There´s A TV In My Dvd Player! 

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- Matt Brunson

SCTV

WHO AND WHEN: Starring Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, John Candy, Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, Martin Short, Joe Flaherty, Andrea Martin. Originally broadcast on NBC and Cinemax 1981-1983.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON DVD: Three 5-disc sets comprising Seasons 1, 2, and part of Season 3, released by Shout Factory.

WHAT'S SO GREAT?: The first series built around parodying television itself, SCTV's three years on NBC produced groundbreaking sketch comedy that was intelligent, brilliantly written and acted, and gasp-for-breath funny. The list of highlights is endless: a mind-bending Fantasy Island parody, regular "shows" like "The Great White North" and "Days of the Week," reoccurring characters like Flaherty as talk-show host Sammy Maudlin, Levy's Bobby Bittman, Catherine O'Hara's hilariously disturbing drug-addled Vegas performer Lola Heatherton, Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas doing Woody Allen and Bob Hope arguing about comedy in impressions so dead-on they're eerie, and tons more. This is sketch comedy that makes SNL look like Three's Company.

BEST SEASON: If you only get one boxset, we recommend Vol. 2, which contains the brilliant "CCCP1" show parodying, of all things, Soviet television; O'Hara's Dusty Towne character, a send-up of an earlier era's "naughty" comedians; and an inspired Godfather parody.

EXTRAS: Commentaries by some cast members and nice booklets all around, plus cast discussions of the show on Vols. 1 and 3.

LOOK FOR: Joe Flaherty as Count Floyd in send-ups of old Friday night horror movie shows.

- John Grooms

DREAM ON

WHO AND WHEN: Starring Brian Benben, Chris Demetral, Wendie Malick, Denny Dillon, Jeff Joseph, Dorien Wilson. Originally broadcast July 1990 - March 1996: 120 uncensored episodes on HBO; edited versions aired on Fox from 1995-1996.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON DVD: Seasons 1 and 2 packaged together in a five-disc set with 29 episodes.

WHAT'S SO GREAT?: Martin Tupper is a child of the 50s and 60s when television was starting to be a surrogate babysitter. As an adult, his life experiences often evoke memories of those old black & white shows embedded in his memory. Rocket launches often come to mind in sexual situations, and being served divorce papers prompts a scene of a boxer being pummeled. This device was very effective, but the characters and story lines were innovative and entertaining on their own. This HBO show also broke profanity and nudity barriers, but it seems less risqué today.

BEST SEASON: The first couple of seasons, when the show's premise was the freshest.

EXTRAS: Pretty paltry — only an appearance by executive producer and sometimes director John Landis introducing the show and discussing the inspiration for it.

FAST FACT: Series regular Wendie Malick went on to Just Shoot Me and Frasier, and frequently pops up in guest-starring roles.

- Linda Vespa

GREEN ACRES

WHO AND WHEN: Starring Eddie Albert, Eva Gabor, Pat Buttram, Tom Lester, Frank Cady, Alvy Moore, and Arnold the Pig. Originally broadcast on CBS 1965-1971.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON DVD: Seasons 1 and 2.

WHAT'S SO GREAT?: Years before those imbecilic spoiled little rich girls explored The Simple Life, Oliver Wendell Douglas left his thriving law practice in New York City and dragged his socialite wife, Lisa, along with him as he fulfilled his lifelong dream to own a farm. The least treacly of the so-called "rural" comedies (like The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction), Green Acres was populated with a perfectly cast group of oddballs whose local yokel facades belied their savvy.

BEST SEASON: The characters were really rolling by the second season when the show began to develop some of its more surreal moments, e.g., Lisa commenting on the credits as they roll by over a closing scene. Green Acres earned its highest ratings (as the #6 show) in its second season.

EXTRAS: None.

- Linda Vespa

SANFORD AND SON

WHO AND WHEN: Starring Redd Foxx, Demond Wilson, Whitman Mayo. Originally broadcast on NBC 1972-1977.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON DVD: Season 1-5. Season six — whatever's left of it, as Foxx and Wilson both boycotted most of the season in contract disputes — should be out soon. Unless you're a diehard (like me), don't bother.

WHAT'S SO GREAT?: One of the first shows to almost exclusively feature black actors and storylines, Sanford and Son was a surprise hit upon its release. Based around the dynamic between junkman Fred Sanford and his live-at-home son and co-worker Lamont, the series laid the groundwork for the sort of working-class TV that's so popular today. Redd Foxx's turn as Fred became one of the most memorable characters in television history, and while his putdowns of Aunt "Watch it, sucka!" Esther have become classics, he also managed to comment (humorously) on topics like poverty, Watergate, and crime, often within the same show.