Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Best TV Shows on Disc

Chris Chiarella  |  Oct 3, 2024

Even in the face of streaming’s runaway success, TV shows on physical media remain pretty damned popular, aided in large part by the studios’ aggressive ongoing HD and 4K remastering of the classics—largely in service to archiving and to providing the best possible quality on the aforementioned streamers—in addition to the collectability of the latest and greatest series. Whatever the reason, a generous and eclectic new crop has arrived for our viewing enjoyment, so clear some room on those shelves.

Friends The Complete Series 4K (Warner)

It’s not an exaggeration to call Friends a cultural phenomenon, a consistent ratings smash since its 1994 debut and throughout its ten-year run. These days, it’s also one of the most-streamed shows on the planet, removing all doubt that this beloved sitcom has spanned multiple generations (and media) as they continue to discover its unique vibe. The now-familiar core cast of twentysomethings-into-thirty-somethings grapple with the sometimes harsh, always amusing (damn, the writing was consistently on-point here) realities of life in an often-idealized New York City, but let’s not forget that cavalcade of guest stars, too. (Stoned Jon Lovitz, anyone?)

For those of us not lucky enough to have been in the studio audience, our friends have never looked or sounded as good as they do in Warner’s landmark Ultra HD box, with all 236 episodes in their full broadcast cuts restored in native 4K (they were shot on 35mm film!) at a screen-filling 16:9 and sporting a new Dolby Vision grade, effectively stripping away that persistent dinginess to give us punchier, more accurate colors and vastly elevated levels of detail. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 represents a significant sonic upgrade as well over the 2012 Blu-rays. Dozens of audio commentaries are sprinkled across the 23 triple-layer discs, in addition to the great many extras ported from past editions and even a couple of exclusive new tidbits parked on the pair of dedicated HD Blu-rays in their own case.

Settle in and pour yourself a big cup of Central Perk’s house blend as you flip through the handy guide booklet: We’re going to be here for a while.

Ted Lasso: The Richmond Way Blu-ray (Warner)

Every streaming service needs a killer app, and AppleTV+ found theirs in the Jason Sudeikis-led/co-created sitcom, Ted Lasso. Ted is a down-home Yank looking for a new challenge, so he moves to the U.K. to coach a struggling soccer team, even though he admittedly knows nothing about the sport. It’s a fish-out-of-water story but so much more, with consistently brilliant writing and performances across the board but a special shout-out to Hannah Waddingham as the powerful yet vulnerable club owner, Rebecca Welton.

All of the three seasons’ 34 episodes are here, curiously ranging from 30 to as long as 75 minutes each, surprisingly sans any on-disc bonus content although the limited edition two-sided “BELIEVE” poster is a nice touch. The name of this set was apparently shifted from “The Complete Series” to “The Richmond Way” on the possibility of a fourth season, although fingers crossed that doesn’t happen since the last episode was perfection, tying up all the story threads as neatly as the Breaking Bad finale, and with a lot less carnage.

The Flash The Original Series Blu-ray (Warner Archive)

After Tim Burton’s game-changing take on the Caped Crusader, DC heroes in fake-muscle costumes and dark settings were all the rage, and Hollywood wasted little time creating a gritty-ish series for the Scarlet Speedster. (The music was even composed by the amazing Shirley Walker, Danny Elfman’s conductor/orchestrator for Batman, presented here in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo within an otherwise mono soundtrack.) As developed by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo, this Flash tried to be an old—school superhero show—quite different from the weekly melodrama of Greg Berlanti/The WB’s 21st-Century reboot–and it often succeeded, despite the limitations of 1990-91 television budgets. (The live-action scenes fare better than the special effects in their transition to HD.)

Star John Wesley Shipp bought a hunky charisma, and the standout villain-of-the-week has to be Mark Hamill’s memorable turn as The Trickster, pre-dating his legendary performance as The Joker and a role he would later reprise in the Berlantiverse. The 22 episodes of Barry Allen’s vintage run are here without any extras, so we can tear through these six discs in a… well, you know.

The Killing Complete Series DVD (Kino Lorber)

How many Danish TV series wind up being remade for American television? I don’t actually know the answer, but it’s not a lot, I can tell you. A worldwide hit, the Copenhagen-set Forbrydelsen was a unique new spin on the police procedural, with each season unraveling one complex murder case and each episode recounting a single day in the investigation.

We ride along with seasoned Detective Chief Inspector Sarah Lund, played superbly by Sofie Gråbøl, ruffling feathers and interacting with grieving family on the way to the truth even as the demands of the job take a toll on her personal life. (Eagle-eyed viewers might also recognize co-star Lars Mikkelsen from Ahsoka and House of Cards.) This is top-notch drama, a winning blend of thoughtful, layered writing, sharp direction and inspired cinematography, ripe for reimagining as it was with Mirelle Enos taking over the lead in 2011 for the U.S. version. The three seasons of the original are handsomely packaged on 11 DVDs, including the double-length 20-episode first year, 40 episodes total.

Warehouse 13 - The Complete Series (Universal Studios)

Borrowing bits from the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the basic premise of Friday the 13th: The Series and a healthy dash of The X-Files, the fan-favorite Warehouse 13 ran on Syfy for five seasons, from 2009 to 2014. “America’s attic” is tucked away in the boondocks of South Dakota (which is really saying something), a secret government building housing all the stuff “they” don’t want you to know about: powerful artifacts acquired, secured and often used by two top-notch Secret Service agents and an eccentric curator.

Perfectly cast Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly and Saul Rubinek headline, respectively, joined by some terrific, unexpected guest stars. Like the walls of the warehouse itself, these 15 discs are fairly crammed with bonus content including podcast commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes and gag reels. (Editor’s note: Some songs have been swapped from the original broadcast episodes.)

Icons Unearthed: The Simpsons Blu-ray (Mill Creek Entertainment)

At some point, the multitalented Brian Volk-Weiss became the hardest working man in pop culture documentary filmmaking, recently turning his sly gaze upon Springfield’s most famous family, The Simpsons. While light on actor involvement, this six-episode docu-series has assembled an all-star lineup of writers, directors and network executives who do a great job not only spilling the tea but also put the show’s many challenges, its colorful history and enduring success—now 35 seasons and counting—into perspective.

I remember the fam’s earliest incarnation in the weekly animated shorts on Tracey Ullman, but not everyone does, so this detailed accounting will stand as an archive for the ages. And if you really like The Simpsons and you dig the no-holds-barred approach of Icons Unearthed, you’d better grab another dozen Lard Lad donuts because Mill Creek’s Blu-ray gives us well over ten hours of extended interviews with the subjects from the main program, providing even more insight.

Welcome Back, Kotter The Complete Series DVD (Warner)

Despite his co-creating the show and even putting his character’s name in the title, Gabe Kaplan soon found himself overshadowed by his creation, The Sweathogs—less of a gang and more of a casual brotherhood—most notably a young John Travolta as the endearingly moronic Vinnie Barbarino. Once a Sweathog himself, Mr. Kotter returned to Brooklyn’s fictional James Buchanan High School as a teacher and uproarious comedy ensued, albeit with an undercurrent of ‘70s drama, including teen pregnancy, underage drinking, the politics of public education, and even a then-controversially integrated classroom.

Revisiting the show almost 50 years later, it’s fascinating to see what was considered “revolutionary” at the time, but funny is funny and Welcome Back welcomes us back with a great deal of its charm intact. In a strange example of The Mandela Effect, many of the people I’ve spoken to seem to believe that Travolta left after the first season to pursue his movie career, when in truth he appeared in all four seasons and almost every one of the 95 episodes included in this Complete Series set.

Columbo: The Return Blu-ray (Kino Lorber Studio Classics)

Viewers simply could not get enough of the lovable Lieutenant Columbo, and after a more-than-ten-year hiatus, Peter Falk shrugged back into the familiar trenchcoat without missing a beat, going toe-to-toe with killers who foolishly thought they could outsmart the L.A.P.D.’s quirkiest sleuth. He’s joined by plenty of big stars (Faye Dunaway, Patrick McGoohan, Dabney Coleman, Rip Torn, William Shatner, George Wendt), including some who appeared in his initial tenure, making these final two dozen 1989-2003 mysteries a fine bookend to his crime-solving career. Taking its place alongside last year’s Season 1-7 set, KLSC’s complementary box houses 12 discs, all episodes once again remastered by NBC Universal in 4K and accessorized with an episode guide plus optional music and effects tracks.

The New Adventures of Batman The Complete Collection Blu-ray (Warner)

In attempt to satisfy Saturday morning’s ravenous appetite for animated superheroes, CBS sought to fill the gap left by ABC’s Superfriends in the winter/spring of 1977. The arrival of the magical, impish Bat-Mite took the mythos in a new direction, but the real secret weapon this time around would be the return of Adam West and Burt Ward voicing Batman and Robin, veterans who would forever be associated with their roles as the Dynamic Duo whether they liked it or not. Filmation used old-school ink-and-paint (and likely sweat and a few tears) to bring this cartoon Batman to life, and so these 16 remastered 1080p episodes are worth the Blu-ray upgrade. Also here is the “Dark Knight Revisited” featurette with interviews from a variety of Bat-experts.

Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan The Complete Series 4K (Paramount)

Now the fifth actor to play author Tom Clancy’s dedicated CIA analyst, star John Krasinski brings his patented affability and no small measure of machismo to his rendition as he trots around the globe, semi-reluctantly at times, doing whatever it takes to keep the world safe in four well-crafted seasons of high-stakes action and drama spanning 2018 and 2023. Quality-wise, Seasons One and Two are presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (even though all seasons streamed in Dolby Atmos) and HDR10, while Seasons Three and Four step up to Atmos and Dolby Vision high dynamic range.

These discrepancies notwithstanding, we must acknowledge that this is a fantastic-looking and -sounding TV series with outstanding cinematography for a small-screen production and plenty of thrilling sequences to show off those speakers. There’s no obligatory “going from Jim on The Office to this iconic character” interview with Krasinski or a look at his action-hero workout, only a menagerie of deleted scenes across the eight discs—sometimes a little, sometimes a lot—which must have been cut for pacing or other dramatic reasons as streaming has no real length limit for episodes. Mr. Ryan has since been replaced on Amazon Prime by Jack Reacher, that other TV redux of a guy-fiction protagonist “Jack,” two-syllable last name starting with “R.”

Succession The Complete Series Blu-ray (HBO/Warner)

Four years and 19 Emmys later (including three for Outstanding Drama Series), Succession takes its place alongside Sopranos and Game of Thrones to stand among HBO’s best shows. Previously released on DVD only for some reason, it now lands in high-def video and audio, giving us a proper view of (and listen to) how the rich and powerful live and work. The stakes are high at the family news-and-entertainment conglomerate, with patriarch Logan Roy (Brian Cox) poised to hand over the reins, and several youngsters eager to take control. Extensive wrangling and backstabbing ensue, with more than a little political insight woven in, and it all leads to a powerful and satisfying conclusion.

The international cast is exceptional in every role, but a special shout out to Jeremy Strong, Matthew Macfadyen and Kieran Culkin, all of whom might have given the best performances of their careers. To sweeten the deal, HBO has collected here all of those revealing little behind-the-scenes vignettes that aired after every episode.

The Alaskans The Complete Series Blu-ray (Warner Archive)

Did anyone else know that this show existed until the Warner Archive Collection brought it back? Before The Saint, before The Persuaders, before James Bond… pretty much before everything for Roger Moore, he starred as a charming hustler during the Klondike gold rush, forever scheming to separate prospectors and others from their newfound riches.

It’s not a “western” in the traditional sense yet it bears a striking resemblance to its contemporary, Maverick, because it shared the same scripts, dialogue and all, a consequence of the writers strike of the era and a general cost-consciousness at the studio. (Moore would even go on to become a series lead of Maverick after James Garner’s departure.) Keep your eyes peeled as you hit the snowy trail across these 36 hour-long episodes and you might spot big-name guest stars like Troy Donahue, Lee Van Cleef and James Coburn, as well as TV stalwarts including Jerry Paris and Madlyn Rhue, and even an appearance by Tor Johnson. Warner Archive has also mined video gold with these new 4K scans of the black-and-white 1959-1960 camera negatives for their 1080p presentation here.

Young Sheldon The Complete Series DVD (Warner)

Spinoffs of smash-hit shows too often crash and burn, so it’s encouraging to watch one as successful as this Big Bang Theory prequel, Young Sheldon. Portraying adult Sheldon as a uniquely prickly genius, Big Bang’s Jim Parsons quickly became the breakout star, now the narrator (and an executive producer) of this very different sitcom, and perhaps its willingness to forge new territory is its secret sauce.

This Sheldon (the immensely talented Iain Armitage) is a budding wunderkind surrounded by colorful family and friends as together they navigate relationships, education, puberty and a whole lot more with ample heart but seldom sap. These seven seasons—initially airing concurrently with Big Bang but soon flying solo—are also filled with amazing guest stars, cameos and the occasional impressive guest director (Jon Favreau! Jason Alexander! Lea Thompson!) The slipcased set is relatively light on extras with a few featurettes, but in honor of the final season we are given a series-spanning look at Young Sheldon’s history and its many inside jokes.

The Night Agent Season One DVD (Sony)

Gabriel Basso (JD Vance in Hillbilly Elegy) stars as heroic young FBI agent Peter Sutherland, rewarded for his service with a job manning a mysterious phone in the basement of the White House, one that never rings… until it does, and suddenly he’s in the middle of one of those great paranoid conspiracies where we don’t know who to trust and the fate of the entire nation hangs in the balance.

It’s action-packed, it’s edgy, and it’s been renewed by Netflix for a second season. Sony’s terrific four-disc set is presented in 2.2:1 widescreen and 5.1 audio, including a commentary track on the premiere by series creator Shawn Ryan (working from the novel by Matthew Quirk), a dozen deleted scenes, bloopers, and visual effects breakdowns for two key episodes.

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