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TV on DVD

Johnny Dickshot Mar 05 2007 10:56 PM

Went to the video store without a plan the other night and came home with Season 1 of Arrested Development. I'd seen a few scattered episodes when they aired originally but didn't stay with it week after week and as a result never really knew who was who and what was what. This was pretty much Fox's fault for never having it air in the same time slot on consecutive weeks, or at least, it seemed that way. Anyway, having sat to watch the first season I can say it's a shame they stopped making it but thank God Al Gore invented the DVD. "You bet I'm gonna put you in a como."

metirish Mar 05 2007 11:02 PM

Arrested Development was one of those great shows that no one seemed to watch,I remember the Daily News TV critic several times writing about it and how it was a shame that FOX didn't do better with it or that no one watched it.

Nymr83 Mar 05 2007 11:05 PM

time slots are everything and i think the only thing worse than getting matched up against top shows (law and order or ER in their heyday, something like grey's anatomy or american idol now) is getting moved around alot.

A Boy Named Seo Mar 06 2007 12:22 AM

Watched season 1 of "Extras" this weekend. The Ricky Gervais character creates these funny, awkward situations by saying the most inappropriate shit. In that way it's kind of like "The Office" in a different setting, but it's still very funny. The Kate Winslet and Ben Stiller episodes are hilarious. Winslet killed it. "Weeds" is a fantastic show. Highly (pun intended) recommend that. Had a friend tell me "4400" is all that. Going to put season 1 in my queue.

Yancy Street Gang Mar 06 2007 06:16 AM

Don't set your expectations too high for The 4400. It's fun, but a little too melodramatic. It's like watching a comic book, but one that takes itself too seriously.

Rotblatt Mar 06 2007 07:31 AM

I fucking love Arrested Development. Did they introduced the chicken dance in the first season, or was that the second season? Because if it's the second, you're in for a treat, JD. I like Weeds too, and what I've seen of Extras has been hilarious, but I never seem to remember when to watch it.

metirish Mar 06 2007 09:16 AM

Seo,was the Winslet episode the one where she talked about playing a holocaust surviver in her new movie because she wanted to win the oscar?,so so funny...have you seen the one where she's dressed as a nun giving maggie phone sex tips....brilliant.

Frayed Knot Mar 06 2007 10:20 AM

I had the same problem with 'Arrested Delelopment'. I liked it, I wanted to like it more, but the network kept making that difficult by sticking it in bad time slots, in differing time slots, and simply by running it so irregularly that the whole flow of the story-line got ship-wrecked. Gone are the days when the networks have enough patience (and guts) to allow a show they believe in to gain its own audience even though the list of shows which struggled initially before gaining strength are legendary: 'All in the Family', 'Cheers', Seinfeld, etc. FOX actually gave 'AD' a longer rope than usual because of the critical acclaim it was receiving. But, still, part of the fault for it never building an audience was self-inflicted.

Johnny Dickshot Mar 06 2007 11:02 AM

The show itself is perfect for DVD or tape or whatever since you can miss the next five jokes laughing at the first. I will rent season 2 this weekend -- that must include the chicken dance part. Season 1 covered Tobias' career change and "never nude" ; George Michael's hotness for Maybe; Buster & Liza; the whole Marta story (which was my favorite -- Gob is hilarious); Dad's imprisonment and DVD sales; and introduced the Iraq angle near the end.

ScarletKnight41 Mar 06 2007 11:13 AM

The first season of Cheers is a worthwhile investment. The characters hadn't yet become set in their ways, the acting was superlative, and the writing was layered and very funny.

A Boy Named Seo Mar 06 2007 11:18 AM

metirish wrote: Seo,was the Winslet episode the one where she talked about playing a holocaust surviver in her new movie because she wanted to win the oscar?,so so funny...have you seen the one where she's dressed as a nun giving maggie phone sex tips....brilliant. Yeah, those both played out in the same episode. She was do dead-pan, she was just great.

Vic Sage Mar 06 2007 12:35 PM

Frayed Knot wrote: FOX actually gave 'AD' a longer rope than usual because of the critical acclaim it was receiving. But, still, part of the fault for it never building an audience was self-inflicted. what do you expect from the network that destroyed FIREFLY?

Centerfield Mar 06 2007 01:59 PM

As I mentioned in another thread, I am watching The Wire on DVD right now. I am halfway through season 2 and I am completely hooked.

RealityChuck Mar 06 2007 02:31 PM

I love Arrested Development, too, but, really, Fox did treat the show very fairly. It was on Sunday nights the entire first two seasons (the time varied a bit, but not wildly; IIRC there was only one actual time slot change). They ordered an entire first season despite poor ratings and renewed it twice. They promoted it like a major hit (especially after winning the Emmy). It wasn't until the third season that they moved it, and the Monday slot probably didn't affect ratings (were >you< watching Monday Night Football instead?) I bought the DVDs, but haven't watched them yet (I'm trying to get my wife to appreciate it). The great thing about the DVDs is that you can stop them to get all the gags, including those in the background or the time they said the f-word unbleeped on prime time TV.

SI Metman Mar 06 2007 10:40 PM

The great thing is that they are airing Arrested Development reruns every Wednesday night in HD on the HDNet channel, plus every night on G4. I picked up Season 1 of 24 at Target for 20 bucks a few weeks back, but haven't gotten around to taking it out of the package. I never got into the show, but if I get myself hooked, then I'll have something to watch after Mets games all summer.