Reba: The Complete Sixth Season

Back in 2006, when the WB merged with UPN to create the youth-centric CW, Reba was sitting pretty as the highest rated sitcom on the WB, with a two-year renewal deal. Thing is, Reba McEntire, for all her kookiness, doesn't really mesh with the Gossip Girl crowd, causing CW executives to try backing out of the deal, much to the surprise of Fox (which produced the show), which promptly rejected this last minute change. Some drama swirled around about the season five finale being re-edited to be a series finale until eventually a 13-episode sixth season was ordered, featuring the occasional barbed comment from Reba about underhanded corporate dealings. These would be the final episodes of the series despite consistently high ratings and a loyal fan base. Thankfully, the CW was able to fill the void with such stellar programming as 4Real, Stylista and Pussycat Dolls Present. This sixth season offered up more of the same, with family-friendly Christian humour appeasing the country music crowd while Reba cocked her head and offered a trademark grin after every single punch line. It's pretty lame but luckily kept its target demo from assassinating abortion doctors on Sunday nights. Things open up with Barbra Jean (Melissa Peterman) revealing a significantly slimmer body, much to the chagrin of Reba (Reba McEntire) and simultaneous excitement and anxiety from her husband, Brock (Christopher Rich). A few episodes delve into weight loss and body image issues, with Barbra Jean accidentally eating a Windex covered rice cake, until this grows tired and an impending divorce occupies the remaining episodes. Meanwhile, Cheyenne (Joanna Garcia) and Van (Steve Howey) announce a new pregnancy and start shopping around for a new house, which they promptly burn down because. Kyra (Scarlett Pomers) and Jake (Mitch Holleman) are mostly AWOL this season, given budgetary cuts. The DVD crams all 13-episodes onto a single double-sided DVD and offers no special features, which isn't a huge surprise given the bitchy manner in which the show was disposed of.