Category: TV DVD Quicktakes (Page 4 of 26)

Night Court: The Complete Third Season

March 3, 2010 / Will Harris

“Night Court” is one of those series which is fondly remembered as a sitcom staple of the ‘80s, but as much as I watched it during the course of that decade, it’s one which has always left me looking back and wondering, “Did I only like it because I was a goofy kid?”

My predominant recollections of the show always seemed to involve Judge Harry Stone (Harry Anderson) making bad jokes and pulling wacky faces afterwards or Bailiff Bull Shannon (Richard Moll) being a loveable dimbulb as he stared blankly at the bizarre events unfolding around him, saying only, “Ooooooookay.” Obviously, I remembered lascivious prosecutor Dan Fielding (John Larroquette) and his never-ending stream of come-ons, but was it possible that they were merely a sporadic oasis of legitimate humor in the midst of a whole lot of silliness? In short, what if – God forbid – “Night Court” had aged poorly and wasn’t nearly as funny as I’d remembered it?

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Anne Ramsey Brent Spiner Charles Robinson Estelle Harris Florence Halop Harry Anderson John Larroquette Keye Luke Markie Post Mel Torme Night Court Night Court: The Complete Third Season Pam Grier Richard Moll Robert Englund

Soul Eater: Part One

February 23, 2010 / Jason Zingale

It would be easy to discount “Soul Eater” as just another quirky shonen for the kiddies, but despite the show’s decidedly immature sense of humor, there’s a lot more to the anime than silly pratfalls and goofy faces. Set at the Death Weapon Meister Academy in Death City, the series follows three teams of students as they battle supernatural forces in an attempt to collect the souls of 99 evil beings and one witch, thus making them powerful enough to become one of the Grim Reaper’s personal Death Scythes. Each team consists of a Meister and a Weapon, and while Maka and Soul (who transforms into a razor-sharp blade during battle) could be considered the main protagonists, they’re also joined by friends like Black Star and Tsubaki, as well as Grim Reaper’s son, Death the Kid. It’s a concept that could have easily fallen victim to a monster-of-the-week formula, but thankfully, it has an overarching story that holds your interest beyond just the fight sequences. The show does take some time to get going (it spends four episodes introducing its large cast of characters), but once all the niceties are out of the way, “Soul Eater” moves at such a brisk pace that you’ll be left wanting more. It’s still mostly targeted towards the teenage set, but thanks to some Tim Burton-esque aesthetics (think “A Nightmare Before Christmas”), there’s no reason you won’t enjoy it as well.

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A Nightmare Before Christmas shonen animes Soul Eater Soul Eater DVD Soul Eater: Part One review Tim Burton

Johnny Mercer: The Dream’s on Me

January 8, 2010 / Bob Westal

Though he was a rich man, an underrated singer in his own right, and the co-founder of Capitol Records, Johnny Mercer is, 34 years after his death, nowhere near as famous as the author of such brain-burrowing mid-century lyrics as “One for My Baby (and One More for the Road)”, “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive,” “That Ol’ Black Magic,” “Satin Doll,” “Laura,” and “Moon River” really should be. Lyricists rarely get the respect composers do. Moreover, Mercer worked primarily in Hollywood, which in his day meant more money but less prestige than writing songs for Broadway. That’s show business.

“Johnny Mercer: The Dream’s on Me” suffers slightly from the ill-fitting inclusion of some new material featuring super jazz fan and executive producer Clint Eastwood chatting with film composer John Williams and others, but overall, this TCM documentary written by Ken Barnes and directed by Bruce Ricker is a massively engaging documentary look at Mercer’s often surprising career. The 90-minute film efficiently covers his personal riches-to-(not quite)-rags-to-greater-riches story and tumultuous personal life, including a lifelong affair with Judy Garland, but wisely focuses on the music and takes full advantage of some priceless archival footage. Performances and interviews featuring Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Louis Prima and Keely Smith, Julie Andrews, Blake Edwards, Ray Charles, a young Barbara Streisand, a middle-aged Bono, and new performances by Jamie Cullum, Dr. John and others (seen in their entirety on the DVD bonus disc), beautifully illustrate Mercer’s gifts and chart his extraordinary influence. An obvious labor of love, “The Dream’s On Me” is not exactly great filmmaking but it’s got great taste and is a must for fans of great popular music.

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Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive Accentuate the Positive Barbara Streisand Bing Crosby Bono Bruce Ricker Capitol Records Clint Eastwood Dr. John Fred Astaire Jamie Cullum John Williams Johnnhy Mercer: The Dream's on Me Johnny Mercer Johnny Mercer: The Dream's on Me review Judy Garland Julie Andrews Keely Smith Ken Barnes Laura Louis Prima Moon River One For My Baby One for my Baby (And One More for the Road)Ray Charles Satin Doll TCM That Ol' Black Magic

Family Guy: Something Something Something Dark Side

December 31, 2009 / Jason Zingale

When FOX decided to give “Blue Harvest” – the first of the “Family Guy”-themed “Star Wars” specials – its own DVD release separate from the season sets, fans were a little annoyed. The studio must have made a killing in sales, though, because it’s gone one step further in screwing over its loyal audience by releasing the follow-up, “Something Something Something Dark Side,” direct to DVD. The betrayal wouldn’t burn so much if the 54-minute special lived up to the quality of its predecessor, but despite the reputation of the film it’s spoofing, this is one sequel that falls well short of that. There are a few good jokes about AT-ATs, the shitty accuracy of Stormtroopers, and the looming fate of Luke’s right hand, but a majority of the jokes fall flat. It feels more like a straight retelling of “The Empire Strikes Back” with “Family Guy” characters than a parody, and though guys like Mort Goldstein (as Lando Calrissian), Carter Pewterschmidt (as Emperor Palpatine) and the Giant Chicken (as Boba Fett) finally have a role to play in the story, it’s more out of necessity than because it’s funny. The addition of a snarky pop-up trivia track helps increase the special’s replay value, but it doesn’t change the fact that “Something Something Something Dark Side” is a bit of an unexpected disappointed for fans of “Star Wars” and “Family Guy” alike.

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Blue Harvest Boba Fett Emperor Palpatine Family Guy Family Guy blu-ray Lando Calrissian Something Something Something Dark Side review Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back

Evangelion: 1.01 – You Are (Not) Alone

November 30, 2009 / Jason Zingale

One of my first experiences with anime was Hideaki Anno’s beloved 1995 series, “Neon Genesis Evangelion,” which was so good that it ruined just about every anime for me after that. It’s been more than ten years since I last saw “Evangelion” in its entirety, so when Funimation announced that they’d be bringing Anno’s four part re-imagining of the series stateside, I couldn’t wait to watch it all over again. Though much of the buzz surrounding the “Rebuild of Evangelion” tetralogy is due to the addition of new content, the first installment is a fairly straightforward retelling of the first six episodes where 14-year-old Shinji Ikari is recruited by a government organization called NERV to pilot a giant cyborg and fight back against an army of mysterious beings known only as Angels. With the exception of a few minor changes in the story, however, the only thing that’s really different compared to the original series is the animation. The entire film has even been given a digital polish (and the results are astounding), while some scenes have been re-rendered in CG. It’s still the “Evangelion” you know and love, only with a much-deserved upgrade.