Category: TV Dramas (Page 199 of 235)

TV DVD QT Special Edition: 2 Miniseries and a Movie

January 19, 2007 /

Another posting to clean house of 2006 releases in this, the first month of 2007. This time, it’s a trio of DVDs that didn’t fit properly into my last posting, since those were / are regular weekly series.

Broken Trail: A 2-part Western – 184 minutes – that originally aired on American Movie Classics, starring Robert Duvall, Thomas Haden Church, and Greta Sacchi, among others. Not everybody enjoys a good Western, but make no mistake, this is a good Western. Then again, it’s not exactly the first time Duvall has been in the saddle (he was fantastic in Kevin Costner’s “Open Range”), and although he was still pretty much a nobody at the time, Church was actually in “Tombstone,” playing Billy Clanton. It also doesn’t hurt “Broken Trail” any that it was helmed by Arthur Hill, who also directed “Wild Bill” and “Geromino: An American Legend.” I mean, hey, who better to tell a cowboys and Indians story, right? Anyway, it might feel a bit long at times, but the performances and scenery make “Broken Trail” absolutely worth renting for fans of the genre.

The Hades Factor: Stephen Dorff and Mira Sorvino take you on a journey through a Robert Ludlum novel that, on occasion, feels much longer than 165 minutes. Blair Underwood, Colm Meaney, and Anjelica Huston are around to class up the joint a bit, but somebody should’ve done some serious streamlining; as it is, “The Hades Factor” is a drag.

Mrs. Harris: And I’m almost ashamed to admit that I feel much the same way about this made-for-HBO film starring Ben Kingsley and Annette Bening. It just did nothing for me, despite the fact that it won an Emmy. Sorry, I just found it to be a snooze.

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TV DVD QT, Special Edition: The 2006 Closeout

January 17, 2007 /

I’d just as soon start 2007 with as clean a slate as possible, so I wanted to toss out a few quick takes of stuff that I’d really intended to do longer takes on, except that…well, I just never had the time to watch them in their entirety, basically. I hate to knock out a full-length review on a season of a show if I’ve only watched a few episodes; it results in a composition that’s mostly filler…and if it’s gonna be mostly filler, then why not just do a quick take in the first place? So here goes…

Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist: Season Two: Jonathan Katz’s animated creation returns with another season of stand-up comedians who need therapy. Katz once again returns to do a few audio commentaries, though unlike the previous DVD set, none of his former guest stars took time out to revisit their appearances; they’re barely missed, though, given that Katz is a man who’s always “on,” thereby resulting in always-enjoyable commentary. The biggest question you’ll have after watching this set is, “What the hell happened to Kevin Meaney, and why doesn’t he get more work?” Damn, that guy’s funny.

Criminal Minds: The First Season / Numb3rs: The Complete Second Season: I’m pretty sure CBS has more crime dramas than ABC, NBC, and Fox combined, and here are two of them, both of them about the FBI. “Criminal Minds” focuses on the organization’s criminal profilers, and while the show has an okay ensemble, it’s clearly a vehicle for Mandy Patinkin’s character, Special Agent Jason Gideon, who’ll remind you of Will Graham, from Thomas Harris’s novel, “Red Dragon.” Of the aforementioned ensemble, the character that really stands out is Dr. Spencer Reid – played by Matthew Gray Gubler – who’s a genius with virtually no social skills. It’s an okay show, but it’s not must-see TV. And neither, for that matter, is “Numb3rs”…and, yet, David Krumholz’s performance makes it a show that you’ll almost always stop to watch when you happen to flip by it. Having a supporting cast that includes Peter MacNicol and Judd Hirsch doesn’t hurt any, either…but – and maybe this is just me – I just don’t buy Rob Morrow as a tough-guy FBI agent. It’s worth nothing that both of these DVD sets include decent special features, featurettes, behind-the-scenes docs, commentaries and whatnot, furthering the theory that CBS treats fans of its recent shows better than just about any other studio.

Joan of Arcadia: The Second Season: This is a show that had its one-liner of a premise – teenage girl talks to God – played up way too much. Until I got this set, I had absolutely no idea that Joan’s parents were played by Joe Mantegna and Mary Steenburgen. Hell, if I’d known that, I’d’ve watched the show when it was on the air in the first place! Seriously, though, while Joan’s conversations with God in all his various guises are a major part of the show, “Joan of Arcadia” is a well-written drama that parents could watch with their teens with neither party feeling like the show isn’t aimed at them. It’s philosophical, it’s intelligent, and it provides a positive message without getting mired in schmaltz. Basically, it’s “Touched By An Angel” for the crowd that understands that, in life, every ending isn’t happy.

Ghost Whisperer: The Complete First Season: I think you’re either a “Medium” guy or a “Ghost Whisperer” guy, but you can’t be both. And, frankly, if you’re a guy, you might think you’re not supposed to be either one…but the reality is that “Medium” is awesome. “Ghost Whisperer,” meanwhile, stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, who’s way too perky and cute to be talking to the dead. Sorry, I’m just not buying it. And you probably shouldn’t, either. If you do happen to be a fan, however, you’ll be pleased with all the special features. (Yep, it’s another CBS release.)

Beverly Hills 90210: The Complete First Season: My wife saw this set come in, and while she didn’t exactly grab it with a “Yoink!” and run off to watch it in one sitting, she did find herself wrapped up in the series just as much as she had been during its original release. Me, I was mostly fascinated by how the show’s 2-hour pilot plays less like a teen-angst drama and more like an attempt to reproduce the feel of a John Hughes movie on TV; it doesn’t really succeed on that level, but that’s definitely what it feels like they were going for. While my wife mostly rejoiced in watching episodes she’d already seen half a dozen times on FX, she did observe that “the producers must’ve had a checklist of every teenage problem they could think of and were going through, checking them off as they went through them. And they’re all solved so fast – generally before the end of a single episode – that they must’ve been scared they were gonna get cancelled and didn’t want to leave any cliffhangers.”

Melrose Place: The Complete First Season: Has any guy ever watched a complete episode of this show and not felt guilty about it? Yeah, maybe. After all, the cast includes Courtney Thorne-Smith, Daphne Zuniga, Heather Locklear, and Josie Bissett, making it pretty easy to keep your eyes on the screen and still live with yourself. Actually, this first season of the show – which, FYI, was a spin-off from “90210,” thanks to Jennie Garth’s character from “90210,” Kelly, dating studly carpenter Jake Hanson (played by Grant Snow) – is before things went so far over the top that Locklear was willing to mock the show on “Saturday Night Live.” It was actually a pretty decent nighttime soap at this point. And can you believe there were 32 episodes in the first season? That’s a lot of backstabbing and bedhopping in a year’s time.

Def Comedy Jam Classics, Volume 1 & 2: What’s that? You say that you love comedy, but you can only afford to buy one of these volumes and you want to make sure you get the one that’s got the highest ratio of f-word usage to funny material? Well, I don’t want to make your decision for you, but Volume 2 features James Hannah, Arnez J, and Rich Vos, and it’s hosted by Steve Harvey, while Volume 1 features Dave Chappelle, D.L. Hughley, and Chris Tucker, and it’s hosted by Martin Lawrence. Go ahead, pick.

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Rome: “Passover”

January 15, 2007 /

It’s been more than a year since we’ve had a new episode of “Rome” to watch, and I always find it interesting, especially with these shows on HBO, how our everyday lives roll on as the cast and crew work furiously to but together twelve or thirteen episodes to entertain us for three months before the process starts all over again for another season.

Tonight’s episode picks up moments after Caesar’s murder, and all hell’s breaking loose in the city. For the most part, the creators did a beautiful job of seamlessly rolling the first season into the second. But Atia (Polly Walker) looks quite different to me, so much so that I almost didn’t recognize her when she first hit the screen. It’s possible that they wanted her character to look like she’s aged five to ten years and gained ten to twenty pounds, but something tells me that was an issue the creators had to deal with when they started shooting for the second season.

This episode dealt with the aftermath of not only Caesar’s death, but Niobe’s as well. It’s not often that a show will kill off two of their main characters at the same time, but the parallel storylines make for compelling television.

First, the political implications of Caesar’s death had to be dealt with and it was clear right from the start that Octavian was stepping up his role in the political realm. He’s extremely savvy, so it’s no wonder why Caesar bequeathed his estate to the young man, effectively making Octavian his son. As his mother tres to get the family out of the city, he quickly formulates a plan, and with Mark Antony’s help (and his mother’s approval), he effectively seizes control of the city. Brutus made the mistake of trusting Antony against the advice of all of his advisors, including Servilia. When she put in her two cents, his line – “You too, mother?” – was priceless.

Meanwhile, Lucius is reeling from Niobe’s suicide, but it was clear that he was going to kill her anyway for having a child by another man while he was away at war. He made the mistake of cursing and banishing his children and almost immediately regrets it.

Titus and his slave girl have a nice moment in the woods when he had the best line of the show: “I know I didn’t get us started off on the right foot, killing your man, and I’m sorry for that.” He proposes to her and she agrees to be his wife, but it’s clear that she’s having a tough time understanding that she’s a free woman now. Anyway, once someone rides by yelling about Caesar’s death, Titus hilariously knocks the guy off his horse and uses it to head back to the city.

There, he finds Lucius in a serious tailspin, but helps his friend pull things together. Lucius is torn up about placing a curse his children and the two men discover that their old boss abducted them. After a bloody attack on the boss’ hideout, the man informs the duo that for Lucius’ past transgressions, he “f*cked them, killed them and threw them in the river.” And that was the end of that guy.

It may take a while for Lucius to recover from he day’s events, and he’s not unlike the city of Rome trying to recover from Caesar’s death. Brutus has been sent to the country, so it looks like Antony, Octavian and Atia will control the city for the time being. Octavian and Titus also had words during the episode and it’s clear that kid trusts the big man. Over the season, Octavian is going to develop into more of a leader and it will be interesting to see what role Titus (and Lucius, for that matter) play in the future of the empire.

All in all, it was a great premiere and I can’t wait to see more.

External TV, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas

“Say goodbye to the OC, bitch!”

January 3, 2007 /


We’ll miss you, Sidelooker.

After an abbreviated four-season run, and on the heels of what many critics have dubbed a creative revival following the death of Marissa Cooper (played by Mischa “Deer in Headlights” Barton), the Fox network has cancelled teen drama “The O.C.”

Though many were hooked on the show from its first episode, in which over-privileged stud Luke (Chris Carmack) uttered the memorable words “Welcome to the O.C., bitch!” to wrong-side-of-the-tracks newcomer Ryan Atwood (Benjamin “Sidelooker” McKenzie) after engaging in the obligatory Karate-Kid-style beat-down, the drama has continued to lose viewers during each successive season. Its final episode will air February 22.

News, TV, TV Dramas

TV DVD QT, Vol. 5

December 29, 2006 /

Perry Mason: Season 1, Volume 2 – If you’re thinking about bitching because CBS split this first season of “Perry Mason” into two volumes, consider that this second part of the season includes 20 episodes…and the first part contained 19! Holy crap, 39 episodes in one season…? When people talk about how today’s work ethic is shit compared to what it used to be, they aren’t kidding! Of course, you won’t be surprised to hear that Mr. Mason’s record is 39-0 by season’s send, but you will be depressed to find out that there aren’t any special features.

7th Heaven: The Complete Third Season – As family dramas go, “7th Heaven” is pretty solid – Stephen Collins and Catherine Hicks make plausible parents, and on the kid front, there’s the always-hot Jessica Biel to look at – but let’s talk about the set and its packaging. In a nutshell, both suck. There are no special features, which is pretty much inexcusable, given that the show is still on the air and the cast is decidedly accessible, but even after saving money by not paying anyone to do commentary, CBS / Paramount additionally stuffed six discs into a standard-sized DVD case. Lazy and cheap.

Survivor: Vanuatu – There’s a reason you don’t see very many competition-based reality shows released as full-season sets on DVD: they don’t tend to have much in the way of replay interest. I mean, once you know who’s won, what’s the point, right? Well, in the case of “Survivor,” it’s clearly more than just the competition; in addition to the interviews with the contestants and the camaraderie between them, the show ends up being worth watching over and over again just because the scenery is so beautiful. CBS offers up commentary for this set as well as four featurettes and the reunion special. Believe it or not, I’d never watched a complete episode of the show before checking out this set, but it’s clear why “Survivor” continues to be a ratings monster; it’s a lot of fun.

Thundercats: Season Two, Volume 2 – Well, you have to give Warner Brothers credit: they’re so certain that “Thundercats” fans are going to buy both halves of this second-season set that they’ve continued the numbering of the discs from Volume 1 and labeled these as Discs 7 – 12. I can’t speak to the quality of the show itself – it premiered right about the time I stopped watching cartoons regularly – but, at the very least, I’m comfortable in saying that the character designs remain some of the best of the ‘80s. The only special feature, though, is the Thundercats Ultimate Adventure Challenge. Yawn.

Touched By An Angel: The Third Season, Volume 2 – Okay, so I only watched one episode from this devoid-of-special-features set…but that episode (“Inherit the Wind”) sure had some kick-ass guest-stars. It opened with Keb’ Mo’ as an Angel of Music, and it also featured Bill Cosby as the Angel of Reconciliation (named Phil), as well as appearances from Charlie Schlatter (he played Ferris Bueller on the short-lived TV version of the flick), Ian Abercrombie (Mr. Pitt from “Seinfeld”), Cloris Leachman, and the great Paul Winfield. The older you get, the more you’ll like this series…but if you’re under 40, you’ll probably find more inspiration from “Joan of Arcadia.”

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: Season Two, Volume 1 – As the series moves into color for the first time, so does it become harder for viewers to suspend their disbelief during the episodes with the more bizarre premises. How bizarre are we talking here? Try this synopsis on for size: “A cyborg double of Admiral Nelson boards the Seaview as part of a sinister plan to launch missiles at China, Russia, and the U.S..” There’s also an episode where a scientist is turned into a giant, as well as the obligatory discovery of aliens in another episode. Given the limited special effects of the era, the show was generally at its best when sticking with some semblance of reality.

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