THE EPITAPH VOL. 34 - THE FANTASTICAL AND DEMENTED TV SERIES EDITION
AMAZING STORIES - THE COMPLETE SERIES (1985-1987) - RICK AND MORTY - THE COMPLETE SEASONS 1-4 (2013-2020) - VICTOR AND VELENTINO: FOLK ART FOES - SEASON 1 VOL. 1 (2019) - WONDER SHOWZEN - THE COMPLETE SERIES (2005-2006) - INSIDE AMY SCHUMER - THE COMPLETE SERIES (2013-2016)
Label: Umbrella Entertainment
Rating: M
Region Code: Region-Free (NTSC)
Duration: 1131 Minutes
Audio: English Dolby Digital 2.0 and 5.1 with Optional English Subtitles on Season 1 Only
Video: Full Frame (4x3)
Directors: Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Robert Zemeckis, Matthew Robbins, Michael D. Moore, William Dear, Peter Hyams, Bob Balaban, William Petrie, Burt Reynolds, Bob Clark, Phil Joanou, Clint Eastwood, Joe Dante, Timothy Hutton, Timothy Hutton, Tom Holland, Mick Garris, Nick Castle, Brad Bird, Tobe Hooper
Cast: Tim Robbins, Christopher Lloyd, Charlie Sheen, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Costner, Robert Blossoms, Lukas Haas, Richard Masur, Gregory Hines, Sid Caesar, DOm Deluise, Loni Anderson, Sydney Lassick
As one experience ends, another adventure begins...in the extraordinary worlds of Amazing Stories! From acclaimed director-producer Steven Spielberg and Amblin Entertainment comes the Emmy Award-winning TV series that was the TV stuff of my childhood. More than any other series on TV in the eighties this is the one I think of when I think 'family entertainment' of the 'let's all gather around the TV' variety. The anthology series was star-studded and jam-packed with big time TV and movie actors, and the stories were top-notch for the most part, and the production values were through the roof. The behind-the-camera talent on hand for this series was, is and will forever be notable. Stephen Spielberg himself directed two of my favorite episodes, the series starter "Ghost Train" starring Robert Blossoms (Christine), and "The Mission" starring Kevin Costner (The Postman) and Kiefer Sutherland (The Lost Boys). Joe Dante (The 'Burbs) even directs an episode wherein a porn star is haunted by the former inhabitants of the house that she has just moved into, which is loaded with some great effects work. Bob Clark (Black Christmas) also directs an episode wherein a henpecked husband (Sydney Lassic, The Unseen) discovers his new TV's remote not allows him to bring fictional characters out of his TV but to send his nagging wife (Nancy Parsons, Motel Hell) into it! We also get episodes directed by Martin Scorsese (Goodfellas), Robert Zemeckis (Used Cars), Tobe Hooper (Lifeforce) and Brad Bird (The Incredibles), the latter of which was the series only animated offering and went onto become a short-lived series of it's own. That's just a smattering of the forty-five episodes, but it's all good to fantastic stuff. Mick Garris who created the much missed Masters of Horror TV anthology series worked on this show writing a handful of episodes, as does Stephen Spielberg himself, along with Twilight Zone alum Richard Matheson. If you love fantastical TV anthologies few even come close the glory, at least to my nostalgic mind, of Amazing Stories, the creators and talent on this series were breathing some rarified air, and many were and have gone onto brilliant careers. For reasons I am not privy to this series only ever had the first season one released on DVD here in the U.S., but this region-free set from Umbrella Entertainment offers both seasons one and two, which was a big deal for me. If you already own the U.S. release of season one Umbrella also offer season two as a standalone release. The disc also features 20 minutes of deleted scenes from the first season. There are no other extras, but just having the complete series on DVD is a gift. Now if someone would like to step up to the plate and remaster these in 1080p HD and give us a proper Blu-ray with some extras I will whip open my wallet so fast your head will spin!
Special Features:
- Over 20 Minutes of Deleted Scenes
Label: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
Rating: TV-Y7
Region Code: 1
Duration: 217 Minutes
Audio: English and Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)
Creator: Diego Molano
Voice Cast: Diego Molano, Sean-Ryan Petersen, Laura Patalano, Christian Lanz, Daran Norris, Jason Hightower, Cristina Vee, Cristina Milizia
It might not surprise you that a man closer to fifty than forty does not watch a lot of Cartoon Network. Not because I don't love toons, I do, but I'm just watching so many movies I barely make time for live action TV series, let alone toons. When this DVD arrived for review I threw it on not expecting to be overly impressed, maybe even expecting to be annoyed, but I was wrong! Victor and Valentino is a supernatural adventure comedy about two half-brothers, Vic and Val, who spend a summer with their grandma Chata in the mysterious town of Monte Macabre. There they operate an taco cart in-between getting caught up in the myths and legends of Aztec, Olmec and Maya mythologies. That's what hooked me, the exploration of Mesoamerican monsters and ghosts really appealed to to me. The dynamic between the brothers is quarrelsome as Vic is mischievous and Van is more level-headed, they bicker a lot, but always fearful of angering their lovable but strict Abuela. Things they get into include Huehuecoytl, La Lechuza, Chupacabra, the malevolent ghost of a soccer player, magic flutes, grown-up hating skaters, and a man-eating pant, and plenty more. Aside from that we have a colorful cast of side characters, and a very colorful animation style that is loaded with eye-popping visuals, and at just eleven-minutes an episode it flies by and always left me wanting more in a good way. All 18 eleven-minute episodes arrives in single-disc DVD release from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, no extras.
RICK AND MORTY:SEASON 1-4 (2013-2020)
WONDER SHOWZEN - THE COMPLETE SERIES
INSIDE AMY SCHUMER
Label: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
Region Code: A
Rating: TV MA
Duration: 919 Minutes
Audio: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.78:1)
Creators: Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon
Voice Cast: Justin Roiland, Chris Parnell, Spencer Grammer, Sarah Chalke
I was very late to the party with the [adult swim] series Rick and Morty, and I would chalk that up to the the fact that people I knew who liked it were annoying people, so I was skeptical of their love. As with so many things that hipsters have made annoying, I eventually came around to it, and working to my benefit the series took a years long hiatus right in the middle, so coming to it later I didn't have to endure that! The animated series features an alcoholic, sociopathic scientist named Rick, who uses his daughter's garage as laboratory, while embarking on adventures through time and space, dragging along his reluctant grandson Morty. It's a riotous, anarchic sort of show that delights in deconstructing genre tropes, skewering pop-culture, reveling in bad taste, fun visual gags and offering a general sense of anything goes. I am only on season two at the moment and it is quite brilliant, here's hoping it holds up for two more seasons. All 41 episodes of seasons 1-4 arrives on 4-disc Blu-ray presenting the series in 1080p HD widescreen with uncompressed Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio. Additionally we get plenty of extras, this includes audio commentary on every episode, deleted scenes, “Inside the Episode” segments, loads of featurettes, animatic for every episode and tones more, including a digital HD copy of the series. The 4-disc set arrives in a keepcase with a slipcover, plus there's a large fold-out poster that comes with the set for a limited time.
Special Features:
Season 1
- Commentaries for Every Episode
- Animatics for Every Episode
- Behind the Scenes
- Deleted Scenes
Season 2
- Commentaries for Every Episode
- Animatics for Every Episode
- Deleted Animatic Sketches
- Rick and Morty Season 2 Premiere Party Featuring Chaos Chaos
Season 3
- Commentaries for Every Episode
- Animatics for Every Episode
- “Inside the Episode” for Every Episode
- Exclusive “Inside the Recording Booth”
- Origins of Rick and Morty Part 1 & 2
Season 4
- A Day at Rick and Morty: Inside Season 4
- “Inside the Episode” for Every Episode
- Creating Snake Jazz
- Directing Rick and Morty
- Samurai and Shogun
- Prop Process
- Character Creation
- Animation Challenges
(2005-2006)
Label: Paramount Home Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 341 Minutes
Audio: English 2.0 Dolby Digital
Video: 1.33:1 Full Frame
Creators: Vernon Chatman, John Lee
Cast: Vernon Chatman, John Lee, Alyson Levy, Jim Tozzi
If you have never seen Wonder Showzen it was a brain-melting two season series that aired on MTV back in 2005, parodying the classic educational PBS shows from the 1970s along the lines of Sesame Street and The Electric Company, but as seen through a meth-fueled haze. In it you get young kids interviewing people on the streets, asking hilariously inappropriate stuff, like "Who have you exploited today?". There's also cruddy looking puppet sketches that looks like Sesame Street puppets that are addicted to crack-cocaine, and some demented, often ultra-violent, cartoons like the period-themed "Aunt Flow", which was the first thing I ever saw on the show and I was a fan ever since. The whole shows feels like a half-remembered drug-fueled nightmare, and in case you were curious, it is not kid-friendly! The aesthetic of the show is best described as Frank Kozik programming Sesame Street on an acid binge, and if that sounds like a good time, your a sick, sick individual and I think we could be friends. All sixteen episodes arrives on a 4-disc DVD set from Paramount with extras that include commentaries', outtakes, auditions, featurettes and more. It's not the Blu-ray upgrade I was hoping for but still cool to have all the episodes in one collection!
- THE COMPLETE SERIES (2013-2016)
Label: Paramount Home Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 841 Minutes
Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)
Creator: Amy Schumer
Directors: Neal Brennan, Steven Tsuchida, John Lee
Amy Schumer first popped-up on my radar back in 2010 when her first late stand-up special on Comedy Central aired, and it was certainly my cup of tea, tales of a debauched 20-something living her best slutty life, which I say with a lot of affection. Her brand of sexual humor and observations about that lifestyle I just found funny, dirty and funny in the best sort of way. This series ran for four season with a total of thirty nine episodes, each episode featuring sketch comedy taped in front of a live audience starring Schumer and a huge list of celebrities and comedians, bits of her stand-up comedy, and both street interviews with random strangers about their sex lives, and sit down interviews with interesting people and/or celebrities. It was a well rounded show that tickled my funny bone in a myriad of ways, with topics of sex (obviously), female empowerment, slut-shaming, misogyny, fat shaming, and so much more. If you're a fan of Schumer's brand of naughty girl comedy this is a no-brainer, and if you're a fan of top-notch sketch comedy it should be an automatics gotta-own it series. All thirty-nine episodes arrives on a seven disc set that looks great (as it can) in standard-def with Dolby Digital 5.1 and optional English subtitles. We also get a great bunch of extras, my favorite being the outtakes, unaired sketches and a compilation of her stand-up bits from season one and two.
Special Features:
- Season One Stand Up (24 min)
- Go Behind the Scenes with Amy (5 min)
- The Writer’s Room (4 min)
- Amy Goes to Vegas (5 min)
- Making Inside Amy Schumer (3 min)
- Amy On Stage (4 min)
- Unaired Sketches: Brother (4 min), Dance Audition (3 min) and Engagement Photographer (3 min).
- Season Two Stand Up (24 min)
- Outtakes (15 min)
- Inside Amy Schumer’s Writers Room (10 min)
