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…)
Certainly, there was a fair amount of trepidation that despite the success of the Kickstarter campaign, the big screen Veronica Mars (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$29.98 SRP) would fail to live up to breezy noir fun of the original, dearly departed series. Well, kudos to show creator Rob Thomas for pulling off a film that, set 10 years later and reuniting the residents of Neptune California for a 10th high school reunion overshadowed by murder and intrigue, feels every bit as wonderful as the series it picks up the baton from. Here’s hoping for many more films to come. Bonus materials include featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
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 I Love Lucy: Season One, The Andy Griffith Show: Season One and The Honeymooners: The Classic 39 (CBS, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$129.99 SRP each). As if the stellar sound and video presentation weren’t enough, they’ve also gone the extra mile by loading these down with bonus features galore. I Love Lucy contains the original pilot, audio commentaries, 13 season one repeat episodes with alternate elements, on-set color home movies, bloopers, the I Love Lucy: The Very First Show special, and select episodes of Lucy’s radio show My Favorite Husband. The Andy Griffith Show sports the Danny Thomas Show episode that served as the backdoor pilot, home movies, original sponsor spots, the Person To Person interview with Griffith, and the Return To Mayberry TV movie. Finally, The Honeymooners features promos, an original Buick dealer presentation, the 60 Minutes profile of Gleason plus outtakes, a sketch from American Scene Magazine, both the 35th and 50th anniversary specials, and the Person To Person segment featuring Gleason. An incredible line-up, isn’t it? Now, if only Sgt. Bilko would get this kind of love from CBS, the world would be a happy place.
Everyone knows the immaculate 1/6-scale figures that the fine folks at Hot Toys produce, but fewer know that they’ve also been known to produce the occasional vinyl collectible. Featuring the same kind of exquisite attention to detail, the sculpt for their Monsters University: Mike, Sully & Archie (Sideshow, $149.99) is a spot-on recreation of the iconic characters from the Pixar sequel, clothed in their University jackets and measuring a healthy 9″ high. Here’s hoping this is the first in a series of these deluxe vinyl Disney pieces.
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 Doctor Who R/C TARDIS (Thinkgeek, $47.99). Coming in at 3″ tall, it’s capable of vertical takeoff and landing, and can hover about for an average of 6 minutes on a charge, which is delivered via the remote control (and runs on 4AA batteries). So, go fly a TARDIS already!
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 Donald Duck: Trail Of The Unicorn (Fantagraphics, $29.99 SRP), which features the titular tale plus a handful more, plus essays that put it all in perspective. KEEP THEM COMING, GUYS.
While you’re biding your time waiting for the next full season Blu-Ray release, snag the quick fix Adventure Time: The Suitor (Cartoon Network, Not Rated, DVD-$19.82 SRP), collecting 16 episodes from the show’s 5th season, plus the “Little Did You Know” featurette.
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 – Smaug: Unleashing The Dragon (HarperDesign, $19.99 SRP). Filled with art and designs and even an introduction by Benedict Cumberbatch, it’s an easy impulse buy.
Waiting for the new film and want to binge on some classic thunder lizard action? Look no further than the high-def debut of not one, not two, but 8 classic Godzilla films presented as 4 double feature releases in The Toho Godzilla Collection. Fully remastered, the films include Godzilla vs King Ghidorah/Godzilla And Mothra: The Battle For Earth, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II/Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah/Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, and Godzilla: Tokyo SOS/Godzilla: Final Wars (Sony, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP each). Bonus materials include featurettes and original trailers.
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 Popeye: Classic Newspaper Comics Volume One – 1986-1989 (IDW, $39.99 SRP), which collects the first half of London’s all-too-brief tenure of reinvigorated tales of the spinach-fueled sailorman and his eclectic supporting cast.
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 – These Are The Voyages (Jacobs Brown, $29.95 SRP), of which the second volume of what will eventually be a trilogy, each focusing on a season of TOS, is now available. Author Marc Cushman has done the if not impossible, then very nearly improbably feat of remaining neutral while presenting the facts, tales, anecdotes, and recollections behind one of the most enduring pop phenomenon of the 20th century – and beyond.
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 – Son Of Batman (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) – makes its debut. Based on the graphic novel Batman And Son, it finds the Dark Knight surprised by the revelation that he has a young son with Talia, the assassin daughter of his enemy Ra’s Al Ghul. With the League of Assassins and Deathstroke on the tail it’s not a bib surprise to find that Batman’s son Damian soon becomes the next Robin. Bonus materials include featurettes, a quartet of cartoons, and a sneak peek at the next animated feature Batman: Assault On Arkham.
Rescued from the mists of time, the classic newspaper strip adventures of the man of steel and the dark knight detective continue with Superman: The Silver Age Dailies 1961-1963 (IDW, $49.99 SRP) and Batman And Robin: The Silver Age Dailies And Sundays 1966-1967 (IDW, $49.99 SRP), which is the first of three volumes collecting the strip that was relaunched to coattail the success of the TV series. Oh, and while you’re at it, pick up the deluxe Superman: Sunday Pages 1943-1946 (IDW, $49.99 SRP), which are presented in all of their large format glory.
It’s odd to think they’ve been around for two decades, but that’s exactly the anniversary that’s being celebrated with the lavish and massive Art Of Dreamworks Animation (Abrams, $50 SRP). Of course, those first 10 years were filled with plenty of duds, from Prince Of Egypt to Shark Tale, but in recent years they’ve become a more surefooted powerhouse with the likes of their masterpiece How To Train Your Dragon. Explore it all with copious artwork and behind-the-scenes context with this tome.
In an age of ridiculous denial, Phillipe Squarzoni’s Climate Changed (Abrams Comicarts, $24.95 SRP) proves yet again the power of visual storytelling, as it presents the complicated science behind climate change in a streamlined, easily digestible fashion that hopefully even the simple-mined climate change deniers can understand. If not, well, there’s always puppets.
When you watch the virtually Shirley-less eighth and final season of Laverne & Shirley (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), you understand that it was only right and proper and merciful to end the series, as the magic of the show relied entirely on the dynamic between Cindy Williams and Penny Marshall, and once Williams left, well, best to end it all. Bonus materials include original episode promos and a gag reel.
Somehow, an entire decade has flown past, so do yourself a favor and celebrate the 10th anniversary of Napoleon Dynamite (Fox, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP) with a new high-def special edition packed with audio commentaries, outtakes, deleted scenes, featurettes, auditions, promos, and more.
It’s certainly a long way from even the limited 80’s quality of G1 cartoon, but completionists will still want to pick up Transformers Energon: The Complete Series (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$44.99 SRP), which collects all 51 episodes.
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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Louis CK proves yet again why he’s one of the finest practitioners of stand-up today with 
I love desktop gadgets, if only because they provide a welcome – and inherently evil – distraction from actually getting down to the mounds of work at hand. So imagine my delight when I learned I could get a desktop item that not only provides a visual lure, but also a geeky one? That’s what you get with the 
I don’t think it’s his best, but there’s no denying the brutal power of Martin Scorsese’s 
Whoever thought to assemble a Rat Pack of female television comedy greats – Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick & Betty White – into a sitcom of their own should be given a promotion. In the meantime, you can pick up the complete first season of 
Sergio Leone’s epic 
Some doubted it would ever happen, but they were all proven wrong when 
The new year brings a pair of new classic Doctor Who releases from the seemingly bottomless catalogue, this time reaching all the way back to Patrick Troughton’s Doctor for 
Of all the companies with deep TV catalogues, Paramount/CBS has been the most consistent in releasing their titles, often sticking by and finishing runs while other companies left theirs by the wayside. All this is to say they’ve released another clutch of deep catalogue titles, including 
Continuing to fulfill its remit to release deep catalogue titles sure to make cinephiles happy, the Warner Archive just dropped 
The further we get away from it and the more I try and revisit it over the years, I find myself less and less impressed with Kevin Costner’s Oscar-winning 
As cringeworthy as both the original Office and Curb Your Enthusiasm could be, the comedic situations of 
Another in The History Channel’s long line of “historical” series that have only the slightest of historical content to justify their claim that there’s historical content, 
I admit, after the departure of the original cast, my interest has declined from season to season of 
Ostensibly launched as a way of highlighting positive news stories, 
Sadly, the massive Looney Tunes: Golden Collections are a thing of the past, which leaves us with single disc releases 
We’re nearly at the end with the release of the penultimate fourteenth season of 
The comedy talent may be plentiful, but the quality of the sketches are just as scattershot as your average episode of Saturday Night Live in the first season of 
Originally released on DVD nearly a decade ago, the epic TV miniseries 
If you can get past some of their garbage shows about aliens and the end of the world, History does still manages to put out some real gems that should be seen, including the 5th season of their astronomical wonderfest, 
As it stars both Patrick Warburton and David Spade, I always hope that 
While 
Sadly, 
Ben 10 has moved beyond Alien Force with the first volume of 
The epic films of David Lean are an essential part of any cinematic library, and the first to make the transition to high definition is the sweeping 
Robots are cool. So is brushing your teeth. Go with me on this… When you combine a toothbrush and a tiny little motor, you get the uber-cool 
I’m always leery of a new take on 
It’s been a few months and the new series has been hitting our shores, so hat means it’s time for another clutch of classic [Doctor Who] DVD releases. This time, we get a pair of Jon Pertwee adventures – 
Using the Poppinsonian maxim of a spoonful of sugar, Paramount has dipped into their catalogue for a trio of new-to-Blu-Ray releases, the first of which is the aforementioned sugar – 
Presented by Sir John Gielgud, 
While the new Blu-Ray edition of 
The comedy isn’t terribly nuanced, but there is a sucker punch level of laughs to be had from Leigh Francis’s grotesque creations in 
Universal dips into the vaults for the latest in the Backlot Series, 
You remember [The Santa Clause]? Where Tim Allen assumes the mantle of Santa Claus and family-friendly, heart-warming hilarity ensued? Well, replace Allen with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and make the former wrestler the titular mythical creature of 
Their marriage may not have been the happiest, but there’s no doubt that both Carole King and James Taylor knew how to write a song, which is evident on their recent reunion concert disc 
The films are good, but Universal’s new Blu-Ray/DVD flipper discs are still an unwelcome abominations – which is a shame, since the trio of catalogue titles – 
Recently re-released as a Blu-Ray special edition, the Colin Firth version of 
David Lynch’s adaptation of 
Set in a post-apocalyptic world where technology has failed and mankind is living by a thread after a plague sweeps the land, 
Featuring rare footage from his own personal collection, 
In the mood for a mildly entertaining romantic comedy with likeable actors that won’t cause upset and will quickly wash off after it’s all over? Well, then 
Remember that surprisingly chilling horror film a few years back about a team of female spelunkers who are hunted by subterranean creatures during an expedition gone wrong? You know, [The Descent]? Well, now it all gets a bit naffer with 
I’m not a fan, but there are plenty of kids who adore the little red monster and will probably happy tap along with 
A surprising and welcome arrival on DVD is the second volume collecting 
While not as funny as some of their previous television incarnations, there’s still plenty of fun to be had in the second season of 
Cross Doo Wop with [The Sunshine Boys] and you have 
It’s a bit disconcerting as you try and process the age difference in the 70’s-filmed [Honeymooners Specials], which brought the cast back together for one last spin as The Kramdens and The Nortons, but once you get into it, the old magic is there. 
Translated from its smash Broadway run and bringing Andy Griffith and Don Knotts together on screen for the first time, 
With Memorial Day right around the corner, Warners has dipped into the archives for some manly men classics to release as part of their TCM: Greatest Classic Films Collection. The first, 
By the time we reach the 
Tony Stark becomes a teenage superhero in Nickelodeon’s 
See a man do some incredibly foolish things to his body in the name of adventure in 
It’s another quarter of episodes to entertain the kiddies with 
It seems like there’s been a couple hundred editions released, but the new special edition of 
Hell has finally frozen over and swine fly through the skies, as 
Sometimes, I love gadgets that are completely and utterly useless to me personally. As I don’t work in an office, or in a cubicle, the 
When I wasn’t playing with Transformers in early 80’s, I was usually playing with the dozens of GI Joe figures I had hounded my parents incessantly for. Yes, that means I also was a daily viewer of the episodes contained in 
Twomorrows’ always wonderful artist spotlight series turns its eye towards yet another worthy illustrator with 
Amongst the many documentaries hitting DVD to tie in with the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, near the top of the “must watch” list is the new high definition transfer of filmmaker Al Reinert’s documentary 
Most shows suffer in their sophomore season, but it’s always nice when a program bucks the trend and turns in a stellar outing – and such is the case with 
If you’re keen on quick, easy, one-stop shopping to get all of the classic Peanuts specials you remember so well, I urge you to snag a copy of 
There are over 16 hours of vintage ads contained in 
The 11th season of the now-departed 
It was never must-see TV for me, but whenever I’d see Andy Griffith as lawyer Ben Matlock, it felt like hot cocoa and a warm, almost smothering blanket. Fans can lay their hands upon 
Just in time for the porous yellow one’s 100th episode festivities comes the CD release of 
Yes, I admit to being a person who occasionally gets sucked into The Discovery Channel’s annual Shark Week celebrations. But what to do the other 51 weeks of the year? Well, now you can dive into the 2-disc 
The penultimate adventure for young Harry Potter (well, in the books, anyway – there’s still two more films to go) finds events becoming much darker, and Nicholas Hooper’s score to 
Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange tackle the roles of “Big Edie” and “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale in the engaging adaptation of the now legendary documentary revealing their sad, eccentric, privileged lives, 
The first season of the TNT original 
Tick another show off the list, as we get the release of the eighth and final season of 
Get over the laughable “based on a true story” tag, and 
I have no emotional attachment whatsoever to 
You know what? Between you and me, the less said about 
It’s nice to know that we live in a world where a quirky show like 
Many have wondered why some of the flicks being tackled by the folks at Cinematic Titanic weren’t addressed during their Mystery Science Theater run. Personally, I’m glad they weren’t – because it would deprive us of the top notch, stellar writing that a fully engaged and broken in Cinematic Titanic is now giving viewers, which comes from years of additional experience. It’s as if movie riffing has gone Bionic, and they’ve got full kung-fu grip, to boot. If you don’t believe me, check out their latest offering – a wretched waste of celluloid called 
Kick off the new year in a classy way with a pair of new special editions featuring Audrey Hepburn’s legendary star turns in 
With all of the stuff that comes in for feature in the shopping guide, being able to take good photos of said collectibles is definitely a plus. The best way to get a good photo is to construct a light box… But who has the time for that? That’s right – none of us. So your best bet is to pick up the handy 
The UK Channel 4 series 
As with most of these documentaries, there’s much to find fault with in so sweeping a project as 
Never ones to let a re-release go un-re-released, The Weinstein Company dusts off Jackie Chan’s 
Relive all of the absurdity found in each in every episode of 
You know that Blu-Ray has finally arrived as a format when you can purchase a snazzy, high definition copy of a cinema classic like 
I had high hopes for 
There’s a turgidness to director (and co-writer) Ed Harris’s western 
The residents of the Springfield Retirement Castle will be delighted with the arrival of the complete second season of Andy Griffith’s top flight southern lawyer, 
Mysterious abound as we plow through the quartet of episodes features in the second volume of 
The third installment is on the way, which means you can now partake of both of the previous installments of Kate Beckisndale doing something or another in both 
The classic tale of love & power gets a pretty decent update in 
Brad Garrett’s middling sitcom ‘
In the era of elevated morons like Joe the Plumber, a film like 
They still insist on releasing the 80’s Alvin & The Chipmunks series in unsatisfying single-disc collections, the latest of which focuses on the boys female counterparts, 
