 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
TV shows on DVD make great gifts.
Here's a selection of recommended recent releases of shows both old and new.
List prices are followed by Amazon.com's price (at time of posting).
If you choose the Amazon option by clicking BUY NOW below the title here,
TWW gets a small percentage of the sale.
Costs you nothing more. Helps us stay alive.
If you like TV WORTH WATCHING, it's a way to send two gifts in one.
Your gift recipients will appreciate what you purchase here... and so will we.
-- David Bianculli
-- Diane Werts
THE SHIELD: The Complete Series Sony, 29 discs The best show of the 21st century? A decade in, The Shield is a sure contender. And not just for its heartbreaking scope of humanity and intensity of urban action. Behind all of good/bad cop Michael Chiklis' brawny rule-breaking was the 900-pound gorilla of cultural questions -- how much public corruption will we law-abiding citizens excuse if it keeps us safe? That's put into stark perspective by this hardcover book-page set's bonus disc, holding a well-sourced half-hour documentary on the L.A. Rampart scandal that inspired series creator Shawn Ryan. He also oversaw the superior season-set extras retained here, including dozens of wide-ranging episode commentaries. They comprise a virtual Filmmaking 101 course with their many-voice insights into writing, directing, editing, casting, scoring and other production aspects that made The Shield such a propulsive, provocative experience. (Note: This set presents the episodes in widescreen.) -- DW |
ALLY McBEAL: The Complete Series Fox, 32 discs The dancing baby discos once more in this solid box of five separately cased seasons. We share in the inner life of Calista Flockhart's delightfully daffy young attorney through daydreams, fantasies, musical numbers and other thought-revealing stunts in tube auteur David E. Kelley's (arguably) most inspired series. Ally set the stage for hourlong drama-comedies like Gilmore Girls and Desperate Housewives, while reflecting real-world issues, too. And the music -- all here, in its original form -- set the standard for TV song scores. An entire disc of extras includes a new 40-minute retrospective with fresh interviews, vintage featurettes, even The Practice crossover episode. (Plus a best-of soundtrack CD.) -- DW |
ZORRO: Season 1 / Season 2 Disney, 6 discs each Perfect for parents/grandparents to share with today's kids, the black-caped avenger of old Spanish California rides again in Disney's 1957 family fave -- still an impressively produced adventure. Guy Williams is the dashing title hero, a young nobleman who pretends to be bookish but actually battles corruption behind a mask, Robin Hood-style, slashing out Z's with his saber to the tune of one of TV's most memorable theme songs. Another Disney Treasures limited edition (30,000), this one's tin case is appropriately black! And it's stuffed with extras, both on disc (production retrospective, Zorro character history, more) and off (collectible pin, lithograph, numbered certificate). -- DW |
IT'S GARRY SHANDLING'S SHOW: Complete Series Shout, 16 discs Critics will tell you this classic '80s show deconstructed situation comedy. But 20 years later, it's most impressive for how good-naturedly funny its own situations still are. It's a house of pop culture mirrors for Shandling, playing himself, a comic straddling the worlds of his showbiz career and his suburban neighbors -- while also straddling the studio where his show takes place and the living room we watch it in. Confiding in us as the comedy builds, Shandling both tweaks his TV universe and brings us into it, all the while defining his own neuroses, later so caustically satirized in The Larry Sanders Show. In this show, though, he creates goofy, giddy fun. (And adds lots of insightful extras to explain it all.) -- DW |
HOGAN'S HEROES: Kommandant's Kollection CBS, 28 discs $180 ($107) The most unlikely sitcom in TV history remains one of its most beloved. And finally, a 1940s Nazi prisoner of war camp being turned into a silly 1960s comedy setting is actually explained! Along with the six compact foldout season sets, there's a bonus disc of new extras including a fascinating interview with co-creator Albert Ruddy. There's also an eye-opening look at a German-dubbed episode, with wholesale dialogue changes turning it into another show entirely. Richard "Newkirk" Dawson is interviewed, too. And there's nothing quite like seeing Werner "Klink" Klemperer wearing a Nehru jacket to the Emmys. None of it should work. Yet it still does. (Comes out Nov. 24.) -- DW |
THE GOLDEN AGE OF TELEVISION Criterion, 3 discs Finally, a holdable piece of crucial TV history -- kinescopes of eight of the finest original dramas of the 1950s era of live original television dramas. Many were later made into movies, but these are the initial presentations of Marty, Requiem for a Heavyweight, No Time for Sergeants, Bang the Drum Slowly, Days of Wine and Roses, A Wind from the South, The Comedian, and Patterns, from legendary writers like Paddy Chayefsky and Rod Serling. Interviews recorded for a 1980s PBS airing offer comments from actors (Rod Steiger, Andy Griffith, Cliff Robertson), directors and others. Added on DVD -- new commentaries from TV-trained directors like John Frankenheimer. There's also a wonderful booklet further exploring their place in TV history. (Set comes out Nov. 24.) -- DW |
THE PRISONER: The Complete Series A&E, 5 discs $100 ($50) - Blu-ray Disc If you want "in-for-mation" about The Prisoner, this is the place to be. Patrick McGoohan's original '60s mindfreak is reissued (yes, I know, AGAIN), but this time remastered so beautifully it makes your jaw drop. Who knew the show was so colorfully detailed, practically feature-film-level stunning? The Village is almost tactile now. The spy vs. spy psychological warfare is further explored, too, in a new documentary about the show's making that's packed with interviews of directors, writers, actors and other aging witnesses to the 1967 production. Many of them stick around for new episode commentaries, most of which are actually intelligible. (Not The Chimes of Big Ben, though.) Longtime fans will miss the 40th anniversary edition's Prisoner Video Companion, analyzing all that enduring iconography (much of it revived in AMC's rethink). Can't beat this new set's dazzling visuals, though. -- DW |
FUTURAMA: The Complete Collection 1999-2009 Fox, 18 discs The season's coolest packaging concept brings you all four previously released episode volumes and four direct-to-video releases, inside a 16-inch tall Bender robot head (complete with detachable antenna!). The hefty plastic collectible looks swell either in its big shelving box (with clear front window) or out, and each disc stacks safely in its own slot behind a back hatch in the round head. You even get an episode guide booklet and clever limited edition certificate/letter from Matt Groening, numbered up to 25,500. (But they're packed under lower box flaps, so be sure to look there.) -- DW |
ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME LIVE Time Life, 9 discs Every rock fan can salivate over a box compiling historic footage from the 25 years of hall inductions legendary for their performances, reunions and jam sessions. But is it this particular box? Music: classic. Moments: once in a lifetime. Song/clips sequencing: incoherent. Why which song from which year is on which "themed" disc is anybody's guess. The "Light My Fire" disc swings from "Pretty Woman" to "Black Magic Woman" to "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," mixing performances from 1987 to 2004, why? The audio is no more organized, defaulting to 2.0 stereo despite the presence of a 5.1 surround track. We know these shows were initially recorded for posterity rather than broadcast or high-quality release, but come on. This material can be delivered better. -- DW |
THE NORMAN LEAR COLLECTION Sony, 19 discs It's '70s socio-com overload with the fold-out first seasons of Lear-produced groundbreakers All in the Family, Maude, Good Times, One Day at a Time, Mary Hartman Mary Hartman, The Jeffersons and Sanford & Son -- all previously released. If you haven't jumped in yet, this sturdy box also offers extra treats like the two unaired pilots of All in the Family, with different titles and supporting actors, plus lots of reflective cast/crew interviews. (Which would be even bigger treats for those who already own the sitcom sets. But early buyers rarely win in DVD's ongoing re-release game.) -- DW |
THE UNIT: The Complete Series Sony, 19 discs Gritty playwright David Mamet and The Shield creator Shawn Ryan joined forces for this CBS actioner about a special-forces squad. While they undertake undercover missions all over the map, their spouses and colleagues back home endure crises of their own. Dennis Haysbert stars, fresh off his 24 presidency, in four separately cased seasons inside a solid box. No new extras, but the season sets' commentaries and featurettes reappear here. -- DW |
WORLD SERIES: Official Film Collection A&E, 20 discs $230 ($172) Revisit 65 years of baseball's fall classic (1943-2008, except the 1994 strike year), on discs tucked inside the "pages" of impressive hardcover book packaging lavished with vintage photographs. These are the official MLB film and, later, videotape digests, all reflecting their age in both visual quality and production style. The first year of 1943 is a scratched-up flag-waving film of wartime well-wishes and nostalgic charm (in black-and-white, of course), while last year's Phillies win is colorfully filled with interviews and slick cuts. This set goes so far back, even the Chicago Cubs are included! -- DW |
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: The Complete Series Universal, 20 discs $350 ($175) - Blu-ray Disc This is one of those wow-impact presents when the recipient unwraps it. And one of those huh?-impact sets when you actually try to use it. The entire top third of the Blu-ray cube box lifts "hydraulically" to reveals four seasons of the acclaimed Syfy drama packed on separate sides. But those season packs are made of flimsy cardboard that come pre-wrecked from shipment. Nothing tells you which episodes or extras are on which disc, either, but hey, you can play with the Cylon "action figure" tucked into the box's top. Blu-ray does add some cool on-disc features -- picture-in-picture character bios, plot recaps, other interactive info -- to supplement the existing season-set goodies. And the show itself is so provocative, this makes a great gift for the uninitiated. -- DW |
FARSCAPE: The Complete Series A&E, 25 discs Here's the box that fans have been waiting for! This compact package delivers all four (out-of-print) seasons of Ben Browder's all-American dude spinning through space with a motley crew of all-too-human aliens (and a living, birthing spaceship). While Farscape looked like a space opera with outlandish aliens -- thank you, Henson Creature Shop -- the show's visceral energy and relatable relationships paved the way for Battlestar Galactica to bring sci-fi back down to earth. The separately cased seasons boast episode commentaries, archival featurettes and more, while a new 2-disc set called The Archives delivers the first release of the Farscape Undressed making-of special and cast interviews. -- DW |
THE FALL AND RISE OF REGINALD PERRIN BBC, 4 discs $60 ($37) Great! Super! That's this catchphrase-laden '70s Britcom, chronicling the drop-out and opt-in of a corporate drone. Leonard Rossiter's sputtering everyman fakes his death to get away from it all, then can't stay away from his old life. The more he tries to self-destruct (even in disguise), the more he keeps creating strange successes: His useless-products shop Grot remains an all-time classic. The set is rounded out by a fun profile of Rossiter, whose seemingly unique portrayal is now slated for a British TV remake. -- DW |
THE ADVENTURE OF ENGLISH Athena, 4 discs $80 ($45) Who knew the evolution of a language could be so enthralling? Melvyn Bragg (The South Bank Show) takes us on a country-hopping odyssey that chronologically charts the growth of a disrespected downmarket dialect into the language of kings, commerce and the computerized world. Bragg is winningly casual but informed, like a good friend leading us through fascinating cultural discoveries. It's no dry lesson, but a vibrant tour of informative sights and syllables that'll make you eager to devour each new hour. -- DW |
THE CHRISTIANS Athena, 5 discs 'Tis the season for a history of the faith, the faithful and their global impact. This 1977 British documentary's 13 hour episodes trace the roots of Christianity, examining its subgroups (Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox, even Amish) and the ways in which Christian beliefs differ from those of other Abrahamic religions (Jews, Muslims). UK TV presenter Bamber Gascoigne takes an evenhanded approach to walking us through various eras and more than 30 countries, following the politics, art and social currents of Christianity wending their way through world history. -- DW |
MONTY PYTHON: ALMOST THE TRUTH Eagle Rock, 3 discs $30 ($22) - DVD $40 ($24) - BD This six-hour docuseries neatly charts the uptight post-WW2 UK culture that shaped the Pythons' comedy, then moves on to the six-man troupe's early TV work and influences, the groundbreaking anarchy of Monty Python's Flying Circus, and the deeper satire of their feature films Monty Python and the Holy Grail and The Life of Brian. More clips and fewer talking heads would be nice. But when the Pythons' own clever heads are doing the talking, their frankness is both fun and informative. Extras include extended interviews and seven classic complete sketches. -- DW |
THIRTYSOMETHING Season 1 Shout, 6 discs $60 ($40) Baby boomers, yuppies, the greed-is-good/touchy-feely '80s -- they're all here in the show that changed the tone of TV drama. The show's 30-year-olds let it all hang out, sharing their internal fears, resentments and confusions about finding their way in the adult world, in a more intimate way than TV had attempted before. Small things were big things. Ideals crashed into pragmatism. And show creators Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz writers spoke from their hearts, creating a sort of auteur TV in the process. Their emotionally rich study of family vs. work vs. community vs. individual identity has continued to echo for two decades into such distinctive universes as The Sopranos and Mad Men. Now we can see where it started -- and dive deeper inside it with a bounty of new interviews, commentaries and featurettes. -- DW |
ON THE ROAD WITH CHARLES KURALT Acorn, 3 discs Ordinary life was the groundbreaking focus of Kuralt's homey CBS News reports from the backroads of America. Crossing the country in his RV, he chronicled the achievements (and foibles) of everyday folks in nightly newscasts, providing blessed relief from world events from the '60s to the '80s. Packaged here into 18 half-hour episodes are reports on toothpick artists, super salesmen, unique mailboxes, cicadas, and vintage Cadillacs buried nose-down/fin-up in a Texas field. Also included are updates on the subjects, with web addresses for further info. Kuralt's cozy tone would later be the signature of his weekly CBS Sunday Morning broadcasts. But it warmed us here first. -- DW |
BLACKADDER Remastered Ultimate Edition BBC, 6 discs, $80 ($55)
FAWLTY TOWERS Complete Collection Remastered BBC, 3 discs, $50 ($32) These classic Britcoms are back with great new extras. Fawlty finally includes the long-sought interview with co-creator/costar Connie Booth, plus new commentaries from John Cleese. Blackadder has new commentaries, too, plus other extras, and all the specials like Blackadder's Christmas Carol. -- DW |
MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000: XVI Shout, 4 discs $65 ($42) A Tom Servo collectible figurine joins 2 films mocked by Joel Hodgson (The Corpse Vanishes, Warrior of the Lost World) and 2 mocked by Mike Nelson (Night of the Blood Beast, Santa Claus) in the latest limited edition box. Extras include new interviews, trailers, Turkey Day fun, and a particularly crazed look back at the 50-year legacy of that surreal Santa Claus kiddie flick from Mexico. -- DW |
TRANSFORMERS: The Complete Series Shout, 16 discs $170 ($110)
GI JOE: The Complete Series Shout, 17 discs $180 ($146) An '80s kid's dream comes true in these collectors' Shout Factory sets of vintage cartoon faves. The Transformers 25th Anniversary Matrix of Leadership Edition box includes 98 episode scripts, Hasbro toy commercials, a 60-page booklet, collectible magnets, and more. GI Joe A Real American Hero Complete Collectors Set comes in a footlocker with 95 episodes, toy commercials, interviews, featurettes, its own 60-page booklet, tattoos, dog tags, and more. -- DW |
THE NATIONAL PARKS: A Film by Ken Burns PBS, 6 discs $130 ($72) - BD Burns' first HD-shot documentary series looks as stunning as its subjects. But this is no travelogue -- it's another rich (if leisurely) history of a uniquely American concept that, like baseball and jazz, charts our culture's history along with its own. Along with the six PBS films, we get five short films on specific parks, plus an hour called This Is America that highlights diversity in regard to the parks. Add making-of featurettes, stunning music videos and a helpful timeline, and you've got a set that merits revisiting the way the parks do. -- DW |
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS The First 100 Episodes CBS, 14 discs A bubbly Lucite box provides a sturdy (and compact) home for Seasons 1-5 of Nickelodeon's longrunning cartoon hit that appeals to both kids and adults. Besides the cool package, the big attraction is a new bonus disc with the quintessentially Sponge-y making-of hour titled Square Roots, in which celebs like Ricky Gervais and Craig Ferguson salute the pleasures of Bikini Bottom. -- DW |
THE STEVE COOGAN COLLECTION BBC, 14 discs Coogan is chameleonic in personifying oblivious egotists whose ambitions far outreach their talents. There's the awkward ABBA-obsessed host of his '90s chatfest sendup Knowing Me, Knowing You (followed by I'm Alan Partridge) -- whose lack of self-awareness and desperate quest for stardom now seem to have presaged about a dozen currents in pop culture. Later Coogan creations on disc here include the rage-filled ex-roadie exterminator of Saxondale, the cheesy pop star of The Tony Ferrino Phenomenon, and "philosophizing lager lout" Paul Calf. Explanatory extras, too.-- DW |
ADULT SWIM IN A BOX Warner, 12 discs $70 ($48) A great gift for anybody who loves Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Robot Chicken, and late-night Cartoon's other animated insanities. Except that anybody who loves this stuff probably already has what's here. And what's here is an odd mix of previously released sets: Aqua Teen Vol. 2, the second seasons of Robot Chicken and Sealab 2021, the third season of Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and the first seasons of Moral Orel and Metalocalypse. One big treat: a new bonus disc with pilot episodes of obscurities including Korgoth of Barbaria, Perfect Hair Forever, Welcome to Etingville, Cheyenne Cinnamon and the Fantabulous Unicorn of Sugar Town Candy Fudge, and The Best of Totally for Teens. Otherwise, take note what the flimsy outer box says: Adult Swim in a Box on one side -- and Adult Swim Cash Grab on the other. -- DW |
FRAGGLE ROCK: Complete Series Collection Lionsgate, 20 discs $100 ($72) Jim Henson's lively '80s HBO fave teaching kids about human relationships is here in its entirety, again, in a better designed set. Last year's wide molded-plastic binder was a magnet for disc damage. Now the four seasons are in individual plastic cases inside a standard-size box. Important note for Fraggle fans who've already bought the first three season sets: The Final Season is finally available on its own, too -- $30 ($21 Amazon) for 5 discs including almost 2 hours of bonus features. -- DW |
MISTER PEEPERS S'more, 4 discs each Season 1: $30 ($27) Season 2: $40 ($36) Wally Cox is a placid science teacher vexed by the tiniest details of everyday life in this must-see comedy delight of 1950s live television. Preserved here on kinescope films shot off TV monitors (a process explained in Set 2), the show's gentle tone welcomes us into Robinson J. Peepers' quirky world, taking its time to charm with natural humor, rather than gags or jokes. Cox plays warmly off a young Tony Randall as his know-it-all pal and Marion Lorne (Bewitched's Aunt Clara) as a blithering principal. Video/audio quality is vastly improved in the second set, where superb extras include original live commercials and a naughty Randall interview. -- DW |
NOT JUST THE BEST OF THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW Sony, 4 discs PRICE DROP - $30 ($25) HBO's The Larry Sanders Show, starring Garry Shandling as a fictional, brooding late-night TV host, was one of the shows that made HBO's reputation. Co-stars Rip Torn and Jeffrey Tambor are fabulous, the roster of famous faces playing themselves is endless, and just as many famous faces play fictional characters in Larry's universe. This set includes hours of newly filmed material in which Shandling revisits such Sanders players as Jerry Seinfeld and Sharon Stone - hours that are like a new TV show in themselves. -- DB |
HOPALONG CASSIDY: Complete TV Collection Infinity, 12 discs $80 The older your gift recipient, the more he or she will swoon over this comprehensive new collection. Not only is every episode of the 1952-54 Western series included here, but so are 10 of the films that preceded it, and an Encore Westerns documentary that puts it all in perspective. To old-time western fans and older baby boomers, this should provide many Hoppy returns. -- DB |
THE OFFICE: The Collection BBC Video, 5 discs PRICE DROP - $40 ($35) Here's a gift for almost anyone who loves pitch-perfect comedy. Yes, the Americanized NBC version has developed its own voice and reputation, and has turned into a funny show in its own right -- but this British original, starring Ricky Gervais, is undiluted brilliance from start to finish. Especially the finish, because its telemovie finale, wrapping up the entire show, affords one of the best endings of any TV series in history. This set has it all: both seasons, plus the finale. -- DB |
SPIKE JONES: THE LEGEND Infinity, 4 discs PRICE DROP - $50 ($20) Because of the high costs of securing DVD rights for performers in variety shows, complete variety-show releases are very rare. That's why this exhausting, if not exhaustive, collection of Spike Jones' musical shenanigans is so delightful. Astoundingly clear copies of four shows guest hosted by Jones during the early '50s -- two each of Colgate Comedy Hour and All Star Revue -- are here, along with a DVD of extra material, and an audio CD of previously unreleased radio pilots. TV historians, rejoice! -- DB |
