TV gift guide: 'Batman,' 'Mork' land on box sets
If you're home for the holidays, there's no better way to bond with relatives (or drown them out) than flipping on a treasured TV show. Whether it's a blast from the past or a newly departed series you're after, we're betting one of these box sets may shoot to the top of your wish list:
Batman: The Complete Television Series (1966-1968)
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment; Blu-ray, $270; DVD, $200
Zonk! Kapow! Wham! Before Joel Schumacher gave Batman nipples and Christopher Nolan made him deadly serious, Adam West starred as the Caped Crusader in this campy, cartoony 1960s live-action series. The complete box set features all three seasons (120 episodes) of Batman and Robin crime-fighting, with more than three hours of never-before-seen features. The limited edition Blu-ray package also includes a Hot Wheels replica of the Batmobile, vintage trading cards and a scrapbook of behind-the-scenes photos. Holy guacamole, Batman!
How I Met Your Mother – The Whole Story
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment; DVD, $180
If you had mixed feelings about Mother's tearjerker of a finale back in March, then remind yourself what a – wait for it – legendary sitcom it is with the full 208-episode box set. Once you've learned the Bro Code with Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) and found the yellow umbrella with Ted (Josh Radnor), you can check out the DVD's myriad bonus features, including a retrospective documentary on the series, a live table read of the finale, a featurette solving the mystery of the pineapple and a peek at the casting of Cristin Milioti as the Mother.
The Jeffersons: The Complete Series (1975-1985)
Shout! Factory; DVD, $230
They started out as neighbors to Archie and Edith Bunker on Norman Lear's All in the Family, but George and Louise Jefferson eventually found a home of their own on this long-running sitcom, about an affluent African-American family living in New York. All 11 seasons (253 episodes) are included on this "deee-luxe edition," along with a behind-the-scenes featurette, the All in the Family episode that started it all ("The Jeffersons Move Up"), and the 1984 pilot of E/R, in which Sherman Hemsley guest-starred as his Jeffersons character, George.
Mister Ed: The Complete Series (1961-1966)
Shout! Factory; DVD, $140
No one can talk to a horse, of course, that is, of course, unless the horse is the famous Mister Ed, who charmed TV audiences for six seasons on the iconic black-and-white comedy. The chattering steed is back on this 22-disc box set, which marks the first time that the sixth season has been available on DVD. Bonus features include interviews with stars Alan Young and Connie Hines (who played Ed's owners, Wilbur and Carol Post), commentary on the pilot episode, Studebaker car commercials, and a Mister Ed U.S. Bonds promo.
Mork & Mindy: The Complete Series (1978-1982)
CBS Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Media Distribution; DVD, $130
Of all the uproarious creations the late Robin Williams dreamed up, his turn in this Happy Days spinoff is considered among his most memorable. He starred as an alien, Mork, sent from his planet Ork to Earth to learn about humans, encountering earthling Mindy (Pam Dawber), who eventually becomes Mork's girlfriend and, later, wife. Along with two Happy Days episodes featuring Mork ("My Favorite Orkan" from Season 5 and "Mork Returns" from Season 6), this 15-disc set includes all 95 episodes of the series, most notably the fourth and final season, which has never been released on DVD.
Psych: The Complete Series (2006-2014)
Universal Cable Productions; DVD, $200
If you didn't spot the pineapple that's in every episode of Psych, now's your chance to try again, as all eight seasons of the detective comedy come together on DVD. Following the hijinks of fake-psychic sleuth Shawn Spencer (James Roday) and his best friend Burton "Gus" Guster (Dule Hill), this 30-disc, 119-episode box set contains hours of bonus features, including gag reels, Roday's audition tape, a look inside the writer's room, a farewell to the series, and the fan-favorite "Psych the Musical" episode.
Twin Peaks – The Entire Mystery (1990-1991)
CBS Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Media Distribution; Blu-ray, $135
Pass the cherry pie, please. As Showtime preps its return of David Lynch's short-lived Twin Peaks for 2016 after 25 years off the air, there's no better time to get caught up on the soapy murder mystery. The 10-disc Blu-ray set contains both seasons of the show as well as follow-up feature Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, released in 1992. Bonus features include nearly 90 minutes of deleted and extended scenes from the film, as well as a new featurette in which Lynch interviews the actors who played members of the Palmer family, as their characters 25 years after Laura Palmer's murder. Eerie, right?
True Blood: The Complete Series (2008-2014)
HBO Home Entertainment; Blu-ray, $300; DVD, $250
Fans may have bid adieu to beloved small-town Bon Temps this summer, but there are still plenty of True Blood thrills for them to sink their teeth into. All seven seasons of the blood-soaked, skin-baring, vampire-fairy-werewolf romance are included on this 33-disc set, which tracks the supernatural exploits of Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) and pals. Bonuses include behind-the-scenes featurettes, beverage ads for synthetic blood Tru Blood, 40 audio commentaries, and Snoop Dogg's Oh Sookie music video. An even bigger bonus: You get to hear Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) say "Sookeh" as many times as you'd like.