Tag: Merlin

  • Win MERLIN: SEASON 5 on Blu-Ray!

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    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away two (2) copies of MERLIN: SEASON 5 on Blu-Ray.

    Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, May 15th.

    Enter the contest!
    Email:
    First name:
    Last name:
    Street Address:
    Address Line 2 (if needed):
    City:
    State/Province/Whatever:
    Zip Code/Postal Code:
    Country:
    Birth Month:
    Birth Day:
    Birth Year:

    Official Rules

    No member of FRED Entertainment or their immediate families may enter.

    No Purchase necessary to win.

    Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

    One entry per day, per person.

    All submitted entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, May 15th.

    The winner must allow 4-6 weeks after notification of win to receive the product.

  • Weekend Shopping Guide 4/19/13: Unchained

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    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…)

    I run hot and cold on Quentin Tarantino, and while I think it’s overlong, I really enjoyed his spaghetti western homage Django Unchained (Anchor Bay, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP). Anchored by outstanding performances from Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, and Leo DiCaprio, it’s the perfect mix of Tarantino’s dialogue and chutzpah. Bonus materials include a clutch of featurettes, but an audio commentary is sorely missed.

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    David Tennant returns in the high stakes espionage thriller with Spies Of Warsaw (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) as Colonel Jean-Francis Mercier, a highly decorated war hero operating in a pre-World War II Europe filled with danger, intrigue, and love. Bonus materials include an interview with Tennant.

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    If This Is 40 is a loud, tone deaf look at relationships, Save The Date (MPI, Rated R, DVD-$24.98 SRP) is a sweetly low-key take on similar ground, as independent-minded Sarah (Lizzy Caplan) leaves her longtime boyfriend after his incredibly awkward public proposal, finds a new beau, runs afoul of her sister’s wedding plans, and… Well, just watch it. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, a music video, outtakes, and more.

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    If you’ve yet to experience the fun to be found in 3rd Rock From The Sun, now’s the perfect time to do so, as the fine folks at Mill Creek have just released the final two seasons of the show – Season 5 & Season 6 (Mill Creek, Not Rated, DVD-$9.98 SRP each) in ultra-low-priced fashion perfect for playing catch-up on a nifty little slapstick comedy.

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    And speaking of Mill Creek, they’ve also released the second season of That 70’s Show (Mill Creek, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) in 16×9 high definition, while porting over all of the bonus features from the original DVD release, including featurettes and commentaries. If only more sitcoms originally shot in HD were revisited this way, the world would be a happier place.

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    I could care less about sports, but I’m a sucker for a sports movie that makes you care about its characters, and that’s probably why – even 20 years after it was released – The Sandlot (Fox, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP) still works as a charming little kid’s flick about a young boy who gets shown the ropes of baseball by the neighborhood kids. Bonus materials include a featurette, the trailer, and TV spots.

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    The BBC digs into their classy archives for the DVD release of their 1964 adaptation of Ford Madox Ford’s Parade’s End (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP), starring a very young Judi Dench alongside Ronald Hines. Also dropping is the much more recent Women In Love (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$ SRP), based on the novels of D.H. Lawrence.

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    Proving that they can go just in deep in pleasing fans as the already-established MOD Warner Archive Collection, Fox’s Cinema Archives drops 7 never-before-released catalogue titles starring Jane Withers – High School, The Farmer Takes A Wife, Chicken Wagon Family, Rascals, Paddy O’Day, Golden Hoofs, and Little Miss Nobody (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP each).

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    This week’s soundtrack spotlight falls on a pair of BBC productions – one nature, one science fiction, and both great. First up is Roger Limb’s complete score for Doctor Who: The Caves Of Androzani (Silva Screen, $16.47 SRP), from Peter Davison’s tenure as the 5th Doctor. Second, we’ve got Sarah Class’s beautiful score to the epic BBC Earth documentary Africa (Silva Screen, $16.47 SRP).

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    It’s certainly not Pixar or even Dreamworks, but A Monster In Paris (Shout Factory, Rated PG, 3d Blu-Ray-$24.97 SRP) is an amiable musical adventure that features a clutch of songs performed by Sean Leonard and Vanessa Paradis.

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    Running for a remarkable 28 years, we’re so very close to entering the last decade of seasons with the release of Last Of The Summer Wine: Vintage 1998 (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$34.98 SRP), Roy Clarke’s celebration of aging, aging, and more aging. Plus mellow comedy.

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    Find out the fate of Camelot as Morganna and Modred plot its destruction in the fifth and final season of the BBC’s Merlin (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$59.98 SRP). Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, storyboards, and outtakes.

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    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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  • Weekend Shopping Guide 1/20/12: Cookies For Vader

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    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…)

    HBO is dropping a trio of historical titles in high definition, all three of which are worth picking up – the biopic The Josephine Baker Story, (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$14.98 SRP), Laurence Fishburne’s powerful one-man show on the first African-American to serve on the Supreme Court, Thurgood (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.99 SRP), and a return of Mr. Fishburne as one of the titular Tuskegee Airmen (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$14.98 SRP).

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    For anyone feeling the temptation of slipping from a diets, it’s rather fitting that you can have your very own Darth Vader Cookie Jar ($99.99) seducing you to the sugary, chocolately dark side. It’s sure to bring plenty of moments standing before it, searching your feelings and knowing it to be true… That you’re going to be eating a cookie very soon.

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    It’s still not my cup of tea, but for those that do enjoy it, the complete 3rd season of The Adventures Of Merlin (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP), as the battle for Camelot heats up, leaving Arthur and Merlin on the receiving end of a whole lot of trouble. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, a featurette, deleted scenes, and outtakes.

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    If you want to see cold case investigations with a decidedly British flavor, dip into the 6th season of the BBC’s Waking The Dead (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), which finds Chief Inspector Boyd and his team as they reopen cases involving everything from Travelers to a presumed serial killer.

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    While the film can be shaky going, I can’t help loving the onscreen chemistry of Anna Faris & Chris Evans in What’s Your Number (Fox, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), where Faris digs through her exes in hopes that she had somehow passed up the man of her dreams. Bonus materials include deleted scenes and a gag reel.

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    Shout factory also continues to roll out the classic Nickelodeon series, releasing the live action comedy Hey Dude: Season 1 & Hey Dude: Season 2 (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$19.93 SRP each), So, that’s sure to delight fans. DELIGHT.

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    Every once in awhile an under-the-radar comedy comes along and pleasantly surprises, and Dirty Girl (Anchor Bay, Rated R, DVD-$29.98 SRP) is one of those films, about the titular small-town dirty girl who decides to run off with her closeted parenting project partner on a road trip to find her biological father. Bonus materials include an audio commentary and deleted scenes.

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    To say that the latest DX figure from Sideshow and Hot Toys is 1/6th-scale beauty is an understatement and a bit redundant at this point, as I’ve yet to be disappointed in any of the truly remarkable work they’ve done. And here I am, about to tell you about the latest little wonder – Pirates Of The Caribbean‘s Captain Jack Sparrow ($239.99), as featured in the latest film, On Stranger Tides. The sculpting on the two heads (both with Hot Toys adjustable eyes system) is exquisite, perfectly capturing Johnny Depp’s likeness. In the usual creepily realistic way. Add to that the layered, perfectly replicated at-scale costuming and props – including knickknacks, guns, and more – plus the massive captain’s wheel display stand, and you’ve got a must-have collectible and a perfect centerpiece for any display.

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    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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  • Win THE ADVENTURES OF MERLIN: SEASON 3 on DVD!

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    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of THE ADVENTURES OF MERLIN: SEASON 3 on DVD.

    Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, January 25th.

    Enter the contest!
    Email:
    First name:
    Last name:
    Street Address:
    Address Line 2 (if needed):
    City:
    State/Province/Whatever:
    Zip Code/Postal Code:
    Country:
    Birth Month:
    Birth Day:
    Birth Year:

    Official Rules

    No member of FRED Entertainment or their immediate families may enter.

    No Purchase necessary to win.

    Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

    One entry per day, per person.

    All submitted entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, January 25th.

    The winner must allow 4-6 weeks after notification of win to receive the product.

  • Weekend Shopping Guide 1/21/11: I’m The Doctor

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    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’re still a season behind the broadcast episodes, but we’ve finally got the 3rd season of The Sarah Jane Adventures (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP), which includes the last recorded scenes with David Tennant as the Doctor in a nice little 2-part story that reunites him with his former companion. Bonus materials are limited to an audio book excerpt.

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    New to Who? Get a handle on the ins and outs of the Doctor’s universe with Doctor Who: The Visual Dictionary ($24.99), which is filled with loads of pics and information on everything from the Time Lords to the TARDIS. Did I mention all the pretty pictures?

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    No one was really clamoring for it, but it’s nice that Ving Rhames got work out of Death Race 2 (Universal, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP). Other than that, it’s an exact duplicate of the first, only with a “2” after the title this time. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, and featurettes.

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    Denis Leary rounded up a few of his friends to raise money for the Leary Firefighters Foundation, with the resultant special being Denis Leary & Friends Present Douchebags & Donuts (Comedy Central, Not Rated, DVD-$16.99 SRP), with the friends being Lenny Clarke, Whitney Cummings, and Adam Ferrara. Bonus materials include additional music performances and featurettes.

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    After a long absence from TV screens, the orange cat with the pasta fixation returns with a brand new series, and the first DVD is here – The Garfield Show: All You Need Is Love And Pasta (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$14.93 SRP), featuring six episodes plus a clutch of shorts.

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    I wasn’t terribly impressed with the first season, but there was certainly enough of a positive response to garner a second season for the BBC’s Merlin (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$49.98 SRP), in which our young wizard hones his skills, fights off monsters, and tries to protect the headstrong young Prince Arthur while avoiding discovery and prosecution under King Uther’s laws against magic. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, an introduction, featurettes, and a gallery.

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    It was an attempt to emulate the recent success of The X-Files, but the alien conspiracy series Dark Skies (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$44.99 SRP) only managed to squeak out a single season before being consigned to the history books. Well, now you can watch the whole run in a set packed with commentaries, featurettes, promos, and more.

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    It’s taken years to get here, but we’ve finally reached the release of the 14th and final season of Dallas (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), which includes the feature-length finale which finds J.R. discovering what everyone’s lives would have been like without him, with surprising results.

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    After years of waiting, Fox has finally wrapped up the release of Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP) with the second volume of season 4, containing 13 episodes plus the unaired pilot and the broadcast pilot (complete with original commercials).

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    Underground Toys has been releasing the Doctor Who toys here in the US over the past year, increasing their offerings as the show has really begun to take hold during the Matt Smith/11th Doctor era. I’ve combined the ultimate one-two punch of their offerings – the Entertainment Earth exclusive Eleven Doctors Figure Set ($99.99), which contains figures of all 11 Doctors in a TARDIS box, and the absolutely massive TARDIS playset ($69.95 SRP), which is based on the look of the set from the 11th Doctor era and features multiple levels all focused around the elaborate command console.

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    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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  • Contest Round-Up: 2011-01-21

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    Welcome to our weekly round-up of featured giveaways here at FRED. Every week, we’ll present a new clutch of DVDs, books, and other cool stuff you can take a shot at winning. All you have to do is click on the graphics below to be taken to their respective contest pages. And good luck!

    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away two (2) copies of MERLIN: SEASON 2 on DVD.

    In conjunction with Thinkgeek, we’re giving away three (3) DOCTOR WHO: TARDIS TALKING COOKIE JARS.

    In conjunction with Underground Toys and Thinkgeek, we’re giving away seven (7) DOCTOR WHO: 3rd DOCTOR SONIC SCREWDRIVERS.

  • Win MERLIN: SEASON 2 on DVD!

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    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away two (2) copies of MERLIN: SEASON 2 on DVD.

    Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, February 2nd.

    Enter the contest!
    Email:
    First name:
    Last name:
    Street Address:
    Address Line 2 (if needed):
    City:
    State/Province/Whatever:
    Zip Code/Postal Code:
    Country:
    Birth Month:
    Birth Day:
    Birth Year:

    Official Rules

    No member of FRED Entertainment or their immediate families may enter.

    No Purchase necessary to win.

    Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

    One entry per day, per person.

    All submitted entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, February 2nd.

    The winner must allow 4-6 weeks after notification of win to receive the product.

  • Contest Round-Up: 2010-05-13

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    Welcome to our weekly round-up of featured giveaways here at FRED. Every week, we’ll present a new clutch of DVDs, books, and other cool stuff you can take a shot at winning. All you have to do is click on the graphics below to be taken to their respective contest pages. And good luck!

    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of SURVIVORS: THE COMPLETE SERIES (1975) on DVD.

    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of SURVIVORS: SEASON 1 on DVD.

    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of MERLIN: SEASON 1 on DVD.

    In conjunction with Warner Bros. Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of EDGE OF DARKNESS on Blu-Ray/DVD.

    In conjunction with E1 Entertainment, we’re giving away five (5) copies of THE ABBOTT & COSTELLO SHOW on DVD.

  • Win MERLIN: SEASON 1 on DVD!

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    In conjunction with BBC Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of MERLIN: SEASON 1 on DVD.

    Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, May 26th.

    CLOSED! THANKS FOR ENTERING!

    Official Rules

    No member of FRED Entertainment or their immediate families may enter.

    No Purchase necessary to win.

    Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

    One entry per day, per person.

    All submitted entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, May 26th.

    The winner must allow 4-6 weeks after notification of win to receive the product.

  • Weekend Shopping Guide 4/23/10: Big Blue Bridges

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    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 slow and steady, but as a character piece about a broken down country star living on dive bar and bowling alley gigs who finds a shot at redemption both personally and professionally, Crazy Heart (Fox, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) is a tour de force for Jeff Bridges. I’ve always dug Bridges, and he certainly deserved the Oscar for this turn. Bonus materials include a featurette, deleted scenes, and alternate music cuts.

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    With the Freeloader Pico Solar Charger ($39.99), you’ll be hard pressed to get caught out without at least some ability to recharge your oh-so-important gadgets on the go, as the sun is your is all you need to build up a back-up, and the Freeloader can then be unloaded whenever you need it.

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    Stripped of its lush, immersive, big screen 3-D and viewed on a much smaller, decidedly 2-D home TV screen, Avatar (Fox, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) becomes what it always was – an overblown, awkward, cinematic equivalent, in blue, of purple prose sci-fi. Sometimes, films are really about the gimmick. Even though it’s in 2-D, though, the transfer is crystal clear, and you’d better enjoy it, because there’s absolutely no bonus features whatsoever in this release, so you can be sure a deluxe special edition will be available for the holidays.

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    For all of the waiting and hoping, Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Lovely Bones (Paramount, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$48.99 SRP) turns out to be a mostly forgettable affair that has more in common with the turgid What Dreams May Come than I would have liked. In brief, the story is about a murdered 14-year-old girl caught in a limbo between life and death, who must help her family catch her killer and protect her family before she can move on. The really interesting thing about the 2-disc set, though, is the hours of diary segments included…Though it should come as no surprise, considering Jackson’s massive Rings and Kong sets.

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    I’m become a bit tired of him as an actor, but it’s in rewatching a film like The Basketball Diaries (Palm, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$24.99 SRP) that I’m reminded just what a powerful actor the young Leonardo DiCaprio was. This new edition is lacking in any bonus features, but the picture and sound are certainly the best they’ve been.

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    Similar to their recent attempt to present a younger, hipper version of Robin Hood to simpletons with a short attention span, the BBC tackled the legend of Merlin (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP) by giving us a young wizard newly arrived in Camelot, still learning his way, who finds himself at odds with the young heir to the kingdom, a chap named Arthur. Did you see that coming? The 5-disc first season set contains all 13 episodes, plus audio commentaries, featurettes, video diaries, and a gallery.

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    Slowly but surely, we’re catching up on the releases of Gordon Ramsay’s excellent cooking show, The F Word (BFS, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP). The fourth series brings us a whole new crop of celebrity guests, celebrity cook-offs, remote ingredient locales, and much more. The 4-disc set contains all 12 episodes.

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    Journey back to the crazy days of local television genre hosts – from kiddie to horror programming – via the documentary Every Other Day Is Halloween (Brink DVD, Not Rated, DVD-$19.95 SRP), which examines the life of TV personality Dick Dyszel, whose host creations still inspire those who watched him decades ago. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, extended/deleted scenes, the AFI world premiere, and even a limited edition Channel 20 Club Car reproduction.

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    As both Dallas and Dynasty wind down their DVD releases, it was only a matter of time before we got Falcon Crest (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP). The 4-disc set contains all 18 first season episodes of northern California winery-based drama.

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    I was never a fan of the show, but it had enough of a fan base to last quite a few seasons, and those fans are surely the target audience of The Drawn Together Movie: The Movie (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$29.99 SRP), which takes the animated raunch of the television version and cranks it up to unrated territory. Bonus materials include featurettes, confessionals, and more.

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    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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