You know those things you never thought would see the light of day but are infinitely delighted by when they suddenly appear? Yeah, that’s a good way of describing the arrival of Community: The Complete Series (Mill Creek, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$ SRP), available for the first time in high definition. Making this set all the sweeter, it ports over all of the bonus features from the previous DVD sets, meaning audio commentaries on all 6 seasons, blooper reels, and featurettes. And every bit of it is worth a re-watch. Even the “gas leak†season.
I never in a million years thought that I would say one of the funniest films of the year – and a candidate for one of the best superhero films – would be Teen Titans Go To The Movies (Warner Bros., Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$22.65 SRP), but it’s a hilarious pic that manages to be joyously reverential to the source material in ways the live action arm of the DC cinematic universe just can’t seem to manage. Bonus materials include music videos, featurettes, and deleted scenes.
While there may have been a nagging fear in the back of my heart, Incredibles 2 (Walt Disney, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) managed to not only meet my high expectations, but exceed them. Picking up right where the first film left off, you’d never know that nearly 15 years have passed, so effortlessly does Brad Bird bring us back into a world as close as we’re going to get to a proper Fantastic Four film. Bonus materials include the short “Baoâ€, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
And speaking of Pixar, enough years – and films – have gone by that there’s more than enough content to fill Pixar Short Films: Volume 3 (Walt Disney, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.96 SRP), which contains 11 short subjects – from “Partysaurus Rex†to “Bao†– introductions and audio commentaries on all of the shorts, plus a pair of bonus mini-movies and featurettes.
I went in to Crazy Rich Asians (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP) with the hope that it would blow me away, and it did. Brilliant fun with a wonderful cast and equal parts humor and heart, I look forward to whatever sequels the future may hold. My one regret, though, is that we somehow got a gag reel that’s only 2 minutes long. Surely there are hours more they could have put on the disc, along with the audio commentary and also-brief featurette.
There will come a day, sooner than I could ever want (which is never), when the great Billy Connolly will no longer be with us. So it was with great joy that I dove into Made In Scotland (BBC Books, £20), his delightful and intimate tour of the country that shaped him.
For a consistently reliable laugh, check out the latest releases from the fine folks at Rifftrax. If you’re in the mood for some easily-digestible shorts, you’ve got the latest collection – Rifftrax: The Walking Shorts (Rifftrax, Not Rated, DVD-$12.95 SRP), featuring 9 giddy gems. Or you could take in Rifftrax Live: Space Mutiny (Rifftrax, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$14.95 SRP), for an evening of awful movie roasting in front of a live audience.
Mini tchotchkes featuring fun licenses and great sculpts? Sold. The gimmick behind Domez (ZagToys, $5.99 RSP each) is that each of the small figurines is protected under a clear plastic dome, with a base that is constructed to allow both stacking and interlocking with other figures, making display easy. Granted, they are blind-bagged, so there is a bit of a chase involved if you want to assemble a full set, but they’re certainly appealing enough that you’ll want to get them all. They’ve done two series of Gravity Falls figures (one for each season of the show, with a handful of episode-specific variants), as well as a recently available series for Ralph Breaks The Internet and Spider-Man: Into The Spider-verse. They’re pretty darn nifty.
Even outside of the show itself, Gravity Falls has generated some decidedly inspired takes on standard tie-in products. Their take on a coloring book, Don’t Color This Book! It’s Cursed! (Disney Press, $12.99 SRP), actually has a narrative woven through it, as Dipper & Mabel are trapped in a coloring book by an other-dimensional “pigmentologist†who seeks to collect colors from our dimension – via your coloring. Ingenious, really. For more of a retro feel, Gravity Falls fans can also try to navigate Dipper And Mabel And The Curse Of The Time Pirates’ Treasure! (Disney Press, $12.99 SRP) – a “Select Your Own Choose-Venture†novel, that’s a whole heck of a lot of fun.
While it incorporates some elements from his original graphic novel and animated version of her origin, Paul Dini and co-writer Pat Cadigan’s novel Harley Quinn: Mad Love (Titan Books, $24.95 SRP) greatly expands on the life of Harleen Quinzel, crafting a far richer tale about her the life and events that led to her breaking bad and carrying the story forward enough to tease her post-Joker future… Which I hope is explored in more novels to come.
I’d be hard-pressed to say these are great films, even if I do have a nostalgic affection for a few of them, but kudos to Mill Creek for the clever, creative packaging on their new line of high-definition catalogue releases – Krull, Who’s Harry Crumb?, Hardbodies, Silent Rage, Happy Birthday To Me, and Last Action Hero (Mill Creek, $14.98 SRP each) – which reproduces the film’s original VHS box design, appropriately weathered, with a VHS cassette partially visible. You know, exactly like you might see them on the shelves of your local video rental store, warning stickers and all. Very cool.
Now you can binge all four seasons of Nathan Fielder’s unorthodox marketing via Nathan For You: The Complete Series (Comedy Central, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), featuring audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
While a loving portrait of her comedy legend father, what most impressed me about Violet Ramis Stiel’s Ghostbuster’s Daughter (Blue Rider Press, $28 SRP) is that it’s also an honest, candid look at her father, Harold Ramis, without sacrificing her own voice and importance within the book.
Every time I watch a Mission Impossible, save for maybe the first, I think to myself, “This is what a modern James Bond film should feel like – Action, adventure, memorable characters, grand schemes, massive set-pieces, and a dash of humor.†All of that and more can be found in the latest outing – Mission Impossible: Fallout (Paramount, RatedPG-13, 4K-$37.99), which manages to pull together all of the mythology this series has built up about its world and Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt, all without getting bogged down. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
Years after the show’s original DVD release, the new Kids In The Hall: The Complete Collection (Mill Creek, Not Rated, DVD-$35.99 SRP) corrects the problems of the old set by presenting the entire run completely uncensored in its original air form. Just that would be enough for me, but the set also includes the Death Comes To Town reunion series, the original HBO pilot, audio/video commentary, interviews, archival footage, original live performances, deleted/extended scenes, and bloopers.
Catherine Hardwicke’s Lords Of Dogtown (Mill Creek, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$14.98 SRP) is most assuredly a sports movie, chronicling the game-changing approach to skateboarding pioneered by the trio known as the Z-Boys (played by John Robinson, Emile Hirsch, Victor Rasuk) in conjunction with board designer Skip Engblom (Heath Ledger). This high-def extended edition includes audio commentaries, featurettes, and a gag reel.
The third season of Laugh-In (Time Life, Not Rated, DVD-$29.95 SRP) is the first where the show sits atop the cultural zeitgeist, adding Lily Tomlin as a castmember and an impressive roster of guest stars, including Ringo Starr, Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Johnny Carson, Debbie Reynolds, Bing Cosby, Frank Sinatra, Sid Caesar, ¾ of The Monkees, and more. This 7-disc set contains all 26 episodes, plus a tribute to creator George Schlatter and an interview with Tomlin.
Flicker Alley has turned their restorative eye to George Melies legendary A Trip To The Moon (Flicker Alley, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.95 SRP), and the result is a beautiful presentation of a landmark film, presented in its original hand-coloration. Bonus materials include the 2011 documentary The Extraordinary Voyage, a pair of Melies shorts, and the restored Trip To The Moon in black & white.
Watching Justice League (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, 4K-$14.96 SRP) is like finally coming upon a car wreck whose smoke you’ve seen from miles away. Through mediocre to abysmal outings like Man Of Steel and Batman v Superman, I’ve been dreading the final expression of this dank, inhospitable cinematic universe (I consider the wonderful Wonder Woman to be an outlier, and the tone deaf mistreatment of her character in this film proves my point), and my fears came to pass. It’s just an awful mess. Bonus features include a handful of featurettes, but no real insight into why these characters are lying in a ditch on the side of the road.
Featuring performances from Cat Stevens, Bruce Springsteen, Journey, Pearl Jam, Ringo Starr, and more, the 2-disc Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame: In Concert (Time Life, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP) collects inductions and performances from the 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 ceremonies, and is a must-watch for any music fan.
While the storyline only becomes more and more problematic as time goes by, the brand new 4K 40th Anniversary Edition of Grease (Paramount, Rated PG, 4K-$22.95 SRP) certainly looks and sounds phenomenally good, and is sure to make fans of the film happy. Bonus materials include featurettes, deleted/alternate/extended scenes, sing-alongs, and more.
A sci-fi classic, the original Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (Olive, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP) looks nearly pristine in this new special edition, featuring audio commentaries, featurettes, interviews, and more.
Just when I think Shout Factory can’t possibly top themselves and their gloriously eclectic catalogue of cult releases, you get a clutch of new titles from them, including the 1987 Dan Aykroyd/Tom Hanks Dragnet (Shout Factory, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP), cattle-driving Billy Crystal in City Slickers (Shout Factory, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP), William Castle’s The Tingler (Shout Factory, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP), and the Hollywood-skewering Get Shorty (Shout Factory, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$34.93 SRP). And, because it’s Shout Factory, they’re all loaded to the gills with bonus features, including audio commentaries, featurettes, and more.
Robin Williams made a huge impression on my developing comedy mind, from his early stand-up specials to his starring role in Mork & Mindy. And now, just in time for the holidays, Time Life has assembled an incredible 2-volume set celebrating him – Robin Williams: Comic Genius (Time Life, Not Rated, DVD-$99.95 SRP). The 12-discs feature all 5 of Robin’s HBO stand-up specials, rare early stand-up footage, footage from his USO tours, interviews, raw promo shoot footage, the first 6 episodes of Mork & Mindy, a collection of late night appearances, and the 2018 documentary Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind.
I had zero expectations of Wreck-It Ralph when it arrived in theaters a few years back, and was duly surprised by how great a film it was. And that means I’m very excited about the sequel, and delighted by its fantastic new companion book – The Art Of Ralph Breaks The Internet (Chronicle Books, $40 SRP) – packed with development art and insight from the filmmakers.
Though if you want a general overview of the film and its characters, you’ll want to pick up Ralph Breaks The Internet: The Official Guide (DK, $9.99 SRP), a slim little compendium perfect to give you a primer.
It took a bit for the spigot to open, but tie-in products for the Ducktales reboot are finally hitting shelves. Ducktales: Solving Mysteries And Rewriting History (Disney Press, $12.99 SRP) is a journal chock-full of supplemental lore material presented from the characters’ point of view. Ducktales Doodles (Disney Press, $12.99 SRP) is a coloring/activity book that encourages you to doodle drawings to fill put the scenes presented. Finally, Ducktales: Woo-oo! (Disney Press, $6.99 SRP) is a Read-Along storybook & CD presentation of the show’s pilot episode, featuring the original voices and music.
That the folks at Shout Factory have pulled together a remarkably deep set for a cult favorite will come as zero surprise to anyone who has been following the fan magic they’ve been working over the years, so – SHOCK – their Saved By The Bell: The Complete Collection (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$59.99 SRP) is delightfully comprehensive, right down to including the Hayley Mills-starring “first†season Good Morning, Miss Bliss. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, brand new documentaries, galleries, and more. The only thing that could possibly make it better was if they included every episode of “Zack Morris Is Trashâ€.
I’d definitely put Marvelocity: The Marvel Comics Art Of Alex Ross (Pantheon, $50 SRP) in the “What took this so long to happen†file, but once you flip through this big honkin’ hardcover volume packed with Ross’s artwork, you’ll just be happy it finally has. It’s a beautiful collection loaded with never-before-seen images, a new Spider-Man story, and more.
As a fan of the book, I was wary yet hopeful going in to the first season of Starz’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, and was relieved when it turned out to be a wonderfully weird season of television and a solid take on the material. The making of that first season is explored in Inside American Gods (Chronicle Books, $35 SRP), which is packed with insight and anecdotes from the show’s creators and cast, plus plenty of photos.
In another sign that the children of the 90s have wrested the nostalgia remote from 80s kids, you can now get a complete series set of the beloved-of-that-generation Nickelodeon classic Rocko’s Modern Life (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), in an 8-disc set featuring every episode, as well as Hey Arnold: The Ultimate Collection (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$47.79 SRP), which is packed with bonus materials.
Shout Factory isn’t just giving fans of cult film their hearts’ desires, but also delighting aficionados of classic TV. Repackaging into one set their previous 2-volume presentation, the Ernie Kovacs: Centennial Edition (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$69.97 SRP) is a 9-disc set featuring a healthy representation of what made Kovacs an eccentric innovator in the early days of television comedy.
The various Star Wars Visual Dictionaries have been a geeky joy to page through over the years, so it’s great that the concept has been expanded into the Marvel Studios Visual Dictionary (DK, $30 SRP), which follows the template with plenty of photos and trivia about the characters and gear found in Marvel’s films, right up through Infinity War, but I can only assume that the complicated rights issues denied Spider-Man his rightful place in the book.
It’s cold outside, you’re stuck inside, and you love Star Wars? Boy, do I have a book for you! Star Wars Maker Lab (DK, $19.99 SRP) features 20 craft and science projects inspired by the events in that galaxy far, far away, from Jabba slime to an R2 holoprojector.
Another theatrical installment in the “Wizarding World Of Harry Potter†franchise this year means a clutch of new tie-in books, running the full gamut of behind-the-scenes, art, and activity releases. If you’d like to learn about the nuts and bolts of the film’s production, there’s Lights, Camera, Magic! The Making Of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald (Harper Design, $19.99 SRP). For loads of production art and what went into designing the film, there’s The Art Of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald (Harper Design, $60 SRP). I’m a sucker for the mixed-media books that include paper reproductions of various props and ephemera, and that’s what you’ll find in the lavish The Archive Of Magic – The Film Wizardry Of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald (HarperDesign, $50 SRP). For the younger set that wants more of a fun look at the making of the film and its characters, there’s Fantastic Beasts: Movie-Making News – The Stories Behind The Magic (HarperDesign, $19.99 SRP), which presents the material via page designs evocative of the wizarding world’s newspapers. Finally, you can get your zen on with the Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald: Magical Adventure Coloring Book (HarperDesign, $15.99 SRP).
J.W. Rinzler has already knocked out must-have books chronicling the making of the original Star Wars trilogy and all four Indiana Jones films, so it was a happy surprise to find that he had turned his eye (SPOILER!) closer to home with another definitive tome, The Making Of Planet Of The Apes (HarperDesign, $60 SRP). Including scores of never-before-seen photos and more insight than you can shake an angry fist at, it’s the book you weren’t aware you needed until now.
It takes a mighty effort to get me excited about new vinyl releases. I’m a sucker for secondhand vintage vinyl, just for nostalgia’s sake and an appreciation of certain musicians, interesting cover art, or just bonzo novelty. But, I have to say, the Star Wars: A New Hope 40th Anniversary 3-LP Collector’s Edition (Walt Disney Records, $150) is a simply incredible presentation. Arriving in a slick slipcase, the LPs are 180-gram vinyl, fully remastered, with pretty incredible Death Star holograms printed on the vinyl itself. If that weren’t enough, there’s also a 48-page hardcover book with information on the recording sessions, essays, photos, and more.
Disney has really gone all-in on vinyl releases, from modern animated films like Moana (Walt Disney Records, $21.98) to “Vinyl Vault†reproductions of their vintage classic releases like Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (Walt Disney Records, $21.98), to scores and soundtracks to their Marvel films like the deluxe edition of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (Walt Disney Records, $29.98).
When the title of the book is DC: Absolutely Everything You Need To Know (DK, $19.99 SRP), you certainly hope it can deliver on providing at least an approximation of – if not comprehensive – at least essential knowledge about all things DC Comics. And this book does, from all of the major heroes and villains to locations, gadgets, storylines, trivia, and more.
The folks at Flicker Alley have been keeping the silent film flame alive, crafting some incredible restorations and presentations of historically significant features from that era. Their latest are a pair of releases starring silent film legend Mary Pickford – Fanchon The Cricket and Little Annie Rooney (Flicker Alley, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP each).
There have been plenty of HD releases of the film over the years, but as we roll into the holidays, certainly the one most likely to inspire family fun is The Nightmare Before Christmas: Sing-Along Edition (Walt Disney, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP). As you’d expect, this edition has optional on-screen sing-along prompting, plus bonus features including an audio commentary, deleted scenes, Tim Burton shorts, and featurettes.
Coming amidst a flurry of turn-of-the-century teen comedies, Can’t Hardly Wait (Mill Creek, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$14.98 SRP) is one of only a handful that’s actually a decent film, with a solid cast and a zippy energy. This 20th anniversary edition brings the film to high definition, and includes audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and a Smash Mouth music video… Because that was a thing then.
Need a mindless distraction from the family this holiday season? Nothing says “distraction†like a big giant shark, and that’s exactly what you’ll get with The Meg (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, 4K-$38.46 SRP), which also stars Jason Statham. Who isn’t a shark. Bonus materials include a pair of featurettes.
Packed with meticulously restored photographs documenting behind-the-scenes moments, deleted scenes, and bloopers from the original series, Star Trek: Lost Scenes (Titan Books, $39.95 SRP) is one of those books that comes out of left field and delivers material that fans were not expecting, but are sure to be giddy to pore over.
I never tire of seeing vintage photos of Walt Disney, and there are loads of previously unseen ones to be found in Travels With Walt Disney: A Photographic Voyage Around The World (Disney Editions, $29.99 SRP), which pulls from personal family archives to document decades of Walt and his family’s global travel.
Celebrating his 90th anniversary, The Art Of Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse (Disney Editions, $40 SRP) is a beautiful coffee table book that gathers together pieces from dozens of artists, all interpreting the iconic character in their own distinct styles.
I really didn’t know what to expect from Smallfoot (Warner Bros., Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$22.95 SRP), since it came and went from theaters in a flash, but having finally seen it, it’s a charmingly spry little family film with just enough wit in its tale of a Yeti community discovering an actual human to make it endearing. Bonus materials include a mini-movie, music videos, a Yeti Sing-Along, and more.
-Ken Plume
I get into very few video games these days, but Insomniac’s Spider-Man pushed all of my buttons – I mean, it’s Spider-Man, for criminy’s sake. While I enjoyed Paul Dini’s writing and the voice acting in the first two Batman Arkham games, I don’t have nearly the emotional attachment to the caped crusader as I do to the ol’ wall-crawler. For a bit more of what went in to crafting the game’s universe, there’s Spider-Man: The Art Of The Game (Titan Books, $39.95 SRP), detailing the process and visual development.
Every time the Warner Archive drops a new batch of titles, it’s a reminder of just how deep and eclectic the Warner catalogue truly is. I’m glad they’ve continued to not only mine their vault, but also give film fans new high-definition releases of cult faves that might not otherwise see the light of day – the latest bunch being Christopher Lee & Peter Cushing’s Horror Of Dracula (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$21.99 SRP), Errol Flynn in The Sea Hawk (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$21.99 SRP), Robert Altman’s Brewster McCloud (Warner Bros., Rated R, Blu-Ray-$21.99 SRP), Lucille Ball in Mame (Warner Bros., Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$21.99 SRP), and the 4-film Bogart & Bacall: The Complete Collection (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) – which contains To Have And Have Not, The Big Sleep, Dark Passage, and Key Largo.
