It's another New Release Tuesday and this week sees the release of numerous complete TV series sets. Most are re-issues that have been released in individual sets but that doesn't stop us from loving those shows.
Drama Pick-of-the-Week
Mad Men - Season 6 (DVD/BD)
The sixth season of the 1960s-era advertising drama continues its creative stronghold as the ad men adjust to the changing office environment in response to an evolving American culture. Don Draper's life in these 13-episodes continues its normal topsy-turvy routine, as it starts off with a Hawaiian vacation and ends with the impending transition of the firm's key players to Los Angeles.
Sci-Fi Pick-of-the-Week
Under the Dome - The 1st Season (DVD/BD/Limited Edition)
Stephen King's summer hit comes to DVD. The mystery surrounds the appearance of a transparent dome around the small town of Chester's Mill in Maine. The residents find themselves completely disconnected from the outside world thanks to the impenetrable wall. All 13-episodes of the first season are presented in this set.
Kudos to the designer of the Limited Edition packaging. The set is presented as a snow globe of Chester's Mill, with the DVDs stacked on a spindle.
Comedy Pick-of-the-Week
Absolutely Fabulous - Absolutely All of It Set
Sweetie darling, we're back! The chain-smoking, boozy ladies of Absolutely Fabulous return with this new complete series set. So what makes this set different from the Absolutely Everything set released in 2008? A lot of things. First, the new episodes/specials for the 20th Anniversary, as well as commentaries, are included in this release. New interviews and special features have been created for this set, and Seasons (or Series, as the British like to call it) 1-3 have been remastered for a much sharper and crisper appearance. No word if the replaced music has been restored. Word of advice: Wait a little bit and purchase this set. We're sure Edina and Patsy will reunite in several years for a 25th Anniversary, and there will be yet another complete collection set.
Retro Pick-of-the-Week
Flo - The Complete Series
The sassy Southern waitress from Mel's Diner got her own show in 1980. After departing Alice in February 1980, Florence Jean Castleberry travels to Houston, Texas for a new gig. Along the way, she stops in her hometown Fort Worth (or Cowtown as Flo refers to it) for a visit, and winds up settling in and purchasing a roadhouse, which she names Flo's Yellow Rose. The DVD set, exclusively available through the Warner Archive Collection, includes the short 6-episode first season and 23-episode second season. If you don't go and buy this set then you can "Kiss my Grits!"
Complete Collection Picks-of-the-Week
Boy Meets World - The Complete Collection
The entire 7-year run of Boy Meets World was released in individual sets throughout the years, even bundled together. This is the first time they are all presented in one complete package. There is also new bonus content specifically produced for this release, and in anticipation for the 2014 Disney spin-off Girl Meets World.
Beverly Hills 90210 - The Complete Series
A new complete series set featuring television viewers' favorite zip code is released in one neat-o looking package...or is it? The show's ten seasons are split into two yearbook disc holders, featuring double-sided discs. While the packaging is innovative for followers of the West Beverly High gang, cardboard holders have been known to scratch discs during storage and even pick up some residue glue that affects playback. This set just repackages all the episodes that were released in the individual sets. There is no new bonus content and all original music has been edited out - which is pretty much the norm for CBS-released DVD sets.
Saved by the Bell - The Complete Collection
The five-season run of the Saturday morning show featuring the original gang is included in this set. Unfortunately it pretty much is another lovely repackaging of the older sets with some new bonus material. Glaringly absent are the Good Morning, Miss Bliss episodes that were like a prologue of the Saved by the Bell episodes we remember. The Hawaiian Movie is also missing from this set but new cast and crew interviews could make up for that fact.
Seinfeld - The Complete Series
The show about nothing gets a Complete Series set...again. This isn't the first time at the rodeo for Seinfeld's complete series set. The last release was in 2007. Unfortunately for fans, this set repeats all the bonus content from previous releases, and the bonus disc is the same from the '07 release. If you haven't picked up this show yet, you're in luck. It's slightly cheaper than the previous release.
Weeds - The Complete Collection (BD)
Lionsgate and Showtime are getting things right with this complete collection Blu-ray release. With consumer demand for Blu-ray collections increasing, the studio has placed all eight seasons of the dark comedy about a cannabis-selling widower and mother in one nifty, glowing set. New special features are included in this set, in particular a cast roundtable discussing the final season of the show.
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