Usually I only cover movies, but there’s little doubt that for me the big item of the month is the Creepy Archives Vol 1. I’ve been waiting YEARS for this, and it seems like it was worth waiting for. It’s a deluxe edition, hardcover and sized to emulate the magazine, and the reviews have been very strong. Amazon is selling it for $33, 34% off the cover price, and you get instant free shipping at that amount. (Unless you elect for very speedy shipping.) A great Halloween present. Have we started that tradition yet? If not, now’s the time to start.
Some nice shows are coming out today. The spotlight goes to the marvelous Shelley Duvall’s Faerie Tale Theatre the Complete Series. This was a terrific cable series that like Rocky and Bullwinkle was good for kids but very sophisticated at the same time. I still remember the hilarious Three Little Pigs episode, with Jeff Goldblum as the Wolf and Billy Crystal as one of the pigs. 26 shows on 7 discs. Great stuff. Amazon’s price sucks, so look elsewhere.
Also of interest is Honey West, a ’60s adventure series with the titular heroine played by Anne “Forbidden Planet” Francis. Amazon again does NOT have the best price on this, by far, so buy elsewhere, or rent via Netflix or whatever.
A nice couple of Doctor Who adventures hit shelves this week. The Invisible Enemy is a cheesy Fantastic Voyage riff, in which the Doctor (Tom Baker) is felled by a microscopic foe and clones of the Doctor and assistant Leela are miniaturized and sent in to sort things out. The disc includes the pilot for K9 and Company as an extra, with Elizabeth Sladen.
More exciting is the release of the six-part The Invasion of Time, in which the Doctor (Baker, again) returns to Gallifrey to claim the presidency and runs afoul of the Sontarans, who break into the TARDIS and allow us to see just how huge it is inside. Terrific stuff. As always, these are loaded with extras. I have to say, Warners does a fantastic job with these.
Other shows this week include the surprisingly funny The Big Bang Theory S1; Cheers S10 (seriously?); Desperate Housewives S4; Eli Stone S1; Ghost Whisperer S3; Inspector Lewis S1; Life S1; Supernatural S3.
The movie of the week is the new, budget special edition of the terrific time travel adventure Time After Time, with Malcolm McDowell as H. G. Welles (the good guy!) and the underrated David Warner as Jack the Ripper. Pipping good stuff. McDowell and writer/director Nicholas Meyer provide a commentary; other extras.
If you were a teenage boy back in the early days of cable, you’ll probably remember seeing one or twoof the featured films in the Bavarian Sex Comedy Collection. Features Run Virgin Run, Inn of 1000 Sins, Bottoms UP and I Like the Girls Who Do. I myself do remember the last one, actually.
Speaking of ’80s nostalgia, how about the 20th Anniversary (!) edition of the oh-so-serious Bright Lights Big City starring the ur-’80s cast of Michael J. Fox, Kiefer Sutherland and Phoebe Cates.
Marvel continues to disappoint with its animated original movies with The Next Avengers: The Heroes of Tomorrow, which features characters who aren’t even in the comics. Damn, man, do a Luke Cage movie or something.
Savage Weekend Cheezy Flicks brings us this early (’75) slasher flick.
