TVparty's
Top Ten
Classic TV DVD Collections
Our third annual review of the very best DVD collections you may have overlooked.
Some of these are judged by the content of the shows alone and some because of the fantastic extras found on the discs - and a few because they deliver both. All are well worth the money and will be a worthy addition to your classic TV library!
Just click on the title to order now from Amazon.com.
1.
-The
Adventures of Superman; The Complete Second Season
If you haven't watched these episodes in their fully
restored black-and-white glory then you won't believe your eyes (and you
haven't seen the restored versions unless you bought the Columbia House
releases - and then you would have paid $25 for four episodes).
The Adventures of Superman, The Complete Second Season has charm to spare with timeless performances from an outstanding cast; besides the beloved regular cast (Noel Neill took the role of Lois Lane in season two), the best B-movie actors Hollywood had to offer were employed as the mad scientists, mob bosses, gun molls and everyday thugs Superman ran up against. It's a testament to the quality of these programs that it remains one of the only TV dramas of the 1950s that can be fully enjoyed today. Sure, the special effects are crude and the plots transparent but the production harkens back to a much simpler time; for instance, the scenes of Los Angeles in the early-fifties that fill in for Metropolis are priceless.
2. - 
Here's
Lucy - Best Loved Episodes
This is one of my favorite so-bad-it's-good shows -
and look at these extras!
Commentary By Lucie Arnaz, Desi Jr. and Carol Burnett On Their Favorite
Episodes
* Never Before Seen Bloopers
* Rehearsal Footage
* Sketch From A Jack Benny Television Special With Lucy, Jack and Johnny
Carson
* Sketch From An Ann-Margret Television Special Featuring Lucy and Ann-Margret
* Audience Warm-Up With Lucy's Husband and Show Executive Producer Gary
Morton
* The Original CBS Network Promos
* The Here's Lucy Syndication Sales Tape
* Footage From A Benefit Dinner Where Lucie and Desi Jr. Play Their Parents
In An I Love Lucy Sketch
3. - 
The
Office
Shot documentary style, The Office is surely be
the driest, wittiest (and true-to-life) satire in decades. Jaw droppingly
funny, excruciating to watch, the humor is distinctly British but the
situations universal.
Taking the mockumentary genre to a new level, creator / writer / star
Ricky Gervais (the series was co-written and directed by Stephen Merchant)
has established himself as a genius of the medium, right up there with
Lucille and Jackie Gleason.
In
this new package, you get every episode - the entire run of the series
(12 episodes in two seasons) and the hilarious two-part Christmas Special
that takes place a couple of years after the second series ended.
There are hours of extras: audio commentary by Ricky Gervais & Stephen
Merchant for the second episode of the Christmas special, out takes, video
diary of the making of the series, and three highly entertaining documentaries.
4. - 
Aqua
Teen Hunger Force Four
What is it
about this weird animated farce that makes it so funny? The juvenile humor
aims squarely for those of us who had our sense of humor frozen in Junior
High school. Apparently there are more of us that I thought!
Those who enjoy this program on cable may wonder why they should buy this package. Quite simply, the creators go all out on these DVD releases - for instance, select 'Play All' from the menu and all the episodes play at one time! Aqua Teen Hunger Force Four sports a bizarrely designed fold-out package and the show commentaries were recorded at a party for the staff so you get to hear from people who work on every aspect of the production along with a lot of drunken chatter.
5.
Barbra
Streisand - The Television Specials
Modern audiences may have forgotten what a truly remarkable artist Barbra
Streisand was when she burst forth on Broadway and television in the 1960s.
Her TV specials from the sixties and early-seventies (1965-1973) represent
some of the greatest achievements in the history of the medium. One of
the reasons - Streisand had full creative control over the shows, very
unusual for an up-and-coming performer.
This opulent
5-disc collection includes:
My Name Is Barbra - her first television special, featuring
a medley of her hit songs, such as "People," "Happy Days
Are Here Again" and "My Man" in a sublime, visually stunning
cinematic concert format.
Color Me Barbra - the second special, like the first, showcases Barbra solo, front and center but in a more relaxed, playful mood. This was her first choreographed by the legendary Joe Layton who went on to stage Barbra's next TV outings.
The Belle of 14th Street - while some of these specials were released on video in the 1980s, this one remained unseen since the first broadcast. Belle contains performances by Jason Robards and vaudeville's John Bubbles.
A Happening in Central Park - the famous live concert that spawned a hit album with "Cry Me a River," "Second Hand Rose," "People," "Happy Days Are Here Again," and others.
Barbra Streisand... and Other Musical Instruments - after a 5 year lull, Barbra returned to TV with this spectacular one-hour program with some wonderful duet and solo numbers with Ray Charles. Again, this is a first time release, unseen since 1973.
6. - Sonny
and Cher Comedy Hour - The Christmas Collection
You asked for it - more Sonny and Cher! This time it's a package
that includes three holiday episodes of The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour
/ Show. And what a great trio - the first Christmas show is from early
in the first season, followed by an episode from the second season of
the Comedy Hour, topped off with a holiday themed episode from
the final season of the Sonny and Cher Show. These are all top
notch episodes, making this collection a real winner. The sound is brilliant
throughout this DVD, and the picture quality is stunning.
7. - 
Da
Ali G Show
I recently got a screener
of this DVD and I laughed so long and so hard that if anyone was listening,
they would have thought I went insane! If
you love edgy, in-your-face comedy this one is for you - it's the entire
first season of the HBO American version of the British import.
8. 
Home
Movies - Season Three
Every once in a while a show comes along that breaks the mold and makes
me wish I watched more TV. Home Movies is one of those shows.
A part
of the Adult Swim lineup on Cartoon Network, Home Movies is a
smart, amusing and perfectly addictive animated sitcom. Think South
Park without the vulgarity but ten times the charm. Done on the cheap,
this Flash animation technique allows for greater personal expression,
making Home Movies perhaps the network's best effort thus far,
though it was supposedly the least watched.
It's the story of eight-year old Brendon Small (played by comic Brendon Small), who documents his movie fantasies with the help of his schoolmates. Besides his stellar writing, the real-life Small is a gifted vocal artist, imbibing his digital alter ego with a dry, laconic, everyman quality that's irresistible. This 13-episode edition includes these special features: an interactive game, episode animatics (very interesting!), a music video, a radio interview with Jon Benjamin and Loren Bouchard (outright hilarious!) and more. There are a number of insightful, rambling episode commentaries from the show's two creators Brendan Small and Loren Bouchard, though some are poorly mixed. The graphics that adorn the box are superb, enhancing the attractive package more fully. It comes from Shout! Factory which is known for their top quality DVD releases.
9. - 
Rodney
Dangerfield
Oh, this is good! R2 Entertainment has released
all of the best HBO and ABC Rodney Dangerfield specials from the eighties.
It is a phenomenal collection of comedy greats at their peak. You get
the first, breakout routines from Roseanne Barr, Jerry Seinfeld, Andrew
Dice Clay, Tim Allen, Sam Kinison and SO many more - not to mention lots
of classic Rodney routines.
You will be on the floor laughing for hours - this a real party pleaser
DVD set. 3 discs - 6 specials (1981 - 1991), a Carson Tonight Show routine,
Rodney's nightclub act (wow!) and more. Superb!
10. - 
Columbo
- Season Two
The 1972-73 season of Columbo is a true delight. Columbo
deconstructed the mystery format by showing the murder taking place at
the very beginning, with little or no ambiguity about who did it. The
fun - and there's a lot of fun - comes in watching Peter Falk hem and
haw and "one more thing" his way under the radar and over the heads of
the crooks. At times laugh-out-loud funny, inevitably Columbo solves the
mystery, although occasionally with a thoroughly unrealistic proposition
- but hey, it's TV.
TVparty! presents a comprehensive up-to-date catalog of the best classic shows currently available on DVD.
Just click on the titles to order now through Amazon.com - and you can have your favorite shows delivered by tomorrow morning!
All
DVDs are massively discounted -
with prices much lower than you'll find in the stores -
and there's free shipping!
ABC After School Specials - (1974-76)
ABC After School Specials - (1976-77)
ABC After School Specials - (1978-79)
ABC After School Specials - (1979-80)
ABC After School Specials - (1981-82)
ABC After School Specials - (1982-86)
Adventures of Ozzie & Harriett
Bob Hope Show - Hope For The Holidays
Bob Hope Specials - The Vietnam Years
Carol Burnett Show - Let's Bump Up The Lights
Challenge of the Super Friends
Colgate Comedy Hour (Eddie Cantor)
Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines
G.L.O.W. - Gorgeous Women of Wrestling
Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
Jeff's Collie - (Lassie's first seasons)
Lois & Clark: New Adventures of Superman
Make Room For Daddy - Season 5
Merv Griffin Show - Best of
Monty Python's Flying Circus - Mega-set
Muppet Show - NEW - Season One
Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom
Oprah Winfrey Show - 20th Anniversary
Pee-wee's Playhouse - Christmas Special
Rudolph, The Red Nosed Reindeer
Sgt. Bilko - 50th Anniversary Edition
Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour - Christmas Shows
Tom and Jerry - Spotlight Collection
Tonight Show with Johnny Carson
Tonight Show - Return to Studio One - (1969 special)
The Untouchables - (video only - no DVDs)
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
Wild Kingdom (Mutual of Omaha)
