Two Awesome New Holiday DVDs

I love holiday episodes of TV series which makes me particularly excited for two upcoming DVD releases from the fine folks at Mill Creek Entertainment. First off, let me say how much I adore Mill Creek Entertainment. Besides Disney, they have got to be my favorite company putting out home video material today. They constantly have imaginative and unique titles on their slate, always at a very low beyond-reasonable price.

Holiday episode collections have become quite popular in the last couple of years, mostly with Christmas episodes but Mill Creek is getting ahead of the game with a fantastic looking collection of Halloween themed episodes of 13 different sit-coms. TV's Spookiest Halloween Episodes collects trick-or-treat fun filled episodes of a wide variety of sit-coms and offers them up in one neat package. What I'm really digging about this collection is the wide range of years this collection represents from early 60's (Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie) to late 90's (Mad About You, NewsRadio.) What's also impressive is the range of popularity of the series represented. Some obscure goodies like Square Pegs and Ned and Stacey are tucked in there along with The Cosby Show and Roseanne. To me, this collection is just about perfect. I'm not sure I ever need to watch an episode of That 70's Show, but all the others I can't wait to dig into, especially The Jeffersons, Square Pegs and The Facts of Life. This is just a solid collection I can't wait to add to my library.

Then we've got Mill Creek's Christmas edition of Holiday themed episodes with TV's Merriest Episodes. I already have an enormous collection of Christmas TV episodes on tape and DVD and I'm really looking forward to making this disc part of the yearly viewing traditions.  Again, there is a great variety as far as ages of the shows although this one is a little more heavy on the mid 80's to mid 90's. The collections two vintage episodes: Bewitched and The Flying Nun are the same episodes that appeared in Shout Factory's (also excellent) 1989 collection Merry Sitcom! But it does feature The Ellen Show, which was a great one season CBS sitcom that aired between Ellen's popular ABC sitcom and her huge hit talk show.

TV's Spookiest Halloween Episodes is released Sept. 16, 2014 and TV's Merriest Episodes is available October 14, 2004. Both have an MSRP of $9.98.

If Holiday episodes are you thing, there are also two new collections of The Dick Van Dyke Show out from Image Entertainment. Halloween Episodes Collection is available now and contains 4 episodes while Classic Christmas comes out October 7 with two episodes.

All The Movies I Saw in 2013 - A List For No Good Reason At All

A few years ago, for no good reason at all, I started keeping a log of every movie that I watched. Mostly it was done on this blog, but then I stopped doing movie write-ups but still kept the log going on my phone. 2013 has come and gone and I'm still sitting here with the big list of movies that I watched, and I figured I might as well post the list. In 2012 I saw 236 movies, which was up 33 movies from the year before. In 2013 I was able to see 212 movies. That's down a few from the previous year but two major life changes occurred last year. We had a baby in April, and while an infant is considerate enough to sleep in your lap for 90 minute stretches, there's also that precious need for sleep in the early months of parenting an infant. I also discovered hour long dramatic series in 2013. While I have prided myself on never watching any thing other than comedy on television, the past tv season saw me getting swept up into the likes of The Blacklist, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, Fargo and Orphan Black. So many movie nights were "lost" to binging on quality television,  but it's all good. Anywho...here's the list:

1. A Bug's Life (1989)
2. Toy Story 2 (1999)
3. Cars 2 (2010)
4. Dark Shadows (2012)
5. This Means War (2012)
6. Cleanflix (2009)
7. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
8. Only The Lonely (1991)
9. Frankenweenie (2012)
10. Die Hard 2 (1990)
11. Compliance (2012)
12. Airplane II: The Sequel (1982)
13. Mulan (1998)
14. Ernest Rides Again (1993)
15. Iron Man (2008)
16. Ted (2012)
17. A Haunted House (2013)
18. Rock of Ages (2012)
19. Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985)
20. Deal of the Century (1983)
21. Joyful Noise (2012)
22. Pitch Perfect (2012)
23. 9 to 5 (1980)
24. Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
25. Walking The Halls (2012)
26. Hey There, It's Yogi Bear (1964)
27. The Avengers (2012)
28. To Rome With Love (2012)
29. Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)
30. Movie 43 (2013)
31. 17 Girls (2011)
32. The Invisible War (2012)
33. The AristoCats (1970)
34. Groundhog Day (1993)
35. The Dukes of Hazard: Carnival of Thrills (1980)
36. Flight (2012)
37. Oscar Nominated Short Films 2013 - Animation (2013)
38. Xanadu (1980)
39. National Lampoon's Senior Trip (1995)
40. History of the World: Part I (1981)
41. Sleeper (1973)
42. Race The Sun (1996)
43. Small Time Crooks (2000)
44. Repossessed (1989)
45. Here Comes The Boom (2012)
46. Escape From Planet Earth (2013)
47. Taken 2 (2012)
48. Mardi Gras Spring Break (2011)
49. Two of a Kind (1983)
50. Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003)
51. The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones (1987)
52. So Undercover (2012)
53. House at the End of the Street (2012)
54. The Hollywood Knights (1980)
55. Project X (2012)
56. The Babymakers (2012)
57. Police Academy (1984)
58. The Oogieloves in The Big Balloon Adventure (2012)
59. Mortuary Academy (1988)
60. Hot Stuff (1979)
61. The Princess and the Frog (2009)
62. Fun and Fancy Free (1947)
63. The Nude Bomb (1980)
64. For A Good Time, Call... (2012)
65. Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945)
66. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)
67. Batman Begins (2005)
68. Clue (1985)
69. Paul Williams is Still Alive (2011)
70. Drive-In (1976)
71. Skyfall (2012)
72. Private Resort (1985)
73. Cool Runnings (1993)
74. Darby O' Gill and the Little People (1959)
75. Au Pair Girls (1972)
76. The Sessions (2012)
77. Robot and Frank (2012)
78. The Pill (2011)
79. Argo (2012)
80. Roller Town (2012)
81. Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail (2009)
82. To The Artic 3D (2012)
83. The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000)
84. Fun Size (2012)
85. Bachelorette (2012)
86. Nobody's Perfect (1989)
87. Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
88. Scooby Doo: Mask of the Blue Falcon (2013)
89. Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
90. The Fox and the Hound (1981)
91. The Emperor's New Groove (2000)
92. Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Apart (2012)
93. Hitchcock (2012)
94. Scary Movie V (2013)
95. Hollywood Shuffle (1987)
96. Wallace & Gromitt: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit (2003)
97. This is 40 (2012)
98. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009)
99. The Meteor Man (1993)
100. Chicken Run (2000)
101. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2001)
102. Iron Man 2 (2010)
103. Iron Man 3 (2013)
104. Foodfight! (2012)
105. Wild Wheels (1992)
106. The Guilt Trip (2012)
107. Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
108. Blown Away (1993)
109. Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)
110. Safe Haven (2013)
111. Parental Guidance (2012)
112. National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985)
113. Man of Steel (2013)
114. The Three Stooges (2012)
115. Attack of the 50ft. Cheerleader (2012)
116. All In: The Poker Movie (2012)
117. The Wrong Guys (1988)
118. LEGO Batman: The Movie - DC Super Heroes Unite (2013)
119. The Noose Hangs High (1948)
120. Pinocchio (1940)
121. Freaky Friday (2003)
122. Mean Girls (2004)
123. Monsters University (2013)
124. Arctic Tale (2007)
125. Porky's (1982)
126. Spaceship (1983)
127. Oz The Great and Powerful (2013)
128. Despicable Me 2 (2013)
129. Wings of Life (2011)
130. Winnie The Pooh (2011)
131. Pooh's Heffalump Movie (2005)
132. Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
133. Teen Beach Movie (2013)
134. Tuck Everlasting (2002)
135. Superman Unbound (2013)
136. Wiener Dog Nationals (2013)
137. Smurfs 2 (2013)
138. Planes (20123)
139. Behind the Candelabra (2013)
140. Summer Rental (1985)
141. Spring Breakers (2013)
142. House Party: Tonight's The Night (2013)
143. Admission (2013)
144. Tom & Jerry's Giant Adventure (2013)
145. G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)
146. 21 & Over (2013)
147. Identity Thief (2013)
148. Evocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie (2012)
149. 42 (2013)
150. Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)
151. Piranha (1978)
152. Lay The Favorite (2012)
153. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
154. I Yabba Dabba Do! (1993)
155. The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie (2004)
156. Gidget Gets Married (1972)
157. The Smurfs (2011)
158. Annie (1982)
159. Disney's Teacher's Pet (2004)
160. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
161. A Good Day To Die Hard (2013)
162. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013)
163. Epic (2013)
164. Top Cat The Movie (2011)
165. The Little Mermaid (1989)
166. The Sword in the Stone (1963)
167. Young Frankenstein (1974)
168. InAPPropriate Comedy (2013)
169. The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)
170. This Is The End (2013)
171. The Incredible Hulk (2008)
172. Mickey's House of Villains (2001)
173. The Call (2013)
174. The Kings of Summer (2013)
175. Monsters University (2013)
176. Thor (2011)
177. X-Men (2000)
178. Blackfish (2013)
179. Pepples (2013)
180. The Bling Ring (2013)
181. Expecting Mary (2010)
182. The Avengers (2012)
183. Ultimate Avengers (2006)
184. Jedi Junkies (2010)
185. Thor: The Dark World (2013)
186. Pete's Christmas (2013)
187. I'll Be Home For Christmas (1998)
188. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
189. The Road to Christmas (2006)
190. Holiday in Handcuffs (2007)
191. The Heat (2013)
192. Holiday Switch (2007)
193. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
194. The Hunger Games (2012)
195. Battle of the Bulbs (2010)
196. Frozen (2013)
197. Bad Santa (2003)
198. Ernest Saves Christmas (1989)
199. The Santa Clause (1994)
200. Terms and Conditions May Apply (2013)
201. Farmageddon (2011)
202. The Hangover Part III (2013)
203. Christmas in Conway (2013)
204. Gremlins (1984)
205. On the 2nd Day of Christmas (2007)
206. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
207. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
208. Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas (2011)
209. Strange Brew (1983)
210. The To Do List (2013)
211. Hell's Highway: The True Story of Highway Safety Films (2003)
212. Iron Man (2008)

Look What's Gonna Be On The TV

The new Fall TV Season is just around the corner. Here's what looks interesting to me:

Mulaney  Sundays at 9:30 on FOX First up we have a very traditional sitcom with a great cast. John Mulaney is a pretty funny guy. I'm familiar with him from Best Week Ever, he's made a few appearances on SNL and he's pretty good on Kroll Show. Here he plays a comedian, living in New York...if that sounds familiar, look at his apartment - it also looks like Seinfeld's apartment. The supporting cast includes the great Nasim Pedrad, defecting from SNL to fill the Elaine roll. Comedy legend and one of my very favorite personalities, Martin Short is also on board. It's a multi-camera sitcom, of which I'm a huge fan of the dying art form.



Gotham Mondays at 8:00pm on FOX Premieres September 22. Last year was the year of the Hour Long Drama for me. I've almost never watched any hour long shows until last year when I got engrossed in five different series! This new Batman-less Batman show sounds interesting. It follows the lives of all the Batman characters before they became the characters we know from the comic books and movies. My appreciation for comic book projects in growing, and this new drama feels like it's going to feed my hunger.

Marry Me  Tuesdays at 9:00pm on NBC Premieres October 14. If you've spoken to me in the past three years, then you've probably heard me go on and on about the show Happy Endings, which was in my opinion the best written show on television in a long time! Well, it was cancelled after three glorious seasons but the creator of that show in back with Marry Me, which feels like it will be very similar - it even has Happy Endings' cast member Casey Wilson as the lead!


Selfie Tuesdays at 8:00pm on ABC This looks like a train wreck, but I will watch.

The Flash Tuesdays at 8:00pm on The CW Finally, we have another superhero show - this one looks like it will be fun. I really wished I had got into The CW's Arrow series, so here's another chance for me to jump on from the beginning.