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 FRED Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support FRED by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)
It’s become cliché to call a Spike Jonze film “quirky”, but there’s a reason clichés become cliché, and his latest, Her (Warner Bros., Rated R, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP) is certainly a quirky, endearing little film in the Spike Jonze style. Joaquin Phoenix stars as a lonely professional letter writer in the near future rebounding from a difficult breakup, who finds his soulmate in the form of a fast-learning artificial intelligence named “Samantha” (Scarlett Johansson). Bonus materials include a trio of featurettes.
They can make brilliant human figures until the cows come home as their particular brand of magic becomes commonplace, but it’s not until you see something as epic as their ED-209 (Sideshow, $409.99) – the disastrously deadly peacekeeping robot featured in the original Robocop – that you can truly appreciate what Hot Toys can accomplish. As it’s in scale with the 1/6-scale figures (and the forthcoming Robocop), it’s a truly massive piece, and incredibly intricate in its detailing. Fully articulated, you could use this “toy” as a stop motion miniature, it’s just so good. And to plus its greatness even more, it even has a remote-operated sound feature which, at the touch of a button, plays a collection of ED-209 lines and sounds from the film. How cool is that?
Magnets and gyroscopes – two nerd tastes that taste great together, and that’s exactly the dynamic duo that’s combined in ball form with the Nanodots GYRO DUO: Magnetically Gyroscopic Balls ($24.99)… And they’re just what it says on the tin – A pair of magnets paired with gyroscopes that are just plain fun to play around with. Can’t ask for more than that.
It can be a dicey proposition fraught with peril, going back and revisiting past successes, but the triumphant trio of Mike, Bill, & Kevin manage it in true style with Rifftrax Live: Manos – The Hands Of Fate (Rifftrax, Not Rated, DVD-$12.95), which features an entirely new set of riffs on a Mystery Science Theater 3000 classic. As an added bonus, the disc also includes outtakes with commentary from the guys. Get it for the love of Torgo. He needs your love.
The most fascinating part of Star Wars Storyboards The Original Trilogy (Abrams, $40 SRP) are the storyboards from the original film, as they present not-yet-solidified characters in vaguely familiar yet by no means finalized designs, in a universe with limitless potential. By the time we get to the boards for Empire and especially Jedi, the universe is pretty well solidified and the boards seem more like a comic book for what we eventually saw onscreen.
Yeah, it should come as no surprise that Kenny Powers as a suburban dad would not last for long, so the fourth and final season of Eastbound & Down (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP) finds Danny McBride’s crass creation back in the swing of it after meeting up with an ex-teammate. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, outtakes, and deleted scenes.
Watching the documentary series Unsolved Mysteries Of The Second World War (Eagle Rock, Not Rated, DVD-$16.98 SRP) brought back fond memories of the kind of program that would fill the schedule of the pre-junk TV History Channel, when it would be endless hours of documentaries about World War II. This 3-disc set explores some of the lingering questions behind the war, from how much Churchill may have known about the impending Pearl Harbor attacks to why Hitler halted his troops before Dunkirk.
Making a pledge to remain firmly entrenched in the swinging single life winds a trio of friends (Zac Efron, Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan) into plenty of mildly amusing situations when the chief proponent of the vow, Jason (Efron), meets a girl (Imogen Poots) who he can’t get out of his mind in That Awkward Moment (Sony, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$25.99 SRP). Bonus materials include featurettes and a gag reel.
Fedor Bondarchuk’s Stalingrad (Sony, Rated R, 3D Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP), which ties a love story into the historical German siege, suffers much the same problems as the film Pearl Harbor – a beautifully shot film about a fascinating slice of World War II history that is hobbled by a pointless shoehorning of romance and bland characters. It’s a shame they don’t let the history stand by itself, because it really is a good looking flick, particularly in 3D.
The mystery series based on Craig Johnson’s best-selling Longmire (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP) books comes back for a second season of complications for Sheriff Walt Longmire as deep suspicions about the death of his wife and his wife’s killer come to the foe. Bonus materials include extended episodes and a featurette.
Hey hey! It’s time for this week’s soundtrack round up! So what cinematic audio delights do we have available this go round? There’s John Ottman’s score for X-Men: Days Of Future Past (Sony, $9.99 SRP), Bear McCreary’s Da Vinci’s Demon’s: Season 2 (Sparks & Shadows, $9.99), Patrick Cassidy’s Calvary (Varese Sarabande, $17.87 SRP), and Rachel Portman’s Belle (Varese Sarabande, $17.87 SRP).
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…
-Ken Plume
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Certainly, there was a fair amount of trepidation that despite the success of the Kickstarter campaign, the big screen 
Since they were originally shot on film, it was only a matter of time and money before CBS decided to give classic sitcom fans a triple-header of high-def delight with the fully remastered Blu-Ray debuts of 
While it’s physically impossible to climb inside it, it is fun to finally get to fly your very own piece of Time Lord technology with the 
Carl Barks was a master of humor and economical storytelling, with an almost magical ability to present more narrative and comedy within a simple 10-page tale than most creators with 10 times the space. Once again, the gee-whizzers at Fantagraphics have released a must-have collection of classic Barks stories in their ever-growing Barks library with 
While you’re biding your time waiting for the next full season Blu-Ray release, snag the quick fix 
It feels like an impossible wait until the 3rd and final Hobbit film, but fill the time with a lovely new tome that delves into the backstory and creation behind the monstrous worm under the mountain – 
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After the untimely death of E.C. Segar only a few years into the life of his immensely popular strip “Thimble Theater”, the strip and its breakout star, Popeye The Sailor, were guided by Segar assistant Bud Sagendorff for over 40 years. But in 1986, King Features Syndicate was faced with having to find a replacement for Sagendorff, and they turned to a seemingly unlikely candidate – Playboy and National Lampoon cartoonist Bobby London. But they couldn’t have found a better choice, as you’ll experience for yourself in 
There have been many books that purported to present the definitive history of the original Star Trek. Much like Roshomon, many presented a perspective on the show’s genesis. But we’ve finally got the overview that incorporates all of those memories plus original memos, documents, and interviews and places them in a comprehensive context – 
Coming fast and furious is an understatement when it comes to just how quickly the new direct-to-video animated DC Comics films have been hitting, as the latest comic book adaptation – 
Rescued from the mists of time, the classic newspaper strip adventures of the man of steel and the dark knight detective continue with 
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In an age of ridiculous denial, Phillipe Squarzoni’s 
When you watch the virtually Shirley-less eighth and final season of 
Somehow, an entire decade has flown past, so do yourself a favor and celebrate the 10th anniversary of 
It’s certainly a long way from even the limited 80’s quality of G1 cartoon, but completionists will still want to pick up 
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
Not content with the arrival of a single much-requested title that would delight cinema aficionados no end, Universal has dipped into their vault for a double header of film noir classics with the high definition debut of both 
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It’s sadly lacking in any bonus features whatsoever – usually a highlight of the BBC’s Who releases – but the fact that we have all but one of the formerly missing episodes after nearly 50 years is reason enough to pick up 
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Yes, you’ll laugh at 
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The BBC does some of the finest nature documentaries around, and they’ve just dropped a whole clutch of beauty-filled discs – a one-two punch of the ursine persuasion in 
Yeah, casting Helena Bonham Carter as the bitter spinster Miss Havisham was a brilliant move in Mike Newell’s pretty decent adaptation of Charles Dickens’ 
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Even if you have the previously release Ultimate Collection, if you’re a fan of Carol Burnett and her eponymous show, you’ll definitely want to pick up 
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When a warlord kills their master and banishes them, the titular samurai of 
Just when you think there can’t possible be any more Power Rangers series to be released on DVD, along comes 
Little girls are sure to devour the latest CG tale of Tinkerbell & friends, as 
It’s the Rocky vs Raging Bull fanfic you always never really thought about in 
You may not have really thought about it beyond their visceral appeal during your golden childhood, but 
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Following in the footsteps of the perfectly okay but not terribly much more than that Merlin comes the latest BBC stab at a genre fantasy, 
Idris Elba is just as incredible as you expect him to be playing the legendary South African freedom fighter in 
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Lucille Ball returned to prime time television twice after her legendary series I Love Lucy, and the third and final of these makes its it to DVD in toto with 
Wipe the memory of the horrid live action tale of Hal Jordan with the significantly more enjoyable 
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Mix Deliverance, Army Of Darkness, and Shaun Of The Dead and you get the loopy redneck zombie comedy 
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I’m not a big fan of horror and gore, but for aficionados of such entertainment, the DVD arrival of the complete 3 season run of Tales From The Darkside producer Richard P. Rubenstein’s anthology series 
Another week, another soundtrack round up! This week, we’ve got Marcelo Zarvos’s score to 
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It’s time for Matt Smith’s yuletide swan song as the 11th Doctor in 
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Though it presents a somewhat sanitized view of Nazi Germany, owing to its YA novel roots, 
Venture into the mystery and intrigue roaming the university halls of 
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Fans of big giant robots that transform into planes, trains, and automobiles will want to pick up a pair of brand new releases – 
For the toddler set, this week brings 
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.