Little House on The Prairie - Season 6  (out 03 May 10, Cert. PG)

Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, Melissa Gilbert, Melissa Sue Anderson, Dean Butler , originally broadcast in the U.S. from September 79 to May 80, 24 episodes, cert. PG

MonkeyScore: 66%

Episodes List: Back To School 1 & 2, The Family Tree, The Third Miracle, Annabelle, The Preacher Takes A Wife, The Halloween Dream, The Return Of Mr Edwards, The King Is Dead, The Faith Healer, Author! Author!, Crossed Connections, The Angry Heart, The Werewolf Of Walnut Grove, Whatever Happened To The Class Of '56, Darkness Is My Friend, Silent Promises, May We Make Them Proud 1 & 2, Wilder and Wilder, Second Spring, Sweet Sixteen, He Loves Me He Loves Me Not 1 & 2

Set in Minnesota in the 1870s, Little House on the Prairie is based on the autobiographic works of Laura Ingalls Wilder. It follows the adventures young Laura (Melissa Gilbert), her sisters Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson) and Carrie, their parents Charles (Michael Landon) and Caroline (Karen Grassle) and their friends in the small town of Walnut Grove. Season 6 sees Laura Ingalls turning becoming a teacher, turning sixteen and falling in love. It's also the season during which Albert officially becomes Charles and Caroline's son, while Mary & husband Adam suffer the loss of their baby boy.

While season 6 lacks the charm of earlier seasons as Laura Ingalls becomes a grown-up, and daddy's little Half Pint isn't quite as cute and cheeky as she was in the earlier series. Still it has plenty of the usual Walnut Grove shenanigans that made the show so successful in the first place. There is plenty of drama to go around, with some fairly major characters being landed serious blows: you may want to keep a box of tissues nearby, just in case! Alongside the tearjerkers there are also some rather fun episodes, too. Most of the comic relief comes courtesy of Olesons. The ever so annoying Nellie finally gets put in her place, Harriet's incessant gossiping & meddling causes the usual havoc, while long-suffering Nels even gets close to calling it a day. Unfortunately the main thread throughout the season is not much of a cliffhanger, with the answer spelt out in the opening credits: there is little need to hold your breath before finding out who wins the affections of eligible bachelor Almanzo Wilder, since the series is based on books by Laura Ingalls Wilder (geddit?!?) Still, the premise gives Laura and Nellie a last chance to have one of their trademark cat fights before growing up. All in season 6 is a well-rounded affair, which only has a couple of daft episodes (The Halloween Dream, for instance.) Little House On The Prairie season 6 is great if you only have time to dip in and out for a quick trip down memory lane - and a perfectly formed treat for all fans of the series.