Product Description

Join Emmy(R) and Golden Globe(R) Award winner America Ferrera in the acclaimed comedy that will have you laughing out loud and cheering for TV's favorite fish out of water. It's a year of change for Betty and her friends at Mode. With the future of the magazine up in the air, a new roommate and the ever-changing carousel of office relationships spinning faster than ever, Betty's life is full of surprises. On top of it all, Betty's move to the big city has her wondering whether she truly belongs in her new fast-paced world. Dive into the vibrant scene of high fashion with the most charismatic cast on television. Experience every episode of Season Three, complete with never-before-seen bonus features, in this six-disc set. Full of fun and bursting with heart, you can't help but fall for Ugly Betty.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2358 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-09-22
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 6
• Running time: 1032 minutes

Amazon.com
With this third-season boxed set (24 episodes, plus bonus material, on six discs), Ugly Betty continues one of television's most adroit balancing acts. Is the series, which chronicles the urban adventures of young Betty Suarez (American Ferrera), the archetypal fish out of water making her way through the cutthroat world of high fashion, a comedy? A nighttime soap opera? A serious drama? Well, yes. There are a lot of other words to describe it--outrageous, flamboyant, tender, absurd, cartoony, poignant, arch, bright, kinetic--but most of all, Ugly Betty remains compulsively watchable because it's entertaining, pure and simple.

As ever, the show does a nimble job of simultaneously maintaining multiple plot lines. Some of them last nearly the entire season, like Betty's leaving the family house in Queens to live on her own in a Manhattan apartment, the struggles of Meade Publications, parent company of Mode Magazine (Betty's principal employer), to deal with ongoing financial issues (exacerbated by a major embezzlement sub-plot in mid-season), or the endless power plays involving villainess Wilhelmina Slater (Vanessa Williams) and various members of the Meade family. Other developments, and there are many, unfold over just a few episodes. Some of the best of these are Betty's re-acquaintance with Kimmie (a perfectly cast Lindsay Lohan), a former high school nemesis whom Betty helps find a job; Betty's membership in the Young Editors Training Program (YETI), which brings her into conflict with Marc (Michael Urie), Wilhelmina's flagrantly gay assistant; numerous Suarez family issues, including father Ignacio's (Tony Plana) heart attack; and, of course, the tangled love lives of Betty and virtually every other character of note. Through it all, Betty is awkward, naive, and hopelessly unhip, but also smart, creative, and sincere; she remains the one beacon of purity in a world where everyone's out to get everyone else.

Ugly Betty is beautifully crafted--it's well-written, nicely acted, and deftly edited, and the bonus material (deleted scenes, episode commentary, bloopers, etc.) is fine (newcomers will be grateful for the "starter kit," which introduces the major characters and storylines). One wonders, though, how long it can sustain itself. If Betty finally blossoms into "normality," the show's over; but if the emphasis on cutesy quirks continues, there's sure to be some shark-jumping in the near future. Stay tuned for further developments. --Sam Graham

Customer Reviews

A lot of drama, a lot of crazy moments but for the most part, an entertaining, solid third season for `UGLY BETTY'
"UGLY BETTY", a series that captured the attention of millions of viewers with its heartwarming and hilarious storyline and it helps that the series is an adaptation of the popular Colombian telenovela "Betty la fea" by Fernando Gaitan. The series revolved around Betty Suarez (America Ferrera, "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" films, "Lords of Dogtown"), a woman with a kind heart and is always giving. The problem is that she is not fashionable, known for her thick hair, eyebrows and big glasses and braces.

Featuring even more celebrity guest appearances and exciting episodes, "UGLY BETTY - The Complete Third Season" features 24 episodes on six discs. Included are (spoiler-less summaries):

DISC: 1

* EPISODE 42 - The Manhattan Project - Wilhelmina is now Editor-in-Chief at Mode, while Daniel runs another magazine and Betty makes her return. While her father Ignacio get s a job at a fast food restaurant.
* EPISODE 43 - Filing for the Enemy - Daniel knows he is up to a custody battle for Daniel Jr., meanwhile Betty becomes Wilhelmina's assistant.
* EPISODE 44 - Crimes of Fashion - Christina is injured and Wilhelmina's baby is in trouble. But who at Mode Magazine is responsible for the accident?
* EPISODE 45 - Betty Suarez Land - With Gio's return, Betty thinks they can continue to be friends but she finds out that he doesn't want to have anything to do with her.

DISC 2:

* EPISODE 46 - Granny Pants - Kimmie visits Betty and asks for help to get her a job at Mode. But despite all the bad things Kimmie did to Betty in the past, maybe she's changed.
* EPISODE 47 - Ugly Berry - Kimmie has become Assistant Editor at Mode and steals Betty's spotlight.
* EPISODE 48 - Crush'd - Jesse becomes attracted to her neighbor/musician Jesse. Amanda needs a place to live after being evicted and lives with Betty temporarily. Can Betty stand her new roommate?
* EPISODE 49 - Tornado Girl - With the MODE Magazine upper management on a retreat, Betty is in charge but with a tornado on its way, Betty must avert a PR nightmare. Can she pull it off? Meanwhile, Marc must make a major decision.

DISC 3:

* EPISODE 50 - When Betti Met YETI - Betty and Marc apply to YETI (The Young Editors Training Program) and become each other's rival. Daniel starts to become more attracted to his friend's wife, Molly.
* EPISODE 51 - Bad Amanda - Betty and Amanda must work on an article "How I Blew Ten Grand Without Spending a Dime".
* EPISODE 52 - Dress For Success - Betty wants to impress her idol Jodie Papadakis, editor of YETI. Meanwhile, she meets her match with ELLE Magazine's Teri.
* EPISODE 53 - Sisters on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown - Betty and Hilda have sister problems and Daniel and Molly, Wilhemina and Connor have an affair.

DISC 4:

* EPISODE 54 - Kissed Off - Connor tries to find out who is admiring his wife, Molly. And musician Jesse starts to distract Betty once again.
* EPISODE 55 - The Courtship of Betty's Father - Betty works on a video tribute for Claire Meade's 60th Birthday but by leaving the camera at home, she discovers something about her father.
* EPISODE 56 - There's No Place Like Mode - Wilhelmina starts to worry that this affair is affecting her job and a new face joins MODE Magazine.
* EPISODE 57 - Things Fall Apart - With YETI having Betty and Marc analyzing the magazine's budget, she discovers a surprising discovery. Meanwhile, Betty sees that Henry is trying to friend her on Facebook and we learn something surprising about Molly.

DISC 5:

* EPISODE 58 - Sugar Daddy - With the Suarez's landlord wanting to sell their house, they must find a rental home. Meanwhile, Ignacio takes part in a TV cook-off.
* EPISODE 59 - A Mother of a Problem - The Suarez family try to hook Hilda up with City Councilman, Archie from Queens.
* EPISODE 60 - The Sex Issue - Wilhelmina and Daniel decide to do an issue all about sex. Matt wants to take his relationship with Betty to a higher level.
* EPISODE 61 - Rabbit Test - The Suarez get an invitation to meet Matt's billionaire father at his Easter Egg Hunt event. Meanwhile, Wilhelmina thinks that William might not be her biological son.

DISC 6:

* EPISODE 62 - The Born Identity - Matt's billionaire father is willing to bail Mode Magazine, meanwhile baby William has been kidnapped.
* EPISODE 63 - In the Stars - Betty must work with Matt and Marc on their final YETI project. Meanwhile, Claire and Wilhelmina square off against each other. Someone gets married...
* EPISODE 64 - Curveball - Betty agrees to move in with Matt but while things go good in her new relationship, her former fiance returns to New York.
* EPISODE 65 - The Fall Issue - With the passing of an editor at Mode, this leaves a position open and Betty and Marc compete for it. Meanwhile, Wilhelmina has dirt on Claire and wants her to resign. Meanwhile, things go terrible for Betty and a someone dies.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

"UGLY BETTY" is presented in Widescreen (1:78:1) and is enhanced for 16×9 televisions. Production for "UGLY BETY" is quite slick and for a drama series, picture quality is along the same lines as abc studio's other DVD releases. Which is pretty good and compression artifacts and low light noise is not as visible.

As for audio, "UGLY BETTY" is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The series is front and center channel driven. Dialogue is clear, music is clear and overall, not a series to expect a lot of sound effects on your surround channels but for the most part, dialogue is understandable.

Subtitles are in English SDH, French and Spanish.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"UGLY BETTY - The Complete Third Season" includes the following special features:

DISC 1:

* Mode After Hours: Six "Mode After Hours" episodes featuring Marc St. James (Michael Urie) and best friend Amanda Tanen (Becki Newton) in hilarious episodes featuring what they do at Mode after hours. Included are the following episodes: "Gwadalaharahh", "Friend-iversary Vlog", "Bowling for Cliff", "Slumber Party Secrets", "Sommer's Seance" and "Trapped in the Elevator".
* Deleted Scenes - Three deleted scenes are included on Disc 1: What Are You Doing Here?, Don't Let that Foam Fizzle, Lettuce

DISC 2:

* Audio Commentary for "Crush'd" with Executive Producers/Writers Tracy Poust & Jon Kinnally and Co-Executive Producer/Director Victor Nelli Jr.
* Deleted Scenes - Five deleted scenes are included on Disc 2: A Bitch Never Changes Her Stripes, You are My Hag, The Roof, Go Get'Em, You Must Be Molly

DISC 3:

* Deleted Scene - Only one deleted scene Disc 3 titled "No Shoes!"

DISC 4:

* Deleted Scenes - Two deleted scenes on Disc 4: Either Way I'm Cool and Good Amanda

Disc 5:

* Look Who Keeps Popping Up - View "The Sex Issue" with video commentary hosted by Michael Urie & Becki Newton along with several surprising guests. We see two screens side-by-side, on the left there is commentary with the right screen showcasing the episode.

Disc 6:

* Coming Home to New York City - (12:43) We learn how "UGLY BETTY" is shot in Los Angeles but how the series moved to New York and how the cast found out that the show is moving to another location and how they all reacted. How New York is essential to "UGLY BETTY" and the best way to capture the city is to go back to New York. Interviews with the executive producers and cast members.
* Mode After Hours - Two "Mode After Hours" episodes featuring Marc St. James (Michael Urie) and best friend Amanda Tanen (Becki Newton) in hilarious episodes featuring what they do at Mode after hours. Included are the following episodes: "I Spy" and "Prank Calls".
* Deleted Scenes - Seven deleted scenes are included on Disc 6 which include You Can Wow Anyone You Set Your Mind To, Padded Walls, I Fell Like I'm Dating Daniel, To Be Terminated, It's Just a Nice Buff, Your New Trophy Wife and the Wedding Dance
* Betty Bloops - (8:39) Bloopers from "UGLY BETTY" Season 3.

JUDGMENT CALL:

"UGLY BETTY" continues to have another solid, stellar year with season 3. If there is one thing that is consistent with the series is that the writing has always been top notched since the very first episode and most importantly, the cast has been quite awesome for the series. The series has been nothing but a pleasure to watch and see Betty's journey as a professional but also in her personal life. Everything seems to come together and work.

With this third season, there is quite a bit of laughter, typical backstabbing but even more emotional, dramatic scenes. The season finale for this third season of "UGLY BETTY" was very well done and the best so far.

Of course, this season had a lot of hype with what went on behind-the-scenes between Lindsay Lohan and the cast and crew. Whether or not the gossip surrounding what took place behind-the-scenes were true or not, the gossip definitely made people want to turn in to see this rivalry between Betty and Kimmie. Another actor who brought some interest in the show was "Karate Kid" actor Ralph Macchio who played the city councilman that Hilda was interested in. Pretty interesting role and hopefully we see more of him.

The third season also had featured episodes that had focused on character development of Marc, Amanda and Claire's character. Also, the other characters brought in to the series helped bring out emotions that we have never seen from our main characters. For example, Molly brought out the best in Daniel Meade. In fact, this season was a dramatic season for Daniel as he had to deal with a custody battle, a family member who may go to prison and then facing loss. It was good to see Daniel being put through these rollercoaster type of events.

Last but not least, this DVD release of "UGLY BETTY - The Complete Third Season" is solid. I found the featurettes such as the "Mode After Hour" web episodes and the "Coming Home to New York City" cool special features but also seeing the "Look Who Keeps Popping Up" video commentary. I hope in the next season's DVD release, we get more of that.

Overall, there's nothing negative I can say about this season of "UGLY BETTY". Last year, was hit by the Writer's Guild Strike and thus shortened to 18 episodes but fortunately, this third season, the move to New York, solid acting performances and writing definitely made this season the best in the series thus far.

"UGLY BETTY" fans, "UGLY BETTY - The Complete Third Season" is highly recommended!

Ugly Betty.........You're Beautiful.
Ugly Betty's 3rd Season continues to deliver a show with a lot of laughs and a lot of heart.

The show's writing, performances, story lines are solid.
In this season we see the disappearance of some key characters and the addition of new ones. All new characters are played by strong actors and even though they are mostly "bad", they are good to watch....

On removing some characters: Personally, I was sorry to see Christina go. I loved this character and her relationship to Betty. I am not sure why she was taken out of the show. I hope they replace her with a quirky fashion designer at Mode who will be instrumental in getting Betty to change her look.

While I liked Molly's character and the actress who played her, I found that there was no chemistry between Daniel and her. I am glad that she was let go, although of course it was sad that they did it through a terminally-ill story line.

Henry came back for a short stint at the end of the season. I have loved this character and was very unhappy to see him leave the show, especially with the pregnant-girlfriend story line. But oddly enough, I was not happy to see him again. That's because Matt, Betty's new boyfriend, is just amazing. It's a tribute to the writers and the actor who plays Matt that after Henry's story line, I was really into the Betty/Matt story. I was sorry to see how they ended the season; and have no hope that they will hook up again. That's a shame. But it's plots like these that make the show interesting.

The actor who plays Mark continues to give amazing performances, effortlessly switching from bad to good guy. Also excellent performances by the actresses who play Amanda, and Hilda.

One of the weak links in the show right now, is Ralph Macchio, who plays Hilda's new boyfriend....There is no chemistry there, and it's hard to see Hilda falling for him considering the last 2 boyfriends she had...He still has a baby face and every time I see him, I think of his role in The Karate Kid. They need to give him a devilish side, or get rid of this character all together.

The other problem I find with the show is that it's becoming increasingly difficult to believe that after 3 seasons, Betty has not learned a single thing about fashion. She continues to dress in the ugliest, most miss-matched outfits ever imaginable. For someone who is so intelligent, it's hard to accept that she doesn't adapt some of the fashion savvy around her, and update her look a bit. I understand that the show is about "Ugly" Betty, but it's just not credible that working in a high-fashion environment does not rub off on her, even slowly, bit by bit, season by season.

On the other hand, it's true that there will be a huge impact when we see Betty lose her ugliness (very likely in the show's final season). And truth be told, at present, it is now very clear that the only ugly thing about Betty is her wardrobe. Her personality is so charming, her love of life so contagious, her heart so big, that it's impossible to think of her as ugly, and more and more likely to see her beauty.

Regardless of the couple of problems I mentioned, the show still deserves 5 stars. The good elements more than make up for the bad.

One final note. At the end of season 3 we see Daniel and Betty getting even closer together, due to Molly's death, and Betty's breakup with Matt. I don't know if the writers are planning for Daniel and Betty to end up together, as was the case in the original Spanish-language telenovela on which this show is based ("Betty La Fea"); but if this is the case, they do seem to be doing a good job in having Daniel's personality evolve enough to fall in love with someone for her inner rather than outer beauty.

For this and all the other good reasons, this show is definitely BEAUTIFUL.

A bit of a disappointment after the first two seasons
I hate to give less than a good rating for this show, partly because I enjoyed it so much in the first two seasons and partly because it is part of a format under siege from the networks, long story arc TV. But sadly I think the show lost a lot of its force. More about this further down.

The major networks are nearly on the verge of killing off most long story arc TV series. It is not difficult to understand why. Overwhelmingly the best shows on TV are long story arc serials. FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS, MAD MEN, BREAKING BAD, DOLLHOUSE, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, LOST, DEXTER, THE WIRE, IN TREATMENT, BIG LOVE, and TRUE BLOOD would be accounted among the most critically acclaimed shows on TV. All are long story arc serials. On the other hand, you have a host of procedurals that are popular with fans, but have no critical acclaim whatsoever and do poorly at the Emmys and Golden Globes, like the CSI shows, the LAW AND ORDER shows, THE MENTALIST, and similar shows. CBS has a schedule almost completely filled with procedurals and episodic shows that feature no long story arcs. CBS's shows are the least critically acclaimed on TV, but CBS is far and away the highest rated network in terms of viewers. There is, therefore, a growing rift between those shows that TV critics and more discriminating TV viewers celebrate as the best that television has to offer, and those shows that a majority of people choose to watch. The reason that the episodic procedurals do so well is the very low demands that they place on viewers. If you jump into the middle of MAD MEN, you will be lost. There will be a host of subtleties that make it impossible to follow. These very nuances are the reason that fans take such enormous delight in the show.

Which leads me to UGLY BETTY. The show is definitely not episodic. The conflict in one episode almost always carries over into the next. Some of the arcs are very long. Most are relatively short, going over 3 or 4 episodes. I'm sure some of this is in way of a compromise with ABC. My major concern with the show has been the increasing triviality of the arc. The events on the show more and more have little or not import. It is as if in attempting to satirize Latin American soap opera all they are concerned with is doing something reasonably outrageous, not something that takes us more deeply into the characters. Perhaps not all will agree with me. But I found in Season Three that I was coming to care less and less what happened to the major characters. I came to feel a disconnect because things didn't seem to change to a believable degree. I mean, take the way Betty dresses. Yes, yes, I know. She is supposed to be different. But she works at a frakkin' fashion magazine! I know the title of the show has "ugly" in it, but America Ferrara's wig and glued on eye brows and clip on braces is getting a little tiring. I suppose that what I am complaining about is that the show hasn't really managed any substantial character development over three seasons, despite the story details that we are given each week. I suppose I'm also a bit put off by the ease with which they dispense of important characters. Some of these have been effective, but some just seemed casual. The elimination of Rebecca Romijn was especially troubling (though she was not pregnant when she was written out of the show, her departure did eliminate the need to either explain how the transsexual Alexis or at least how to hide her pregnancy), which seemed to be primarily a cost cutting move. Ashley Jensen also departed the show, though in her case it appeared to have more to be her choice. She was reputedly not terribly happy about the move of the show to New York (the show was shot in L.A. the first two seasons). And the show suffered from not having any kind of adequate replacement for the departure of Henry and Gio from the show. I suppose the way I can express my overall disatisfaction with the show is that I no longer have any kind of sense that anyone in charge of the show has any kind of vision about where the show is going. It isn't, in short, a show telling a story, despite its embrace of the long story arc; it is telling stories. It has failed to transcend in any way the soap opera format. I even found myself unmoved by Daniel's marriage to a woman who was dying. I can handle a lot of melodrama, but that was too melodramatic even for my taste.

The show did well, at least, in its move to NYC. We got a lot of delightful external shots of the city. The offices of Mode remained the same, probably all the result of a soundstage. Visually the show really took off.

The fourth season of UGLY BETTY could well be its last. ABC has moved it out of its Thursday night slot -- replacing it with what looks to be the best upcoming new series by ABC, FLASHFORWARD -- and has moved it to Friday night. Right now it appears that it will be shown in the 9 EST slot. Given that one of my favorite shows, DOLLHOUSE, is in the same timeslot, UGLY BETTY will remain a DVR show for me (on Thursdays I've been watching SMALLVILLE for years -- it ironically has also been moved to Fridays, though in the 8 EST slot, giving me a SMALLVILLE/DOLLHOUSE Friday double bill). This shift to Fridays could well be the beginning of the end for Betty and Mode. Most shows that do well on Fridays are geared at seniors (THE GHOST WHISPERER, for instance, does well in an older demographic). DOLLHOUSE had weak ratings, but because it was the #1 time-shifted show on TV (i.e., people did not watch it live, but either on DVR, via streaming off FOX.com, or by download from iTunes or Amazon Unbox--it was also very heavily watched via Torrents) it managed to live. But they don't call Fridays the "Death Slot" for nothing. My gut tells me that Season Four will be the show's last. I hope that we see some growth and development before it ends. Betty's teeth look pretty darned straight! Lose the braces! And I'd like to see them take some real risks with the characters, instead of the pseudo risks that they have in the past. I haven't given up on the show quite yet. But it isn't must-see TV for me any longer. Hopefully that will change in the show's fourth season.