THE MOVIE

The second series of Kath & Kim continues on from where the first series left off. Kath Day (Jane Turner) and Kel Knight (Glenn Robbins) are now married, although they haven’t been able to consummate their marriage as Kath’s libido has gone AWOL since the accident at the wedding. Kim (Gina Riley) falls pregnant in this series, but she and Brett (Peter Rowsthorn) are still having their fair share of problems though. The second series once again stars Magda Szubanski as Kim’s second best friend and there are some great cameos by some other well known Australian actors. Here’s a more detailed look at each episode.

DISC 1
Episode 1 - The Announcement
Kim’s marriage is up the proverbial. Brett can’t handle her moods and breaks it off again, but she convinces him to take her back and soon they’ve got a big announcement, they’re going to try for a baby. Meanwhile, Kath’s libido has gone AWOL ever since the accident at the wedding, so she and Kel visit Marianne the guidance counsellor for some advice.

Episode 2 - Inside Out
Kel is really starting to get up Kath’s goat, he’s far too considerate, doing all the cooking and cleaning, and there’s nothing for her to do. Kim and Brett have another announcement, they are now officially renovating, they’ve even got matching shirts like the couples on Changing Rooms. Kath pays a visit and tries to help out, but ends up taking over.

Episode 3 – The Moon
Brett is working for the next 48 hours straight and Kim is bored. To make matters worse, Sharon is spending time with an old school friend, so what is Kim going to do with herself on Saturday night? Kath is trying to book the honeymoon her and Kel never had, but he can’t really afford it because of the bloody GST. Thankfully they win a mystery flight.

Episode 4 - Obsession
Kath and Kel are so tired from their current get fit campaign and their low carbohydrate diet that they don’t have any energy left for extracurricular activities. Will they keep up the hard work or take the easy way out and have some work done? Meanwhile, Kim is doing her best to get Brett a promotion and Sharon has taken up river dancing so she can impress Mark.

DISC 2
Episode 5 - My Boyfriend
Sharon and Mark are now officially an item and she’s got some severe pash rash. He seems to be really good at everything, but can he play netball? Kath is doing a TAFE course in floral design and is stressing about her final assessment, a floral hat. Brett is also having lots of difficulty trying to assemble the IKEA change table for the baby.

Episode 6 - Another Announcement
Brett doesn’t want to go the birth classes, so Kim asks Sharon to go with her. Kath and Kim are also busily thinking up names for the new baby. Kath also seems to be getting a little bit clucky with all this baby talk, is there going to be another big announcement… Meanwhile, poor old Brett seems to be experiencing a sympathetic pregnancy.

Episode 7 - The Shower
Kel’s best mate Sandy Freckle arrives in town, he’s off to the wrestling with Kel and Brett, who’s been camping outside Festival Hall to ensure they get front row tickets. Kath is spending quite a bit of time with Sandy though and Kel is getting a little suspicious. Kim and Sharon are busily preparing for the baby shower.

Episode 8 - The Hideous Truth
Kim is just about to give birth, but Brett can’t be there because he has to be at the new Computa City store in Maribynong for the grand opening. During this final episode everyone is having flashbacks to their past and after the baby is born, Kath’s ex-husband Gary (Mick Molloy) shows up, leaving the way open for a third series.

THE TRANSFER

Video:

Kath & Kim - Series 2 is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 widescreen and it is also 16:9 enhanced. The transfer is really good and is quite comparable to the first series, the level of detail is great and it holds up well during the day time scenes, although a little background noise is evident during some of the dimly lit interior scenes and night time scenes.

Some people have complained about the shaky camera movement in this series, I didn’t find it to be too bad, at least it didn’t seem to contribute to any artefacting. The series is also free of film grain and film artefacts. Once again colours are nice and bright, especially some of the jumpers worn by Jane Turner, flesh tones are realistic.

Audio:

Both DVDs in this two-disc box set feature Dolby Digital 2.0 channel sound. Once again dialogue is clearly audible throughout all 8 episodes and there didn’t appear to be any audio synch problems. Similarly, the narrative by Jane Turner, Gina Riley when they’re thinking to themselves is highly intelligible. Unfortunately this DVD doesn’t come with any subtitles. The music is great and there are a number of songs which are actually performed by Gina Riley.

THE EXTRAS

Yumor & More Yumorous
This is essentially a montage of outtakes from the series, with some rather humorous stuff-ups by all of the cast members involved. All outtakes are presented in 1.85:1 widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 channel sound. Total running time is around 10 minutes (5.58 minutes on Disc 1 and 4.12 minutes on Disc 2).

Wine Time
Extended/alternate wine time scenes from most of the episodes in the series. These scenes have been shot from a different angle and are presented in as aspect ratio of 1.85:1 widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 channel sound. Total running time is around 8 minutes (4.30 minutes on Disc 1 and 3.51 minutes on Disc 2).

Bit of Huffy Puffy (Disc 1)
Here you will find a short sequence where Kath and Kel are doing some training at the gym. This is an extended version of the scene in Episode 4. Running time is 1.15 minutes.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie (Disc 2)
This is a deleted/extended scene where Sharon is having all sorts of trouble at the interview to become a volunteer for the Commonwealth Games and trying to sing Advance Australia Fair. Running time is 3.06 minutes.

Stuff ‘Im (Disc 2)
I’m not too sure what this, but it looks like a short (23 seconds) deleted scene where Sharon is out partying with Kim and Mark and getting it on with one of the waiting staff at the bar.

Get the Gist & Really Get The Gist
This is a collection of different scenes from the series, perhaps to give a quick wrap-up of the entire second series. Total running time is around 9 minutes (4.13 minutes on Disc 1 and 4.36 minutes on Disc 2).

SUMMARY

Series 2 of Kath & Kim continues on from where the first series left off. Kath and Kel are now married and living together. Kim and Brett are still having their fair share of problems though. This two-disc set features all 8 episodes from the series, as well some bonus footage. The second series also features quite a number of cameos by well known Australian actors including Tony Martin, Vince Colosimo, Kate Atkinson, Judith Lucy and Mick Molloy.