Complete Series DVD Review - 21 Jump Street and Hunter!

Hunter: The Complete Series

21 Jump Street: The Complete Series



I'll review these together because both sets have the same problems but I'll get to that in a second. For the money, you can't go wrong with either one.  Sure, they might have some 80s/90s dust on them but sit back and ignore the dates and you'll enjoy them just fine. 


Half the fun of these shows now is seeing all the guest stars, some of which are MAJOR Hollywood stars now.  It's pretty fun to see them in smaller guest roles at the beginning of their careers. 

As far as the content goes, both Hunter (a show I dearly remember watching as a kid, and still enjoy today) and 21 Jump Street are well worth your money.

Both shows have suffered from the Music Licensing fiasco.  Meaning the original music has been stripped and replaced with something else.  In the case of Hunter, an entire episode was affected as they had to pull out the performances of guest star Chaka Khan!  For purists, this could prove annoying.  It doesn't really matter in terms of story or anything but still it'd really be nice to see these shows presented as originally aired without having to go through this music changing nonsense.

The biggest issue, for me anyway, is the packaging.  The sets are contained in over-sized DVD cases and inside the DVDs are in paper envelopes and stacked.  They aren't really protected in anyway they're just stuck in there, barely held in place.  I guess this is a cost cutting measure but it comes of as extremely cheap to me.  We're talking 7 Seasons of DVDs (28 Discs) for Hunter just stacked inside a DVD case.  5 Seasons (18 episodes) for 21 Jump Street.  Surely there must have been a better way to do this?

There are also no special features to speak of.  Unless I missed them.

In the end, the price ($68.99 for seven seasons of Hunter is about $9.85 a season. $45.99 for 21 Jump Street is about 9.19 per season. )  and the content make up for the shoddy packaging and lack of supplements.  Really, the shows do speak for themselves and despite the age, they hold up pretty well.

Hunter: The Complete Series and 21 Jump Street: The Complete Series are available now.

RAWR(for more)

Music Review: JP, Chrissie and The Fairground Boys - "Fidelity!"

I have always loved Chrissie Hynde! I love her shag haircut. I love her runny black eyeliner. I even love her "boots of Chinese plastic." But most of all I love that on the first JP, Chrissie & The Fairground Boys CD "Fidelity!" Chrissie Hynde has finally found love! The first thing you need to know is that this is not a Pretenders CD; this is Chrissie's first time recording music without her famous moniker. But does that matter? Not really, because ever since 1983 the Pretenders have really been all about Ms. Hynde. She writes the songs and she sings them with that "voice." The voice that no one else has. The voice that has so much sexy soul on ballads and so much punk angst on rockers that it just might be the best female voice in rock... maybe the best voice period... sorry Robert Plant! So where was I? Oh yeah... "Fidelity!" on this CD Chrissie Hynde teams with 31 year-old musician JP Jones to produce one of the best CDs of 2010. All the songs on the CD are pretty much autobiographical and tell the story of Hynde and Jones' courtship. Their story and the CD start with "Perfect Lover" and this is when we find out that Chrissie's perfect lover is half her age but that doesn't matter because she wants him "in her kitchen and standing on her stage" and what she gets is a relatively unknown artist who is actually able to go toe to toe with Hynde and bring out the best in her both musically and lyrically. Next comes "If You Let Me" and if you don't like this song then you don't like music. That's right I said it! This is the song by which all other songs to come should be measured. So, do I want the Pretenders to stop making music? Absolutely not! But, I do hope that JP, Chrissie & The Fairground Boys continue to fill the void between Pretenders CDs for many years to come or at least until Hynde is 100 and Jones is 50! And as far as "Fidelity!" is concerned I intend to stay true to this CD for just as long.

Since I like drummers, my rating system will be 1 - 10 drumsticks. So drumroll please... 10 out of 10 drumsticks!

RAWR(for more)

The Dark Tower Approaches!

The Dark Tower is coming.

At long last, Universal, NBC, Ron Howard, Akiva Goldsman (gross) and more are bring Stephen King's epic masterpiece to life in a major franchise.  The first film to be directed by Ron Howard followed by a television series and further films.  They will all be connected and the series will serve as a bridge between the films.

This is some amazing news.  If done right, we might have the franchise to end all franchises.

I just hope Akiva Goldsman doesn't screw it up.


Finally, we get to see Roland and his Ka-Tet in action!

More news to come!

Thanks to Bloody-Disgusting for the news!

RAWR(for more)

Will Smith's Daughter Launches Music Career

Yesterday, Willow Smith (No that's not a flagrant typo), released her first single, "Whip My Hair". Today, there are rumors that the 9 year-old daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett, will sign with Jay-Z's Roc Nation music label.

Don't give into your skepticism, give it a listen. In my opinion, this girl has a bright future ahead of her and not just because of parents, but because of her talent.

RAWR(for more)

DVD Review: FlashForward - The Complete Series

FlashForward is a very interesting animal. Mainly because of how the show rubber-banded creatively. The pilot was absolutely stunning.  I loved every moment of it.  The problem was that each episode after grew steadily worse and worse.  The show had some behind the scenes issues, some show runner shake ups but by the time that got sorted out, I was pretty much done.  I gave up after a few episodes.  The show went into hiatus and returned with stronger episodes and the show seemed to have righted itself (similar to V although V is a much better show).

Unfortunately, it was too late and the show was canceled despite its creative resurgence.

Honestly, none of the episodes come near to the greatness of the first episode.  The show quickly spirals and becomes a bit of a mess, even the better stronger last few episodes.

I can't really say this complete series set is worth a buy to be honest, especially at its current WAY too high price.  I mean the strength of the premiere episode does not carry through the entire series and unfortunately,  most of the episodes just aren't good enough to really warrant repeat viewings.

That said, the set does have some good special features.  Bloopers, featurettes, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes and more.  It's a nice collection of features for a canceled TV show.

As far as casts go, FlashForward is stacked pretty well.  Featuring alumni from film and TV (some Lost alumni to boot!) I just wish the material could have served them better, or at least more consistently. 

I think, given more time, FlashForward could truly have evolved into a great show.  Unfortunately, the hiccups and poor ratings made it one of those "what could/might have been" kinda shows.

I'm just glad I didn't get too involved.  I jsut hope the same thing doesn't happen with The Event which I am really looking forward to!

FlashForward: The Complete Series is available now.

RAWR(for more)

Blu-ray Review: Lost - The Complete Sixth and Final Season

Lost: The Complete Sixth and Final Season
Special Features:  The Man in Charge, The End: Crafting A Final Season, A Hero's Journey, See You In *** ********* (edited for spoilers), Brotha, LOST on Location, Lost in 8:15 - A Crash Course; Lost Bloopers, Deleted Scenes, Audio Commentaries, Lost University, SeasonPlay, Seamless Menus, and more.

Well, at last, here it is.  The story that captivated (and confused) millions of viewers has reached its conclusion.  The journey of those on Oceanic flight 815 has reached an ending.  For better or for worse, Lost is over.

It's fan base does remain insatiable as this release has shot straight to the top of the DVD sales charts.  With good reason of course, it is a pretty stellar season, at least to me.  I enjoyed the ride Lost has taken me on since the beginning right on up to the final scene.  So then we've reached the conclusion.  The fates of the characters we've loved are revealed and now we can say goodbye again with this set.

Lost has never looked better.  The picture is gorgeous, the colors rich and deep.

The real draw though are the features, well at least one of them.  The coda to the show, the "epilogue" featuring Ben and Hurley.  I'm of course not going to tell you a thing about it except to say I enjoyed it.  I'm not sure it's entirely necessary but it's an okay addition.

As a whole the set is a must own for fans of the show and for those hoping to see how it all ends before (miraculously by now) nothing is spoiled.

I think it is a bit overpriced though considering it's a truncated season but clearly people are willing to pay since it is selling rather well so far.

If you're a Lost fan you're going to buy this no matter what I say and if you aren't a Lost fan, well, you probably aren't even reading this.

Believe me, for picture and sound alone you should get this.  It really does look great on Blu-ray.

No matter where you stand on its final moments, Lost's impact on television and popular culture cannot be denied.  It was (some might say still is) a hugely important show and it's final episodes deserve a home on anyone's shelf.

Whether you think the producers had it all laid out at the beginning (personally, I don't) or that it was all spur of the moment, the shows final season delivers.  You get answers and in typical Lost fashion more questions but in the end you know the fates of everyone involved and you feel like the journey is over.

I still find myself wishing it wasn't but at least I can relive every moment with the Blu-rays!

Lost: The Complete Sixth and Final Season is available now.  You can also pick up Lost: The Complete Collection on DVD and Blu-ray.  if you ask me this is the way to go if you don't have any of the other seasons!

RAWR(for more)

American Remake "Let Me In" Set for Success

Let Me In is the American remake of the Swedish film, Let the Right One In. The original is widely considered one of the best thrillers of recent years.

As the title would suggest, this is a vampire movie.  But make no mistake. Let Me In is unlike Twilight, Bram Stoker's Dracula, From Dusk Till Dawn or any other vampire movie you've ever seen.  We would suggest you walk into this movie not knowing anything more than what you read here.

When news came that it was being remade, it made me sick to my stomach. Hollywood wants their piece of the pie again, and they're dirty hands are going to made me lose my appetite. Then I found out that Chloe Moretz (Kick Ass) was cast as the female lead and I changed my mind. That young lady can act, and I could see her pulling off this role. Her performance could make or break the movie. Add to the equation that Matt Reeves (Cloverfield) is helming, I don't know how this remake could fail at capturing the audience.  We'll have to wait till October 1st to find out for sure.

After seeing this trailer from Comic Con, I felt completely at ease and now want to go see this in theaters.

I'm not a fan of watching clips from movies. But be my guest and watch a scene from the upcoming Let Me In

RAWR(for more)