TV on DVD Buzz

Wonderfalls is a show I have heard many good things about, but have never been fortunate enough to see. Created by Tim Minear (Firefly), the show was originally slated to premiere in the fall of 2003 but for some reason was delayed until March of 2004. It premiered to critical acclaim. Viewers were hard to come by though, at what should have been the end of the TV Season rather than the beginning. A timeslot change after the first episode wasn’t promoted and didn’t really help their plight either. After airing only 4 of the 13 episodes, the network pulled the show. Immediately after the show’s cancellation, its producers attempted to interest other networks, including The WB, in picking up the series but nobody was interested.

The show centered around Jaye Tyler, a recent Brown University graduate with a philosophy degree, who instead of going on to a job in her field, works as a sales clerk at a Niagara Falls gift shop. Her job is quite ordinary until one day when inanimate objects start talking to her, instructing her to help others in need. Jaye reluctantly agrees and ends up becoming the reluctant hero.

The cast included:

Caroline Dhavernas as Jaye Tyler
Tracie Thoms as Mahandra McGinty
Tyron Leitso as Eric Gotts
Lee Pace as Aaron Tyler
Katie Finneran as Sharon Tyler
William Sadler as Darrin Tyler
Diana Scarwid as Karen Tyler
Neil Grayston as Alec “Mouthbreather”
Jewel Staite as Heidi Gotts

I couldn’t help but note that Lee Pace starred in this show. You might know Lee from another off-the-beaten-path show, which I happen to love, Pushing Daisies.

As with most cancelled-before-their-time shows, Wonderfalls had developed a loyal fanbase. A fan-led campaign was launched to try and get the show released on DVD. They garnered support of many of the cast and crew. 

They got their wish on February 1, 2005 when 20th Century Fox released a DVD set including all 13 episodes. Also included is commentary by the producers and cast members, a behind-the-scenes documentary, an examination of the show’s visual effects, and one of the two music videos produced for the theme song, “I Wonder Why the Wonder Falls” by Andy Partridge. 

Tabitha was a spinoff of the beloved 1960’s series Bewitched. The series starred a pre-nose job Lisa Hartman (Knots Landing) as Tabitha Stephens, the daughter of Samantha and Darrin, who is all grown up and living in Los Angeles. The show follows her as she learns to use and control her witchcraft while working at a television station. Her younger brother, Adam (David Ankrum), in classic Darrin Stephens fashion, discourages her from using her witchcraft while Aunt Minerva (Karen Morrow) channels Endora and does just the opposite. Robert Urich stars as Tabitha’s love interest and television personality Paul Thurston and Mel Stewart plays her boss, Marvin Decker.

Although Elizabeth Montgomery and Dick York (or Dick Sargent for that matter) didn’t ever show up on the series, a few actors from the original series did reprise their roles. Bernard Fox shows up as Dr. Bombay, and George Tobias and Sandra Gould  guest star as nosy neighbors Abner and Gladys Kravitz. Also guest starring are tv favorites Barry Van Dyke, Fred Willard and Werner “Col. Klink” Klemperer.

The pilot premiered on ABC on May 7, 1977 and the series debuted on September 10 of that same year. The second episode didn’t air until November 12, after which the series continued normally. It failed to perform in the ratings and was cancelled after only 12 episodes. The final episode was shown on January 14, 1978.

The DVD release includes all 12 episode plus the original, unaired pilot which starred Liberty Williams and Bruce Kimmel in the roles of Tabitha and Adam in a somewhat different setting.

In honor of the DVD Awards win as “Best One Season Wonder,” today we feature The Dresden Files. The Dresden Files is actually more like a half-season wonder, premiering on the Sci-Fi Network on January 12, 2007 and airing only 12 episodes. It was announced on August 3, 2007 that The Dresden Files would not be renewed for a second season.

The show was based on the series of books by Jim Butcher and centers around Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden (named by his father after Harry Houdini, Harry Blackstone, Sr., and David Copperfield). Dresden is the only professional wizard in modern-day Chicago (he’s even listed in the phone book) and he uses his magic to battle vampires, demons, spirits, faeries, werewolves and others. It’s a tough life for a modern day private detective. Thank goodness, the Chicago PD’s Special Investigation unit, led by Lt. Connie Murphy, frequently calls on Dresden to help solve cases involving the supernatural.

The show starred Paul Blackthorne as Harry Dresden, Valerie Cruz as Lt. Murphy, Terrence Mann as Hrothbert “Bob” of Bainbridge and Conrad Coates as Warden Donald Morgan.

After the series was cancelled, fans began a campaign to bring it back. They gathered over 4,000 signatures on a petition and sent drumsticks to the Sci-Fi Network in hopes of convincing them to change their mind. The campaign was unsuccessful and the series remained cancelled.

The 3 disc DVD set, which released on August 7, 2007, includes all 12 episodes plus commentary, deleted scenes and a behind-the-scenes featurette.

Commander in Chief was a promising, yet short-lived series about the first female president of the United States. The show premiered on ABC on September 27, 2005 and started off with promising ratings. The show was #1 on Tuesday nights until FOX’s American Idol took this honor and was the #1 new show of the season until it was overtaken by CBS’ Criminal Minds. The series was created by Rod Lurie, famous for The Contender and Deterrence.

On May 13, 2006, ABC announced that the show had been cancelled, and the final episode aired on June 14, 2006. There was some buzz that a TV movie might be in the works, but nothing has come of it.

The show centers around Mackenzie Allen, who becomes President of the United States when President Teddy Bridges has a stroke. Although asked by Bridges administartion to turn in a resignation letter, Allen decides to take the oath of office and becomes the first woman President of the U.S.

The show not only looked at the political ramifications of the first woman in the White House, it also examined how Allen juggled her family and her position as leader of the free world. It also looked at how her husband, Rod Calloway, felt about becoming the first “First Gentleman.”

Starring in Commander in Chief were Geena Davis as President, Mackenzie Allen; Donald Sutherland as Speaker of the House, Nathan Templeton; Kyle Secor as Rod Calloway; Harry J. Lennix as Chief of Staff, Jim Gardner; Peter Coyote as Vice President, Warren Keaton and Evan Carradine as Press Secretary, Kelly Ludlow.

Geena Davis won a Golden Globe for her role as President Allen. The show was also nominated for Best Drama and Best Supporting Actor (Donald Sutherland) at the 2006 Golden Globes. In addition to those nominations, Geena Davis garnered nods at the Emmy’s, SAG Awards and Satellite Awards. 

The show is now available on DVD, but for some reason, it was released on 2 DVD sets rather than in just one. Part 1 of The Inaugural Edition includes episodes 1-10 plus unaired scenes, an interview with Geena Davis and commentary from the creator. Part 2 includes episodes 11-18 plus bloopers and outtakes, deleted scenes, and an interview with Geena Davis.

My So-Called Life was created by Winnie Holzman and produced by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. It aired on ABC from August 25, 1994, to January 26, 1995.

Set at the “Liberty High” in Three Rivers, Pennsylvania, the show centered around Angela Chase, a 15 year old sophomore, and her friends and family. It showed the life of teenagers in high school and the everyday problems they face. The show looked at things in a realistic perspective and refrained from the lesson teaching and resolutions of typical family dramas. Though only 19 episodes were produced, the show garnered much acclaim. It was nominated for 5 Emmys and Claire Danes won a Golden Globe for her role as Angela. The show ended in a cliffhanger with the expectation that it would be picked up in for additional season, but due to low ratings and the reluctance of star Claire Danes to return for its second season, it was cancelled.

The show started Claire Danes as Angela Chase; Bess Armstrong as Angela’s mother, Patty; Tom Irwin as Angela’s dad, Graham; Lisa Wilhoit as Angela’s younger sister, Danielle; A.J. Langer as Rayanne; Wilson Cruz as Rickie; Devon Odessa as Sharon; Devon Gummersall as Brian; and Jared Leto as Jordan.

The comprehensive box set released last week and includes:

• All 19 episodes on 6 discs
• “My So-Called Life Story”
• A Conversation with Claire Danes & Winnie Holzman
• A Conversation with Marshall Herskovitz & Winnie Holzman
• Interview with Claire Danes
• The Characters: Angela, The Chase Family, The Friends
• The Music — Composer W.G. Snuffy Walden
• Panel with the Cast and Creators
• Photo Gallery
• Audio commentaries
• 36 page book

OK, I know Twin Peaks was technically on for more than one season, but just barely. 29 episodes plus a pilot doesn’t really qualify for two seasons, so I’m using editor’s discretion and featuring it today anyway. So there.

Twin Peaks was created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. It premiered on April 8, 1990 and was like nothing we had ever experienced on American TV. It ran for a season and a half, ending on June 10, 1991. A “prequel” movie, Fire Walk With Me, followed in 1992.

In its first season, Twin Peaks was honored with 14 Emmy nominations, 2 Emmy awards, and the Peabody award. They also took home 4 Golden Globes out of 5 nominations.

The show was set in the fictional town of Twin Peaks in northeastern Washington state. The story centered around coffee-loving FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) and his investigation of the murder of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee). Palmer was a high school student and homecoming queen. Her body was found on the river bank, wrapped in plastic - a very memorable and iconic scene. We soon find out that Laura Palmer was not the wholesome girl she appeared to be and Agent Cooper begins the daunting task of untangling the sordid web of characters she was involved with. (more…)

Invasion was a show that I quite liked and was sorry to see cancelled. Created by former teen idol Shaun Cassidy, it debuted in the fall of 2005 in the plum slot following ABC’s big hit LOST. It told the story of an alien invastion in the aftermath of a hurricane in a Florida town, which was a little hard for ABC to promote after the devastation of Hurricane’s Katrina and Rita just prior to the opening of the television season. They had to rethink their marketing campaign and focused solely on the alien aspect of the show, rather than the hurricane.

Despite the changes made in promotion of the show, it opened big with 17 million viewers, but viewership quickly dropped off and ABC lost confidence in the show. They pulled the show twice during the season for extended hiatus which damaged viewership even more.

The story focused on park ranger Russell Varon and his family. His wife, Larkin, was a television reporter. Her brother, Dave, was a deadbeat conspiracy theorist living in their barn. Russell’s kids, Jesse and Rose, split their time between him and his ex-wife, Dr. Mariel Underlay and her husband, creepy Sheriff Tom Underlay. Tom’s daughter, Kira, was also a big part of the story. During the hurricane Rose had seen hundreds of lights entering the water. Mariel disappeared, only to later turn up naked in the swamp - but she was different. She had a strange affinity for water and didn’t seem quite herself. Tom shut down the city and placed them under quarantine and none of this seemed right to Russell. He and Dave begin investigating all the strange occurrences and find that they are dealing with much more than just the effects of a hurricane.

The cast included Eddie Cibrian (Third Watch) as Russell Varon, William Fichtner (Prison Break) as Sheriff Tom Underlay, Kari Matchett (24) as Dr. Mariel Underlay, Lisa Sheridan as Larkin Groves, Tyler Labine (Reaper) as Dave Groves, Alexis Dziena as Kira Underlay, Evan Peters as Jesse Varon, and Ariel Gade as Rose Varon.

I thought this show had some great character development and moved along at a nice pace. Many other fans loved it as well and started a Save Invasion campaign after it was cancelled. It was rumored that CW might pick it up, but that didn’t come to pass. Unfortunately, the show ended with a cliffhanger that we’ll never have reconciled making this DVD a bittersweet recommendation.

Included on the DVD release are all 22 episodes plus 50 minutes of extras including 12 deleted scenes, a gag reel and a documentary, Invading the Mind of Shaun Cassidy.

This week we feature a show that just released on DVD today, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Studio 60 was created and written by Aaron Sorkin of The West Wing fame. The show followed the behind-the-scenes events of a fictional sketch comedy show similar to Saturday Night Live.

Studio 60 featured an all-star ensemble cast which included Matthew Perry (Friends), Bradley Whitford (The West Wing), Amanda Peet (Jack & Jill), Sarah Paulson (Jack & Jill), Nate Corddry (The Daily Show), D.L. Hughley (The Hughleys), Steven Weber (Wings) and Timothy Busfield (thirty-something).

This was one of the most anticipated shows of the Fall 2006 season and, based on the pilot, it was named “Best Overall New Program” by television critics. But ratings quickly fell off and later episodes weren’t as well-received. Rumors of its cancellation began as early as October of 2006, but NBC denied the rumors and ultimately ordered a full season of the show.

In February of 2007, NBC put the show on hiatus a week early and filled its timeslot with The Black Donnellys. On April 2, NBC announced that the show would not be coming back to its regular Monday night slot. The series did return in late April to finish out its run. The show’s final episode aired on June 26, 2007.

The show was nominated for several Emmy Awards including Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series, Outstanding Cinematography For A Single-Camera Series, Outstanding Casting in Dramatic Series, Outstanding Guest Actor in Dramatic Series (Eli Wallach). John Goodman took home the award for Guest Actor in a Dramatic Series for his role as Judge Robert Bebe on the show.

The DVD hits today and it includes all 22 episodes as well as a few special features. Here’s what you’ll find:

1. Pilot
2. The Cold Open
3. The Focus Group
4. The West Coast Delay
5. The Long Lead Story
6. The Wrap Party
7. Nevada Day (1)
8. Nevada Day (2)
9. The Option Period
10. B-12
11. The Christmas Show
12. Monday
13. The Harriet Dinner (1)
14. The Harriet Dinner (2)
15. The Friday Night Slaughter
16. 4 a.m. Miracle
17. The Disaster Show
18. Breaking News
19. K & R (1)
20. K & R (2)
21. K & R (3)
22. What Kind Of Day Has It Been

Special Features:

• Audio Commentary on the pilot episode with creator Aaron Sorkin and executive producer Thomas Schlamme
• In Depth: The Evolution of Studio 60: A behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

TV on DVD, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford, Amanda Peet, John Goodman,  Aaron Sorkin, DVD

Firefly was created by writer/director Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. It premiered on the Fox network in September of 2002. Fox cancelled the series after airing 11 episodes, leaving 3 episodes unaired. Firefly was honored with an Emmy in 2003 for “Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series.” 

The series is set in the year 2517, after humans have arrived at a new star system, and follows the adventures of the renegade crew of the Serenity, a Firefly-class spaceship. It’s kind of a sci-fi meets the old west adventure. Nathan Fillion starred as Malcolm Reynolds, the captain of Serenity. Also starring were Gina Torres as Zoe, Alan Tudyk as “Wash,” Morena Baccarin as Inarra Serra, Adam Baldwin as Jayne, Jewell Staite as Kaylee, Sean Maher as Dr. Simon Tam, Summer Glau as River, and Ron Glass as Derrial Book.

The show developed quite a fan following, especially after its release on DVD, leading Whedon and Universal Pictures to produce a movie based on the series. The film was titled Serenity. The film enjoyed success at the box office, opening on September 30, 2005 in the number 2 spot and spending 2 weeks in the top 10. 

It has been announced that Firefly will be returning in the format of a multi-player online game sometime in 2008.

The DVD includes all 14 episodes, including the 3 that never aired on television. It also has quite a few special features, including:

The DVD is a must-have for fans of the series!

Before he got Knocked Up, Judd Apatow, along with Paul Feig, created this critically praised, highly loved series about, well, Freaks and Geeks. It was cancelled after only 12 episodes but a fan-led campaign convinced NBC to broadcast three more episodes in July 2000. Three others would not be seen until September of that year when the cable channel Fox Family aired them in syndication.

Set in the early 1980’s, the show revolved around Lindsay Weir played by Linda Cardellini (Scooby Doo, ER) and her brother, Sam played by John Francis Daley (Waiting) and their life at McKinley High School.  The Geeks included Samm Levine as Neal Schweiber, and Martin Starr as Bill Haverchuck. The Freaks were James Franco (Spider-Man) as Daniel Desario, Busy Philipps as Kim Kelly, Jason Segel (How I Met Your Mother, Knocked Up) as Nick Andopolis, and Seth Rogen (Knocked Up, Superbad) as Ken Miller. Ironically enough, several of the freaks have ended up playing geeks in many of Apatow’s movies.

The show received Emmy nominations in 2000 and 2001 for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series and took home the Emmy for Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series in 2000.

The complete series is now available on DVD and includes:

• All 18 episodes on 6 DVDs
• The director’s cut of the pilot with never-before-seen footage
• Deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes footage, and outtakes
• 29 audio commentaries by the actors, writers, directors, network executives, parents of cast members, and obsessive fans
• 28-page booklet with an essay by “Freaks and Geeks” creator Paul Feig and a Q&A with producer/writer Judd Apatow

Today I am starting a new series entitled One Season Wonders. Each week, I’ll tell you about a great (or maybe not so great) show that only lasted one season, but was loved enough to make it to DVD.

This week I am featuring What About Brian, which releases today. Technically the show lasted a season and a half, giving us 24 episodes, but I think that’s good (or should that be bad) enough to qualify it as a One Season Wonder.

What About Brian is the story of Brian Davis, a 32 year old bachelor living in Los Angeles. Most of his friends are married or in long-term relationships. His best friend, Adam, just got engaged to his long-time girlfriend Marjorie. Unbeknownst to Adam, Brian has a secret crush on Marjorie. Brian’s other friends include Dave, the married man exploring an open relationship, and his sister Nicole, who is married and, although she is in her forties, expecting a baby. Brian is on his own journey to find love, realizing along the way that his friends’ relationships aren’t all they seem to be.

The show ran from April 2006 to March 2007 and was created by J.J. Abrams and Bryan Burk (LOST & Alias). It starred Barry Watson (7th Heaven) as Brian, Sarah Lancaster (Chuck) as Marjorie and Rosanna Arquette as his sister Nicole. Rounding out the cast are Matthew Davis as Adam, Rick Gomez as Dave, Amanda Detmer as Deena, Tiffani Thiessen as Natasha, Jason George as Jimmy, Amanda Foreman as Ivy, and Jessica Szohr as Laura.

The DVD of the complete series is available today and includes all 24 episodes on 5 discs. Also included are cast interviews and behind the scenes bonus features.

TV on DVD, What About Brian, Barry Watson, Sarah Lancaster, Rosanna Arquette, J.J. Abrams