This Week in DVD

Inception: LALALALALALALA...Still haven't seen it! Nobody tell me about it! So I'm still trying to avoid reading much about this, right? Well, I skipped the "South Park" spoof a few weeks ago, and then when I read that Parker and Stone lifted a bit from somewhere else, I really soured on "South Park," and I haven't watched any of its new episodes since. So, yeah, that's my take on "Inception"...I think.

Shrek Forever After: I don't think anyone outside of Dreamworks thought we NEEDED a fourth installment, but just about everything I read indicated this didn't suck nearly as much as the third "Shrek" movie. I think if you squint, you can see that on the back of the DVD box: "Didn't suck nearly as much as the third one!"

Fox 75th Anniversary Collection: Sure, this massive box set may look like a pretty big deal, but to me it's a shallow endeavor without Hal Needham's "Megaforce."

MLB 2010 Champions: San Francisco Giants: Still sounds kind of weird, but it sounds GREAT when you consider the alternative could have been "MLB 2010 Champions: Philadelphia Phillies" or "MLB 2010 Champions: New York Yankees" (I could have lived with "MLB 2010 Champions: Texas Rangers").

Yogi Bear's All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper: First of all, this is one of the great titles of a cartoon of all time. Second, psst, don't tell anyone else, but if you want some a Comedy Christmas Caper (I love how it's not even a "Christmas Comedy Caper," but a "Comedy Christmas Caper," like it's vital that the comedy is emphasized and comes first), this one'll be on Boomerang tomorrow at 5:00 P.M.

I think the most interesting DVD releases are the oddball vintage TV collections that came out Tuesday, including...

Betty White In Black and White: Faithful Cultureshark readers will know that more episodes of "Life with Elizabeth" are always welcome on DVD. Ahem. This one also offers a pair of rare variety show episodes, plus two installments of "Date with the Angels." You gotta love this company for trying to cash in on that Betty White mania...about 6 months too late. But this is cheap and looks like an entertaining enough collection of cheap old stuff.

Dennis Hopper: The Early Works: Maybe the title is apt given Hopper's status as a serious art collector, but I find it a little highfalutin' for a disc that includes episodes of "The Loretta Young Show" and "Petticoat Junction." That said, this looks like a decent enough effort for what it is: early TV show appearances by the late actor, plus his cult film "Night Tide" and some trailers.

Trek Stars Go West: Yet another inexpensive, eclectic sampler of old-school material. TV western aficionados who already have or have seen this material may yawn, but I think the angle of featuring "Star Trek" castmembers (the big guns, not just "Red shirt #2) in an assortment of obscure series (well, obscure except "Bonanaza") provides a good opportunity for someone to pick up a sampler of shows like "Tate."