Review by KC Carlson I pretty much stand alone from my comic book peers in their love for Super Friends. Me, I don’t really get it. Perhaps it’s because I’m a few years older than most of my comic friends. When these episodes of The All-New Super Friends Hour first aired in 1977, I was a junior in college and had pretty much stopped watching all TV (except for SNL and SCTV) since 1975. I had wrapped up my Saturday […]

I really liked Swingtown. I’m not particularly nostalgic for the 70s, especially not the chemically created clothing fabrics, but I enjoyed the characters and their interactions, and for a show that included wife-swapping, the messages were surprisingly positive. But before I get to those, the basics: Swingtown ran from June through September 2008 on CBS. It featured three couples in the summer of 1976: The Millers, played by Molly Parker and Jack Davenport. They married young, just out of high […]

So, did you check out Leverage on Sunday night? The second episode, “The Homecoming Job”, airs tonight at 10 PM on TNT with this description: “Leverage Consulting & Associates opens for business as the crew reunites to help a reservist who’s been wounded in Iraq by private military contractors.” The mercenaries are refusing to pay for his medical care, so the team gets involved. I was pleasantly surprised by it, enjoying it enough to keep watching. Timothy Hutton does a […]

Review by KC Carlson In which a creative compromise set an endpoint and revitalized a meandering TV series. Lost: Season 4 (6 DVD set, Buena Vista Home Entertainment, $59.99) set some very high standards for the future of scripted network programming — still somewhat in doubt over the shortsighted dominance of low-cost “reality” programming at the big networks — as well as once again demonstrating that the DVD is the perfect format for shows like Lost, which improve with — […]

I wasn’t old enough to appreciate how good Max Headroom was when it was on the first time. Now, having recently rewatched the 14 existing episodes, the question of the day is: why isn’t this on DVD?!?! Although it ran from 1987-1988, it’s a remarkably modern show. Visually, its Brazil-meets-Blade Runner approach, using older technology (like manual typewriter keyboards) to suggest the future, is watchable without seeming outdated. In terms of content, the plots tackled still-timely subjects like identity in […]

It’s important for everyone to vote, but it’s even more important that voters be educated about facts and issues. This release of selected Schoolhouse Rock! segments related to politics is a great way to bone up on some of the basics. You have to make sure that those you’re watching with don’t mind you singing along, though. The Schoolhouse Rock! Election Collection DVD, released September 23, contains fifteen segments grouped in four categories: The Campaign (covering positions and issues) Energy […]

Pushing Daisies combines the love-with-obstacles relationship of a great screwball comedy with the brightly candy-colored visual imagination of the (first) Willy Wonka movie or The Wizard of Oz. There’s even a plummy voiced narrator (Jim Dale, who sometimes amusingly contradicts the characters) with a flowery sense of diction. I find it odd that I’m comparing this completely unique show to the best kids’ movies, but there’s something both very adult — dealing with themes of life and death and who […]

I can’t believe that my very favorite of the original Doctor Who series is now available on DVD. And because of the length, it’s the cheapest Doctor Who DVD out there, which is a lovely plus. I think I like Black Orchid so much because it reminds me of the Agatha Christie mysteries I read so many of when I was younger. There’s a 1920s house party, and a fancy dress ball (where the Doctor, then Peter Davison, is given […]