Logo

Cool News

60!! MEDIUM!! SEAQUEST!! RICHES!! TORCHWOOD!! Herc’s Super-Exciting Season-Box DVD Vault!!

Published at:  Oct 17, 2007 7:15:54 AM CDT

SPOILER ALERT !!

I am – Hercules!!



The worst hour of TV Aaron Sorkin ever wrote is still better than 99.9 percent of the hours forged throughout history by all the other TV writers, right? I give five stars to the series finale of “Studio 60 Live On The Sunset Strip,” a finale that ran during the summer and not seen by a lot of people.

The series, created and written by Sorkin (“A Few Good Men,” “The American President,” “Sports Night,” “The West Wing”), depicted the creative forces behind a fictional “SNL”-like TV series. Much of it worked exceedingly well; some of it did not.

I continue to hold in highest regard NBS programming chief Jordan McDeere (Amanda Peet), the network dream boss. Her boss Jack Rudolph (Steven Weber) turned out to be great too. Jack’s boss, Wilson White (Ed Asner), more with the greatness. All proved unexpectedly complex and entertaining. In retrospect, a series titled “McDeere” or “NBS” might have proven a far better fit for audiences, critics, NBC and Sorkin himself.

On to the negatives.

Some argue that the quality of the show’s sketches were not important, that viewers weren’t tuning in for the sketches.

But the sketches were important, and here’s why. Most were completely horrible, and hobbled horribly our suspension of disbelief. Ricky and Ron were supposed to be writing the shitty sketches, not new head writer Matt Albie. If Matt’s stuff came off as poor, it reflected poorly not only on Matt, but also on producer Danny and network chief Jordan, whose faith in Matt could only be read as delusion.

If the show couldn’t afford to hire Jim Downey or Tim Herlihy or Al Franken or Robert Smigel or Adam McKay or Sam Simon to punch up the sketches, they perhaps should have been more careful to leave those sketches off-camera. (It’s possible, one supposes, that Sorkin simply believed his sketches funnier than those mounted by the oft-derided SNL. If so? Monstrous miscalculation.)

The show also had casting issues. Nathan Corddry was funny on “The Daily Show,” but he’s a far cry from the powerhouse likes of a John Belushi or a Bill Murray or a Will Ferrell. Was anyone ever convinced he had somehow emerged as the superstar standout on a hot late-night sketch show?

Original King of Comedy D.L. Hughley? Way funny when he’s doing his own material -- but as an actor Hughley demonstrated deficiencies, and Sorkin’s dialogue never seemed to fit Hughley’s mouth. (Imagine what an actor like Lesure would have brought to Simon Stiles!)

Matthew Perry’s on-screen interviews over the years illustrate that he doesn’t need a script to find the funny, and one senses that “Friends” was so huge, in part, because Perry was a major force in shaping Chandler Bing.

But Sorkin’s work may be too unyielding and accomplished for real funnymen; a funnyman is not necessarily what Sorkin needa to get his work where it’s going. Perry characteristically seemed too confined by Sorkin’s alter ego, and one suspects he’s at least a little glad to be done with the role. (A younger Perry might have been spectacular as Jeter, said to be the show-within-a-show’s star player.)

Perhaps Sorkin’s material needs something of a blank canvas to inhabit; if the canvas comes with its own lines and colors, those elements unduly distract from what Sorkin is trying to do. Rob Lowe – a handsome but (beyond “The West Wing”) generally bland and workmanlike presence – managed to manifest one of the most successful Sorkin protagonists ever in senior White House aide Sam Seaborn.

Ah, but enough with what might have gone haywire. Let’s go out by enumerating a few more of the series’ virtues:

* Andy Mackinaw (Mark McKinney), the tragedy-stained comedy pro who returned to the writer’s room.

* Kim Tao (the spectacular Julia Ling), the sexy and hilariously horny little rich girl on whom the network’s fortunes appeared to teeter. (I think she’s part of the Nerd Herd on “Chuck” now.)

* Zhang Tao (Raymond Ha), Kim’s wily pop.

* Captain Boyle (James Lesure), the military fellow sent to liaison with “Studio 60” cast member Tom Jeter.

* Robert Bebe (John Goodman), the backwoods Nevada judge who turned up to torment the regulars for two episodes before providing them deliverance.

* Suzanne (Merrit Wever), Matt’s landmine-jumping assistant.

* Wendy (real-life ex-Pussycat Doll Cyia Batten), the Bombshell Babe with the boot.

* The show's sprawling multilevel set generally, but especially that giant "Play It Again Sam" Life Magazine cover in Matt's office.

* The Christmas show.

Christmas Day 2007, by the way, will see the release to cinemas of “Charlie Wilson’s War,” about the Texas congressman who aided Afghanistan in its war against the Soviet Union. It teams a Sorkin screenplay with director Mike Nichols, as well as actors Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Shiri Appleby, Rachel Nichols, John Slattery, Mary Page Keller and real-life ex-Pussycat Doll Cyia Batten. Which just proves again – if you kick a great writer out of TV, you’ll end up paying later.


I adore “Medium,” the ever-absorbing drama about a physicist’s psychic wife. Just out today is the third season of the third series created and overseen by Glenn Gordon Caron, who earlier created and oversaw the excellent and seminal “Moonlighting” and excellent and not-seminal superhero saga “Now and Again” (the one with Dennis Haysbert; not be confused with “Once and Again,” which started the same year and starred Sela Ward).

In its third season “Medium” continued to combine twisty sci-fi plotlines with welcome doses of Caron’s perfecto throwaway wit. If the show lacks “buzz,” I think we can blame the series’ paucity of multi-episode story arcs. Mind you, continuity is not wholly absent. Much more is made now of how psychic gifts run in Alison’s family (notably amongst Alison’s three young daughters), and we’re getting to know better Alison’s crime-fighting Phoenix co-workers. The 19th century serial killer Dr. Charles Walker returns for the third time in the season’s fourth hour (and it turns out he’s been played by Mark Sheppard, who would play Gaius Baltar’s lawyer Romo Lampkin on “Galactica” and Jaime Sommers’ science-nemesis Anthony Anthros on “Bionic Woman”). Texas Rangers captain Kenneth Push (Arliss Howard), introduced in the pilot, came back at midseason. Sonny Troyer, the psychic serial killer introduced in the season-two episode “S.O.S.,” returns in the form of Eric Stoltz. Alison's amiable but ambition-challenged war-vet brother returns late in season three.

Season three begins with gory cartoons and the ghost of Alison’s high-school sweetheart. It’s followed by the “Groundhog Day” episode, Walker’s descendant, the magic camcorder, Kurtwood Smith as FBI Special Agent Cooper, the pervy assemblyman, the lonely cat-dude, the creepy doll-boy, Push’s return, the oil heiress who possesses Alison, the leukemia-stricken future-daughter, the escaped Troyer, teen ‘80s Alison’s creepy neighbor, the demon girl, and the hostage situation with the great Adam Goldberg and the great Larry Miller.

To anticipate the question, there is a fourth season in production, and new episodes of “Medium” are expected to return to NBC in January.





Herc’s Popular Pricing Pantry

TWILIGHT ZONE: THE COMPLETE SERIES!!


$164.99!!

That works out to $33 Per Season!!
The extras-crammed Definitive Editions!!
Individual seasons cost $69.99 New; $50 used!!
They were going for close to $100/season not too long ago!

(The discount presumably celebrates the release of the “Twilight Zone” movie in HD, so don’t expect it to last ...)



Justice League Unlimited Season One is 67% Off ($14.99) at the “Superheroes On Sale” page.




TV-on-DVD Calendar


Last Week
Alfred Hitchcock Presents 3.x
Ben 10 2.x
Creature Comforts America 1.x
CSI New York 3.x
CSI New York 1.x-3.x
DeGrassi High: The Complete Series
Everybody Hates Chris 2.x
Family Ties 2.x
The Film Crew: Giant of Marathon
Ghost Hunters 3.x Vol. 1
Girlfriends 2.x
Hannah Montana Vol. 3
Jericho of Scotland Yard 1.x/2.x
The Lair 1.x
Little Women: The Complete Series
Marple 3.x
Meerkat Manor 1.x
Michael Palin: Pole To Pole
Murder, She Wrote 7.x
Only Fools and Horses: Complete Collection
Only Fools and Horses: The Specials
Robin of Sherwood Vol. 2
Roots: The Next Generations
Roots: The Complete Collection
Stargate SG-1: The Complete Series
Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie [Blu-ray]
Twilight Zone: The Movie [HD-DVD]
The Vicar of Dibley: Happy Ending
War & Peace
Whose Line Is It Anyway 1.x
Whose Line Is It Anyway 1.x Vol. 2



This Week
Absolutely Fabulous: The Complete Series


Absolutely Fabulous: White Box


Charlie & Lola Vol. 6


Ironside 2.x


Jonathan Creek 2.x


MacGyver: The Complete Series


Masters of Horror 1.x Vol. 1 [Blu-ray}


Masters of Horror 1.x Vol. 2 [Blu-ray]


Masters of Horror: The Damned Thing


Medium 3.x


Medium 1.x-3.x


Mythbusters Vol. 2


Roseanne 9.x


Squidbillies Vol. 1


Studio 60: The Complete Series


That '70s Show 7.x
Waking The Dead 2.x
Wanted: Dead or Alive 3.x



Next Week
The Adventures of Aquaman: The Complete Collection
American Gangster 1.x
Clive Cussler's Sea Hunters 1.x/2.x
The Company: The Complete Miniseries
The Company: The Complete Miniseries [Blu-ray]
Hamish MacBeth 3.x
I Love Lucy: The Complete Series
Irwin Allen TV Giftset <--- NEW!!
Jupiter Moon: New Frontier Vol. 1
The L-Word 4.x
Mind of Mencia Uncensored 3.x
Monarch of the Glen 7.x
Monarch of the Glen: The Complete Series
NCIS 4.x
NCIS: Four Season Pack
Route 66 Vol. 1
Ruth Rendell Mysteries Vol. 2
The Sopranos 6.x Vol. 2
The Sopranos 6.x Vol. 2 [Blu-ray]
The Sopranos 6.x Vol. 2 [HD-DVD]
Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians
Tales From The Crypt 7.x
Veronica Mars 3.x
Veronica Mars: The Complete Series
Voyage To The Bottom of the Seas 3.x Vol. 2
Young Indiana Jones Vol. 1



October 30
Angel: Complete Series Collector's Set ($97.99!!)
Avatar 3.x Vol. 1
Benny Hill: Complete Collection
Biography: Saturday Night Live
Checkmate: Best of 1.x
Cimarron City: Best Of 1.x
CSI Miami 5.x
CSI Miami 1.x-5.x
Dark Shadows: The Beginning Vol. 2
Everybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Series
Family Affair 4.x
Family Guy 1.x-5.x Party Pack
Hey Mulligan: Best of 1.x
Laredo: Best Of 1.x
Looney Tunes: Golden Collection Vol. 5
Magnum P.I. 7.x
Miami Ink 1.x
My So-Called Life: The Complete Series
Mystery Science Theatre 3000 Vol. 12
October Road 1.x
Outer Limits Vol. 3
The Real McCoys 2.x
Restless Gun: Best of 1.x
Riverboat: Best of 1.x
Scrubs 6.x
Sgt. Preston of the Yukon: Complete Collection
Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get A Clue Vol. 1
Suspense: The Lost Episodes Vol. 2
The Tall Man: Best of 1.x
TV Animation Giftset


Twin Peaks: The Complete Series



November 6
The Andy Williams Show: Best Of
Beetle Bailey: The Complete Collection
Bob Hope: The Ultimate Collection
The Captain & Tennille: The Specials
The Colbert Report: Best Of
The Cosby Show 5.x AddThis Social Bookmark Button
    + Expand All

    Readers Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 2:50:19 AM CDT

    Weird Science!

    by boondock devil

    Vanessa Angel! Woooo

    And they're also going to release the Swamp Thing series on dvd too? Viva la USA Network circa early 90's.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 2:59:31 AM CDT

    Herc, any word on The State?

    by llghtst0rmer

    Their website says it's official, the whole series set will be released this fall, but it's already October...

    (Trying not to cry, trying not to cry....)

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 3:07:18 AM CDT

    Ah, SeaQuest Season 2... The year it all went horribly wrong...

    by paul t. ryan

    But I will buy it anyway. Now hurry up and release Season 4 of Sliders dammit!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 7:10:48 AM CDT

    Seconding the "Wooo" for Weird Science...

    by tonagan

    Caught it when it was rerun on WAM! - it's funny to see Lee Tergesen as Chet.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 7:57:56 AM CDT

    Torchwood is HOW MUCH????

    by james_o'nasty

    Eighty fookin' dollars without the discount? It wasn't that good! Holy crap... And Doctor Who Series 3 is $100?

    THIRTEEN EPISODES, PEOPLE! 13 EPISODES A SERIES!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 8:05:28 AM CDT

    80 bucks = Captain Jack Gotta Eat!

    by kennef

    expensive season box sets make the Baby Jesus cry.... and download via bit torrent.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 8:17:18 AM CDT

    Why did The State announce that the series DVD was coming out th

    by deucefilms

    I remember Thomas Lennon made a big announcement a few months back while promoting Balls of Fury, and there's even an announcement on The State's website (http://www.the-state.com/) that the entire series is coming out on DVD this fall. The release date was SUPPOSED to be October 23rd. I've been a huge fan of The State for years and still, to this day, tell people it's the best sketch comedy I've ever seen. Since they started releasing TV shows on DVD years ago, The State has been at the top of my list of shows that I've been anticipating. After waiting for years, getting teased about this release ain't exactly all that much fun for big fans of the show like myself. Any news on when it's finally going to come out or what could be holding it up?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 8:47:05 AM CDT

    no subject

    by omar b

    That's a great deal on those 24 boxes. Also, Studio 60 was a great show never given a chance to thrive.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 9:28:37 AM CDT

    Studio 60 Sucked and here's why

    by the+hitman

    Sorkin pushed his political agenda way too much and HIS sole antagonist was the religious right.

    Also, nobody could reasonably believe that Matt Albie wrote the entire show every week.

    SportsNight was one of the best shows on TV.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 10:02:03 AM CDT

    The+Hitman

    by biggles2_22

    It's called the Sorkin-Effect(tm).

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 10:22:59 AM CDT

    The Damned Thing was the biggest piece of shit!

    by raymar

    Tobe Hooper took my favorite short story and turned it into a z-grade Outer Limits. What happened to this guy? Medium's third season was the best yet though. Glad its back.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 10:47:08 AM CDT

    Sorkin isn't that good. Overpraised.

    by browncoatjedi

    There is no way his worst scripts are better than 99.9% of all TV in history. Exaggerate much?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 11:18:09 AM CDT

    " Sorkin Isn't Any Good"?

    by ripper t. jones

    Pfft. Yeah. Ok.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 11:19:13 AM CDT

    " Sorkin Isn't Any Good"?

    by ripper t. jones

    Pfft. Yeah. Ok.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 12:53:29 PM CDT

    Sorkin's ego was Studio 60's undoing

    by tvguy4566

    Not to beat a dead and buried horse, but Sorkin's arrogance reaked in Studio 60. From him thinking he was funnier than everyone else to thinking his style of shows are too good for network TV to he and people who have the same beliefs as him are better people than people who are regilious or come from a red state, his ego became a lead weight for the show. I think if Sorkin left out a lot of his political views, his pretentiousness, and his Holier-than-thou attitude; this show might have been a hit. Too bad. I had a lot of high hopes for this show.

    Well that ends the beating the dead horse segment of our show because unless Sorkin decides to do season two as a comic book, Studio 60 will never come up again on this site or anywhere else.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 12:58:16 PM CDT

    CBS killed the State

    by tvguy4566

    I thought the State could have the next Saturday Night Live type hit for network TV, but CBS signed the State to a network deal and quickly buried them. What the State did was ten times funnier than anything SNL or Mad TV did in the last ten years.

    CBS and the State was a strange fit to begin with since this was when CBS was primarily the geriatric network and the State was young and hip. I don't think the "Murder She Wrote"/"Diagnosis Murder" crowd were the right audience for the State.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 2:21:40 PM CDT

    Damnit! I had forgotten about Seaquest, why the hell did you...

    by rbatty024

    have to remind me. If I remember correctly, that show had a massive overhaul of direction each season (I think there were three or so). It just could never get it right.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 2:44:52 PM CDT

    Sorry but I can easily find those seasons of "24" for only $19.9

    by hellking

    You just have to watch out for th sales at several of the chain stores like Best Buy. It happens all the time.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 4:07:40 PM CDT

    MacGruber!

    by big jim

    His DVD is being released but he won't see a dime, MacGruber! His manager stole all his money, then ran off with his wife, MacGruber! He's a full-blown alcoholic and 200 grand in debt, Macgruber!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 4:08:37 PM CDT

    Good the see The Young Ones being released again and it won't co

    by big jim

    $75 or some such ridiculous price.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 4:16:12 PM CDT

    Nerd instinct kicking in to buy Sci-Fi bundle..must resist.

    by tallboy66

    Yes, its 800 dollars, but you're also *saving* 800 dollars. And the only one I own is Firefly. Gosh!!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 4:38:01 PM CDT

    psychic physicist’s wife.

    by don lockwood

    That should be "physicist's psychic wife".

    I second the outrage on the Torchwood/Doctor Who set prices. Who the hell is buying these things for this price? And where the hell are my Life on Mars Region 1 sets?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 5:55:35 PM CDT

    Loving Studio 60

    by barnaby jones

    Watching it in the U.K and just seen the Christmas episode. Am frankly distraut this show got axed !

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 8:52:43 PM CDT

    Sorkin IS that good, but Studio 60...

    by justanothermoviefan

    just didn't work. If you have any doubts about the genius of Sorkin, please watch the first four seasons of The West Wing. Some episodes are so damn good that you cannot believe its TV.

    That being said, Studio 60 was just OK, and this is coming from a big fan of Sorkin. The main reason the show didn't work can be blamed on the cast. They are all fine actors, but just wrong for their roles. Decent show, but nothing magical like The West Wing.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 16, 2007 10:49:44 PM CDT

    Torchwood should be in HD...

    by lynxpro

    The BBC shoots it in HD. HDNet here in America shows it in HD. And Warner distributes it here in America so it should be available on Blu-ray and HD DVD, not just plain ass DVD.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 8:23:57 AM CDT

    That Christmas episode was so fucking good...

    by danielkurland

    It's depressing to think of Sorkin not writing something each week, and the fact that this whole experience may have dissuaded him from working in television again. Sports Night still amazes me each time I watch it. That show has some of the best uses of music I've seen in a TV show...Eli's Coming, Sloop John B, Boogie Shoes, It's In His Kiss...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 8:29:20 AM CDT

    Kurtwood Smith as FBI Special Agent Cooper...

    by danielkurland

    Just a coincidence, right? Right?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 8:36:12 AM CDT

    SeaQuest should've never gone to space

    by pviii

    in an intergalactic ocean civil war. That's where they lost me little bit.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 8:43:07 AM CDT

    Studio 60 wasn't great,

    by twitchinmonkey

    But more often then not it was pretty damn good, and it was a hell of a lot better than Chuck, Journeyman, Bionic Woman and Life, and when you look at the dismal ratings those shows are pulling down, I'm guessing the "dissapointing" 7 to 8 million people that were tuning into Studio 60 every week must be looking pretty good to NBC right about now.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 9:46:10 AM CDT

    Still no BSG season 3

    by fatrat

    It would be nice to know when we are going to get season 3 of BSG. If nothing else to see the Adama maneuver in on my tv instead of on my computer. I don't care when Razor hits, give me season 3!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 10:08:49 AM CDT

    Where's Friday the 13th the Series you bastards!?!

    by jimmy_009

    I'm tired of waiting for it.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 10:15:10 AM CDT

    Still waiting for my Cheers season 9

    by mrfan

    All the rest were coming out at a reasonable time and then they just quit. Only three seasons left for me.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 12:34:06 PM CDT

    It's all mediocre tv all the time!!!

    by subliminaljones

    Love American Style? Weird Science show? Not to mention "who buys this crap?" beauts like Roseanne and Medium. They are really scraping the bottom of the barrel now.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 12:47:40 PM CDT

    FatRat, I was in HMV the other day and on the shelves they

    by big jim

    had a card for BSG S3 to let people know it would be released soon; it said "2008". So that sucks.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 2:02:15 PM CDT

    What about "Quark" or "When Things Were Rotten"?

    by borgnine jr

    Is there no room in your stony hearts for the comedy of the Smart Set, O Gilded Corporate Titans?!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 2:44:16 PM CDT

    "Quark"

    by skydemon

    Haa! I remember that one, pure classic cheese. Didn't "Salvage One" come out around that time too? And HELL YEA, where is Friday the 13th - the series Paramount!!!! Huh, Huh, Comeon already dammit!!!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 3:55:21 PM CDT

    Actually... SeaQuest lost me...

    by jimmy rabbitte

    ...at the tail end of the first season. They added a bunch of left over actors from '21 Jumpstreet'; then had a big beach volleyball grudge match with one of Bridger's old competitors. It looked absolutely ridiculous, and Roy Scheider looked embarrassed that he was even involved. It's no wonder he quit and left the captain role to Michael ("see ya at da pah-tee, Richter") Ironside. A shame... the show started as an interesting idea... what of waste of Stacy Haiduk... and her ample breasts...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 4:04:15 PM CDT

    Ample indeed...

    by jimmy rabbitte

    http://tinyurl.com/3blpj2

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 5:12:03 PM CDT

    Only the 2nd release of From the Earth to the Moon.

    by iamjack'suserid

    The first one was non-anamorphic and skimping on extras slightly. 2nd release has been out for a while. It just got A LOT cheaper as of late.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 17, 2007 9:18:51 PM CDT

    Thank you so much, jimmy rabbitte

    by tonagan

    We really have to start posting more links like that. Everyone would be happier, I think. Except women, maybe.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Oct 20, 2007 10:46:47 PM CDT

    Where is BATMAN?!

    by greggbob

    Does anyone know why BATMAN, the 60's series, isn't out on DVD yet? I've been patiently waiting.

    Reply to Talkback

User Login

Forgot password? Retrieve it here

or register as new user

Quick Talkback Form

Please login to post talkback