Cougar Town Season 1 On DVD

Heading into the 2009-2010 season, Cougar Town was one of those shows I figured would be worth checking out, but probably wouldn’t last beyond November sweeps. Courteney Cox is appealing, but the story of a woman dating younger men? How were they going to keep that fresh? The first few episodes struggled with that same dilemma, until around episode 4 when the show started to shift from focusing on Jules Cobb (Cox) and became more of a panoramic view of her life. Marathoning the episodes on the new DVD set makes it even more obvious that Cougar Town has evolved into something special.

By the time season 1 ended, we not only had a strong character in Jules, we also had the ex-husband with a Peter Pan complex, the wise-beyond-his-years teenage son, the bitchy best friend with a heart of gold, the best friend’s husband who is not the doormat we initially feared, the other best friend who is both naive and street smart, and the neighbor who resists being drawn into this chaotic but loving circle only to find himself falling for Jules. This disparate ensemble of characters coalesced into a unit that intermingle in so many creative ways, the possibilities seem endless! For example, what if Laurie and Bobby united to execute some plan? Suppose Ellie enlisted Travis in a scheme? How about Grayson trying to get back at Travis for all the pranks he’s pulled?

Speaking of Grayson, for such a deadpan guy, he has a killer sense of humor. The bonus features with the DVD set include a music video of Josh Hopkins (as Grayson) performing “My Sexuality”, that catchy little ditty that Jules enjoyed so much.

The way he sings “sexuality” cracks me up. I’m so glad Grayson has become a solid part of the ensemble. His serious balances Jules’ almost manic cheerfulness. Kudos to EP’s Bill Lawrence and Kevin Biegel for opting to end the will they/won’t they tension quickly and put Grayson and Jules together by season’s end. Will it last? Who knows, but it’s going to be fun to watch!

Cougar Town: The Complete First Season is now available on DVD and season 2 debuts on ABC Wednesday, September 22. The bonus features also include golf tips from Bobby, bloopers, deleted scenes, the producers and cast talking about how the show has evolved, a vignette on why they chose to set the show in Florida, and a hilarious “Ask Barb” series to answer all of your burning “how to be a cougar” questions.