be like for an immortal to live with a mortal near the end of his time. One of the weakest episodes.

11) "The Corsican Cousins." Endora wishes that Samantha could be as carefree as her cousin and casts a spell that has the two sharing Serena's personality. Also a pretty dumb episode.

12) "Samantha's Magic Potion." Another weak episode (one of the worst this season) has Samantha trying to convince her husband that his recent spate of bad luck isn't at all related to witchcraft.

13) "Sisters at Heart." A Christmas episode with a racial message. Darrin's friends leave their daughter with the Stephens on Christmas Eve, and the girls--one black and one white--want to be sisters but learn about prejudice from one of Darrin's clients.

14) "The Mother-in-Law of the Year." Darrin arranges for Endora to be in a client's TV commercial, but when she backs out, Samantha has to stand in.

15) "Mary, the Good Fairy." The Good Fairy visits the Stephens household and decides she wants to surrender her wings in part one of another two-parter.

16) "The Good Fairy Strikes Again." Samantha becomes the Good Fairy in an episode that may have inspired "The Santa Clause." But it's also one of this season's worst.

17) "The Return of Darrin, the Bold." Silly claptrap has Endora and Serena scheming to turn Darrin into a warlock by putting a spell on one of his ancestors from the 14th century.

18) "The House that Uncle Arthur Built." Uncle Arthur (Paul Lynde) returns to announce he's engaged, but he'll only be married if he can swear off the jokes.

19) "Samantha and the Troll." Serena takes Samantha's place so Samantha can go to the doctor's office (I know, why can't . . .?) and ends up charming one of Darrin's clients, much to the annoyance of his jealous wife.

20) "This Little Piggie." Endora inadvertently helps Darrin land a ribs account when she turns him into a pig-head to punish him for his stubbornness. Another bad episode.

21) "Mixed Doubles." A molecular disturbance causes Samantha and Louise Tate to exchange lives, right in front of their husbands. Enter Dr. Bombay to set things right.

22) "Darrin Goes Ape." After Darrin insults Serena, she changes him into a gorilla. Enough said. Kids who are sick and watching TV instead of going to school will like these animal transformations, but that's about all.

23) "Money Happy Returns." When Darrin finds a large sum of money in the backseat of a taxi, he thinks Endora put it there. Another weak one.

24) "Out of the Mouths of Babes." Darrin is turned into a child, and has to convince a client that an awful-tasting Irish stew is better marketed as dog food. One of the better transformation episodes this season.

25) "Sam's Psychic Pslip" Sam's witchcraft hiccups whenever she does, and it's all traced back to her accepting a gift from Darrin that she didn't think she deserved.

26) "Samantha's Magic Mirror." Sam gives Esmeralda a makeover so she can impress an old suitor.

27) "Laugh, Clown, Laugh." Endora's spell gives Darrin a sense of humor, but an offensive one.

28) "Samantha and the Antique Doll." And so it comes full circle, with an episode we saw years ago repeating, with only slight variation: Darrin's mother is convinced that SHE has magical powers after witnessing a doll she gave to Tabitha float across the room.