Jeremiah - The Complete First Season
by Sean Astin
from MGM (Video & DVD)
Set in the distant future this action-packed sci-fi series stars Luke Perry and Malcolm-Jamal Warner as two men who are struggling to survive in world that is out to destroy them. Every episode from the show's first season is collected here giving fans an opportunity to relive the excitement over and over again.System Requirements:Starring: Luke Perry Malcolm Jamal Warner Running Time: 886 Min. Copyright Sony Pictures Home Entertainment 2005Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating: NR UPC: 027616901583 Manufacturer No: 1005929
Jeremiah fans have been clamoring for the release of the show on DVD (it originally aired on Showtime), and with 19 episodes and a passel of special features spread out over six discs and totaling nearly 15 hours, they are unlikely to be disappointed.
Based on a series of graphic novels by Hermann Huppen, the show takes place on an Earth where, some 15 years earlier, a hormonal virus killed everyone who was past puberty. It's an intriguing premise, but one that creator J. Michael Straczynski (best known for his work on "Babylon 5") and his team haven't exploited to its fullest. The slow-moving, 90-minute pilot episode explains little of the internal logic of this post-apocalyptic world; how, for instance, did these young folks, the oldest of whom were only 12 or 13 when "the Big Death" wiped out six billion people, manage to survive, educate themselves, and learn skills and trades without any adult influence in a society that's in shambles? It would be fun to know more.
Still, the show's ideas are provocative, and the work of co-stars and TV stalwarts Luke Perry as the title character, a hero with a conscience, and Malcolm-Jamal Warner as his more cynical sidekick, is good. Jeremiah, to its credit, doesn't rely on special effects, production design, costumes, or sets to carry it. That means the burden is on the ongoing themes (Jeremiah's guilt over his younger brother's death and his search for the maybe-mythic "Valhalla Sector"; the threat of the plague returning in an even more virulent form; the attempts to rebuild civilization) and individual stories, which are frequently compelling and smart (especially "Things Left Unsaid," the two-part season finale, a cliffhanger that offers many possibilities for future seasons), even while favoring talk over action.
The special features occupy disc 1, along with the pilot, and include deleted scenes, production sketches, and commentary on the pilot by Perry (who also executive produced) and Warner. If you're looking for superior sci-fi escapism, however, try Farscape or Stargate SG-1, to name just two. --Sam Graham
21 Jump Street - The Complete Second Season
by Daniel Attias
from Fox Network
Johnny Depp became an instant heartthrob and certified star in this second season of the Fox-TV sensation co-created by Patrick Hasburgh and Stephen J. Cannell (THE GREATEST AMERICAN HERO, SILK STALKINGS). Depp stars as Officer Tom Hanson, who along with Doug Penhall (Peter DeLuise), Harry Ioki (Dustin Nguyen) and Judy Hoffs (Holly Robinson Peete) forms an undercover police unit to infiltrate high school crime. Under the command of Captain Fuller (Steven Williams), these tough but compassionate young cops tackle such explosive issues as steroid abuse, crack addiction, racial violence, teen suicide, AIDS, Ioki's escape from Saigon and much more. 21 JUMP STREET - THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON includes all 22 action-packed episodes from the hit `87/'88 season featuring such guest stars as Christina Applegate, Jason Priestley, Pauly Shore and Brad Pitt in one of his first screen roles.
La Femme Nikita - The Complete First Season
by René Bonnière
from Warner Home Video
The complete first season of this highly rated cult favorite USA Network original series is now available on DVD. Condemned to life in prison for a vicious crime she didn't commit Nikita (Peta Wilson) reluctantly chooses to live as a secret government assassin whose life is controlled by a mysterious agent (Roy Dupuis) and his colleagues. Based on the characters created for the film Nikita.Running Time: 978 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS UPC: 085392377626 Manufacturer No: 1000001048
Longtime La Femme Nikita fans and newcomers alike will enjoy this six-disc boxed set, which compiles the syndicated television series' entire first season, and shows why it garnered a devoted audience throughout its five-season run (1997-2001): it's a fast-paced, action-packed mixture of sex appeal (thanks to the statuesque form of its star, Australian actress Peta Wilson) and intricately plotted espionage thrills. Producers Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran (who later created 24) hewed the series' framework closely to its inspiration--Luc Besson's 1990 theatrical feature of the same name--save for one change. Where the movie Nikita is a drug-addicted thug, Wilson's Nikita is a street-savvy homeless woman. The pilot, "Nikita" (on disc 1), details her introduction to the underground spy network known as Section One: facing a death sentence after a trumped-up murder charge, Nikita is approached by the mysterious Michael (Roy Dupuis), who offers her a new identity as an anti-terrorist operative. The subsequent 21 episodes in the set offer plenty of action and suspense, as well as a compelling character in Nikita, who struggles constantly with the deception and bloodshed that are unavoidable aspects of her assignments. The set concludes with a dramatic season finale, disc 6's "Mercy," which forces Nikita to deal with some hard truths about her future and her feelings for Michael.
If having the complete first season in one set doesn't please series fans, the supplemental features will surely satisfy even the iciest armchair operative. Disc 1 offers commentary by Surnow, Cochran, and director Jon Cassar on "Nikita" as well as commentary by Surnow for deleted scenes from several episodes (also on discs 2, 3, and 6); disc 6 features Surnow's comments on "Mercy," as well as "Section One Declassified: The Making of La Femme Nikita," which features interviews with the cast and creators. --Paul Gaita
21 Jump Street - The Complete Fourth Season
by Daniel Attias
from Fox Network
The fourth season of Fox's hip undercover cop phenomenon opens with Ioki (Dustin Nguyen) in the hospital and Hanson (Johnny Depp) in prison (falsely convicted of murder). The end of the premiere ("Draw the Line") brings good news for one of them when Penhall (Peter DeLuise) and Booker (Richard Greico) join forces, while the fate of the other looks promising. This is confirmed in the following episode ("Say It Ain't So, Pete"), but by then, Booker will have split the scene (to return for the Booker-Jump Street crossover, "Wheels & Deals").
Other notable episodes include "Eternal Flame," directed by Mario Van Peebles (Baadasssss!) and guest starring a longhaired Thomas Haden Church (Sideways). There's also "Come From the Shadows," in which Penhall marries a Salvadoran refugee to prevent her deportation (and adopts her nephew when he becomes orphaned), "Stand By Your Man," in which Hoffs (Holly Robinson Peete) is the victim of date rape, and "Mike's P.O.V." with a scruffy Donovan Leitch (Gas, Food Lodging) and preppy Vince Vaughn (Swingers).
The rap on the fourth year is that Depp started turning in lackluster performances when he couldn't get out of his contract. Fortunately, he doesn't sink the show, but it's clear his heart isn't in it anymore. On the bright side, 21 Jump Street remained as much a time capsule of the late-1980s as ever with music from the B-52s and Devo and references to Ghostbusters and Back to the Future. (Hoffs' surname was even taken from a notable 1980s figure: Susanna Hoffs of the Bangles.) Once Depp was set free, Fox pulled the plug on the program, which ran for a final season in syndication. In exchange for the Booker episode, this set deletes the season finale, "Blackout," which featured Depp's final appearance as Officer Tom Hanson. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Poltergeist - The Legacy - Season 1
by Derek de Lint
from MGM (Video & DVD)
To the unaware Dr. Derek Rayne (de Lint) and his team are nothing more than a group of curators and seekers of ancient artifacts operating in a castle-like house on isolated Angel Island. But to those in-the-know they are members of Legacy an ancient network of guardians against evil battling to protect mankind from the creatures inhabiting the shadows and the night.Led by Dr. Rayne the San Francisco Legacy team is composed of psychiatrist Rachel Corrigan (Helen Shaver The Color of Money); Father Philip Callahan (Patrick Fitzgerald The Last of the Mohicans); ex-Navy SEAL Nick Boyle (Martin Cummins We All Fall Down) and researcher/psychic Alex Moreau (Robbi Chong Cheech & Chong s The Corsican Brothers). Encounter the unknown unnerving and unnatural in every episode of Poltergeist: The Legacy Season 1 as the team investigates the supernatural realm for knowledge and artifacts to aid their fight against the evil in the world.System Requirements:Running Time: 982 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR Rating: NR UPC: 027616136138 Manufacturer No: 13613
21 Jump Street Season 5
by Daniel Attias
from Fox Network
Their Unforgettable Final Season Plus The Infamous Blackout Episode Starring Johnny Depp It was the show that became a top-rated Fox sensation made Johnny Depp an overnight star and remains one of the coolest cultural phenomena of the 80s. And it all leads here the undercover cops of Jump Street Chapel Doug Penhall (Peter DeLuise) Judy Hoffs (Holly Robinson Peete) Captain Fuller (Steven Williams) and new rookie officers Joey Penhall (Michael DeLuise) and Tony Mac McCann (Michael Bendetti) are caught up in some of the most explosive action and drama in the show s history! In addition this collection contains three episodes filmed during Season 4 but aired during Season 5 including the still-controversial "Blackout" which features Johnny Depp s final series appearance. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating: NR UPC: 013131363098 Manufacturer No: DV13630
Forever Knight - The Trilogy, Part 3 (1995 - 1996)
by René Bonnière
from Sony Pictures
Nicholas Knight, a Toronto cop, works only at night due to the fact that he is also a 700-year-old vampire.
Genre: Television
Rating: NR
Release Date: 3-OCT-2006
Media Type: DVD
Though it's achieved immortality in the hearts of its devoted fans, the supernatural-themed series Forever Knight ends with this third-season set, which brings the saga of vampire-turned-sleuth Nick Knight (Geraint Wyn Davies of 24) to a startling conclusion. Change seems to be the theme of the third season (1995-96), which sees the departure of much-loved sidekick Schanke (John Kapelos) under violent circumstances (as detailed in the two-part season opener, "Black Buddha"), and the arrival of a new partner, Tracy Vetter (Lisa Ryan), who's involved with another creature of the night, Vachon (Ben Bass). Further complicating matters are the return of Nick's former lover Janette (Deborah Duchene), who reveals a surprising twist of her own in "The Human Factor," and Divia (Kathryn Long), the daughter of Knight's mentor/nemesis LaCroix (Nigel Bennett), in "Ashes to Ashes." But of course, the biggest wrinkle of the third season is Nick's struggle to resist his vampiric urges; this conflict, along with the fates of most of the major characters, come to a head with the series closer, "Last Knight," which still packs a punch with its dramatic (some might say drastic) denouement. Blood, romance, mystery, and death--all things that make for an addictive series, and all major elements of Forever Knight's final season, which certainly accounts for the show's long-lasting cult appeal. The five-disc set includes all 22 episodes of the third season, and is rounded out by a trio of appropriately dark and evocative music videos created from series footage. --Paul Gaita
The Outer Limits (The New Series) - Season One (1995)
by Brad Turner
from MGM (Video & DVD)
There is nothing wrong with your television. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. The complete first season of THE OUTER LIMITS, Sci-Fi's critically-acclaimed and most original series, is finally available on DVD! Like the classic 1960's series of the same name, each episode is an imaginative exploration of humanity's greatest hopes and darkest fears and include special guest appearances by Alyssa Milano, Ryan Reynolds, Rae Dawn Chong, Beau Bridges, Rebecca De Mornay and Robert Patrick. Winner of the Cable Ace Award for best Dramatic Series, this Emmy® nominated show deals with the consequences of such controversial and thought-provoking topics as genetic manipulation, alien visitation and life after death.
Da Vinci's Inquest - Season 1
by Anne Wheeler
from ACORN MEDIA
The crackling Canadian police procedural Da Vinci's Inquest combines the best elements of popular U.S. police procedurals like CSI, Crossing Jordan, and Law & Order--with a little throwback to Quincy for good measure. What makes Da Vinci's Inquest so compelling is the performance of lead actor Nicholas Campbell, a cop turned coroner who tells anyone who'll listen, and lots of people who won't, that his job is to represent and look after the dead. Season 1, which debuted in 1998, follows Campbell's Dominic Da Vinci through the gritty side of Vancouver, navigating serial murders as well as extreme dysfunction in his own life. The focus on Da Vinci's personal life--his tumbles off the wagon, the torture of his ex-wife's involvement with a colleague--gives the series more heart than most blood-and-guts crime series. The show and Campbell have won several Gemini Awards (the Canadian Emmys) for the nuance and intellect that keep viewers engaged, even as they sense ominous turns of events about to unfold. Mystery fans can't ask for more. --A.T. Hurley
The realism of Law & Order. The science of CSI. A sensibility all its own.
"I'm not a policeman, OK? Y'know what I do? I look after the dead."
So says Dominic Da Vinci, a controversial, charismatic big city coroner. And in Da Vinci's job, the dead always cry out for justice.
A richly talented ensemble cast joins award-winning actor Nicholas Campbell in this critically acclaimed crime series. Working with police and pathologists while fighting bureaucratic resistance, coroner Da Vinci relies on high-tech forensic science and old-fashioned shoe leather to illuminate the murky world in which men and women commit murder. With this complete first seasoncomprising 13 thrilling episodesyou can savor the delicately nuanced drama of Da Vinci's Inquest from the very beginning.
DVD FEATURES INCLUDE trailer and cast filmographies.
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