Dante’s Cove: The Complete Second Season / Noah’s Arc: The Complete Second Season – Oh, my. Well, given that the former airs on Here! and the latter on Logo, it’s no surprise that both of these series are, in fact, gay dramas…not, as you knew I’d say at some point, that there’s anything wrong with that. “Dante’s Cove” actually looked mildly interesting, given its reference to “sexy and supernatural residents,” but even that description couldn’t keep me watching after one male lead mounted another from behind in the kitchen. Dude, this isn’t gay drama; it’s gay softcore. “Noah’s Arc,” thankfully, proved to be a more straightforward relationship drama, albeit one with gay characters, and I’m sure that gay viewers probably really enjoy it. Me, I was out after about the third guy-on-guy French kiss. Given that Bullz-Eye received these sets, I think we have to presume that some publicist somewhere saw our slogan, “The Guys’ Portal to the Web,” and said, “Hey, I got some guys for you…” Uh, no, you don’t.
Everybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Eighth Season – In Season 8, Robert and Amy are now married, which means we continue to get enjoyable guest appearances from Amy’s parents (Fred Willard and Georgia Engel) and brother (Chris Elliot); Katherine Helmond also makes another appearance as Debra’s mother in one episode. But as long as we still get Ray, Debra, Robert, Amy, Frank, and Marie, who cares who guest-stars, right? We referenced this last time, in our “King of Queens” write-up, but you really have to applaud Ray Romano and his crew for maintaining the quality of the “Everybody Loves Raymond” DVD sets even after the show’s gone off the air. There are audio commentaries, deleted scenes, and so forth. Nice work, people.
Hogan’s Heroes: The Sixth and Final Season – In the show’s very last episode, we discover the heretofore-unrevealed historical fact that Colonel Klink was actually in Hitler’s bunker with the Fuhrer and Eva Braun…and he might’ve been saved, but Sergeant Schultz kept claiming that he knew “nussink.” Okay, just kidding. The last episode of “Hogan’s Heroes” isn’t discernibly different from the first episode: Hogan and his boys once again outwit TV’s most loveable Nazis. But…no special features? Why, those schweinhundts!
Mission: Impossible: Season 2 – It sure took Paramount long enough to get around to releasing the second season of this show…not that the delay was spent putting together any extras. (It’s totally devoid of special features.) Frankly, you’d think they would’ve put this out at the same time as Season 1, since this is the beginning of the series’ iconic line-up: Peter Graves, Barbara Bain, Martin Landau, Peter Lupus, and Greg Morris. There’s no explanation as to what happened to Dan Briggs (played by Stephen Hill), the original leader of the M:I team, but as Season 2 opens, the group is led by Jim Phelps (Graves). Maybe he got taken out by one of those self-destructing messages…?
Stargate: Atlantis: Season 2 – Honestly, I have no idea how long this has been sitting around my house. It showed up awhile ago mostly because no-one else wanted it, and my attempts to watch it have proven futile because, well, I never saw the first season. (I believe I had this same problem with a later season of “La Femme Nikita,” if memory serves.) Anyway, fans of the show will love the inordinate amount of special features; I mean, I can’t even get into it, but even *I* have to admire a series set that offers audio commentary on every single episode, not to mention several featurettes.
That ‘70s Show: Season Six – More solid ensemble comedy from a sitcom that never seems to get the respect it deserves…but, then, I say that every time I write up a season of this show. But here are two things that might sell you on Season Six: guest-star stints from Brooke Shields, Allyson Hannigan, Shannon Elizabeth, and Jim Gaffigan, quite a few special features, including three audio commentaries (though, notably, none from any of the show’s stars; they’re all from director David Trainer) and featurettes focusing on Red and Kitty Foreman, a.k.a. Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp. Throw in plot arcs involving Kelso getting Elizabeth’s character pregnant, Fez’s marriage of convenience to Eric’s sister, and the constant discussion of the real marriage between Eric and Donna, and you’ve got another fine season of “That ‘70s Show.” Honest.
