Coming down to the wire and don't know what to buy for the TV-addict on your list? Or maybe you need one last gift to push you over into their good graces. Or heck, maybe you just got that holiday bonus and want to spend the rest of the month eating Chinese food on a couch watching the entirety of a show you never had the time to catch up with when it was on TV. Whatever the case, here's a last-minute guide to the best "Complete Series" releases of 2010 and links to Amazon. If you hurry, and order before December 17th (yeah, by tomorrow), you'll still be able to have it delivered before Christmas.
24: The Complete Series
DVD - $179.99
Jack Bauer set a new bar for television badassery and gave us 8 seasons of adrenaline-pumping action that ranged from dirty nukes to presidential plots. The seasons are a bit uneven in terms of quality, but in every one Kiefer Sutherland gives Jack Bauer a new level of awesome and makes it through some 17 hours of programming that features the longest days of Jack's life. Even if they already own a few of the seasons, this complete series set brings it all together, so maybe they can ditch the ones they already own on ebay or Craigslist.
Married…with Children: The Complete Series
DVD - $116.99
Al Bundy is no Jack Bauer. He sits on the couch and takes abuse from his disrespectful wife, slutty daughter, and dimwitted son. He's living the blue collar nightmare and each season sees him dealing with the typical Americana obstacles all with the stoic reluctance that made Al an iconic television figure. So sit back and crack open the Married...with Children complete series set and prepare yourself for a deluge of one-liners, double entendres, and utterly tasteless comedy that you just can't get enough of. If your target grew up in the 80s or 90s, this was a television staple (because let's face it, it syndicated and became the go-to show for late-night programming when infomercial sales were down).
Batman Beyond: The Complete Series (Limited Edition)
DVD - $70.99
Bruce Timm continued his hot streak in the animated DC universe by returning to Gotham city, but years in the future where the original Bruce Wayne has aged and now instructs a youth named Terry in the ways of Batman vigilantism - but with a few new twists. With an updated suit and a whole new assortment of gadgets, the new Batman faces down a new gallery of rogues with a few familiar faces tossed in. Batman Beyond wasn't the best cartoon in Timm's legacy, but it kept to his high standard of animation and to have it now released as a Complete Series set with some cool extras mixed in, this is a perfect gift for the geek in your life. Hopefully you've come to terms with the fact that your 20-30-something year-old friend or loved one still enjoys watching Saturday morning cartoons. Embrace it and get them this for Christmas.
7th Heaven: The Complete Series
DVD - $251.99
At times 7th Heaven was painfully wholesome, with episodes ending in family pillow fights with everyone smiling and laughing. If you were a diabetic, the saccharine consistency of 7th Heaven could have pushed you into a coma. If not, if you found yourself drawn into the happenings of this pastor's family bursting at the seams with love and more kids than most American families would ever dare have, then 7th Heaven was a televised dream. Now you can get all 11 seasons in one whopping set and follow them from the idyllic family of love to the troubled household that more closely reflected reality (but a really weird reality that somehow remained wholesome in spite of it all).
Space Precinct: The Complete Series
DVD - $43.99
Here we have camp at a level that even Hercules: The Legendary Journeys or anything else by Sam Raimi never dared aim at. An interstellar cop show where every scene resembles the Mos Eisley Cantina from Star Wars, Space Precinct was a brick of cheese topped in nacho cheese sprinkled with parmesan. If you're lactose intolerant, the sheer cheese of Space Precinct could kill you. Yet, it's so much fun to watch because you can't believe what you're seeing. Someone actually attempted this and then decided that the final product was worth televising? Yes, and yes. It's glorious and any diehard fan of Sci-Fi who's seen everything else out there might just find Space Precinct an unexpected joy. Buy it, soak in the camp, and just remember that if it ever gets so bad, you can always turn it into a drinking game.
Deadwood: The Complete Series
Blu-ray - $124.99
HBO's home run Western series received critical acclaim, was a huge hit with audiences, and had some of the best performances and writing when it was on television. With an incredible cast including Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, Brad Dourif, Molly Parker, John Hawkes, and Powers Booth, this was one of HBOs high points and it did nothing but impress with each and every episode. Now you can pick up all 36 episodes of the series in hi-def and give your fan of Westerns a series that they'll probably watch twice in the span of a year and revisit frequently.
The Tudors: The Complete Series
DVD - $79.99
Showtime's "historical drama" runs rampant with sex, violence, betrayal and little bits of everything else. Jonathan Rhys Meyers heads a great cast including Henry Cavill, Anthony Brophy, Sarah Bolger, and James Frain in this riveting four-season series following the marital and political exploits of one of history's most manipulative royal families. The royal intrigue surrounding King Henry VIII has fascinated historians for years and this creative take on the treacherous backstabbing of his court pushed Showtime's lineup over the top, forming a powerful combination with Dexter and Weeds. If you've got a fan of historical fiction on your list, you can't do much better than the complete series set of The Tudors.
The Pillars of the Earth
Blu-ray – $44.99
In recent years, the high-quality television mini-series has become rare. HBO’s 2008 John Adams was an exception with A-list actors and the kind of production reserved for feature films, but there hasn’t been a successful television mini-series on the major networks like ABC, NBC, and CBS in the past few years. The Pillars of the Earth makes the case for the return of the epic mini-series with top-notch acting, a fantastic story, and the production talents of Ridley and Tony Scott. Here's a high-quality mini-series that might bring more back to network television. This is the kind of television that will see people gathered around the television together as they were for The Sopranos and Lost.
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You: The Complete Series
DVD - $60.99
Scooby-Doo holds a special place in the heart of anyone who grew up in the 80s or 90s. Whether it was one of your top Saturday morning cartoon contenders or the last-ditch option when the ones you liked ended, everyone and their grandmother has seen at least one episode of this Hanna Barbera classic. Now, after quite a few season releases and plenty of single-disc 4-episode samplers, Warner Brothers has seen fit to give us a complete series set, and they’ve had the brilliant sense to box it in a semi-functional replica of the gang’s Mystery Machine. You can’t argue with the packaging, so really the only criticisms to be leveled at the series are for the preservation of the colors, the animation, and the show formula itself.
Nip/Tuck: The Complete Series
DVD - $136.99
Whenever a network manages to take a series of soap opera quality and turn it into a cultural sensation, you have to take the time to step back and figure out what’s separating it from the shows relegated to early and midday time slots that have similar themes of torrid love affairs, murder, and irrational behavior on the part of every character featured within. What gives Nip/Tuck its little crowbar of separation from the average soap opera is the firm focus on character development, even if it comes from unexpectedly random emotional outbursts that place protagonists at odds with one another unexpectedly? If you were a fan of the show in its original run or are looking to get started on a new series, the recently released Nip/Tuck: The Complete Series on DVD represents four solid seasons of great dramatic television capped with two lesser seasons, leaving you with a satisfying experience overall.
Sex & the City: Complete Collection (Deluxe Edition)
DVD - $140.49
It has become the bar against which all other female-targeted programming is measured and at its best, Sex and the City proved to be a compelling comedy with that satisfying blend of snappy chatter and sex. Sarah Jessica Parker is now the image every single girl has for herself when they move out to New York City, and while that might be misleading (because landing a consistent writing gig and having a nice apartment don't go hand in hand) as to what they'll find when they get there, it never fails to incite the excitement inherent in living in one of the most lively and vivacious cities on the planet. In this set you get all six seasons along with the two Sex and the City movies. If you've got a lady looking for a show to call her own, introduce her to Sex and the City.
Wolverine and the X-Men: The Complete Series
Blu-ray - $28.99
Easily the best animated incarnation of the X-Men to come along since the 1990s series (and it could be argued this surpasses even that one), Wolverine and the X-Men brought the now popular heroes into the present (and the future) with parallel storylines and a great new take on the basic premise that everyone has become quite familiar with thanks to the films. It might be suitable for the kiddies, but this series was always intended for a teenage to 20-something audience old enough to follow along with the slightly more complex plots. Come on, you know at least one geeky guy or girl who wishes they had superpowers, introduce them to Wolverine and the X-Men, a cartoon series cut down in its prime.
Monk: Complete Series Limited Edition
DVD - $152.49
Year after year after year after year, Tony Shalhoub was nominated for his performance as the OCD-stricken (along with other neuroses) genius with a knack for solving crime. It didn't matter that he was often too afraid to leave his home, because his insecurities and eccentricities allowed him to see the details everyone else overlooked. Monk proved that cable television could be a serious award contender and helped open the door for many other great series that would have otherwise been ignored. Know someone who likes a good cop procedural or is a fan of mystery novels? Then the complete series of Monk is the perfect gift for them. It's fast, funny, and always serves up something new.
Scrubs: The Complete Collection
DVD - $133.99
Bill Lawrence has brought us some of the funniest series of the last two decades. He gave Michael J. Fox a tremendous television series with Spin City, and then he moved on to the wacky adventures of the doctors at Sacred Heart, the learning hospital where your doctor is as likely to play ultimate frisbee in the hallway as they are to operate on you. With a stellar cast of John C. McGinley, Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke, Judy Reyes, and Neil Flynn, Scrubs consistently hit the funny bone throughout its 8-season run (okay, there's a ninth season here too, but it's awful).
Lost: The Complete Collection
DVD - $139.99
Blu-ray - $178.99
Do we really need to say anything about this series? For the last six years, this was television. Calendar years were based on the starting and ending of a season of lost, and countless fans devoted their lives to fathoming the deep dark secrets of the island. It ranks among one of the top television shows ever created thanks to its ridiculously complex and recursive structure, and now it's all available in one faux-rock tome. If you have a loved one who boasts themselves a TV nut: they want this. Even if they were just a passing fan and never really had the time to get into it: they want this. Do yourself and your friend/family member a favor and buy them Lost: The Complete Collection as their gift.
The A-Team: The Complete Series
DVD - $90.99
"I love it when a plan comes together." When the motion picture was a few months out of theaters, the studios knew it was time to give The A-Team the complete series set release it always deserved. Here we have the A-Team in their classic and iconic van, one of the few television vehicles to rival the General Lee in notoriety. If you're looking for an entertaining action franchise with fun adventures in every season, The A-Team is exactly what you're looking for.
The Six Million Dollar Man: The Complete Series
DVD - $339.99
Through all the random adventures Steve Austin encountered in the various seasons, you realize just how crazy this show is. You can’t help but laugh most times at the caper of the week, but usually you get a solid 42 minutes of zany secret agent fun. Now you can buy the action serial that started it all, courtesy of TIME LIFE. The Six Million Dollar Man has the iconic “We can rebuild him line” and that signature sound accompaniment for when leaping an incredible distance, this is the show that led to the animated classic Inspector Gadget laid the groundwork so that shows like 24 and Alias would eventually come to be. It easily exceeds the expectations for a series of its time, but in comparison to some of the better secret agent and action shows of today and the last 20 years it just can’t compete without a healthy dose of nostalgia to carry you through. But if you've got a fan of 70s nostalgia on your list, you can't do much better than this set packed with extras.
