The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the Quick Stop Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…

It takes a lot for a book to make it onto my “By crikey, this is brilliant!!!” list. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy… Terry Jones’s Chaucer’s Knight… Huckleberry Finn… Green Eggs and Ham… and The Prydain Chronicles are just a few past honorees. Anyhoo, I come to celebrate (again) just such a work of literary brilliance – its name is The Areas of My Expertise (Riverhead Trade, $14.00 SRP), and its author is John Hodgman, a man of letters (26, to be exact – and he used every last one of them to write this book). Presented in the form of an ersatz almanac, it’s a hilarious journey into the secret Hobo culture (and the list of 700 Hobo names), the American presidents who had hooks for hands, little known facts about the 51 U.S. States, Lycanthropic Transformation Timetables (very important), and much, much more. Hodgman writes in an easily accessible, quite matter-of-fact style about matters most surreal – yet disturbingly plausible. I love this book, and I think you will, too… And now that it’s available in a newly expanded paperback edition and audiobook form ($29.95 SRP), you have absolutely no excuse not to pick it up.

A part of me is still pissed that Arrested Development – one of the most brilliant shows to ever grace the tube – was cancelled. There’s another part of me, though, that acknowledges that Fox did allow it to eke out three low-rated seasons, and that so finely-tuned a sitcom forever risks slipping off the knife-edge and falling into the abyss of mediocrity or – worst of all – self-parody. So let’s celebrate its all-too-brief life with the release of that third and final season (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP), featuring all 13 episodes, plus audio commentaries, deleted/extended scenes, a blooper reel, and a featurette on the last day on location.

While some shows start out brilliant than fade over the years, South Park has had the opposite trajectory, honing its satire and enriching the characters who inhabit the quirky mountain town, including our four leads – Kyle, Stan, Kenny, and Cartman. By the eighth season (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$49.99 SRP), the gloves were off and the targets were bigger, from Michael Jackson and illegal immigration to Wal-Mart and Mel Gibson (in a still relevant look at the sentiments of The Passion of the Christ). This was also the season of the anime role-playing that resulted in an ocularly injured Butters (and some memorable fantasy sequences). The 3-disc set has the usual run of mini-commentaries from Matt & Trey.

Growing up with the likes of Gummi Bears and DuckTales, the announcement that there would soon be an entire afterschool block full of these Disney cartoons – plus some new series – was met with an excitement that carried me right through to the premiere of “The Disney Afternoon” and its first original show, TaleSpin (Walt Disney, Not Rated, DVD-$34.99 SRP), starring Jungle Book veteran Baloo s a 1930’s era cargo pilot in a world full of air pirates (led by the delightfully deranged Don Karnage. The following year, we got another great addition with the superhero pastiche Darkwing Duck (Walt Disney, Not Rated, DVD-$34.99 SRP) – in fact, I still have an action figure of the villain Megavolt on my desk. While it’s great that the complete first seasons of both shows are now in DVD (with their pilot episodes – at least Disney occasionally listens to fans), they lack even a single special feature. Pathetic treatment for such great shows.

Speaking of memorable Saturday morning cartoons, the first season (sans one rights-issue episode) of Ben Edlund’s lovable superheroic oaf The Tick (Buena Vista, Not Rated, DVD-$34.99 SRP) has also hit DVD, but like the two Disney animated sets is completely featureless. Why is Disney so incredibly pathetic about this? No Edlund commentaries, no featurettes… no nothing. For criminy’s sake, come on!

Far more politically strident than the much-beloved (and missed) TV Nation, The Awful Truth found Michael Moore pulling no punches, from conducting a mock-funeral at the offices of an HMO to getting Crackers the Crime-Fighting Chicken locked in the Disneyland jail, including running a ficus plant for Congress. If the complete season sets frighten you, you can get 6 episodes selected from seasons 1 & 2 on The Best of The Awful Truth (Docurama, Not Rated, DVD-$19.95 SRP), featuring a pair of commentaries from Moore.

Released independently but now contained in one handy-dandy set, The Personal Best of Monty Python’s Flying Circus (A&E, Not Rated, DVD-$44.95 SRP) features 6 discs – one for each member of the troupe, who fills it with their personal selection of favorite sketches, plus some new material (making it a must-have for Python fans). Of the new material, my favorite is probably John Cleese’s crass look behind-the-scenes of his selections, filmed at his palatial California estate.

Finally remastered and presented with a decent, if slight, complement of bonus materials, Miyazaki fans will feel the irresistible compulsion to add the classic Lupin adventure The Castle of Cagliostro (Anchor Bay, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP) to their collections – probably after re-watching it a half dozen times. Those bonus materials include an interview with animation director Yasuo Ohtsuka, a photo gallery, and the complete animatic with the film’s soundtrack.

Looking to find common ground in a post-9/11 word, the USA secretly sends Albert Brooks to India and Pakistan to see if that common ground could be comedy in the aptly titled Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, DVD-$27.98 SRP), which mixes just enough reality into the absurdity to be believable, much like Brooks’ brilliant (and so ahead of its time) Real Life. Unfortunately, Brooks doesn’t have quite the same precision he once did, which is shame, because the concept is a valid one, and a source rife with potential that goes largely untapped in the film. Bonus materials are limited to additional scenes and the theatrical trailer.

The penultimate seventh season of The Andy Griffith Show (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$38.99 SRP) found the classic series mired in its color demise, with only occasional appearances by Don Knotts to relives the tedium of Andy’s courting phase. There’s still plenty of solid moments to make dismissing the show impossible, but it’s definitely not their high water period.

By the time its 5th season rolled around, Will & Grace (Lionsgate, Not Rated DVD-$44.98 SRP) had settled comfortably into the stunt-casting, easy-joke ensemble piece it had been longing to express itself as – which isn’t strictly a bad thing, but I wish they had tried a little bit hard to keep some of the freshness of the show’s early seasons. The 4-disc set features an outtake reel and a collection of those always pointless themed clip featurettes.

Though he’s looking like death warmed over and she was sadly believable playing Chandler Bing’s transgendered father, both Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner made a string of memorable flicks in the 80’s, which all began with a good ol’ fashioned popcorn adventure, Romancing The Stone (Fox, Rated PG, DVD-$19.98 SRP), directed by Robert Zemeckis and featuring a then-modern day Indiana Jones pulp spectacular (with more of a romance flair, and heavy sax work from Alan Silvestri’s score). It was followed up by the not-nearly as original but still somewhat fun Jewel of the Nile (Fox, Rated PG, DVD-$19.98 SRP), which re-teamed the pair and had the good sense to bring back Danny DeVito (before all 3 would go on to finish out the decade with the wonderfully caustic War of the Roses). Both Stone and Jewel have gotten remastered special edition treatment, with both releases containing retrospective featurettes (with new cast and crew interviews), deleted scenes, and a commentary on Jewell from director Lewis Teague.

Not only does The Best of Mr. Bean (A&E, Not Rated, DVD-$14.95 SRP) feature over 2 hours of the best bits of Rowan Atkinson’s classic creation, but also the 40-minute documentary The Story of Bean. It’s a nice companion to that Mr. Bean box set that should already be sitting on your shelf.

Unlike the pre-packaged, lip-synced pap often found over its mainstream sister show Top of the Pops, the BBC’s Old Grey Whistle Test (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP) featured (from 1971-1987) artists that today would be considered indie (from Jackson Browne to Janis Ian) alongside more well-known artists and groups (including The Bangles and Roger Daltry). The key, though, was that the artists performed live – which is what makes the DVD releases, the latest being Volume 3, such a fun time warp. The new disc features over 2 dozen performances, plus audio commentary from the presenters and reminiscences about their appearances from the artists themselves.

It’s a sad, but all-too-common, story wherein a popular TV series that can do no wrong in its blockbuster first season suddenly stumbles and plants their face in the mud come their sophomore outing, and there are few who will argue that Desperate Housewives (Buena Vista, Not Rated, DVD-$59.99 SRP) didn’t lose its soapy way during it’s second season. Remind yourself of the mis-steps and hope for a 3rd season recovery this fall with all 24 2nd season eps, plus interviews, deleted scenes, and more.

It was only a matter of time before we got the first behind-the-scenes reality series about NASCAR, but thankfully we avoid Real World territory in the Biography Channel’s NASCAR: Driven to Win (A&E, Not Rated, DVD-$24.95 SRP), which focuses on the lives – both on and off the track – of a handful of up-and-coming drivers. All in all, it’s an interesting look at the determination needed to participate in a sport I care very little about. Bonus features include a behind-the-scenes featurette and a driver Q&A.

If purple’s your aural paradise and paisley’s your passion, then be sure to snag a copy of Prince and the New Power Generation: Diamonds and Pearls Video Collection (Rhino, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP). I think the title is pretty self-explanatory. It also features some bonus live performances.

Okay, the only thing – and I mean the ONLY thing – tolerable and even approaching enjoyable about the completely unwanted, unnecessary Brother Bear 2 (Walt Disney, Rated G, DVD-$29.99 SRP) is the presence – and enlarge roles – for the pair of Moose voiced by Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas. Everything else about this steaming waste is just a seemingly never-ending abyss of crap. The DVD features a behind-the-scenes look at the music, and the ever-useless games.

While not directed by Hughes, Some Kind of Wonderful (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$14.99 SRP) is definitely a Hughes film, with a script provided by the 80’s auteur , who also produced. And now we’ve got a special edition of the rom-com, featuring an audio commentary with director Howard Deutch and Lea Thompson, a making-of doc, and behind-the-scenes featurettes.

As the title implies, Washington The Warrior (History Channel, Not Rated, DVD-$24.95 SRP) is an examination of the young military officer from Virginia who fought in the French and Indian Wars and eventually rose to the rank of commander of the revolutionary army and our nation’s first president. Did you know that that path included a 17-year retirement? No? Then watch this doc.

Just when you thought they couldn’t find a new, trashier way to disgust audiences, the 3rd season of Nip/Tuck (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP) carts out the 600-lb. woman fused to her sofa. Seriously. But that’s par for the course, and all in the spirit of the show – where the season really stumbled is the sadly ho-hum quality of the mysterious Carver, the knife-wielding worst nightmare of plastic surgeons Sean and Christian, It’s what happens when guilty pleasures get too daytime soap-y. The 6-disc set features unaired scenes, a Carver featurette, and a spotlight on the set design.

What could have been a great ensemble drama about a group of married women and their single friend instead plays like a half-hearted dramatic play on Desperate Housewives and Sex and the City. It’s unfortunate, because Friends With Money (Sony, Rated R, DVD-$28.95 SRP) has a fantastic cast (Jennifer Aniston, Catherine Keener, Joan Cusack, Frances McDormand) just itching to go, but they’re left with melodrama. Bonus features include an audio commentary, a premiere featurette, behind-the-scenes featurette, and a Sundance featurette.

As a TV junkie since childhood, I can’t help but compare the horrors of war and skill and sacrifice of the military medical personnel and soldiers in the documentary Baghdad ER (HBO, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP) with years of watching episodes of M*A*S*H. The humanity and grace under pressure are the same, even if the modern facilities and procedures provide for a much higher survival rate than the Korean War crises fictionalized in Hollywood’s take. Still, Baghdad ER is a sobering look at the cost of the war, and worth experiencing no matter which side of the political fence you fall on.

I can’t be the only one who, while finding his stunts mostly enjoyable, is still mildly disturbed by (magician? performer? devilspawn?) Criss Angel. Surely others must find him somewhat off-putting. Either way, he’s got a holiday DVD release with Criss Angel, Mindfreak: Halloween (A&E, Not Rated, DVD-$19.95 SRP), which contains not only the special, but also a pair of new-to-DVD episodes from the show’s first season (“Uncut” and “Up Close”).

If a star-studded jaunt with the Bard fits your agenda for the weekend, you’ll want to give spin to the Thames Shakespeare Collection (A&E, Not Rated, DVD-$49.95 SRP), featuring a quartet of classic plays (MacBeth, King Lear, Romeo & Juliet, and Twelfth Night) performed by the likes of Kenneth Branagh, Ian McKellen, Judi Dench, Patrick Magee, and more. Bonus features include interviews and a featurette on Romeo & Juliet.

So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…

Comments: None