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 Quick Stop Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support Quick Stop by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)
Yes, I know I’m a little close to the material – but you know what? I’d still recommend you pick up a copy of Shootin’ The Sh*t with Kevin Smith: The Best of SModcast (Titan Books, $14.95 SRP). It may seem an odd proposition to read transcripts of the Kevin & Scott Mosier’s podcast, but the strength of the material means the comedy translates to the printed page quite nicely. Go. Buy it.
The miniaturization of video cameras is beginning to frighten me. This terror is completely overridden by the geek delight in holding a digital memory camera that’s only slightly larger than a chapstick tube. The camera I speak of is the Micro Camcorder Pro ($99.99), and it captures 640 x 480 x 25fps video onto a microSD card (a 2gb card is included), downloadable via USB. Sweet. And scary.
Sadly, we’ve now reached the limit of the currently produced episodes of The IT Crowd (MPI, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP) with the release of the 3rd season – although, thankfully, creator Graham Linehan is hard at work writing the next batch. Still, the wait will be a long one, so it’s probably best to fill it re-watching the first three seasons again and again. Bonus features this go round include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and outtakes.
I’ve seen the episodes a half-dozen times each (I often replayed them while working), but it’s the mark of a classic show that I’m looking forward to digging into the 3rd season set of 30 Rock (Universal, Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP). Yes – I am. The 3-disc set contains all 22 episodes, plus audio commentaries, featurettes, a table read, deleted scenes, a gallery, outtakes, and more.
Yes, it really has been 100 episodes since the squarepanted sponge of Bikini Bottom first made his way onto our TV screens. How do I know this? Because there’s now an uber-deluxe box set titled Spongebob Squarepants: The First 100 Episodes (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$99.99 SRP), which is exactly that – 14 discs in a lucite holder, containing those titular episodes. Not only that, there’s also audio commentaries, featurettes, a music video, and even an in-depth, candid documentary on the show’s origin and evolution from the production team., It’s almost as good as getting the Krabby Patty formula.
They’ve been released what seems like a half-dozen times by at least three different companies, but this is the first time that Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Collection (Lionsgate, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP) has been released in high definition. Not only that, but A Grand Day Out, The Wrong Trousers, and A Close Shave are joined by the newest short, A Matter Of Loaf And Death. Bonus features include audio commentaries and behind-the-scenes featurettes.
Abrams is fast becoming a real juggernaut with their incredible Abrams ComicArts imprint, as they’ve been releasing some absolutely top-notch tomes that belong on your shelf. Like, now. First up is a loving, in-depth tribute to The Art of Osamu Tezuka: God Of Manga (Abrams Comic Arts, $40.00 SRP), which chronicles the life and output of the creator of Astro Boy, and a Japanese legend. The massive hardcover even comes with a bonus DVD featuring a documentary about Tezuka. Also available is Manga Kamishibai: The Art Of Japanese Paper Theater (Abrams ComicArts, $35.00 SRP), which illuminates the ancient art form that preceded Manga in the hearts of the Japanese people.
Much like Pineapple Express, those going into Observe & Report (Warner Bros., Rated R, DVD-$28.98 SRP) expecting a simple-minded laugh-fest – a Paul Blart: Mall Cop, if you will – will certainly be surprised by just how much depth there is in the tale of mall security guard Ronnie Barnhart (Rogen). Which is not to say there aren’t laughs – there’s just a lot more than that, too. In what’s rapidly becoming a trend for Warners, all of the bonus features are reserved for the Blu-Ray edition ($35.99 SRP), which amounts to a featurette, the “Forest Ridge Mall: Security Recruitment” video, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
Have I mentioned before just how much I’m enjoying Warner Bros.’ On-Demand DVD service at WarnerArchive.com? I have – numerous times – because it’s great to see a company find a way to make smaller catalogue titles available to fans when economic realities prevent a full-fledged commercial release. Case in point are a trio of new titles that have been added to the site – King Vidor’s Lightning Strikes Twice (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.95), Robert Duvall, Richard Harris, and Shirley MacLaine in Wrestling Ernest Hemingway (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, DVD-$19.95) and the cult classic Penn & Teller Get Killed (Warner Bros., Rated R, DVD-$19.95), which was actually directed by Arthur Penn.
Does anyone still watch Ugly Betty (ABC Studios, Not Rated, DVD-$59.99 SRP)? Did the second season lose them all? Did this 3rd season outing bring any of them back? If it did, here’s the DVD set, with audio commentaries, featurettes, webisodes, deleted scenes, and bloopers.
Serial womanizer Connor Mead (Matthew McConaughey finds his plans to bed a bridesmaid at his brother’s wedding is derailed by the supernatural guidance of his departed uncle (Michael Douglas), who originally instructed him on his boorish ways, to mend his ways and find true love (in the form of Jennifer Garner) in the tolerable rom-com Ghosts Of Girlfriends Past (New Line, Rated PG-13, DVD-$28.98 SRP). A Blu-Ray edition ($35.99 SRP) is also available, which seems to be where they put all of the bonus materials missing from the standard release – featurettes and deleted scenes.
Comedy Central may have killed their much-missed show, but at least there’s still live performances to keep The State alumni David Wain, Michael Showalter, & Michael Ian Black together, as you’ll see on Stella: Live In Boston (Shout! Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$14.99 SRP), which finds the trio taking the stage in Fresno. Sorry – I mean Boston. In addition to the show itself, the DVD features a trio of Wainy Days webisodes, 3 Michael Showalter Showalter episodes, footage from the 2003 Fez performances, and an encore.
Despite further muddying already cloudy waters with divergent continuity, the biggest drawback of the axed Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP) was that is was just, well, boring. I never found myself caring for the plight of mama Connor and son, and the Terminator out to protect them (Summer Glau). Check out the second (and final) season and see if you care. Bonus features include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and a gag reel. A Blu-Ray edition ($79.98 SRP) is also available with identical bonus materials.
When his wife and child are murdered by a serial killer, a celebrity psychic renounces his conning past and devotes himself to using his observation and analysis skills to bring killers to justice in The Mentalist (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP). The 6-disc set contains all 23 first season episodes, plus featurettes, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
It may not be the best sitcom that ever came down the pike, but I still love me some Mr. Belvedere (Shout! Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$39.99 SRP). The 3rd season set contains all 22 episodes, plus a few cast commentaries thrown in for good measure.
It pretty much sums itself up in the title – Marvel: The Expanding Universe Wall Chart (Universe Publishing, $45.00 SRP) is a massive fold-out history of the equally massive Marvel Universe, illuminating not only the characters but also their shared history (what nerds call “continuity”).
When a killer begins copying the murders found in novelist Rick Castle’s stories, the author is enlisted by the NYPD to help bring the murderer to justice in Castle (ABC Studios, Not Rated, DVD-$39.99 SRP) – a collaboration he’s more than willing to milk for his next book. The 3-disc set features all 10 episodes, plus audio commentaries, featurettes, and bloopers.
Really, the only purpose that Ghost Whisperer (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$63.98 SRP) serves is to give steady work to Camryn Manheim and Jamie Kennedy. Beyond that, I’m not sure exactly what people see in it. But see something they do, as the fourth season is now available, containing featurettes and webisodes.
It seems Warners believes that audiences were simply dying for an origin prequel to their middling live action Scooby-Doo franchise, which means we know have Scooby-Doo: The Mystery Begins (Warner Bros., Rated PG, DVD-$27.95 SRP). Yes, the gang gets together. For the first time. To solve a mystery. Bonus materials include featurettes, a music video, and a gag reel. A Blu-Ray edition ($35.99 SRP) is also available.
I can’t have been the only one not surprised that Brotherhood (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$42.99 SRP) didn’t make it past 3 seasons, as its story of family, politics, and organized crime never did seem to find its footing. The 2-disc set contains the final 8 episodes, and zero bonus features.
Oh, Disney Channel – why are your tween/teen comedies just so unrelentingly bland? It’s no wonder iCarly is kicking your ass in the ratings – one has only has to look at the episodes featured on the inaugural DVD release of the new Jonas Brothers sitcom Jonas (Walt Disney, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP) and see its tired writing and limp execution. If that weren’t enough of an example for you, look to what could – with another batch of shows – have been a really fun crossover, as a trio of Disney Channel sitcoms merge into Wizards On Deck With Hannah Montana (Walt Disney, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP). Sadly, it’s not that fun – just messy.
Already known for their stellar work, occasionally Sideshow Collectibles manages to even surpass themselves – and such is the case with their Iron Man Mark I Maquette ($399). Taken from Tony Stark’s rough-and-tumble, cave-cobbled armor from the beginning of Iron Man, the 1/4-scale maquette features detailed, accurate sculpting, and spot-on paint job, and even a chest light feature. And, if you get the Sideshow exclusive version, you get a swappable bonus head, which allows you to flip up the visor to reveal the sweaty visage of Robert Downey, Jr.’s Stark.
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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