Greenlee Gazette Christmas Gift Guide: DVD Box Sets

In an attempt to inject a little holiday cheer into an otherwise overly dour blog, I'm trying to post a Christmas-themed post every day or so. Some are re-runs, and others are new. This is a guide to some TV series DVD box sets I wrote several months ago, and it may provide you some ideas for your last-minute gift buying.

I intended to do additional parts to this post when I wrote it, and may take the time over the next few days to do just that. For now, here is part 1.

[Original Post]

All images from source, Wikipedia

I've recently started collecting a few of my favorite TV shows on DVD. It started innocently enough with an impulse purchase of Wonder Woman, season one. I was a big fan of the show--and super heroes in general--back when I was a kid. After getting the first season I simply had to have the other two (actually there were four seasons, but the first two seasons were so sporadic, they counted them as one).

After that, I bought Laverne & Shirley's and Bewitched's first season. Then I discovered a terrific website called DeepDiscount.com.* They have great prices to begin with, and free shipping, but it gets even better when they have sales. At Christmas time, they were running a buy-one-get-one-free sale, and it included an all-time favorite of mine, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Mom bought me the whole set. Next, I'll have to get Angel. Since then, I've amassed a few more. Here's a mini review of each, should you be interested in acquiring any of these titles.

Wonder Woman (Season's 1 - 3) - Lynda Carter is terrific in the title role, and the series is a great deal of nostalgic fun. If you've never seen it before, it probably won't hold up as well. The show has dreadful pacing (which is true of many 70s dramas), but manages to be colorful and fun. Just fast forward through the long tracking shots of cars arriving and departing and the like. The set contains a few--if sparse--extra features. Recommended for fans only.

Laverne & Shirley (Seasons 1 - 3) - Again, my impressions are colored by a nostalgic love for the show, but I believe it holds up pretty well. It is helped by being set in the 50s and 60s, and so looking dated is a given. The show belongs in the "classic" category, along with I Love Lucy. No extras, and some music is replaced. Still, if you're a fan, highly recommended.

Bewitched (Seasons 1 & 2) - Elizabeth Montgomery and Agnes Moorehead shine in this classic show, which is available colorized and in original black and white. The color version looks terrific, by the way. A few special features, and remember, TV seasons were much longer in the 60s. The total number of episodes in these two sets would fill three or four seasons of a current show. Highly recommended.

The Black Adder (Seasons 1 - 5) - If you're like me, you'd see this show while channel surfing, and pass right by. It was on PBS (imported from Britain), and it's all set in the distant past--not high on my list of favorites. The Other Half introduced me to the series early in our relationship, and I was converted. Strange, hilarious and twisted. If you like Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean) and British humor, you'll love it. Some special features, but remember, British shows have much shorter seasons than we do. Recommended.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Seasons 1 - 7) - I've already geeked out over this one enough. Suffice it to say, this is the DVD set to show the rest how it's done. Chock-full of special features, great packaging (even the slim sets), everything you could possibly want. Very highly recommended.

Part 2 to follow at a later date (I promise!).

*This site is not affiliated in any way with DeepDiscount.com, and this is not an advertisement. But I have used this service repeatedly, and am immensely pleased with it. Prices are often better than you can find on eBay. Also, the one time an error was made, they corrected it quickly, no questions asked. Check them out.