I very much sympathized with this NPR blog piece on how only half of the run of the sitcom Anything But Love is available on DVD. That early-90s show starred Jamie Lee Curtis and Richard Lewis as co-workers and best friends who attempted to navigate their cross-gender relationship. It was often quite funny, and the stars do an excellent job. The DVD set, which came out almost 3 years ago, ends on a cliffhanger, and it’s unlikely at this point that the rest will ever be put on disc, since the gold rush, when just about anything would sell, is over.
I own that set, although since I only paid about $10 for it used, I feel I got my money’s worth — and not buying it new meant that I probably contributed to the problem. The blogger’s rule is “don’t buy TV on DVD unless the whole show is available”. Which makes sense, except then if studios are looking at sales figures when deciding whether to continue the product, it becomes a vicious cycle where customers don’t buy it because it all isn’t available and studios don’t publish it because customers aren’t buying it. Perhaps the Ally McBeal model is the way to go, where the studio starts with the whole shebang, and then puts out separate season sets.
Another TV show I would buy on DVD that we’ll probably never see would be Nikki, which starred Nikki Cox as a dancer in Vegas who married a wannabe pro wrestler. We liked it because it co-starred the talented Susan Egan as a fellow dancer, and the fake musical spectacles were hilarious. 41 episodes, which would make a nifty little package, only no one cares.
Then again, if I saw it all again, maybe I’d feel like this NY Times writer, who bemoans how having his childhood TV shows, like F Troop available, have destroyed his nostalgic memories, specifically as it comes to special effects. (We own that DVD too, although I’m afraid to watch it. It was one of KC’s favorites as a kid, which seems to have been the best time to watch it.)
On the other hand, I’ve found bootlegs of other old favorites, like Probe and Automan, and I loved them, possibly because I kept my expectations low and was pleasantly surprised. I’d definitely buy those on real releases. I’d also like to see Head of the Class, because I’m still a Howard Hesseman fan.
What TV would you like to see on DVD that’s unlikely to show up?
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