Only Fools and Horses Series 6

This set features all six 50-minute episodes from the 1989 series, plus the 1989 Christmas Special. The token special features (bios, photos) are disappointing, but to be expected since the UK discs are the same way.

Unfortunately both "Yuppy Love" and "The Jolly Boys' Outing" suffer from small cuts from the originally-broadcast episodes. These cuts (evidently down to the BBC not having the rights to the background music played during these scenes) adversely affect continuity, and their absence is annoying. Conversely, "Sickness and Wealth" has a few extra minutes of dialog which was not present in the original broadcasts.

As for the package itself, the BBC decided to replace the nicer cardboard cases from the previous two DVD sets with a cheaper-looking plastic case.

An easy five stars for the episodes themselves-this is OFAH at its best (if you haven't seen these you will not be disappointed)--minus one star for a half-hearted effort by the BBC.

Spanning more than 20 years with all the original actors--the surviving ones, that is--Only Fools and Horses has survived the test of time. Like so many britcoms, this is one that only keeps getting better with each successive series. With series six, the episodes are now 50-minutes in length, which allows for much greater development of the storylines, which is a real treat as John Sullivan's skill as a comedy writer has without doubt been honed to the point of perfection. This boxed set contains all six 50-minute episodes from series six (which originally aired in 1989) plus the 80-minute Christmas special, Jolly Boys Outing, which follows series six.

Episode one ("Yuppy Love") introduces a new face to the cast, the intelligent and attractive Cassandra, a young woman from a fairly well-to-do family who has a promising career in the banking industry. Rodney's (Nicholas Lyndhurst--Goodbye Sweetheart) attraction is completely understandable, but so is his aversion to her discovering he lives in council housing and flogs dodgy goods down in the market with his loud, abrasive, and highly embarrassing brother, Del (David Jason--A Touch of Frost, The Darling Buds of May, Open All Hours, Micawber).

Series six also sees a change in Del, which leads to some hilarious moments of their own. He's updated his image to reflect his admiration for Gordon Gecko, the lead character in the hit film Wall Street (which was a relatively newly released film when the series was produced). As usual, Del thinks the addition of braces (ie. suspenders) on his trousers, a filo-fax, and a few stock market phrases are enough to gain him entrance into this new yuppy world of of high flyers. As usual, he couldn't be more wrong!

Writer John Sullivan is on top form with this series. Every single episode is tightly written and truly hilarious with so many laughs from start to finish that I cannot possibly choose a favourite. Briefly, "Danger UXD" has Del taking a load of defective, ahem, "dolls" off Denzel's hands with Del ending up with much more than he bargained for. "Chain Gang" has Del forming a consortium with his pals to purchase a case of quality gold chains, which it looks like a no-lose, quick-profit opportunity. Del has been hooked on entering contests in "The Unlucky Winner" and wins. The problem is he entered it in Rodney's name by sending in a copy of a painting Rodney did when he was, well, shall we say a little younger. In "Sickness and Wealth," Del's dodgy diet and lifestyle finally catch up with him. "Little Problems" features a guest appearance by Roy Marsden (PD James' original Adam Dalgliesh, Sandbaggers) as a local mobster to whom Del has inadvertently found himself in debt. Finally, a familiar (and very welcome) face from Del's past returns in "The Jolly Boy's Outing," which turns out to be anything but jolly!

Only Fools and Horses is my own personal favourite britcom. Unlike some fans, I am not from England, though I do speak as one who has seen the entire series up to 2003, all the Christmas specials included . Like all the classic britcoms, this is a series that only improves with successive viewings (and it's one our family has watched countless times), and I know I am not alone in hoping the BBC will release the final series plus all the side-splittingly hilarious Christmas specials that followed it.

This is a true britcom classic--one that has stood the test of time, and I recommend it extremely highly and unhesitatingly to all fans of British comedy.

Quite simply the best comedy ever made. Great script and fantastic acting combine to make Fools & Horses a real British gem. The show takes on a longer format in this season and really hits the highs of this much loved show. I am so grateful that this series has finally been made for the States as an ex-patriot of the UK life is never the same without a weekly dose of this rip roaring show. Enjoy!

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