TVSquad

Created by Paul Feig and produced by Judd Apatow, 'Freaks and Geeks' is one of those rare television treasures that no one saw or appreciated until it was too late. Okay, that's unfair. Critics, the press and the loyal fans who did find the show on NBC immediately knew that it was something special. Unfortunately, it didn't find wide enough appeal to last beyond its first season.

Ironically, the show's cast of virtual unknowns now reads like an all-star comedy troupe, which is a testament to the brilliant casting that went on behind the scenes of the show. Finding such talented kids, and then coupling them with brilliant writing crafted on of the most revered television shows of all time.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

Who would buy Hammertime on DVD? I'm actually asking. Is that something that you would actually watch again after you've already watched it on TV?

There are some good complete series sets being released this week, though: Andy Richter's Andy Barker, P.I., a Rome gift set, Farscape, and a new box for The Sopranos.

• 7th Heaven - Season 9
• Andy Barker, P.I. - Complete Series
• Ben 10: Alien Force - Vol. 5
• Drawn Together - Complete Series

Wouldn't you love to know who's giving actor James Franco career advice these days? I'm not knocking him or her, but I'd love to figure out the strategy. Or maybe this is just Franco being Franco (like Manny being Manny, for you baseball fans out there)?

James has just started filming his two-month arc on General Hospital -- check out the first pic (right) -- and now Michael Ausiello reports that James Franco will do a guest spot on 30 Rock.

How's that for a career trajectory -- from box office bonanza (Spider-Man) to Oscar feature (Milk) to daytime soap (General Hospital) to Emmy-winning sitcom (30 Rock). He's like a human pinball machine looking for a perfect score!

In the biggest casting shocker since Elizabeth Taylor appeared on General Hospital as Helena Cassadine, movie star James Franco is joining General Hospital for a couple of months as a mystery man who comes to Port Charles. Although not confirmed by the show, it's likely that Franco will be playing Vlad Cassadine, another member of that evil family that vexes the citizens of Port Chuck. His first airdate is November 20.

Why would Franco, who's busy with movies and has appeared in Spider-Man, The Pineapple Express, Milk and other hits, take a role on a daytime soap? There's no word from the actor yet, but it could be that they threw a lot of money at him. There's also the possibility that he's a soap opera fan and thought it would be a lark. Ummm, I'm thinking it's more likely the former.

While this news doesn't only affect television, it does affect the industry enough to warrant a mention since both companies have historically had a television presence. Disney has purchased Marvel Entertainment for about $4 billion.

So does this mean we'll be seeing Spider-Mickey cartoons in the near future? Beats me. There are certainly benefits to Disney's acquisition. Marvel is predominately known as a comic book company and that market has been shrinking. However, the visibility of its characters has been growing due to the myriad of Marvel movies out there.

I'm sure words like 'synergy' and 'downsizing' are going to be used when describing this situation in the future. Will there be layoffs at Marvel? Should editor-in-chief Joe Quesada fear for his job?

My biggest concern is content interference on the part of Disney and the "toning down" of the more adult storylines and characters at Marvel in an effort to maintain the corporate image of its new parent. One can only hope that Disney lets Marvel be Marvel.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

I have a feeling a lot of DVD sets are going to be sold this week. Rabid fans of Battlestar Galactica, Dollhouse, Doctor Who, and Torchwood all have something to buy. If you didn't/don't watch any of those shows ... well, you can always buy season two of The Donna Reed Show. That's one classic sitcom that I never really got into. Not sure why. I loved Leave it to Beaver and I Love Lucy and Father Knows Best, but not The Donna Reed Show. Probably because it wasn't on as much as those other shows.

• Battlestar Galactica - Season 4.5 and Complete Series
  
• Doctor Who - Planet of the Dead
• Dollhouse - Season 1

Marvel Comic's website is now offering a look at Spider-Man not seen by many on this side of the Pacific, with a Japanese television show from the 1970s.

Taking an American superhero and blending him with the traditional motifs of Japanese children's TV produces a bizarre mix -- like tossing a hot dog and sushi in a blender set to frappe.

Rather than take on the Green Goblin or Electro, The Land of the Rising Sun's version of Peter Parker defends precocious Japanese kids from guys in rubber suits, ala Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

Question: how many freakin' versions of the original Star Trek are there on DVD? It seems like there's a new released every six months. And the funny thing? I bet hardcore Trek fans will buy all of them.

(Note: the Frost/Nixon set is not the Ron Howard movie, it's the original interviews between the two men.)

• American Dad - Vol. 4
• Fallen Angel - Compete Miniseries
• Frost/Nixon - Complete Interviews

Bill Hader and Seth Meyers (the latter of whom is the head writer for Saturday Night Live) will be writing Spider-Man ... the comic book, not the next movie. Their single-issue story is called "The Short Halloween" (which I presume is a parody of a Batman comic story called "The Long Halloween") and will be in finer comic book shops on May 13.

This isn't the first time a comedy writer has written a comic book. I recall Gilbert Gotfried helping out with an issue of Superboy and Patton Oswalt writing a one-shot Justice League special, among others. While I don't think this will get the same level of publicity as Barack Obama being on a Spider-Man cover, it's kind of cool to hear about. I wonder if Spider-Man will sing his own rendition of "Dick In A Box".

In short, comedians are huge nerds. But this is nothing you didn't know before.

[via ComicMix]

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

Barney Miller is one of those sitcoms I never think about anymore. When I make my mental list of the best sitcoms I never even think of it, even though it was a very good show. I guess it's out of mind because it's not shown on TV that much. I'm surprised it's not part of the regular lineup of TV Land or Nickelodeon. Of course, they don't show The Dick Van Dyke Show much anymore either even though they own it, so nothing surprises me about those two channels anymore.

• Barney Miller - Season 3
• The F Word - Series 2: Uncensored
• Ghost Hunters - Season 4, Part 2

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

Let's do something different this week. Which of these DVDs do you plan on buying? Let us know in the comments section.

I can't imagine buying any of these shows. The only two I might be interested in are Just Shoot Me (though I think it's one of those shows I'm happy just to see in reruns and not actually own) and Make Room For Daddy. But I would buy that just because it's a classic show, not because it's one of my favorites. It's one of those classic shows that I just never got into, unlike I Love Lucy or The Dick Van Dyke Show or The Honeymooners.

• Breaking Bad - Season 1
• Canterbury's Law - Complete Series
• Cities of the Underground - Season 2
• Dirty Jobs - Collection 4
• Futurama - Into the Wild Blue Yonder
• Girlfriends - Season 6
• Just Shoot Me - Season 3
• The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice
• Make Room For Daddy - Season 6, Vol. 1
• The Mighty B - Vol. 1
• My Wife and Kids - Season 1
• Oliver Twist - Miniseries
• The Red Green Show - 2001 Season
• Spider-Man - The Vulture
• Summer Heights High - Season 1
• The Universe - Seasons 1 and 2 Megaset

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

I'm getting that deja vu feeling. Didn't I already list season two of Route 66 and both the Get Smart and Starlost complete series DVDs before? Yup, I did. For some reason the Route 66 and Starlost DVDs were delayed. As for Get Smart, Time-Life had a complete series set, but this one is from HBO Home Video.

To confuse things even further, there is another Get Smart complete series set, only it's for the short-lived 90s series with Andy Dick.

• Batman: The Animated Series - Complete Series
• Chowder - Vol. 1
• Fraggle Rock - Complete Series
• Futurama - Bender's Game
• Get Smart - Complete Series Gift Set
• Home Movies - 10th Anniversary
• Howdy Doody - 40 Episodes and Best Of
• JAG - Season 7
• Popeye - Vol. 3
• Primeval - Seasons 1 and 2
• Project Runway - Season 4
• Reaper - Season 1
• Route 66 - Season 2
• Spider-Man - Villains Showdown
• Spin City - Season 1
• The Starlost - Complete Series
• The Wild, Wild West - Complete Series

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

Every week I hope and pray that I don't have to spend a lot of money on DVDs - or anything else, really - and each week there's something new I need to have. This week there are three DVD sets I'm going to order. How about you?

• The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog - Animated Christmas Blast
• Alvin & The Chipmunks - Daytona Jones and The Pearls of Wisdom
• CSI: Miami - Season 6
• Casper - Spooktacular New Adventures: Vol. 2
• Grey's Anatomy - Season 4
• Gulliver's Travels - Miniseries
• A Haunting - Season 4 and Seasons 1-4 set
• It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - Season 3
• Judge Judy - Second to None
• Kate & Allie - Season 5 (Canada only)
• Keeping Up Appearances - Life Lessons From Onslow and The Full Bouquet
• Medium - Season 4
• Riptide - Complete Series
• Smallville - Season 7
• The Spectacular Spider-Man - Attack of the Lizard
• The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries - Season 1
• To The Manor Born - Silver Wedding Anniversary and Complete Series
• Ugly Betty - Season 2
• Wings - Season 7

Everyone thinks they can write. No, really. If you talk to anyone who likes TV and movies, invariably you'll hear that they have a great story. Well, some do and some don't. In the soap business, just about every kind of story has been told.

A show like Passions, which has recently come to an end, told wild tales about witches and sorcery and dwarfs and demons.

General Hospital has been firmly set in plots about mobsters in the manner of The Godfather, with Sonny Corinthos a latter day Michael Corleone.

As the World Turns, currently in its 52nd year, is rooted in traditional love stories and family conflicts, although you have to give them props for Luke and Noah, a frontline gay romance which is definitely a 21st century development.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

There's actually nothing on this list I want to buy. I'm not into Hannah Montana, I've never seen an episode of Bleach, I wasn't a big Married with Children fan, and I haven't bought any previous seasons of Perry Mason, so I might actually save some money this week.

I like Chelsea Handler though. Not sure if it's worth buying Girls Behaving Badly just for her.

• Are You Afraid of the Dark? - Season 7
• Bleach - Season 2
• Camp Rock - Extended Rock Star Edition
• Dexter - Season 2
• Galaxy Rangers - Vol. 2
• George of the Jungle - Season 1
• Girls Behaving Badly - Chelsea Handler Exposed
• Gossip Girl - Season 1
• Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus - Best of Both Worlds 3-D Concert
• House - Season 4
• Justice League - Season 1 (Blu-Ray)
• Kenny vs. Spenny - Season 4 (Canada)
• Married with Children - Season 9
• Perry Mason - Season 3, Vol. 1
• Recount
• Spider-Man - Dr. Octopus
• Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles - Season 1
• Transformers - Season 1
• Wayside - Season 1
• William Tell - Best Of