Dirt Cheap Blu FRINGE!! THE KILLING!! GROMIT!! TWILIGHT ZONE!! NEVERLAND!! IRON MAN!! SILVERMAN!!...

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The Blu-ray third season of “Fringe,” $54.99 last month, just plummeted to $26.99!! (61% Off!!)

The 1960s “Peanuts” collection, $27.49 in 2010 and $24.99 last month, has plummeted (this week only) to an all-time low of $14.49!! (52% Off!!)

The complete series set for “Babylon 5” spinoff “Crusade” (starring Gary Cole and Daniel Dae Kim), $59.98 in June and $37.49 last month, has plummeted to $12.92!! (78% Off!!)

The complete-series set for “Land of the Lost,” $46.99 in 2010 and $31.99 in November, has plummeted to $14.99!! (63% Off!!)

The Blu-ray fifth season of “The Office,” $51.49 in 2010 and $37.99 in November, has plummeted to all-time low of $17.99!! (70% Off!!)

The Blu-ray sixth season of “The Office,” $62.99 in 2010 and $40,99 in November, has plummeted to all-time low of $15.99!! (74% Off!!)

“Birds of Prey,” which depicts the daughters of Bruce Wayne, James Gordon and Dinah “The Black Canary” Lance teaming up to fight evil, was $34.49 in 2010 and $28.99 in October. It now stands at $12.99!! (68% Off!!)

The third and fourth seasons of “Battlestar Galactica” on Blu-ray, $70.99 last year and $35.49 last month, have for the moment fallen to an all-time low of $19.99 each!! (67% Off!)

Most of the “Columbo” season-sets have plummeted to all-time lows of $14.99 or less!! (63% Off!!)

The complete series set for the Apatow-scripted “Ben Stiller Show” (starring Bob “Better Call Saul” Odenkirk), $17.99 last month, has fallen to $7.62!! (72% Off!!)

New This Week

Based on the Danish series “Forbrydelsen” (“Crime”), AMC’s The Killing is masterminded by writer-producer Verna Sud (“Cold Case”) and examines the aftermath of a young girl’s murder.

The cast includes Michelle Forbes (“Battlestar Galactica,” “True Blood”) as the victim’s mother and Billy Campbell (“The Rocketeer,” “The 4400”) as a Seattle mayoral candidate. Mireille Enos (Kathy and Jodeen Marquart on “Big Love”) plays the lead homicide detective. Kristen Lehman (“Century City,” “Drive”) is aboard as a campaign aide.

It turned out to be a lot like “Twin Peaks,” only without the supernatural element and not as good. Like Laura Palmer, Rosie Larson was killed in the American Northwest. Rosie had a secret life. Clues led to a nearby casino not called One Eyed Jacks. There was much crying.

The first season turned out to be diverting but ultimately unsatisfying.

Initial reviews were strong.

Time says:

… The Killing itself is a slow burn, or rather drizzle. Three episodes in, I can tell you that I'm drawn in by the characters and eager to see a fourth; I can't guess whether the story is finally going to be satisfying, and the show is deliberate and sparing in parceling out details on the case. But it's so far moving and captivating. …

The Wall Street Journal says:

… What distinguishes this drama from countless mysteries about missing young women gone to terrifying deaths is the unrelenting focus, complex and haunting, on the family left behind. A riveting tale with a hunt for the killer that's no less compelling.

TV Guide says:

… with the spellbinding The Killing, AMC reconfirms its reputation as a place where serious and emotionally compelling drama thrives. …

USA Today says:

Something wicked this way comes. And a TV audience starved for good new drama should embrace it. Arriving Sunday, just when a so-far-dismal season could use the boost, this Americanized version of a Danish hit, Forbrydelsen, is a true rarity: an adaptation that doesn't leave you wishing you were watching the original or, worse, wondering what people saw in the original in the first place. Writer Veena Sud (Cold Case) has so brilliantly translated and transferred it to America, you never once get the feeling that it doesn't truly belong here. …

The New York Times says:

… scary and suspenseful, but in a subdued, meditative way that is somehow all the more chilling. … There have been plenty of dark, cheerless murder mysteries on television. “The Killing” is as bleak and oppressive as any, but it’s so well told that it’s almost heartening. …

The Los Angeles Times says:

… While "The Killing" will probably not cause the stir of the David Lynch classic, it promises to become something even more valuable: a show that is visually poetic, normatively compelling and, most important, sustainable for a good long haul. Though one doesn't like to use blurb words, the first two episodes are riveting, and if the third slows down considerably, it's still pretty darn good. …

HitFix says:

… The pilot establishes the world and its characters, but it isn't until a closing sequence involving Detective Linden and Stan Larsen that the show really begins to differentiate itself from all the CBS cop shows. By pairing it with the second episode - which has more of those slow, powerful moments - AMC makes it clear from night one what this show is doing on the same channel as "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad." … This may not be a comparison AMC executives want to hear, but at this stage the AMC show that "The Killing" most reminds me of is "Rubicon," the low-rated, cerebral spy thriller that had fantastic atmosphere and fine performances but tended to stumble whenever it actually had to deal with plot. In particular, "Rubicon" completely botched the resolution to the story of its first and only season. Until we get to "The Killing" finale, there's obviously no way of knowing whether Sud has a better conclusion in mind, but that's the risk you take with this type of extended plot-driven series: the 13 hours you spend on a season might feel utterly wasted if the resolution isn't satisfying enough given the commitment. …

TV Squad says:

… It's rare for a new program to demonstrate as much confidence as 'The Killing' does in its excellent opening hours. …

The Boston Herald says:

… Like the cult favorite “Twin Peaks,” “The Killing” creeps up on you with its share of seemingly commonplace yet off-kilter visuals. This viewer is loath to say much more. This is no CBS crime procedural, and viewers deserve the chance to delve into this smart mystery for themselves. Here’s the easy solution: AMC, home of “Mad Men” and “The Walking Dead,” has another hit on its hands.

The Boston Globe says:

… With “The Killing,’’ AMC further solidifies its position among cable’s original series elite, the position it first earned with Matthew Weiner’s “Mad Men.’’ The channel selects material that asks for — and then rewards — viewer’s patience. The reason the difficult “Rubicon’’ didn’t fly was because the rewards were too few and very far between. Not so with “The Killing,’’ which quickly hooks you with its steadily unfolding story line. Created by Veena Sud, based on a Danish TV hit named “Forbrydelsen,’’ the show draws you into the tragedy of the crime, and then makes you crave its solution. …

The Hollywood Reporter says:

… excellent, absorbing and addictive. When each episode ends, you long for the next -- a hallmark of great dramas. With that out of the way, give credit to AMC for being unafraid to green light a series that moves slowly, lacks a lot of flash and holds tight to the clues of a dark mystery. …

Variety says:

… Equal parts "Twin Peaks" and "Murder One," this grim, absorbing show restores the horror to homicide, while its cliffhangers deftly propel viewers from one hour into the next. …

A miniseries examining the secret origins of Peter Pan, Captain Hook and The Lost Boys, “Neverland” comes to us from writer-director Nick Willing and two producers named Robert Halmi (Sr. & Jr.), all of whom gave us Syfy’s quite underwhelming earlier miniseries “Tin Man” (2007) and “Alice” (2009).

It stars Rhys Ifans, Anna Friel, Charles Dance, a youngster named Charlie Rowe and, weirdly, Bob Hoskins, who reprises his role from Steven Spielberg’s least accomplished directorial effort, 1991’s “Hook.”

If you’ve seen “Tin Man” and “Alice,” you know what to expect: boring characters, undercooked visual effects and curious behavior.

HitFix says:

... It is, unsurprisingly, not the least bit fun. ...

The New York Times says:

... a thudding, literal-minded bore ...

The Los Angeles Times says:

... cleverly conceived, at times visually lovely, but criminally long ...

The Chicago Tribune says:

... Instead of soaring, the prequel to the beloved story of Peter Pan lands with a thud. …

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

If you yearn for the days of high-quality, big-budget, fantasy miniseries, skip Syfy's "Neverland." … Everything in "Neverland" is a quest as characters run from one large set piece to another without much character development except in minor strokes that are predictable and rudimentary. …

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

… anything with the Halmi name attached to it pretty much becomes the show that modern special-effects technology forgot. ... Oh, well, it makes for a mildly enjoyable story and it's probably best not to overthink things. …

USA Today says:

… The overly blended result may be as much Dickens, Tolkien and J.K. Rowling as it is J.M. Barrie, but it's still an appealing one. …

Entertainment Weekly says:

… Rowe struggles to register, Ifans appears half asleep, Keira Knightley is wasted as the voice of Tinkerbell, and the special effects vary from serviceable to laughable. Instead of soaring, Neverland barely hovers. …

TV Guide says:

… adds clever new twists to the origin story of Peter Pan and Captain Hook while remaining unpretentiously faithful to the adventurous spirit of the original. …

Variety says:

... To say it is less dreadful than recent similarly themed co-productions unleashed under the Halmis' shingle is accurate, but also qualifies as damnation with faint sprinkles of fairy dust. …

TV-on-Disc Calendar

Last Week
Above Suspicion Vol. 1
Adventure Time: It Came From the Nightosphere
Agatha Christie's Poirot 3.x
Agatha Christie's Poirot 3.x (Blu-ray)
Best Of Bugs

Best of Cheers
Best of Frasier
Best of Happy Days
Best of Hogan’s Heroes
Best of the Honeymooners
Best of MacGyver
Best of The Odd Couple
Care Bears Collection
Cimarron City: The Complete Series
Combat Hospital 1.x
Dalziel & Pascoe 5.x The Fresh Beat Band 1.x The Fresh Beat Band 2.x
Game of Thrones 1.x
Game of Thrones 1.x (Blu-ray)
Happily Divorced 1.x
Hawthorne 3.x
Judge John Deed 5.x Vol. 1
Looney Tunes Unleashed
MI-5 Vol. 10
Pound Puppies: Homeward Pound
Tennessee Tuxedo: The Complete Collection
Tom & Jerry: In the Dog House
Transformers Prime
Transformers Prime 1.x (Blu-ray)

This Week