Reviews

I fell in love with Party of Five after I caught the last 10 minuets of the second episode when it first aired. I was an extremely awkward 12 year old and I had just started 7th grade. I was completely in love with Scott Wolf. I wrote him fan letters and bought every teen magazine with him in it, that I could get my hands on. I had falsely remembered that I had been obsessed with the first season but then quit watching it after. I was so jealous of Sara that I couldn't even watch. Oh my god! I was a weird child. I received the first season on DVD for my 23rd birthday. Because I thought that this was the only good season I was content only watching that one, over and over again every so often.

Then, earlier this year I bought the 3rd season on itunes. I was really just bored and thought it would be mildly entertaining. All of the sudden, I remembered that I did watch it when it first aired. By then I was a Freshman in high school. I remembered that I would pop in to watch it every now and then because the commercials kept making it seem like Bailey and Sara were going to break up. I remember being totally disgusted and almost heartbroken that Bailey had turned into an alcoholic. Now, I myself, am a recovering alcoholic. I have to say that the entire season is a very honest account of all the emotions, good, bad, and ugly, that go in to alcoholism. I commend the writers for letting a heartbreaking story happen to such a beloved character. That is exactly what alcoholism does. I think back to the horror, anger, and sadness that I felt towards Bailey back in the 9th grade and I am reminded of the way I felt about my self. It helps to bring everything full circle and to get an outside view, a glimpse at what it's like to watch someone hate themselves so much. For anyone struggling, there is hope. I have been sober for 3 years, but I have not only recovered from alcoholism but from a general frustration with yourself and life. That's what so honest about this show. Bailey's problems begin before he gets into too much trouble. This is because things aren't going his way. Alcohol at that point is his solution. That is why people feel so much guilt about their problems, even today when it is largely accepted as a disease. They feel like they have chosen the wrong solution, but it was the only one? Anyway. It is also super real how by the end of the season he is always drunk but you never see him drinking. Brill!!!

I was extremely moved by this documentary. It was on par for me with Country Boys; perhaps even more because I share a gender with the women in this film. My childhood was nowhere near the experience of these women and yet I found a deep sense of empathy and understanding for what they were going through. I was impressed with their ability to articulate their lives. That was something I couldn't do until I was 30. I suffered from a childhood of emotional neglect and was extremely moved at the things Vanessa said to her mother and then again later by the things Megan said to Vanessa when they were in the car. A girl needs her mother!!! The system that these girls were put through certainly did help them. It gave them a narrative that they could work with. Language is everything!