Television

Emergency – Season Three

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 13th, 2007

Jack Webb’s empire was running strong as Emergency entered its third year. What is interesting is that the series never racked up great numbers, but it had some strong staying power. Fans who did watch the show were loyal, and it along with Webb’s police shows were affecting the pop culture. It’s no secret that the contributions to society were high for Emergency. The modern paramedic system owes more than a little bit to the legacy of the series. The actors are still approached by folks who credit them with their decision to go into the life-saving business.
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South Park – The Complete Ninth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 8th, 2007

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Season 9 was about the most exciting year South Park had. Living in Florida, I was likely more tired of the Terry Schiavo situation than most, but watching Best Friends Forever was one of the best parodies the team has come up with. What was most impressive is that it was on the air while the actual event was still ongoing. One of the benefits of doing a show like South Park. When the boys aimed their guns at Scientology they ruffled more than a few feathers. It was rumored that Tom Cruise had led a fight to attempt to stop the hilarious Trapped In The Closet episode from airing.
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Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry Season 4

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 2nd, 2007

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In the continuing need for media mogul Russell Simmons to produce an HBO show and put the word “Def” in front of it, musician Mos Def approached Simmons with the opportunity to present a weekly show for urban spoken word artists to show off their wares. And surprisingly, not only has the show survived, but has thrived into a fourth season that has come out on DVD, with ten episodes in all, split over two discs.

The layout of the show is pretty straightforward, as Mos Def introduces the beginning and end of the shows and the acts in between.
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All in the Family – The Complete Sixth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 21st, 2007

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There were a lot of changes in store for the Bunkers in the sixth season. The Jeffersons, long a source of irritation for Archie and a ton of laughs for us, were moving on up to the East Side and that big de-lux apartment in the sky. Mike and Gloria finally move out of the house, but only as far as next door in the vacated Jefferson home. Most importantly, little baby Joey joins the family. For the 30 years since All In The Family, there is still speculation as to just how Carroll O’ Connor was able to take such a bigoted, seemingly irredeemable character and make him loved by millions.
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Hu$tle – Complete Season Two

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 19th, 2007

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Seriously, have criminals ever been this cool or this much fun to watch? Since Ocean’s Eleven, I mean. For those that don’t know, Hu$tle is a BBC drama that follows the exploits of a team of five con artists as they “earn” their keep. For the sake of keeping the charaters interesting, the majority of the jobs they pull target people who deserve to be conned. Sort of a modern day band of Merry Men, so to speak. If you are a fan of Spooks (known as MI-5 here in the states), you will probably…
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Dog the Bounty Hunter – Best of Season 3

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 18th, 2007

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Synopsis

Reality series are so rampant on tv these days. You have everything from people who has been celebrities living together to the journey of people who want to lose a ton of pounds. Some of these are good and some defy explanation. However, I found a good little nugget of reality when I was sent a copy of Dog the Bounty Hunter – Best of Season 3 on DVD. To be honest, I was expecting the worst and what I got was actually pretty interesting and might be on the A…
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Inside the Actors Studio: Dave Chappelle

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 16th, 2007

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Since its premiere in 1994, Inside the Actors Studio has been a fascinating talk show for film fans and aspiring actors, writers and directors alike. Each episode a famous guest ï¿½ usually an actor ï¿½ is interviewed one-on-one by host James Lipton, followed by questions from the student audience.

In early 2006, one such guest was Dave Chappelle (Chappelleï¿½s Show). Chappelleï¿½s appearance followed some controversial events in his life, mainly his surprising exit from his mega-hit Comedy Central sh…
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Las Vegas – Season Three (Uncut & Uncensored)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 16th, 2007

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Las Vegas made its most significant changes in the third season. The full time addition of Lara Flynn Boyle as the new rich owner of the Montecito made the show somewhat lighter overall. It was probably a good idea to shake things up a bit. The cast chemistry on this show is quite good but was perhaps settling in a bit too much after two years. Boyle’s Monica was a perfect foil for James Caan’s Ed. Caan was able to stretch his acting muscles a lot more in this season. The overall idea hasn’t really changed: The Montecito Hotel and Casino is the setting for action and play.
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Pinky and The Brain – Volume 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 15th, 2007

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Two lab mice, one world to conquer. When the ACME Labs shut down each night, Pinky and the Brain set out for world domination, armed only with Brain’s genetically enhanced, um, brain, and Pinky’s good-natured insanity.

We have here 22 episodes of this high quality animated series, picking up near the end of season two – where the vol. 1 release left off – and continuing in broadcast order to about the mid-point of season three.
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Gene Simmons: Family Jewels – Season One

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 12th, 2007

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KISS fans will likely feel like they’re in heaven with this quasi-intimate look at the long-tongued demon of rock. All others might be tempted to stay away, and yet, that might be a mistake. Let me first admit that I’m no fan of reality television or KISS. With that said, you might be expecting me to trash this particular program. Wrong! Honestly, as an outsider I have the unique ability to judge the show without all of the trappings of the band’s fame and history.
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Mad About You – The Complete Third Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 7th, 2007

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Boy, this title really came out of left field. I am one of those DVD collectors who picks out their favorite television shows and collects all the full DVD season sets. I did this with Wonder Woman, with Kung Fu and with The West Wing. I also started collecting full season sets of Mad About You just a couple of months after I started with Friends. I finished all ten seasons of Friends in late 2005, yet I was only two seasons in to Mad About You‘s seven season run. What…
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Driving Force – The Complete Season One

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 7th, 2007

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The Force family is not your typical American Brady family. Then again, if they were, they wouldn’t be interesting enough to get their own reality television show. Still, just because you’re interesting doesn’t necessarily mean everyone will want to watch you. John Force is apparently the winningest drag racer in the sport’s history. His wife and three daughters live on his property but in a separate home. His daughters have decided to follow in Daddy Dearest’s track marks and are also circuit race car drivers.
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Martin – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 3rd, 2007

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All, the early ’90s! I spent my time counting the days until my military service ended by drinking as much beer as possible until I got to the bright red circle on my calendar. But when Martin Lawrence (House Party) pitched an idea for a sitcom with an African American cast, Fox picked up the show and added it to a then-fledging group of shows that balanced themselves between evening soap operas and raunchy family comedies.

Martin tells the story of Martin Payne (Lawrence), successful host of an urban radio station program in Detroit.
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Extras – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 28th, 2007

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The only thing I knew about Extras as of a couple of weeks ago was that Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant were behind the show, the follow-up to their cult hit The Office, which has been adapted into a Steve Carell vehicle to showcase his talent. Seeing very little on The Office and not being familiar with Gervais’ work, I downloaded the first episode of the second season of Extras from iTunes (Season Two recently resumed airing on HBO), and I found it one of the funnier things I’ve seen in recent memory, and not just because it didn’t cost me anything.
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Def Comedy Jam Classics: Martin Lawrence

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 16th, 2007

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Def Comedy Jam Classics: Martin Lawrence contains a few hearty laughs in between heaps of “f-this, f-that, f-to the point where it is no longer a curse word and becomes simply an overused adjective” and sexually explicit material. Many of the comedians featured on this disc seem to be delivering material purely for shock value before an audience that does their best to encourage. As a result, most of the comedy lacks a genuine feel, and that includes the offerings we get from Mr. Lawrence himself. That’s n…
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SpongeBob SquarePants – Season 4, Volume 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 15th, 2007

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The zaniness continues in Bikini Bottom, and the series shows no sign of losing its appeal or its lunatic creativity. Wonderful little example: “Whale of a Birthday” is about Mr. Krabbs’ daughter’s sixteenth birthday. The highlight: a performance by “Boys Who Cry” singing “It’s All About You.” Perfect. There are twenty episodes here to keep your funny and whimsy bones tickled. (What, you don’t think you have a whimsy bone? Of course you do.)

The Simple Life – The Complete Fourth Season (‘Til Death Do Us Part)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 7th, 2007

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If you haven’t heard of The Simple Life, the reality series starring celebrity debutantes Paris Hilton and Nicole Ritchie, you must not own a TV. If you just haven’t ever watched the show, you’re one lucky person. I used to be lucky, too, but now I’ve seen the show’s fourth season on DVD.

The Simple Life features Hilton and Ritchie, spoiled rich and absolutely clueless, experiencing everyday American life. You know, like doing chores on a farm. What’s new for this season?
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Dane Cook’s Tourgasm

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 3rd, 2007

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I’ve gotta say, I love stand-up comedy. My first albums were George Carlin records, and I’d always listen to my Dad’s recorded tape of a Friar’s Club roast of Don Rickles, where four letter words would get dropped as often as the drinks in the room. Then it was on to Richard Pryor, then onto the R-rated genius of Sam Kinison and to a lesser extent, Andrew Dice Clay. And now, it’s Lewis Black, David Cross, Dave Attell and Robert Schimmel.
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Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law – Volume 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 29th, 2006

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I’d never seen, nor heard of, Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law before I received my review copy of this second volume of the series, which aired as part of Adult Swim. What a bizarre show! Not since Ren and Stimpy have I seen such a strange, adult-oriented cartoon.

Harvey Birdman was a shoddy superhero who has become a substandard Attorney. His firm handles cases for well-known animated Hanna-Barbara characters like The Jetsons, with each of the 13 episodes in this second volume presenting a new case.
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Seinfeld – Season 7

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 20th, 2006

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It started as “the show about nothing”, but we really know better. While some say it’s much ado about nothing, they’ve missed the point, haven’t they. Ask some folks, and they’ve got nothing to say. Well. If you can’t say something nice…

Jerry Seinfeld did what so many comics have failed to do well. It seems just about every stand-up out there thinks the stuff will work on television. Some of it does. Those that got the chance owe much to the success of Seinfeld. Like few sit-coms before it, the series was the hot topic at work water coolers.
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MXC: Most Extreme Elimination Challenge – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 19th, 2006

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Spike TV has really picked up steam in recent years, and this momentum is nowhere more apparent than in their staple show MXC – Most Extreme Elimination Challenge. Now on DVD with the complete first season, fans of the show and adventurous new viewers are sure to enjoy the antics and wisecracks of hosts “Kenny” and “Vic,” who provide commentary on each episode of insane Asian people sacrificing their bodies for the thrill of being on television. Of course, the American voiceovers of MXC are all added …
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Full House – The Complete Fifth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 15th, 2006

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Why is it that kids watch so much bad programming? When I was a child I watched a lot of Full House, even though I knew at the time that it was a poorly-crafted program. I really don’t remember ever laughing during an episode, and I knew how cheesy the whole thing was, yet if I was at home changing channels, and the show came on, I would inexplicably stop and watch. At first, I think it was confusing for me that Dave Coulier was on the show, as up until that point I was used to seeing him as the host of Nickel…
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Dukes of Hazzard, The – The Complete Seventh Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 13th, 2006

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I can’t believe this show ran for seven seasons. Sure, I enjoyed it as a child, but I was a child, and didn’t know any better. Seeing it today, it is shocking how bad it really is. The acting is pathetic and the storylines are lame and predictable. Every episode for seven straight seasons had the same basic skeleton. The boys are having a good time, the corrupt county commissioner does something for personal gain, the half-retarded Sheriff blames it on the innocent Duke boys, car chase, short shorts, car flies throug…
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NCIS – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 8th, 2006

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Synopsis

Hooray for Donald Bellisario and his decision to create prime time television shows with various branches of the armed forces! But in this case, NCIS takes advantage of the craze of all the CSI related shows that have sprouted up over the last several years. But with various jump cuts and clips of music that are interspersed with it, it’s still hard to make the distinction.

And to make things even more confusing, the show features a grouchy leader who utters the occasional g…
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Garfield and Friends: Behind the Scenes

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 7th, 2006

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They say you can’t turn back the clock. Sometimes, that really sucks. Like when I pressed “play” to watch Garfield and Friends, Behind the Scenes. There was a time in my life when I lived and breathed Garfield, and everything Jim Davis touched glittered like a clear, starry night to my eyes. I’m exaggerating, but the point is I used to really like the comic.

Well, that was age seven, and this is now. My mature, adult brain just cannot compute why this comic strip still runs in the dailies, and still sells off store shelves. So you can guess that I wasn’t too keen on watching nearly two hours’ worth of the animated Garfield cartoon.
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