TV Shows On DVD – February 19, 2008

I made a rather conscious decision at the start of the Writers Strike not to promote new DVDs of TV shows on what seemed at the time to be the very sound grounds that if people held off on buying new DVDs until after the strike ended the writers would be paid at an improved residual rate, and besides it would hurt the movie studios. Of course the first part of that idea came a cropper when the WGA dropped the demand for improved DVD residuals just to get AMPTP to the bargaining table, but the principle remains valid and I stuck to it. But now of course the strike is over so...

As always, the source material for the list of DVDs comes from TVShowsonDVD.com but the comments are all mine.

6teen: Snow Job
6Teen is a Canadian-made animated series about six 16 year-olds working – or slacking off on – part time jobs in the Galleria Mall somewhere in North America. The episode Snow Job was a one hour special to wrap up the show's second season in the same way that the one hour special Dude of the Living Dead wrapped up the first season. The DVD appears to only have a one hour running time – the length of the special – rather than the three half hour episodes that are contained on regular season DVDs from the series. Also, this DVD only appears to be available in Canada at present.

Peanuts: It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown
I've seen the "Easter Beagle" special described as a bit of a let down on the part of the producers in as much as it borrows ideas from the Halloween Special (the Easter Beagle is equivalent to the Great Pumpkin) and the Thanksgiving one (Peppermint Patty and Marcie's kitchen mishaps), but really, who cares? The DVD also contains the Arbor Day special (wait, there was an Arbor Day special) and a featurette called In Full Bloom: Peanuts at Easter. Best of all this is the second in a series of remastered rereleases.

Class of the Titans Chaos
This is another show that I've never seen, which goes to show just how little I watch Canada's Teletoon Network which produces the show. As nearly as I can tell this DVD is only available in Canada. The disk apparently contains the first three episodes of this series about the descendants of various heroes of Greek mythology brought together by the ancient Greek gods to combat the menace of the escaped Titan Chronos.

Coach: The Third Season
I was never a huge fan of Coach. It just never held my interest, although there were members of my family who loved it. Basically, all I can tell you about this season is that by the end Hayden (Craig T. Nelson) and Christine (Shelley Fabares) are engaged even thought the broke up earlier in the year.

Cops: 20th Anniversary Edition
I've seen it argued – quite convincingly – that this is the first real reality show. Another series that has never really done it for me, I suppose because it has a sort of "trailer trash" quality that doesn't really work for me. As the title says though, it's been on the air for twenty years so they must be doing something right for somebody.

Father Ted: The Holy Trilogy
The whole thing. All three seasons of this series which has an almost legendary status among people who've seen it (guess what; I'm not one of the people wh has seen it). There are commentaries for each season (or series as the Brits call them), interviews with the writers/creators, and some other extras.

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Vol. 1
This will likely come as near sacrilege to a lot of you but I have in fact seen episodes of this series... I just never liked it. When it comes down to it, the series was really one giant animated commercial for the Mattel toys and I don't recall them really selling all that well. Another thing is that the series was produced by Filmation, a studio which frankly produced disappointingly limited animation. The fact is though that for reasons that I readily admit that I don't understand this series resonates with a lot of people, most of whom saw it when they were kids and retain the memories. And after all, childhood memories are the real driving influences behind nostalgia.

Lillie
This is a rerelease of the thirteen episode 1978 ITV miniseries about the life of Lillie Langtry. Langtry, an actress and singer who was the mistress of Edward VII (among others), captivated society in the late 19^th Century with her beauty and wit, and numbered among her admirers Oscar Wilde, James Whistler and Judge Roy Bean. Francesca Annis (who portrayed Lady Macbeth in the Roman Polanski film of Macbeth) is perfectly cast as Lillie Langtry and it is a much commented upon aspect of her performance that she ages from a teenager to near her death at age 76. A truly great performance.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Season 2, Part 1
There have been several different versions of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles both produced and released on DVD that it is hard to know which is which. This set is from the first version of the show, which ran from 1987 to 1996. This version of characters is lighter and more fun-loving than the version created for the original black and white comic books but it is probably true that that quality is what made the characters as popular as they became. The presentation in this DVD is different from most in that the episodes are presented in the correct order and on a season by season basis. This is something that I wish was true of far more releases of animated series.

Walker, Texas Ranger: Season 4
Another admission – I was a regular watcher of Walker, Texas Ranger. Now admittedly, when I watched the show it was frequently a case of ridiculing Chuck Norris for his repeated use of his spin kick, a move which by this time seemed to be the one martial arts move that he could still do (which may be the reason why it was used so often). It was a revelation later to see Sammo Hung's speed and inventiveness on the Martial Law series – Sammo would have kicked Walker's ass in a fair fight. I also commented on the fact that Walker's truck was repeatedly shot by hundreds of rounds of automatic weapons fire and not only didn't have anything vital (like the radiator) hit but never even had a bullet hole. I did all that, but I have to confess that I frequently got caught up in the action. Of course I can't tell you the details of season 4 because quite frankly seasons of Walker are pretty much indistinguishable from each other with the only differentiating features usually being the arrival and departure of supporting characters, and quite frankly that didn't happen all that often.

TV On DVD – September 18, 2007

I took last week off on this one simply because I had too much outside of my blogging life to get done and not enough time to do it all in. Something had to suffer and it wasn't going to be the other stuff. So what about this week? Well there are some new series premieres to review – or not but beyond that the decks are mostly clear for some serious writing. As always, while the comments are my own, the list comes from TVShowsonDVD.com without whose hard and diligent work I wouldn't be doing this piece. By the Way, my links come from Amazon.ca. In recent days the value of the Canadian dollar has reached par with the US dollar. Unfortunately Canadian prices on merchandise such as DVDs do not at present reflect this, including merchandise sold by Amazon.ca. In other words, they tend to be priced higher than they would be from Amazon.com.

Oh by the way, why is absolutely no one voting in the poll this week? Okay, Toby voted, but where are the rest of you?! I'm asking for predictions or at least wild assed guesses. Or maybe I'm just a little premature on when I'm running it? Is that it? At the very least give me a little feedback!

My Pick Of The Week
Johnny Cash TV Show 1969-1971:
I literally grew up listening to Johnny Cash. In fact the first record I ever owned myself was a 45 of Johnny Cash singing the theme from the TV series The Rebel and a "B" side featuring the Civil War ballad Lorena. (Actually it may have been some sort of bastardized version of an LP because I also remember him singing Remember The Alamo on that record. I'll have to see if I can find it.) The Johnny Cash I remember was the guy who put "Spanish" trumpets on Ring Of Fire (that was the description he used; he didn't know the terms but he knew what he wanted). And who sang "Because you're mine, I walk the line." And a few years later he was also the guy who sang Folsom Prison Blues, A Boy Named Sue, and Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down and with his new wife June Carter sang the line "We got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout. We've been talkin' 'bout Jackson ever since the fire went out." That was the guy who hosted what I still consider to be one of the best music shows ever on American television.

I say "one of the best music shows" on American TV because it wasn't just country music nor was it a variety show. The list of people on this DVD crosses genres. There's Johnny's old Sun Records buddy Roy Orbison, but also Bob Dylan and Louis Armstrong (in a duet with Johnny!). There's the Statler Brothers and Waylon Jennings, but there's also Creedence Clearwater Revival, Stevie Wonder, Linda Ronstadt and Joni Mitchell. There's Neil Diamond and Neil Young. Johnny and Chet Atkins even perform a little classical music, "Recuerdos de la Alhambra" by the 19^th Century Spanish guitar composer Francisco Tàrega as well as sitting down with Derek and the Dominoes featuring a guy named Clapton who you might have heard of For me, a definite, absolute must have.

And now the rest of the week's DVDs.

Ballykissangel: Complete Series Six
Ballykissangel: The Complete Collection
If I admit that I've never seen Ballykissangel does that make me a bad person? Because I haven't. Series, or Season 6 was the show's last. I can't say much more about it except that it is described by TV.com as "one of the best British primetime shows ever seen on British television." Even with the redundancy in the quote, it's a pretty strong endorsement.

Blade: House of Chthon (Pilot Episode)
This is the pilot episode for the abortive attempt to bring Marvel Comics' Blade to TV. The story had successfully made the transition from comics to film in the form of three movies with Wesley Snipes and Jessica Biel. And indeed Snipes and Biel were the first choices to recreate their film roles in the series which was originally intended for the Showtime network. For a variety of reasons the two actor pulled out which led to the series being cut back in terms of budget and distribution – instead of Showtime, a premium cable channel which frequently features more "adult" content, the show went to the basic cable Spike network – and starring a largely unknown cast. Even though this episode was #1 in cable audience on the night it debuted, the series didn't hold its audience and was cancelled at the end of its first, twelve episode, season. This show isn't my sort of thing and the descriptions of cast and the effects of the diminished budget would make me a bit wary if it were a genre I was interested in.

Boston Legal: Season 3
I'm not a Boston Legal fan. In fact I can count in the thumb of one hand the number of episodes of the show that I have watched, but that episode, Son of the Defender is on this set and it is good, making effective use of a 1957 episode of Studio One featuring series star William Shatner and the great Ralph Bellamy. I can't effectively judge the show based on that but that episode at least was worth the time it took me to watch it.

Brothers and Sisters: The Complete First Season
Last season ABC seemed to be all about the relationships. Their new schedule featured shows like 6 Degrees, The Nine, and Men In Trees with nary a police procedural in sight. A lot of these shows died a quick and relatively unnoticed death. Men In Trees survived but was ill treated by the network. The big success from this list of relationship shows was Brothers And Sisters. It deserved to survive. Billed as Calista Flockhart's return to network TV what it actually had was a superb ensemble cast that included two time Oscar winner Sally Field and Oscar and Emmy nominee Rachel Griffiths. Unsurprisingly, both Griffiths and Field were nominated for Emmys while Flockhart was not. The show is concerned with the dynamics of a very complex family but one which rises above their various problems. Worth seeing just to watch Field who as usual is great (as long as she's not making an acceptance speech ;-) ).

The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper, Vol. 1
When Casper the Friendly Ghost debuted as a cartoon character for Paramount back in the late 1940s he rapidly became one of the most boring and repetitive characters to come out of that boring and repetitive studio (although the studio wasn't anywhere near as boring and repetitive as Terrytoon). I really doubt that the character has changed much over the decades.

Corner Gas: Season 4 (3DVD)
Thanks to Superstation WGN, Americans are getting to see what Canadians have known for a while – you can do a very funny comedy based out of a small town southwest of Regina. Brent Butt and his little gang of actors are a talented ensemble who have done a show that is equal parts Seinfeld (its a show about nothing) and Northern Exposure (Gabrielle Miller as Lacy Burrows is very much an urban fish out of water in a town that prefers gas station cookies to fresh biscotti). The show is a 'Rider lovin' comic gem and deserves all of the success that it can get. (That last sentence means a lot in Saskatchewan, trust me.) The season finale features a cameo from Prime Minister Stephen Harper

Everybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Ninth Season
Well strictly speaking no, not everybody loved Raymond. I for example couldn't stand it though I will confess to finding Brad Garrett's character Robert funny and probably the best thing in the whole show. Otherwise I could never muster up much enthusiasm for the series and wouldn't want anyone to buy me this set. That said, I know that I am almost certainly in the minority in holding this view given the ratings that it pulled when it was on and how it does in syndication. I can't recommend it but I am scarcely in a position to tell you not to buy it either.

Family Guy, Vol. 5
Another show that I can't whole heartedly recommend because I don't watch it and the subject matter doesn't really appeal to me. On the other hand the PTC loathes the show which is on the plus side for me. On the other, other hand I do wonder sometimes if the show's producers use the fact that the show is animated to go a bit farther than they might otherwise – the PTC's Misrated section this week brings up a couple of points about violent content in the show not being treated (or at least rated) the same as it would be in a live action show that might actually be valid. On the other other other hand this is the PTC we're talking about, I haven't seen the sequence in question and they do tend to overreact more than a bit. And if I grow any more hands I'll officially qualify for godhood in India.

Playboy: Foursome Season 1, Part 2
It comes from Playboy and the cover describes it as "The TV dating show that shows everything." Offhand I'm guessing this isn't a show you're going to want to watch with the kids on a snowy Saturday night.

Gene Simmons: Family Jewels Seasons 1&2
Okay, I think I've mentioned this more than a few times in this blog and elsewhere: Shannon Tweed, who is Gene Simmons's lady friend and the mother of his two children, and I went to Mount Royal Collegiate in Saskatoon back in the early to mid-'70s. She was a year behind me, I never met her and for the most part we didn't travel in the same circles, although I did know one guy who knew her back then. And that extremely tenuous connection is not why I like this show. Amazingly the woman who I always thought did her best acting when she whipped her top off in all those awful erotic thrillers has at age 50 revealed a real talent for doing comedy or at least being funny – sort of like Pamela Anderson but with brains. Gene Simmons can be funny too. I'm treating this show like a comedy when of course it's a celebrity reality show, but the fact is that this is a funny show about two people who have a reputation for being outrageous but in fact seem very well grounded. I guess you could say I'm something of a fan which surprises and sort of shocks me because I didn't expect it.

The Ghost Whisperer: Season 2
I watched an episode of this show when it first appeared. I didn't like it. I was unimpressed by the acting abilities of Jennifer Love Hewitt and I found the whole "helping dead people to the other side" business to be both boring and opposed to the rational side of my being. It amazes me but I actually liked Medium better than this show if only because that show had both dramatic tension and significant characterization both of which I found lacking in this series. Now things may have changed since I watched that first episode, but it would take wild horses (or the promise of a night of exceptional passion afterwards) to get me to watch this so that I could find out.

The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy: The Complete Season 1
A Cartoon Network show and as usual one that I have no exposure to. Apparently it's popular enough to spawn at least one movie, but I know so little about it that it's really not fair for me to write about it.

Josie and the Pussycats: The Complete Series
Now this one I do know a little about. An attempt to recreate the buzz that surrounded the cartoon adaptation of Archie and the musical group The Archies with another Archie Comics character Josie by making the series about a girl band Josie and the Pussycats. The show lasted two seasons, which in the Saturday animation climate of the early 1970s is a fairly good run. Interestingly it was the first Saturday morning cartoon series to feature an African American character as a regular (apparently it took a lot of persuading to get Hanna-Barbera to accept that, according to the Wikipedia article on the show).

Married... with Children: The Complete Seventh Season
You can't deny the success of Married...with Children. You can try – lord knows I have – but any show that rumbles on for eleven seasons has to have something. Season 7 had Seven who was five. Seven was a character on the show, a child added for no apparent reason and removed from the show after eighteen episodes because 80% of the viewers loathed him. Interestingly, the character was funnier after he left the show than he ever was when he was on it.

Masters of Horror: Sounds Like
Masters of Horror: The Washingtonians
Single episodes from the second season of the excellent Masters of Horror. Don't buy them. You may want them but unless one or both of these are the only episodes you want to see from the entire season, you are better off waiting to buy the complete season set which, if the Season One set is any indication, will undoubtedly be cheaper than buying episodes individually.

Babylon 5/La Femme Nikita: Season One Starter Pack
Gilmore Girls/Veronica Mars: Season One Starter Pack
Smallville/Supernatural: Season One Starter Pack
I have absolutely no idea of what these contain, and Amazon is no help. I assume they are complete first season sets of the series listed (interestingly paired don't you think) but beyond that I have absolutely no idea.

Power Rangers: Operation Overdrive, Vol. 1 - Brownbeard's Pearl
Power Rangers: Operation Overdrive, Vol. 2 - Toru Diamond
You really don't want to know just how much I loathe and despise the Power Rangers in any known version of the series. In my very humble opinion they are and have always been the worst of television aimed at kids and have forced out other better shows. This is apparently the most recent "story" but let's face it, it's probably interchangeable with every other "story" since this show was created.

Smallville: The Complete Sixth Season
Smallville: Season 6 [Blu-ray]
Smallville: Season 6 [HD DVD]
This was for the most part an enjoyable romp of a season though there are a lot of people who disagree. More super-powers than ever with the return of Bart Allen, Victor Stone and the introduction of Oliver Queen, and the creation of The Justice League aimed at bringing down Lex Luthor. There's romance between Ollie and Lois Lane, and Chloe Sullivan and Jimmy Olsen. And let's not even mention the marriage of Lex Luthor and Lana Lang – I mean please, let's not mention it. Lynda Carter, TV's original Wonder Woman, makes an appearance as Chloe's mother. There's a film noir style episode that's a lot of fun, and the season culminates with the apparent death of at least two of the show's major characters. Just remember, we're talking comics here – even if you see the corpse it doesn't mean they're really and truly dead.

Stargate Atlantis: Season 3
I've never been more than a casual follower of the two Stargate series. I've seen some episodes of Stargate: SG1 but far fewer of the second series Stargate: Atlantis which of course is now the only Stargate series. I can't say much about the series though beyond the expectation that if you liked Stargate: SG1, you'll probably like Stargate: Atlantis... eventually.

Superman: Doomsday
This really isn't part of the Superman animated series that ran between 1996 and 2000 though both were created by Bruce Timm. This is closer to a movie for DVD and details on of the most memorable Superman stories of the past twenty or so years, 1993's Death Of Superman. While I haven't seen the movie (but I want to get it) reaction from those who have seen it – many at the San Diego Comic Con – has generally been extremely positive. To quote from Wikipedia, "Many agreed that the first of DC's line of animated films was better than what Marvel did for theirs as the film uses whatever it takes to make a PG-13 rated movie feel like one with the blood, the battles, and it's matured themes and story."

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Season 1 - Part 2
This is the first season of the 2003 series which is closer in tone (dark) to the original comic book version of the characters than the version that ran during the late '80s and early '90s. I've never been interested in any variant of the Turtles ("heroes on a half-shell," which I think probably would better apply to oysters) but then I wasn't the target audience at any time.

Upright Citizens Brigade: Season 2
When I first heard the title of this I immediately thought it was a satire of the Parents Television Council. Obviously I was wrong. It's improvisational sketch comedy held together by a central theme running through the episode. Or something like that. As you can probably guess this is not something that would interest a guy who was brought up watching Wayne & Shuster.

Brian And Stuey At The Emmy

I promised this at the beginning of my Live Blogging of the Emmys last night but no one had put it up on YouTube by the time I finished up last night. Funny stuff, but notice which networks don't get their trash talked about. That's right, no mention of The CW (which never gets mentioned on the Emmys anyway - maybe they're hoping if they ignore it, the weblet will just go away) and the network the Emmys were on this year - FOX.

TV on DVD – September 4, 2007

I'm late in starting this again, and will probably be late in getting it done. I'm not really sure why I didn't start on this sooner but I didn't. As always, the list is from TVShowsOnDVD.com while the commentary is entirely mine.

My Pick of the Week
30 Rock: Season 1
30 Rock: Season 1, Vol. 1
30 Rock: Season 1, Vol. 2
Well, actually it's just the full set. I don't get the marketing logic behind offering a Volume 1 and a Volume 2 as well as a complete set but then that's why I'm not a DVD marketing hoodlum – sorry, executive. There were actually a couple of solid picks from this list but I'm going with 30 Rock for a couple of good reasons. First of course is that it has the great Alec Baldwin playing off of Tina Fey. The show is genuinely funny, even with the presence of Tracy Morgan (sorry can't get into him or his character).Then too there's the fact that the show hasn't had the best ratings despite the critical buzz that the series has had since it debuted. I want to believe that people have been holding back from watching this show because they were afraid that the show would be cancelled. With the change at the top of NBC Entertainment (when Kevin Reilly fell on his sword for Jeff Zucker's mistakes) I am worried that this show, like Friday Night Lights, might be on the chopping block if the ratings don't improve unless there's an indication that there's support – The Office survived because of iTunes downloads, and a successful DVD release for 30 Rock – particularly if it translates into improved ratings for the show.

And now for the rest of the week's DVDs:

The Black Donnellys: The Complete Series
It used to be that when a series tanked that was the end of it. These days unless the show dies after a couple of episodes it shows up on the shelves as a DVD release. And while I doubt that we'll ever see a DVD release of shows like Smith (with Ray Liotta) or 3 Lbs. (with Stanley Tucci) neither of which lasted more than two or three episodes, we are seeing shows that were cancelled quickly making an almost ghostly comeback as DVDs. The Black Donnellys probably only made it onto NBC because it was created by Oscar winning writer/director Paul Haggis. As I said at the time broadcast network television was probably the wrong place for this show about a family of largely incompetent Irish crooks. If it had been on a cable channel, free – or at least freer – of the restrictions on language violence and sex that come with being on broadcast TV it might well have prospered. As it was, the show developed a small cult following, however I wouldn't expect the series to set any DVD sales records. That's kind of unfortunate because, despite the fact that I found the episode that I watched to drag a bit, on the whole it was a well done show that deserved to find a bigger audience.

Bosom Buddies: Season 2
Whatever happened to Peter Scolari? Bosom Buddies was the show that made Tom Hanks a star but the equally talented Scolari never had the same sort of success. The central premise – two men dressing as women to live in a women's only hotel and having to maintain their secret to stay there – was to a degree discarded in the second season, with two major characters (Kip's girlfriend Sonny and new hotel manager Isabelle) learning of the secret. A fondly remembered series (but not by me – I never watched it).

The Best of Cheaters, Vol. 2: Too Hot for TV
I have so little to say about this that it's ridiculous. My biggest question is this: what kind of person signs a release to air his or her dirty laundry – the suspicion that their husband, wife, boyfriend, or girlfriend is cheating on them – in public? Actually I have an even bigger question – what kind of person signs a release to allow their image to be used on this show if they're the ones who are actually cheating?

Desperate Housewives: The Complete Third Season
Okay, I've got to ask; what sets the "Dirty Laundry" edition of Desperate Housewives apart from what might be called the "ordinary" edition? I mean besides the fact that they aren't actually issuing a regular edition. It's pretty much accepted wisdom that the second season of Desperate Housewives was quite a come down from the first season, with the mystery surrounding the Applewhites not really living up to the first season's drama and intrigue. Season Three was a bit of an improvement but in my opinion the show didn't get back to the heights of the first season. Sure there were nice touches – I have to admit to laughing when Bree has her first ever orgasm, not to mention the way that Lynette got Kayla out of the ice cream parlour – but there were some dreary bits as well. I thought the whole Ian vs. Mike thing went on far too long and was reminiscent of another Terri Hatcher entanglement, the long engagement of Lois Lane and Clark Kent on Lois and Clark. As for Lynette she became the show's soap opera queen, dealing with her husband's ex-lover (who was shot) and illegitimate daugther, then a romantic entanglement of her own which wasn't consummated but which Tom thought might have been, and culminating with cancer. And for this Felicity Huffman was nominated for an Emmy for best actress in a Comedy?!

Dirty Jobs Collection, Vol. 1
I don't think I've ever seen this one, but reading the description on Wikipedia makes the whole concept seem fascinating. Host Mike Rowe goes out and does the jobs that most of us wouldn't try on a dare; things like septic tank cleaner, bat guano collector, baby chicken sexer, or tire recycler. The jobs are "dirty"in a variety of ways and Rowe apparently makes jokes about them, but almost never about the people who do the jobs. As Rowe puts it, "I explore the country looking for people who aren't afraid to get dirty—hard-working men and women who earn an honest living doing the kinds of jobs that make civilized life possible for the rest of us."

Falcon Beach: Complete First Season
One of the annoying things about getting attached to a TV show on Canadian TV – okay mostly a show on Global – is that their shows seem to be highly reliant on being an international co-production. Falcon Beach was a show like that. The show was a partnership between Global and the teen-oriented ABC Family cable channel. When ABC Family cancelled the show after the second season, Global offered the producers "a lot less money" to do a third season which was basically the kiss of death to the show, despite healthy international sales. The show was set at the summer resort of Falcon Beach, but where Falcon Beach was depended on whether you were watching Global (where it was on Manitoba's Lake Winnipeg – the actual town the producers used was Manitoba Beach) or ABC Family (where the town was somewhere in New England). In fact two versions were actually filmed, one with Canadian references and one with American. While it's not absolutely clear it seems likely that the DVD set, which is released by Fremantle Media, will feature the ABC Family version.

Garfield: Dreams and Schemes
Garfield: Dreams and Schemes (with toy)
A fairly standard Garfield release, and even though I loved the character when it started (way back when it was an original idea) and I'm a fan of Mark Evanier who was heavily involved in the creation of the TV series, I really can't muster up that much enthusiasm for the standard Garfield release. If you can, get the one with the little "Pooky" toy, Garfield's favourite. It's the same price as the DVD without the doll and let's face it, the thing is cute.

Gumby Essentials
One of the many shows I never saw as a kid living in a one TV station town was Gumby. Oh I had a vague understanding of the character; I'd see him and Pokey in the toy department of Woolworth's downtown, but as far as knowing what he was about, I was clueless. I think I may have thought that he was a British character or maybe something like those weird cartoons the CBC would sometimes show from Czechoslovakia. On this DVD are fifteen Gumby episodes, five each from the 1950s, '60s and '80s, as well as some bonus material. Are they really essentials? Well, sadly, I wouldn't know.

Hetty Wainthropp Investigates: The Complete Collection
Patricia Routledge will probably always be known for playing Hyaicnth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet) in Keeping Up Appearances but she should at least be noticed for playing Hetty Wainthropp, housewife and private investigator in this series. When it comes to complete series sets, my usual rule is that if you haven't already bought sets from the series before and the contents are the same you should look to see which alternative is cheapest. This set is an absolute bargain coming in at about half of what it would cost to buy the four sets separately. Definitely worth the price.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Seasons 1&2
I have never seen this series, but every review and plot summary that I've read – invariably raves – convinces me that if I saw it I'd probably hate it. The characters all sound like they're on the unlikable side and even in a comedy I think I really need to have at least some sympathy for the lead characters. But given that I haven't seen it, who am I to judge?

Man vs. Wild
In the realm of TV shows that you think you can describe without resorting to Wikipedia – at least not immediately – comes Man vs. Wild. Now given the current abhorence of hunting, it's obviously not a show about going out and hunting, so my guess is that it's a show about surviving in the great outdoors, probably in a variety of loctions. And sure enough I'm right. Ah but there's more. Apparently this show, which originated on Britain's Channel 4 and is seen in the United States (and probably Canada) on the Discovery Channel, has been accused of various bits of staging for host "survival expert" Bear Grylls the least of which was sleeping in a motel when he claimed he was living in the wilderness. A complete listing of the controversies surrounding the show can be found in the show's Wikipedia article.

Nip/Tuck: The Complete Fourth Season
Nip/Tuck: Season 4 [Blu-ray]
Nip/Tuck: Season 4 [HD DVD]
One of the PTC's favourite targets for complaints about sex and violence – mostly sex. The show does have a high content of sex in some rather bizarre contexts. Season 4 featured one of the lead characters, Christian having several affairs including one with the wife of the new owner of his plastic surgery practice while her husband watches them. There's also organ theft and various other machinations. As I said, the show has been a frequent target of the PTC despite airing on a cable network – FX – carrying suitable warnings, and airing at a late hour. In Canada the show airs is broadcast over the air by CTV, apparently with few if any complaints. The show is one of the most popular shows on basic cable. In his Spetember 8, 2006 Programming Insider column for Mediaweek, Marc Berman wrote of the Season 4 debut, "Nip/Tuck's performance among adults 18-49 ranks as basic cable's top-rated season-premiere in the demo for 2006, as of September 8, 2006." No wonder the PTC hates it.

The Office: Season Three
If it weren't for the debut on DVD of 30 Rock, this would undoubtedly be my pick of the week. The Office is a show full of fascinating characters even roles which most series would designate as throwaways. Moreover most of the main characters have a sympathetic side. Michael (Steve Carrell) may be a complete and total ass who is oblivious to what people really think about him, but even he has moments when you sort of feel for him. The Season 3 DVD shows slow progress in the relationship between Jim and Pam even as complications are added – Jim left Scranton for Stamford Connecticut only to return when that branch closed down and brought an added complication in Karen the girl he had been starting a relationship with at that office. In a sitcom landscape all too often filled with "buddy shows" and husbands and wives who don't fit together, The Office – a show about people living what must be described as lives of quiet desperation – is different and deserving of its success.

Prison Break: Season 2
I bailed on Prison Break part way through Season 1, largely because it was on Monday night when I bowl and it just didn't seem worth the bother. After all, what could they do once they break out of the prison? As it turned out there was quite a lot they could do – I still wasn't watching the show but I did read the various episode recaps. Much of it was centered on uncovering the conspiracy that put Lincoln Burrows in prison but also the whole mechanics of being on the run. The show managed to maintain a dramatic tension despite spreading the cast far and wide. I'm not entirely convinced that the plot holds together in terms of logic, but this is drama and drama insists on the willing suspension of disbelief, something which viewers are perfectly willing to do for this show.

The Real Housewives of Orange County: Season One
I'm sure that this show is been available in Canada, but for the life of me I can't come up with a reason for wanting to watch it. The show is a reality show about five women living in a gated community in California's Orange County, their lives and relationships. The reference is to The O.C. but the show could probably just as easily be called "Real Desperate Housewives" but it also reminds me of that truly abominable CBS reality show Tuesday Night Book Club. I know why that show failed dismally after two episodes; what I can't figure out is why this show thrives for two seasons and is renewed for a third (but with a new cast) and gets a DVD box set.

Robot Chicken: Season Two
Robot Chicken is one of the little joys of life provided courtesy of the remote control. See I rarely see this show from the beginning but usually come upon it when I'm listlessly surfing channels to find a show to watch. The show is a morsel – usually ten to fifteen minutes of outrageous comedic goodness. It has the twin hooks of an amazing list of guest voice artists – the list in the show's Wikipedia entry features well over a hundred different actors – and stop motion animation done with action figures. The show is usually a series of blackout skits that rarely last more than a minute. And it is hilarious.

Rules of Engagement: The Complete First Season
In the list of last season's new sitcoms Rules Of Engagement wasn't the worst. The problem is that it just wasn't that great either. And in a week that includes the release of season two of Robot Chicken, season three of The Office, and the first season of 30 Rock I can't see this one flying off of store shelves except maybe as a result of being knocked off by people trying to get the good stuff.

She-Ra Princess of Power: Season 2
I tend to look at animated TV series with a bit of a jaundiced eye. I grew up watching Bugs Bunny, Tom & Jerry, Woody Woodpecker as well as the early Hanna-Barbera and so I like to think that I've got an eye for quality animation. She-Ra: Princess of Power was produced by Filmation in association with Mattel which produced the He-Man and She-Ra line of toys, and I have a hard time seeing anything beyond the usually terrible limited animation that Filmation put out. I'm told that Filmation made an effort to make their stories strong, and I did see that in the Star Trek animated series they did, but it is still hard getting over the animation. It doesn't help, in my mind that the two series were essentially toy commercials and that She-Ra was essentially created to open the action figure market to girls – He-Man rode a tiger while She-Ra rode a horse, presumably because girls like horses. The series – and the toy line – died after two years, but a lot of people have strong and good memories of the character and the series. If you do, then you can overlook the crappy animation and are the market for this show; I'm not and I can't.

Spongebob Squarepants: Season 5, Vol. 1
Not my coup of tea, but SpongeBob seems to have developed a following beyond what I would expect it too. My recently acquired grumpy old fart nature probably keeps me from seeing its charms. But my four year-old nephew probably likes it and that, in and of itself, validates it for me.