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…)
We are spoiled for 1/6th-scale greatness, particularly with the Star Wars license. In just the last year, we’ve gotten stunningly pitch-perfect takes on Obi-Wan Kenobi, Han Solo, Chewbacca, R2-D2, and C-3PO. The latest bit of wonderfulness is Hot Toys’ take on A New Hope‘s Luke Skywalker (Sideshow, $229.99). From the spot-on Mark Hamill sculpt to the uniformly exquisite tailoring of his Tatooine togs, this is the best Luke we’ve gotten, bar none. It also features Hot Toys signature swappable LED lightsaber arm, which sports a healthy blue glow. In addition to that, we’ve got the blast helmet (with swappable under-helmet hair) and training remote, binoculars, a droid caller, and his deleted scenes bucket hat and poncho. Oh, and while you’re at it, be sure to also snag the latest delightful droid release, R5-D4 (Sideshow, $139.99). It even comes with a bad motivator, which you can trigger by pushing one of his visual sensors. Those 1/6-scale Jawas can’t come fast enough.
If Inside Out was Toy Story, then The Good Dinosaur (Walt Disney, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) is A Bug’s Life – a lovely, enjoyable film wholly overshadowed by its juggernaut predecessor. But now you can rectify your oversight with a viewing of this gorgeous, heartfelt little gem at home, which is packed with bonus features, including the theatrical short Sanjay’s Super Team, featurettes, deleted scenes, and much more. In fact, the copious bonus features hearken back to the heyday of the Pixar special edition DVDs.
I admit, I had my worries about The Peanuts Movie (Fox, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) after seeing the first trailer. Without the creative input of Charles Schulz and Bill Melendez, would they take these cherished characters down a crass path? Well, crisis averted, because the film turned out to be a delight that beautifully captured the spirit of Charlie Brown’s neurotic universe. Bonus materials include featurettes, music videos, and more.
You know to start ticking off the days to the new season when the previous season hits shelves, so let the arrival of Game Of Thrones: The Complete Fifth Season (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$ SRP) kick things off with a refresher course on all of the myriad and very near confusing plotlines. Where this 4-disc set really shines, though, is in the incredible bonus features, with the usual complement of audio commentaries and featurettes being bolstered by the endlessly fascinating animated histories of the show’s mythology. With a world as rich as the one crafted by George R. R. Martin, it’s a welcome dive into a deep well.
When you think of catchphrases for Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s Captain Jean-Luc Picard. One is “Make it so.” Then you’ve got “Engage.” Sure, maybe “Shut up, Wesley.” Makes the cut, too. But certainly on that list is one that involves a certain beverage the good captain was fond of, and now the fine folks at Thinkgeek have made it so by offering a tin of Tea. Earl Grey. Hot. (Thinkgeek, $14.99). So now you too can sip the tea of a Starfleet legend while you contemplate your next negotiation.
That its true story of a group of canny investors that saw the mortgage crisis looming and gamed a system about to self-destruct plays like an ink-black farce makes The Big Short (Paramount, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) both painfully funny and a painful reminder of just how precariously stacked upon the backs of fools our financial system truly is. Bonus materials include featurettes and deleted scenes.
If there’s one thing that Drunk History (Comedy Central, Not Rated, DVD-$26.99 SRP) has taught us, it’s that we all would have learned a lot more in school if our teachers had been fall-down smashed. The 3rd season covers subjects ranging from the Civil War to the Cold War and more, and makes a great thing even better. Bonus materials include 5 unblurred episodes, extended/deleted scenes, hiccups, and more.
While the packaging tries to make the finality ambiguous, it certainly feels like the long, odd journey that has brought us to the 6th season of Community (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$45.99 SRP) comes with a true sense of closure for both the characters and the audience. And as a fan of the show from the very start, I’m fine with that. All things must end, right? Unless you’re The X-Files. Which really should have stayed dead. Well and truly. Bonus materials include deleted scenes, a featurette, and a gag reel.
Following on his Oscar-winning performance as Stephen Hawking, Eddie Redmayne pulls off another remarkable turn in The Danish Girl (Universal, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP) as a young man who begins to express his long-repressed desire to live as a woman after his artist wife asks him to fill in as a portrait model. Bonus materials include a making-of featurette.
However, if you want a genuinely enjoyable show that exquisitely captures the awkwardness of its characters and the situations they find themselves in, try the first season of Togetherness (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP), from Jay & Mark Duplass. Bonus materials include a pair of featurettes and deleted scenes.
While I have zero interest in seeing what the live action cinematic take will be on DC Comics’ mightiest heroes, I have nothing but love for the endearingly goofy LEGO adventure Justice League: Cosmic Clash (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP), which finds the League teaming with the Legion Of Super Heroes against Brainiac. Bonus materials include a featurette and a gag reel.
Why get a wimpy rinkydink lunch box when the R&D braintrust at Thinkgeek have devised a heavy-duty Tactical Lunch Kit (Thinkgeek, $29.99). The black nylon bag has a waterproof lining, an adjustable shoulder strap, and comes with a 12oz button-flow thermos with cup lid. Oh, and it’s finished off with a massive velcro patch that says “LUNCH”, because that’s what’s in it.
Continuing their genuinely wonderful partnership of chocolate and peanut butter fun, LEGO Star Wars: Droid Tales (Walt Disney, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP) brings C-3PO and R2-D2 front and center as they relate the Star Wars saga from their perspective following the Battle of Endor, with all of the off-kilter LEGO sensibility we’ve come to love.
The madcap misadventures of the prisoners of Germany’s most inept Stalag are yours for the taking in this massive 27-disc collection of Hogan’s Heroes: The Complete Series (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$79.99 SRP). In addition to all of the Colonel Klink-thwarting escape attempts, bonus features include audio commentaries, a photo gallery, and a gag reel. Now you’ll know everysink!
As a parody of the sweeping, bombastically self-important miniseries events that defined TV in the 70s and 80s, The Spoils Of Babylon (Anchor Bay, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP) comes awfully close to being a sublime success, but it never quite manages to gel into that sweet spot. Which is a shame, because so many of the elements are there, from its eclectically star-studded cast to many of the story beats.
After numerous duds at NBC, Fox got the live musical on TV right by realizing you had to have an audience present to keep the energy up, and that’s why Grease: Live! (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$21.99 SRP) is a fun romp of an awkward book with memorable songs. Bonus materials include a clutch of featurettes providing a fascinating look at what a logistical nightmare it is to pull off a live show on network TV.
I have a love/hate relationship with Ron Howard as a filmmaker. While the stories he directs tend to be powerful, I find the film’s themselves to often be sterile affairs that never quite achieve a launch velocity. His latest, In The Heart Of The Sea (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, 3D Blu-Ray-$44.95 SRP), is based on the true-life tale of a rogue whale that inspired Melville to write Moby Dick. The tale is mighty, the visuals are pretty darn nifty in 3D, and the cast, led by Chris Hemsworth, bring their all, but it feels more a small curio than a truly great film. Bonus materials include featurettes and deleted/extended scenes.
It was always a mess of truly unlikable characters, but it’s in the fourth season of Girls (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP) that the wheels really come off the bus, as plots just kind of devolve into indifference-inducing masses of dialogue. But it does have a lovely turn by Kylo Ren, laying the groundwork of his obvious family issues. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, and deleted/extended scenes.
The second season of Turn (Anchor Bay, Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP) finds the Patriot capitol of Philadelphia fallen to the hands of the British and General Washington besieged both without and within, as conspirators infiltrate his ranks. His closest ally? Benedict Arnold. Bonus materials include featurettes and deleted/extended scenes.
The franchise has become, much like Ice Age, a quick way to generate amiable enough stories sure to entertain the kids, and Open Season: Scared Silly (Sony, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$30.99 SRP) certainly fits into that mold as forest-dwellers Boog and Elliot return with an all new adventure about overcoming fear. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, featurettes, and a blooper reel.
Want a goofball sword and sorcery romp this weekend? With a name like Dudes & Dragons (Momentum Pictures, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP), you can pretty much suss out exactly what you’re getting when a ragtag bunch of unlikely heroes go up against a wizard (James Marsters) intent on ridding the land of love. Bonus materials include featurettes, deleted scenes, and a blooper reel.
Because it’s a massive IP, it was inevitable that Nick Jr. would want its share of the Turtle pie, so we get the younger-skewing animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Half-Shell Heroes – Blast To The Past (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$14.99 SRP), which finds our younger, pluckier foursome rocking to the dino past.
Strawberry Shortcake and her berry berry good pals return for more adventures in a pair of brand new releases – Strawberry Shortcake: Sweet Sunshine Adventures & Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Bake Shop (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP each).Bonus materials include printable recipes, coloring pages, a music video, and a featurette.
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
##
Wow. 
While I’m still wary, I admit that my position on the upcoming Peanuts movie has softened considerably, to the point that I’m now actually looking forward to seeing it. A large part of the impetus for that change of heart can be found in the pages of 
The folks controlling the mighty Carson archive have dipped back into the vaults for the next batch of The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson: Featured Guest Series (Carson Entertainment, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP each), each volume of which devotes an entire disc just to episodes featuring a specific luminary. The second three volumes in the series spotlight 
It’s been a crime of Biffian proportions that we’ve been without a proper book celebrating the making of the Back To The Future Trilogy, but now we’ve been gifted with two must-have volumes. First is the unauthorized, wholly candid We Don’t Need Roads, and the second is the officially sanctioned 
I think we’re all in agreement that NERF has pretty much gotten their whole NERF dart thing pretty well sorted when it comes to their various NERF guns. So how do they put a new variation on their delivery system? Howzabout a slingshot? With a pullstring release, the single-fire 
The key to measurement is accuracy, so the 
It’s raining Rickles, as Time Life has gone and delivered 
Featuring all 107 episodes completely unedited, 
Based on the WWI memoir of Vera Brittain and starring Alicia Vikander and Kit Harrington, 
Have you ever wanted to see the three films of the original trilogy summed up in a dozen words with a dozen vignettes, all constructed out of felt? OF COURSE YOU DO. And that’s just what Star Wars: Epic Yarns delivers in the most delightful way in its trio of books, for 
And if that weren’t enough unbelievably cute Star Wars for you, then there’s also the special edition boxed release of Jeffrey’s Brown’s 
You know, if it weren’t for Adam Sandler’s half-hearted performance, 
Combining comedy, drama, short films, commentary, music, animation, and a highbrow sensibility, PBS’s 
Few shows in recent memory have been as visually and artistically creative as Pen Wards Adventure Time, so it’s only right that fans can snag 
And speaking of the current renaissance on Cartoon Network, you should also definitely pick up 
When a trained military dog is sent from Afghanistan to the U.S. and the family of his killed-in-action handler, the titular canine, 
As his latest big screen adventure hits and the current actor portraying him has voiced his desire to move on, now’s the prefect time for 
Time and distance have done little to make 1999’s television fantasy miniseries event 
I find her music disarmingly infectious and her live shows ridiculously energetic, and that’s all on display in her massive arena shows, captured on 
We’ll probably never get a Pirates Of The Caribbean TV series, so the closest we’ll come is the pirates a-plenty series 
Because the success of The Fault In Our Stars means that every thing that author John Green wrote will get a green light, his 
If you’d expect George Miller’s visually memorable Mad Max: Fury Road to have an equally eye-popping book packed with the film’s visual development artwork, your expectations would be met with 
While the film may have been DOA at the box office, there’s no denying that there’s enough Guillermo del Toro visual flair and attention to detail there to justify 
From their turn-of-the-20th century rise in power to their height of control in the 50s, 
In 1946, Salvador Dali and Walt Disney began collaborating on an animated film. Postwar difficulties at the Disney studio eventually derailed the project and it was shelved, but it was revived decades later by Walt’s nephew Roy. The story of its origins, development, and revival are detailed in 
A streamlined relaunch of the venerable franchise, 
Frank Zappa was bizarre. His music was bizarre. But both were eminently compelling. See for yourself in the newly-recovered 
He’s a genius and a swell guy, so of course I’m going to recommend Terry Gilliam’s “Pre-Posthumous Memoir” 
And speaking of Sideshow Collectibles, photographer Daniel Picard has taken several of the figures they’ve released over the years and used them to create some absolutely magical photographs by dropping them into exquisitely crafted tableaus that run the gamut from funny to poignant. Those photographs have been collected together into a hardcover coffee table book, 
Disney’s slow trickle home video release of their high-profile animated films has always been painful for those of us who want to own everything right now, compounded by the fact that I’ve gone through this dance with VHS, DVD, and now Blu-Ray. After what seems forever and a day, another long-awaited diamond has made it out of the rough with the high-def arrival of 
I had been hearing for months just how must-see wonderful the Brian Wilson biopic 
Its spin-off has faded into the sunset, so it’s the perfect time to circle back and re-experience where it all began with 
Yeah, so, you’ve got a bunch of old NES and SNES cartridges lying around from your childhood, and you’d love to be able to play them, right? Of course you would! And how about making the ability to play portable, as well? That’s exactly what you get with the 
Not only has Shout Factory brought the long out-of-print and ridiculously priced on the secondary market 
When most comic fans think of Donald Duck, they think of the comic book work of Carl Barks. The folks at IDW are looking to expand the appreciation of Donald’s comic adventures with the very first collection of 
And because Halloween is right around the corner, Fantagraphics has used that perfect timing to release volume 13 of their marvelous Carl Barks Library, 
If you’re looking for a pretty darn perfect way to introduce a young kid to the wonderful wonders of Carl Barks’s Disney duck tales, Fantagraphics has hit upon a handy little reformatting style for some of his classic stories, presenting them in a 5×11 style that’s perfect for carting about. Joining the already available 
While their cinematic universe is a drab, depressing antiheroic wasteland, the DC Comics television universe as been evolving into a lovely, interconnected, heroic bastion of enjoyable tales. While the third season of 
I desperately wanted to love Brad Bird’s 
The impending arrival of the new animated film on the big screen means we’re getting a deluge of books featuring and celebrating his creations, and one of the most beautiful is Chip Kidd’s 
A hearty thank you to the home video gurus at Warner Bros., who have used their mojo to shake loose and release a quartet of oft-requested catalogue titles from Paramount and get them in the hands of fans in glorious high-def. Those titles include the Harrison Ford building a barn vehicle 
Try and avoid the increasingly creaky Modern Family and instead focus your attention on the genuinely fresh and funny 
Yeah, I was certainly one of those fans who was deeply worried that the show wouldn’t be able to stick the landing at the end of its run, but the seven episodes of 
Biding time patiently for the next full season high-def release? Partake of 
Knowing that his artists, who had been toiling away on Mickey Mouse shorts and Silly Symphonies, were not quite ready to tackle something as artistically ambitious as their first feature, Snow White, Walt Disney arranged for what essentially was an in-house art school, organized by Chouinard instructor Don Graham. Featuring lecturers like Frank Lloyd Wright and Alexander Woollcott, the long-filed and rarely seen notes from those presentations have been collected together with context and copious illustrations in 
It’s the fall and a new season has begun, which means we also get the release of the previous season with the arrival of 
A zombie medical resident who works at the morgue, eats brains, and solves murders with the psychic information she gleans while eating those brains? From the guy who gave us Veronica Mars? Sure, I’ll watch that show. And you should watch the complete first season of 
The Peanuts gang ventures into international territory in 
From the work of Bill Theiss on the original series through the work of Robert Blackman and Michael Kaplan on the modern shows and films, 
Tell me 20 years ago, and I never would have believed you if you’d told me that Bobcat Goldthwait would turn out to be a filmmaker crafting some deeply fascinating films, the most recent of which, 
As finales of NuWho go, the two-parter 
As a film 
There are enough dour and depressing aspects barnacled on to the Batman universe that sometimes it takes a bit of real world joy to brighten up the impact of the Dark Knight, and that’s what we get from the documentary 
As much guff as Keanu Reeves has gotten for his acting and film choices over the years, his performance in Gus Van Sant’s 
I know my nephews, huge fans, probably would have begged to see 
While they’ve been available as separate collections of episodes, all of those separate discs have now been brought together in 
If you’re a fan of arthouse cinema – also known as, ya know, really good films that contain almost no CG, aliens, or superheroes – then the curated collection of 10 films put together by the award-winning team at Indiepix, running the gamut from comedy to drama to documentary, is right up your alley. The specially assembled lot includes 
Remember in the 1990s, when every year seemed to bring a new batch of Jackie Chan movies? Well, Warners aims tom remind you, with the high definition debut of a pair of those 90s Chan flicks – 
What do you do when your main character left the male stripping world at the end of your first surprisingly successful film but you really, really want to make a sequel? You use the old “Getting the band back together for one last hurrah” trope, and that’s exactly what we get in 
Just like the documentaries on World Wars I & II before it, there’s something undeniably fascinating in seeing history come to life merely by introducing color to what has always been black & white, and when it comes to photography, 
We haven’t gotten a proper Christmas episode out of the current iteration of the characters, so we’ll have to go to the last series for a festive 
A film like 
When you’ve exhausted sequels, go back and make a prequel, which is just what 
In years past, TV shows would rarely consider the afterlife of their run beyond a sale into syndication. The idea of a home video market for popular shows? Unheard of. With that in mind, music licensing deals were only ever made short term, which has left many a show in quite the deep financial pickle when the idea of bringing them to home video with their music intact. Years ago, the music was just changed to far cheaper tunes – leading to fan backlash. Eventually, though, companies decided to try and clear the hurdles – the first most famous example was Shout Factory’s Herculean handling of Freaks & Geeks. And now, the gents a Time Life have actually undertaken their own Herculean task and succeeded in clearing nearly all of the vintage songs (Dylan, Hendrix, Stevie Wonder, and more) contained in the beloved Vietnam War drama 
It’s a rare gift to peer into the mind of a genius, but that’s exactly the gift that 
Hard to believe, but with the release of 
It’s an iffy proposition when a beloved classic gets a latter-day 3D treatment, but the team behind the multi-dimensional re-do of 
Rather surprising – pleasantly so – that the recent Art Of The Hobbit book has been followed up with a companion volume of sorts, in the form of 
For a book to get a foreword from David Letterman, you know it’s got to be special – and 
Mill Creek’s catalogue distribution deal with Sony continues to pay dividends for anyone in the market for a whole clutch of titles at rock-bottom prices, as they release both 
This week’s soundtrack round-up brings Lorne Balfe’s score for the videogame 
While I’ve become quite a fan of him during his tenure as a Daily Show correspondent over the past few years, it wasn’t until 
Although I loathe JJ Abrams Trek refute, I’m a sucker for a prop replica such as the screen-accurate 
We’re over halfway done, and have moved into the last 20 years of the strip with the release of 
I’ve been waiting for ages – okay, to be honest, only about a year – for my absolute favorite episode of 
One of the loveliest cinematic experience I’ve ever had was during a trip to LA during which I partook of the recent 3D conversion of Tim Burton & Henry Selick’s 
If anyone is set to inherit the legacy of Carl Sagan when it comes to making the 
Lionsgate recently made a distribution deal with Miramax, which means that many titles not yet available on Blu-Ray are soon going to be coming fast and furious. The highlight of the first clutch of titles is John Favreau’s 
The bargain-friendly folks at Mill Creek are unleashing a massive clutch of multi-disc classic TV sets, including 
It was inevitable they’d get their shot at the big time, which brings us 
How about another much-requested Nickelodeon animated title courtesy of the fine folks at Shout Factory? This time, it’s the complete first and second season of 
Despite a stellar cast and a workable premise – a pair of average means parents desperate to get their pre-K daughter into an exclusive NYC private school – 
I know all of those involved in the production of the traditionally animated feature are quite proud of the word they’ve done, but there’s no getting around that 
After months of quickie single disc releases, fans will finally be able to pick up 
More Miramax catalogue titles are making their way to high definition via the Lionsgate deal, the newest being the Academy Award-winning 
I suppose the tween audience that still view it as a magically romantic event still in their future as opposed to an anticlimactic night of drama and angst probably love the goofy, rose-colored sweetness of Disney’s 
Oh, A&E. Now you’ve got people digging into repossessed storage units and calling it a reality series? Have we sunk so low as a culture that we’ll actually sit through a whole season of 
It was with some trepidation that fans entered the 5th season of 
If you’re keen on the environment but also really, really like to make a lot of noise, why not try the reusable 
Another could-have-been-a-disaster moment turned out to be gold with Steven Moffat & Mark Gatiss’s modern take on Sherlock Holmes, 
It’s a been a few months, and you know what that means – a new Mystery Science Theater 3000 set! Continuing their yearly tradition, this holiday period box set comes packed with another bot action figure, and this times it’s the absolutely massive (and wonderfully accurate) Gypsy. If that weren’t enough, the movies contained in the 
No one but Edgar Wright could have made a film quite as eccentrically experimental yet firmly rooted in pop culture geekery as 
They’re absolute classics and seasonal must-haves, and now the 
A few months has gone by, which means that the BBC vault has opened and another pair of classic Doctor Who releases have made their way out – specifically the Tom Baker years 
Push Clooney & Pitt out of your mind for a moment and revel in the HD glory of The Rat Pack’s grand heist, as the 50th anniversary edition of 
It’s the holiday season, and Warners has added to their set of deluxe holiday Ultimate Collections (previous entries include A Christmas Story & Christmas Vacation) with the 
Fans of the recent direct-to-DVD DC animated fare will no that many of those came with bonus shorts starring other characters within the DC universe. Well, extended versions of those shorts have been collected with a brand new one – that new one being the titular 
It’s a shame that 
As a film, it’s a big mess, but there’s plenty of fun still to be had in 
They might not be as popular or prevalent as they once were, but there’s still something alluring to life under the big top – a life which is explored in the documentary 
Economize your high definition kiddie-slick purchase with the 
Where the US version of the UK’s middle-age male crisis dramedy Manchild never got past pilot, the similarly themed 
The big screen version may be moving in fits and spurts, but the BBC’s live action adaptation of 
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I’m not a fan, but I know may out there will have been champing at the bit for 
Warners has been dipping into their vaults for many high definition releases of their classic films, and the films starring Humphrey Bogart have been getting particularly nice attention, starting with their beautiful restoration of Casablanca and now continuing with a one-two punch of both 
The best way to think about the 
Just in time for Halloween comes the high definition release of one of the seminal horror flicks to ever be put to film – 
I’ve become less and less enamored with it over the years as a film, though I still love the Ashman/Menken songs of 
One of the many abandoned series set aside by Columbia, the 7th season of 
For a history nut like me, there’s something eminently interesting about Bettany Hughes’ 
Sure, it’s lowest common denominator belly laugh humor, but there more than occasional flashes of inspired comedy to be found within the ridiculously comprehensive 
I’m a history buff, so a 14-disc set like 
Out of most of the pap that populated Saturday mornings in the early 80’s, 
It’s disappointing to hear that sales on the last season were not good enough to justify continued retail releases, but at least the Warner Archive has stepped in so fans can pick up the complete fourth season of 
Leave it to Twomorrows to present a beautiful overview of the life and work of yet another comics legend via 
Besides its engaging story steeped in Celtic mythology, 
Following up on his landmark documentary about America’s pastime, Ken Burns goes back to the ballpark for 
We’ve now moved beyond the classic Peanuts specials and are firmly into the release of the lesser animated lights of the canon with the likes of 
There are no milkshakes to be found, but Daniel Day-Lewis does turn in a memorable performance in Michael Mann’s adaptation of 
Every time I’ve run across it, I’ve found it affable and watchable, but I’ve never actually cared to seek it out. Regardless of my apathy, it gets massive ratings, which means fans will want to pick up the complete seventh season of 
I have absolutely no intention whatsoever of watching 
Bringing together 18 capers across 12 DVDs featuring the sleuthing of Poirot, Marple, and Holmes, the 
With Thunderdomes and autogyros still in his future, the original 
It tried desperately to be a modern answer to the low-rent, affable fantasies Hercules and Xena, but 
The infamous abortion episode comes to one-off DVD on 
What if you made a prequel to a beloved series and no one really seemed to care? That would be 
Easily one of the most unwatchable films ever made, and made a cult classic due to its unwatchability, 
Yeah, I’m still not a fan of 
While the MST3K version is still near and dear to my heart, it is fun to see the restored original 
Matt Smith’s tenure as the new Doctor on Doctor Who isn’t the only change that producer Steven Moffat has wrought – there’s also a brand new 
One of the things I eagerly await is the arrival of a new volume of classic Charlie Brown & co., and 
You know what other book always delights me when it arrives? A new installment in the wonderfully awkward misadventures of dim-witted detective Frank Burly, courtesy of author John Swartzwelder (writer of 59 episodes of The Simpsons). The latest is 
There’ve been plenty of young actresses tackling vintage royalty in recent years, but a gold crown to Emily Blunt’s portrayal of a young Queen Victoria in the appropriately named 
There’s many a stand-up release that comes down the pike where I merely shrug my shoulders and say, “Eh.” And then there’s the new release from Reggie Watts, 
With 
It’s by no means a bad film – in fact, 
I still haven’t figured out what I think of 
A trio of cryogenically frozen astronauts return to an asteroid-devastated, rough-and-tumble post-apocalyptic Earth 150 years in the future in Gene Roddenberry’s 
What doe Tom Selleck, Yul Brynner, Leonard Nimoy, and Sam Elliott have in common? They all star in at least one of the three movies contained in Warners 
If you were to make the It’s A Mad Mad Mad Mad World of romantic films, it would be director Garry Marshall’s 
You know the Warner Archive is dedicated to fulfilling every obscure nostalgic wish when they release Kid ‘N Play’s 
Making a political satire with real bite that manages to retain its humor is quite a difficult task, but it’s accomplished with some real flair by 
My love for magnets, to anyone who’s been reading these shopping guides for any length of time, should be well known. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that my delight extends to the 
You want to see porn for history nerds? Look no further than 
It has nothing whatsoever to do with history except for some forced attempts at context, but The History Channel has fast become filled with reality series such as 
It’s not as fresh as the debut season, but I was certainly still a fan of the 2nd, penultimate season of 
Adapting the Broadway musical for TV animation, 
It’s not as mind-blowing as it is in its original IMAX presentation, but there’s still plenty of wonder to be had in the documentary 
Yes, we were probably overdue for a roller derby flick – and who’d have thought that it would come from director Drew Barrymore and be called 
The release of 
It seems a few months too late, but a trio of documentaries on the Kennedy Assassination are hitting DVD from The History Channel – 
If you’re not willing to take the leap directly into their feature films (via the wonderful comprehensive box set released by Universal last year) or their TV show (which is getting a complete re-release in early 2010), get a quite good overview of Bud & Lou’s comedy with 
I think it’s a pretty clear sign that a barrel is being scraped when we get the 
It’s not up to the level of NYPD Blue & The Shield before it, but there is some merit in diving into 
When you have a title like 
Sure to get attention for its Twilight connection, 
The team at 
Let’s wrap thing up on the mountain as we bid farewell to America’s… ummm… family with 
As the Academy Awards approach like a freight train, studios are making sure to get some of their Oscar-bait catalogue titles released in high-def – which is why we get brand-new Blu-Ray editions of Keira Knightley in both 
A little bit Strange Days, a little bit Matrix, a little bit 13th Floor, and a little bit Avatar, the sad thing about 
The sketches are hit and miss, but it’s certainly worth giving a spin to 
Turn 8-Mile into a story about a breakdancing young girl, and you’ve got 
I loathe the touch-feely soft-focus, marshmallowness of Touched By An Angel, but there’s not denying its struck a chord with many a middle-aged something or another, who are sure to want the newly-released pair of Touched By An Angel Inspiration Collections, 
It’s a quickie, holiday themed release (Valentine’s Day, in case you’re wondering), but I’m sure fans will snap up 
It’s been a long, long, LONG wait, but the fine folks at Cinematic Titanic make a strong return with their road-tested riff of the awkward merging of both Kung-Fu AND Blaxsploitation, all wrapped in a model of poor filmmaking and worse acting… I give you 
I’ve never owned a good cooking knife in my life. Usually, I’ll hack meat and vegetables with a steak knife, ’cause that’s all I’ve got. Every time I’ve tried to buy a better knife, I’ve always chosen poorly, and wound up with a quick-dulling instrument that just sends me right back to my trusty serrated hacksaws. Well, now I’ve seen the light – and it’s not metal. No, it’s 
It’s not a kiddie movie, but I certainly saw it as a kid, and I still love the anarchic blackness that permeates one of the most offbeat holiday flicks to ever hit screens, 
No one rants with quite the same vigor – and accessibility – as Charlie Brooker. Like a cross between Mark Twain and a riled wasps nest, Brooker’s regular column in the Guardian is an ongoing social commentary that inspires equal parts knowing laughter and sympathetic bile. Don’t believe me? Pick up the latest collection – 
How sweet is it that we’re actually a dozen volumes in to the The Complete Peanuts? What seemed like it would take forever to accomplish – the presentation of the entire run of Charles Schulz’s classic strip – now seems to be flying by, as we can all dive into 
If their continued collections of Peanuts weren’t enough to earn Fantagraphics the love and adoration of comics fans the world over, then their beautiful collections of the EC Segar strips starring his cantankerous, shambling sailor should secure that place within their hearts. The 4th collection – 
It’s refreshing to upend the traditional romantic comedy formula and look at how unpredictable love can actually be with 
While Office Space has become an instant classic and even the marginalized Idiocracy has become a cult flick, Mike Judges latest, 
What do you do when you’re a network with a surprise hit on your hands? You don’t wait around for your debut season to wrap before you rush out a DVD collection featuring the first half of said season – and that’s what we’ve got with 
Catch up on your TV viewing over the holiday break with both the 3rd and final season of the sci-fi show 
It came and went from theaters with only the slightest of notice – a disappointment, considering it was the theatrical follow-up to Juno from screenwriter Diablo Cody. Which is a shame, as 
Check another series off your running list, as we’ve come to the release of the 7th and final season of 
Oh, what I wouldn’t do to put a bullet through the sadly long-lived American Pie franchise, which has now moved into 
What was just about the last season of the show turned out to be just another one after it was picked up, so now you can rest easy as you partake of 
It’s the second volume of 
The regular episodes are often painful scattershot, but the focus of their Star Wars episodes seems to bring out the best in Seth MacFarlane & company, as you can see for yourself with 
Go all the way back to the days of Wendy, Marvin, & Wonder Dog with the first volume from the premiere season of the original 
I remember when 
I’d like to say that Mel Brooks’ 
Christmas is dead and buried, so that means we start getting releases like a special edition of 
It’s all hit the fan in the third season of 
Wrap up the season that brought in Rob Estes, Alyssa Milano, and Lisa Rinna (and showed the door to Grant Show, Marcia Cross, & Laura Leighton) with 
It’s not good cinema, but the flicks contained in 
It never fails to bring a warm feeling when one of those Sunday afternoon flicks that used to permeate my youth gets all cleaned and gussied up and finds its way into high-definition. Certainly those warm feelings come from 
It doesn’t happen often enough, but 
David Tennant’s era as The Doctor has just come to a close, but there’s still plenty of classic Doctor adventures still in the pipeline. The newest releases to keep you warm (if the scarf isn’t enough) is the William Hartnell era 
It’s not for your younger kiddies, but there’s enough inventiveness and beauty of execution to make 
With the resurgence of 3-D, particularly in horror films, it was only a matter of time before the Final Destination franchise decided to go all cine-poky with 
You can feel the end coming on as the 9th season of 
When new editions of previously released titles come out, it’s always difficult to determine whether there is a significant difference in image/sound quality or bonus features to make a re-purchase worth it. And sometimes, it’s an easy decision – and that’s the case with 
Haven’t you always wanted a monkey? Even if you don’t have a million dollars, you can still snag yourself a nifty little beanie version of Thinkgeek’s loveable mascot, 
As much as I love Larry Sanders, I will always hold a special place in my heart for 
The butt of many a joke but not nearly as bad as it’s been made out to be (though it’s still an overlong, pretentious flick), Kevin Costner’s bloated, sweeping wetpic 
King of the gimmicky 50’s fright flicks, William Castle gets his own spotlight collection bringing together 8 of those cult films into one box set – 
With its 4th season now on DVD, 
Goofy, trippy, and odd – really think of any term that evokes the word bizarre and you’re apt to come as close to capturing what it’s like watching 
While not holding a candle to the classics of the 1960’s, there’s still plenty of fun to be had with the specials contained in the 
Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, 
They both have their charms (though the original far outstrips the 90’s remake), but know you can get both versions of 
Delve into the historical, cultural, and religious roots of the Santa Claus myth via 
One of the earliest TV shows to get onto DVD was Ally McBeal. That was a long time ago, and no further seasons were ever released. Now, however fans can finally get 
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 
The year 1971 brought the still-developing sister of Charlie Brown – Sally – and made her a fully-realized character, which is why her face adorns the cover of 
When just about every device you can think of requires some kind of battery – particularly those quickly devoured AAs – having a top-notch rechargeable battery system is an economic must. To that end, I present the 
Graham Linehan – with Arthur Matthews – is one half of the creative team behind the legendary britcom Father Ted. With 
We were given a tease of them a few years back in the big ol’ Superman box set that came out, but now the fully restored official release of 
My absolute favorite iteration of the Justice League continues to get the nice, prestige treatment it deserves (even if the characters aren’t getting it in current DC continuity) with the snazzy hardcover release of 
Warner Bros. has an immense catalogue of titles. Thousands and thousands of them. And even with their aggressive DVD release schedule, there’s no way they can get to all of them – and, economically, some of the titles have such a small appeal that it’s just not viable to do a wide release on them. Those who thought their chances of picking up some of those obscure titles were nil can rejoice in the introduction of Warner’s new Archive Collection – 
Warners and TCM turn their spotlight to another actor for a themed box set, this time delivering the 
You’ve seen all of the wonderful production art behind their feature films, well now you can pick up a handsome volume looking at 
There’s something about seeing classic musicals in full high-def that brings the energy, music, and production design to the fore. For a good example, check out the new editions of 
I thought Click was amiable fun, so I found myself enjoying the latest in Adam Sandler’s family-friendly fare, 
It’s one of the most unique animated series ever made for TV – a collaboration between French writers and Japanese animators – and there’s some fun nostalgia in tripping through the complete run of 
I’m reminded of the old days of videocassette (and my old videodiscs) when I see Disney deciding to get back into the habit of releasing themed collections of their animated shorts under the Walt Disney Animation Collection banner. The first trio are 
Explore the life and death of the 16th president with a pair of fascinating documentaries – 
It’s no Pixar flick, but 
You know those type of “prestige” pictures that have the word “PRESTIGE” attached to a club that they bludgeon the audience with, in order that we fully understand that we’re watching a “PRESTIGE” film? 
And one Oscar nominee brings an Oscar winner out on Blu-Ray, with the release of the Coen Brothers’ 
Blake & Krystle get married as – would you believe it? – Alexis schemes in the first half of 
Elmo gets a new color scheme that Kermit would find familiar in the environment-centric 
As much as I disagree with the loss of Christopher Robin, my nephews do like the CG My Friends Tigger & Pooh and the latest release, 
On the surface you could say that Jim Carrey covered much of the same ground in Liar Liar as he does in 
Rejoice, parents and recreational drug users! A new release of everyone’s favorite bizarre kiddie show comes to DVD with 
After only seven years, it’s finally senior year on 
Wrap up the first season of 
I could say that the latest Cinematic Titanic offering, 
When I travel, I always have far too many electronics, far too many cords, and not nearly enough USB ports on my laptop to charge things. It’s always nice to have a backup plan, and the 
I’d say that reaching the 10th volume of the still-must-have collection of Charles Schulz’s groundbreaking strip is certainly worth celebrating – particularly when 
It seems that Criterion is systematically going back and revisiting some of their more popular catalogue titles and giving them rather stunning new high-definition transfers and some new bonus features, and the latest title to get the A+ treatment is Robert Altman’s 
Some may be watching slasher flicks this Halloween, but I will be celebrating All Hallow’s Eve by taking in the new Blu-Ray edition of Mel Brooks’s 
George Lucas managed to extend his death grip into another beloved franchise, clutching Steven Spielberg in one claw and Indiana Jones in the other, and managing yet again to produce a lame monstrosity instead of what should have been a triumphant return of a cinema hero. Such was the travesty of 
All of the focus is on his stellar performance in Iron Man, but another of Robert Downey, Jr.’s great turns is getting a new special edition DVD – his starring role in the life of The Little Tramp, 
I don’t think it was as strong as the first season, but I still enjoyed the second season of 
In the wake of the Star Wars, Marvel, and Disney Vault titles – those wonderful collections of text and reproductions of rare ephemera – we now get 
I’ll be perfectly honest with you – I was not a huge fan of The Matrix. I enjoyed the flick for what it was – a minor mind-f*** whose special effects and energy thankfully cancelled out most of its banal, overcooked pseudo-philosophizing and messianic overtones. But then came the sequels, which both – in quick succession – managed to top each other on the “Someone actually wrote this crap?” scale. Declining box office was proof enough – a fair number of fans who though The Matrix was the second coming (make your own jokes) left the theater feeling betrayed by creators who obviously had their grip locked firmly on something besides the story. Originally released in on standard DVD – and then the now-defunct HD-DVD – the 6-disc 
Packaged in a handsome lucite slipcase, the 
I caught an episode of Yo Gabba Gabba! the other day, and if any show can rightfully claim the mantle of “Kiddie Show Beloved By Stoners”, it’s this intriguingly bizarre combination of music and costumed characters, If you doubt me, check out 
While you’re pining for the next Spongebob season set, get a quick fix of recent episodes with 
In the VH1 series 
In these troubled, troubling times, I recommend anyone with an open mind should check out the wonderful documentaries of Richard Dawkins, conveniently collected in 
Easily the film that cemented William Hurt as an actor to be reckoned with – and a bizarre one, at that – was his turn in 
Sweeping and epic in the most glorious, classic sense of the word, the foreign language 
If you’re the head of NASA’s multi-million dollar manned mission to Mars and you find out that to send the astronauts would result in disaster, what would you do? Well, if you were the head of the mission in the cult classic 
It was truncated due to the writer’s strike, but the eighth season of 
It may not be brilliant, but there’s certainly something loveable about any show that casts both Patrick Warburton and David Spade. 
I’ll be honest with you – the only real reason that I ever watched an episode of 
Indulge your schlock horror bone with the brand new Ghost House Underground imprint, formed by Ghost House Pictures founders Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert, which debuts with 8 titles full of terror and gore aplenty (Lionsgate, Rated R, DVD-$19.98 SRP each). The launch titles include 
It could have been a hokey mess – and there is still some hokinees about – but 
His time in office may be fast coming to an end, but you can still watch the second season of 
Science nerds (like me) can geek out to the complete second season of 
It has been a long, long time since the release of the second season, but fans and interested parties can now partake of 
Terence Malick’s epic tale of Captain John Smith and the Jamestown settlement’s relations with the Native American populace, 
It’s a pleasant surprise to find just how much I look forward to each new installment of 
Based on the lackluster American iteration, I’ve largely avoided the show Trigger Happy TV. That proved to be foolish, as I just should have sought out the infinitely more intelligent – and dada funny – British original created by Dom Joly. It’s like an absurdist Candid Camera, and Joly is a compelling social observer. Drop everything you’re doing and pick up the 
It seems there’ve been a dozen collections over the past few years, but 
As with any potentially long-running DVD release, I feared that the first volume of the chronological Three Stooges might very well be a one-off. Thankfully, my fears have been allayed with the arrival of 
Nothing makes a weekend pass faster than having your own private Modern Marvels marathon, and you can certainly do that with 
Even though I thought the flick was abysmal, I enjoyed reading through the massive 
Unfortunately, much like the film itself, there’s not much to get excited by with John Williams’s score to 
It’s a damn shame that he’s still largely unknown in the US, but I’d recommend you rectify that by picking up 
Long before V or The X-Files, producer Quinn Martin gave us 
Slowly but surely, the DVD releases are catching up with the current episodes. The 2-disc 
The subjects of their quests are still as mythical as they ever were, but 
As someone who was not particularly ever a fan of the original Rambo films, Stallone’s resurrection of the Reagan-era icon in 
While everyone remembers the sinking of the Titanic, my enduring interest in early 20th century shipwrecks extends to the sinking of Cunard liner Lusitania, which was torpedoed by a German U-Boat in 1915, and was one of the pivotal, galvanizing moments in the first World War. The Discovery Channel special 
Get in a martial arts mode (just in time for the release of Kung Fu Panda) with a new pair of releases from the “Dragon Dynasty” label – 
Ride ’em in! Get a view of classic Clint Eastwood with the first volume of 
Meanwhile, Marshall Matt Dillon continues to keep the crooked in line in the second volume of