2017 - Holiday Gift Guide - Part II - TV-on-DVD Releases
December 9, 2017
The first installment of our Holiday Gift Guide dealt with first run wide releases and one franchise box set. It wasn’t a particularly good year for high quality monster hits. Sadly, TV on DVD releases look even worse. That’s not to say there were no good TV shows that debuted last year; however, there haven’t been many TV shows that made their DVD / Blu-ray debuts recently. My favorite “new” TV show of the year was MST3K (Netflix says it’s a new show, but the creators say it is season 11 of the original MST3K, so I don’t know if I should really call it a new show), but there’s no DVD / Blu-ray release, at least not for people who didn’t back the Kickstarter. My favorite truly new show was GLOW, but again, there’s no DVD / Blu-ray release yet. Likewise, Stranger Things has no regular Blu-ray release. You know what, just assume anything from Netflix isn’t on this list, because there’s no DVD / Blu-ray, or the release is nearly featureless (as is the case with Jessica Jones). On a side note, my favorite new non-screening show was Speechless, which again has no DVD / Blu-ray release, so it’s not just Netflix that’s ignoring physical media. There are also not a lot of megasets to compensate, meaning this list might be a bit short compared to most years. I’ve even had to break my usual rule when it comes to megasets.
For those who want the one exception...
For those who want a more legitimate megaset...
For those willing to stretch the definition of “new”...
For those who want to go west...
For those who want to laugh...
For those interested in the backstories of the gods, both old and new...
Game of Thrones: The Complete Seasons 1-7 - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Description: It’s Game of Thrones. It doesn’t need a description. Also, a screener for season seven is on its way, so I’ll save the lengthy description for that.
Pros: 99% of the time, it is a waste of money to buy a box set when the TV show, or movie franchise, isn’t over yet. However, Game of Thrones is the exception. If you look at the show’s ratings, you will see its ratings have not only grown every season, it jumped 34% from season six. One in four people who watched season seven didn’t watch the previous seasons. Half haven’t seen the first three seasons. If you know someone who just started the show, or started it within the past few years, it might be worth it to buy the box set as a gift so they can catch up before season eight starts.
Cons: While the show also got great reviews, I know more than a few people who dropped it after a few episodes because of the gratuitous nudity and looking back, I could see why. The show got better after they realized they didn’t need to rely on sex and nudity to sell the show.
Orphan Black: Complete Collection - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Description: Tatiana Maslany stars as, well, everyone. She is introduced playing Sarah Manning, a con artist, who sees someone who looks just like her, Beth Childs, commit suicide. She then takes over Beth’s life as a police detective and discovers the mystery of why this woman looked just like her.
Pros: To call the show award-winning in an understatement. There are plenty of extras on the 10-disc set, including a new 64-page pamphlet on the show.
Cons: The pamphlet is the only new extra, while the price-per-minute is a little high compared to most TV on DVD releases, as there were only 50 episodes in the show’s entire five-year run.
Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Description: This is the reboot of the 1990s series of the same name. Kyle MacLachlan returns as FBI agent Dale Cooper, who at the start of the series is exactly where he was when the first show left off. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then I can’t explain it to you. You need to watch it for yourself.
Pros: The original Twin Peaks is widely regarded as one of the best shows of the 1990s, even though it only lasted two seasons. There are many who think the revival was even better. I’m not sure I would go that far, but, at worse, this limited event series is damn close to the original in terms of quality. There are also a lot of extras on the DVD / Blu-ray.
Cons: It’s not an easy show to just jump into. You really need to have seen the original series.
Westworld: The Complete First Season - Buy from Amazon: DVD, Blu-ray, or 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
Description: This is a reimaging of the 1973 movie of the same name. The show is set in the eponymous Westworld Theme Park, where guests can dress up as cowboys and interact with realistic robots called Hosts.
Pros: Because it is a TV show and not a movie, they can develop the backstory and characters a whole lot more, so there’s a lot more intrigue than the movie had. The DVD / Blu-ray has a good selection of extras.
Cons: There are no audio commentary track, which is a bummer. Also, I get this feeling in the back of my mind that this show will end like Lost did. Lost was sold to audiences on the promise that the writers have planned out everything in advance, but it became clear that they were winging it and that led to a really disappointing finale. I’m not saying this is true here, but I’m worried that’s the case.
Insecure: Season 1 - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Description: Issa Rae created and stars in this show with Yvonne Orji, who both play African-American women in their late 20s dealing with life in Los Angeles.
Pros: The show earned 100% positive reviews. It’s one of the few new comedies from last year that’s worth picking up.
Cons: There are not a lot extras on the DVD / Blu-ray. Additionally, it came out in March, so many fans likely already have it.
American Gods: Season One - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Description: Ian McShane stars as Odin, who is trying to get the old gods to rise up and go to war with the new gods to regain the power they once had. Ricky Whittle plays Shadow Moon, a human who, like most humans, had no idea these gods existed, and is dragged into this war.
Pros: Fans of Neil Gaiman will likely love this TV show. It’s got a sense of style that will draw in a lot of fans. There are plenty of extras on the DVD / Blu-ray.
Cons: The show takes a few episodes to get going and it’s nearly halfway though its eight-episode first season before the plot kicks into full gear.
So that’s it for TV on DVD releases. It was a slow year for TV on DVD releases. A lot of people are referring to this as the Golden Age of TV, but you can’t really tell on the home market. Next week we will have classics, limited releases, foreign-language releases, and some Canadian films, which should be a much bigger list. We then finish off with miscellaneous releases and anything I forgot.
Filed under: Holiday Gift Guide, Westworld, Kyle MacLachlan, Ian McShane, Neil Gaiman, Tatiana Maslany, Ricky Whittle, Issa Rae