Car 54, Which Episode Are You?

I'm not sure why this story on TV Shows on DVD amuses me so much. I think it's just a general sense that it seems so...unprofessional for a company to do business like this.

I'm happy that Shanachie Entertainment is giving us Nat Hiken's great "Car 54, Where Are You?" on DVD, with apparently uncut episodes, and I hope to upgrade my *ahem* set, but there is at least one odd thing about this week's season 1 release. The episodes are arranged in neither production order, nor airdate order, but, according to this news item, in order of "popularity," this after supposed consultation with "historians and buffs" yielded the opinion that that would be the "most attractive presentation."

First of all, in order of popularity? This isn't choosing sides in junior high dodgeball, it's producing a DVD set of a television program. Once someone owns the discs, they can program them in any order they wish, so why predetermine it for them? Just put them on in some coherent arrangement, like, you know, 99% of other complete TV season sets.

Besides, this is an old show that hasn't been in heavy circulation lately, and how many people are able to rank the episodes, anyway? So not only is the idea itself silly, but the execution is surely suspect.

I'm curious to know who the historians and buffs are who told Shanachie, "Ooh! Ooh! Let's put them in order of popularity!" One would think most of those individuals would want some kind of semblance of historical accuracy in the presentation of the shows.

Even if it is a more "attractive" presentation this way, what exactly is the harm in presenting the episodes in chronological order? Like someone who makes the effort to find and purchase this set is going to open it up, put in the first disc, and go, "Hey, these aren't the best episodes! I'm taking this thing back." And it's not like the earliest episodes stink or anything. They're really funny!

I'm glad this company produced this set, and I hope season 2 makes it out as promised, but this decision, while admittedly not the biggest deal in the world, all things considered, is baffling.