Written by:
Diane Anderson-Minshall
TV’s fall premiere season is right around the corner, but before you get wrapped up in all those prime-time dramas, why not take a peek at some of the best TV shows now available on DVD? Chock full of behind-the-scenes commentary and often accompanied by goofy cast outtakes, there’s a reason we love to get our favorite boob tube shows on DVD. Plus, there aren’t any commercials. Here are CURVE’s top 15 TV-on-DVD picks this month.
NewsRadio: The Complete First and Second Seasons (Sony): Hilarious 3-disc set of the Emmy-winning show that lampooned workplace ethics and sexual politics (among other things) and introduced the world to Khandi Alexander (from CSI: Miami), Maura Tierny (ER) and Andy Dick (of MTV fame). http://www.sonypictures.com
The Job: The Complete Series (Shout! Factory): The short-lived dark comedy that broke sitcom rules is finally on DVD so now you have a chance to explore the single camera wonder that delightfully poked fun at sexual politics, on and off the job. It also introduced the world to the wonder that is Diane Farr, who plays a sexy and butchy cop here. http://www.shoutfactory.com
Will & Grace: Season Four (Lions Gate): Another year of lesboerotic innuendo from Karen plus a big blooper reel. http://www.lgf.com
Little Britain: The Complete First Series (BBC): Witness the spectacle that is Britain’s award-winning and ribald comedy full of social misfits and lunatics including trailer trash teen Vicky and unconvincing transvestite Emily. John Waters’ fans will love it. http://www.bbcamerica.com
The Brady Bunch: The Complete Second Season (Paramount): Alice is still large and in charge and Marcia, Marcia, Marcia has taken on women’s lib. http://www.bradybunchondvd.com
The Daily Show: Indecision 2004 (Comedy Central): It’s November and since you can’t vote you might as well relive the most memorable election in the last two years, with Jon Stewart, Samantha Bee and all the decent, honest folks at The Daily Show. Bonus points: coverage of the Democratic National Convention (dubbed “Running From the White House”). http://www.comedycentral.com
Remington Steele: Season One (Fox): Before he was Bond he was ... oh who cares? Stephanie Zimbalist headlines this proto-feminist TV actioner as PI Laura Holt. Turns out Holt is a brilliant private eye but nobody in ’80s era America wants to hire a broad so she invents another private dick, Remington Steele. Only, turns out he’s real. Did we mention how hot Zimbalist is? http://www.foxtvdvd.com
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Vol. 6 (Manga): In episodes 21-23 of this movie-to-TV series, Major Kusanagi’s prosthetic body is badly damaged by her latest battle, but when she goes to have it repaired, she learns that someone is out to get her and the conspiracy is even deeper than she thought. http://www.ghostintheshell.tv
Murder, She Wrote: The Complete First Season (Universal): Angela Lansbury (as the widowed mystery novelist turned amateur sleuth Jessica Fletcher) earned 12 consecutive Emmy nominations for this incredible TV series that is, frankly, a postfeminist murder mystery classic that should be shown in women’s studies classes nationwide. And there’s gay stuff too: In one episode Jessica Fletcher teams up with a drag queen, in another she’s a spinster. C’mon, you know you want to watch. http://www.murdershewrotedvd.com
Nip/Tuck: The Complete Second Season (WB): Forty minutes of unaired scenes are just a few of the, uh, revealing enhancements on this deluxe six-disc set. There’s plenty here for lesbians new to the innovative and engaging series (for one, Roma Maffia as a hotshot lesbian doc) and if you watch you’ll be prepared for the new season in which Joely Richardson has a lesbian romance. http://www.wbtvondvd.com
That ’70s Show: Season Two (Fox): Wait, Donna isn’t gay? What?! She’s still imminently watchable. http://www.foxtvdvd.com
Arrested Development: Season Two (Fox): Lesbian thespian Portia de Rossi is just one of the many funny misfits that makes up the hilariously dysfunctional Bluth family. Best yet: deleted scenes, outtakes and a blooper reel. http://www.foxtvdvd.com
Frasier: The Complete Fifth Season (Paramount): Lilith’s husband leaves her for another man in “Room Service” and Niles almost gets the hook up with a gay ski instructor in “The Ski Lodge.” http://www.paramount.com/homeentertainment
Too Close for Comfort: The Complete Second Season (Rhino): Two hot single daughters in the ’80s? A goofy gay best friend? Do I smell a beard? Bonus: openly gay actor Jim J. Bullock in the episode “The Remaking of Monroe.” http://www.rhino.com
Sex and the City: The Complete Series (HBO): Mix up some martinis, the girls are back in town! For $299 you can now get this one of a kind, 19-disc DVD set that features all 94 episodes of the Emmy Award-winning darling encased in a rose-colored velvet photo album with bonus materials including: En-Sex-Lopedia (an all-encompassing guide to Sex and the City’s defining moments), a guide to the gang’s New York locales and a finish-that-phrase game that tests your quotable knowledge. http://www.hbo.com |
