DVD Releases: Holiday Ideas

There’s no reason to be clever, snarky, or cynical when talking about TV series released on DVD in time for the holiday gift-buying season. We’ll just state the fact: There are some excellent, dare we say vital shows available and waiting for a spot on your shelf. Some are for the devotees, such as 24: Season 6, Touched By An Angel: Season 4, and Fraiser: Season 10. If you already own nine seasons of Kelsey Grammar’s second series, you were probably one of those people we saw on the news standing outside Best Buy at 4 a.m. If that’s true, we’d love to hear about the scene at that hour, who else was in line, and what in God’s name they had on sale that motivated you to go shopping at that hour. For the rest of you looking for something to get your siblings that they’ll forget to pack and then you can secretly take home, here are our top 5 recommendations for what to buy (and then watch):

1. Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 1

For the fan, the fanatic or the kid in school who dreams of writing their own hit sci-fi series, this is the classic that started it all. We can’t think of anything more sacred or successful. Without it, we wouldn’t have Kirk, Spock, Bones. We wouldn’t say “Beam me up, Scotty.” We wouldn’t…we wouldn’t be who we are.

2. Mod Squad, Season 1, Volume 1

This is the ultimate counterculture cop show, one of the brighter TV interpretations of the ’60s, described by a fan site as “the grooviest gang of fuzz who ever wore a badge.” Three characters, two white, one black, one female: Pete, Linc and Julie, as played by Michael Cole, Clarence Williams III, and Peggy Lipton. Pete was a castoff from a wealthy Beverly Hills family. Linc survived the Watts riots. Julie was the daughter of a San Francisco prostitute. We can go on with such delicious character development. But why bother? Get this just to watch the impossibly fetching Peggy Lipton.

3. The O.C., The Complete Series

There’s a reason we spent time explaining Mod Squad. That series went off the air after the 72-73 season. Back then, TV consisted of three channels. It was, like, prehistoric times. If you need The O.C. [click here to watch videos] explained, you miss the point and may want to consider Larverne & Shirley, season 3 or Diagnosis Murder, season 3. Those who watched The O.C. when they should’ve been studying will pop in the first disc and start rhapsodizing about their first time with Josh Schwartz, Rachel Bilson and Mischa Barton.

4. Heeere’s Johnny: The Definitive DVD Collection from The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

Except for the writer’s strike, there’s usually no shortage of good late night TV. John Stewart and Steven Colbert combine for a pretty great hour of humor and commentary, Jimmy Kimmel, long an acquired taste, has come into his own, David Letterman is still immensely entertaining (i.e. his recent Paris Hilton interview: Paris: “I don’t want to talk about jail.” Dave: “That’s the difference between you and me, because that’s all I want to talk about.”), and Leno deserves respect even though future late-night scholars will likely scratch their heads over why he ended up with the gig rather than Letterman. When you throw in Arsenio, Joan (yes, she had a moment), Dick Cavett and the underappreciated Tom Snyder, late night TV is a fascinating subject. But Johnny Carson was the master, and this DVD collection shows him at his best, with the best.

5. Dirt, The Complete FIrst Season; Lost, The Complete Third Season; Saturday Night Live, The Complete Second Season

In a nod to ratings and appealing to the broadest range of readers, we called this last spot a tie. But let’s be honest. How can you beat Bill Murray’s first season, Chevy Chase’s last, plus Akyroyd, Belushi, Gilda Radner and also George Harrison, Paul Simon and Brian Wilson? You can’t. There’s no comparison. [click here to watch SNL clips featuring Gilda, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy, Chris Farley and others]