Private Practice is a spin-off of the highly popular ABC series Grey s Anatomy starring Kate Walsh as Dr. Addison Forbes Montgomery, a renowned neonatal surgeon. After realizing that her life isn t advancing at Seattle Grace, Addison packs her bags and heads off to Santa Monica to start a new life. She reunites with her newly divorced med school friends, Naomi (Audra McDonald) and Sam (Taye Diggs), and joins them in the chic private practice along with the other doctors on staff.
Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh, Grey's Anatomy) leaves behind McDreamy, McSteamy, and McSeattle to join California's Oceanside Wellness Center, a private practice that was founded by two best friends from med school. But if she's expecting a drama-free existence, she's in the wrong place. Naomi (Audra McDonald) and Sam (Taye Diggs) Bennett are the perfect couple who aren't together anymore. Pediatrician Cooper Freedman (Paul Adelstein) is a horny Peter Pan looking for love on the Internet. Violet Turner (Amy Brenneman) is a psychiatrist who can dish out the advice, but can't get over her own breakup to a man who has clearly moved on. And then there's Pete Wilder (Tim Daly), an alternative-medicine practitioner so good-looking and charming that Addison can't stop crushing on him, even though she dismisses his brand of practice as New Age-y. Created by Grey's Anatomy's Shonda Rhimes to capitalize on Walsh's popularity, Private Practice has some screwy moments that don't fall in line with Addison's cosmopolitan character. Are we really to believe that Addison is so messed up that she really believes the elevator is talking to her? That conceit would've worked on Ally McBeal's titular heroine, but on Addison Montgomery? We don't think so. The show, which was affected by the writer's strike of 2007, lacks cohesiveness in the truncated 10 episodes on this DVD box set. But still, the series shows promise. Though some of the plot devises are melodramatic at best (Sam has to deliver the baby of a woman who had been robbing the store just moments before), viewers end up rooting for the quirky characters to get their personal lives in order. Though we're supposed to be longing for Addison and Pete to couple up, and for the Bennetts to realize that their divorce was a mistake, it's really Cooper and Violet who have all the makings to be the show's most intriguing couple. The debut season showed some interesting plot devices: two couples whose babies were mistakenly exchanged at birth; a senior citizen with unexplainable bruising on his body; and one of the female characters dealing with her own infertility issues. But the thrust of the show is how the doctors work and play together. Talking to one of her patients, Addison says, "Everyone screws up once in awhile." That can also be the motto for the Oceanside Wellness Center. --Jae-Ha Kim Stills from Private Practice: The Complete First Season (Click for larger image)
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
One of the best shows on TV!:
Private Practice is not just another DOCTOR series. Since it is not a hospital setting, there are many different aspects of personal and professional life that are explored. GREAT show.
Beware:
Amazon always has a good selection of merchandise, but before you purchase anything from Amazon shop around, because you often can find cheaper prices at different online venders. Amazon will not match prices either, so buyer beware. I learned this the hard way. Great product, but watch out!!!
Not as good as Greys, but worth the money:
This show was highly anticipated, but did not quite live up to the Greys' reputation (as most spinoffs don't). However, it is definitely worth the money, and you will love some of the characters. The plots are pretty fun and the relationships between the characters are intriguing. Overall, if you loved Greys, you will probably love this one, just not quite as much. Enjoy!
Private Practice DVD Review:
This show is great! Its just like Greys Anatomy, which is awesome. I feel like I am getting a double dose of Greys. Addison was one of my favorite charactors on Greys so this show being about her to great. I also like that is following doctors in an office and not in a hospital. Makes it different and allows for different story lines.
