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Entertainment Weekly picks the best (and worst) DVDs of 2004

Posted Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 11:50 AM Central
Last updated Tuesday, August 27, 2013 at 2:21 PM Central

by Tim Briscoe

One of our favorite magazines, Entertainment Weekly, has included their top DVD lists (both best and worst) in the year-end 'Best of 2004' issue. Both lists of discs are a mixture of newly-released classics, TV series faves, box office bombs, and obscure wonders.

Here are the lists, in all their glory with commentary excerpts from EW writer Dalton Ross:

The Best

  1. Star Wars Trilogy - "Oh, like it could be anything else. It has everything a great DVD set should have... It's true that George Lucas may have gone over to the Dark Side in not making the original, unaltered versions available as well, but truth be told, we always thought the Dark Side was cooler anyway."

  2. Freaks and Geeks: The Complete Series - "The show has received more attention on DVD than it ever did on NBC... TV has never been better, and neither has TV on DVD."

  3. The Simpsons: The Complete Fourth Season/The Complete Fifth Season - "These two sets are filled with priceless moments plus illuminating commentary tracks, deleted scenes, and rough-form animation. Worshipping at the altar of Homer begins here."

  4. Film Noir Collection - "Warner's essential boxed set features strong men and even stronger women. Historical analysis is provided in commentaries by creative types such as Martin Scorsese."

  5. Aladdin - "Suffice it to say that this is not on the list because of Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, who collaborate on a music video. The film remains a jewel.. with its bevy of pop-culture parodies."

  6. Seinfeld: Seasons 1 & 2/Season 3 - "They could have just put out the episodes and everyone would have been happy. But they went and added deleted scenes, commentary tracks, and comprehensive documentaries."

  7. Dawn of the Dead: Ultimate Edition - "George Romero's 1979 splatter-meets-slapstick sequel to Night of the Living Dead remains a truly killer zombie flick. The set presents three different versions: original, extended, and European."

  8. The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus - "The Stones gathered an eclectic mix of music artists and acrobats for this TV special filmed in 1968. But they refused to air it. But Mick Jagger is... mesmerizing."

  9. Pee-Wee's Playhouse: Seasons 1 & 2 / Seasons 3-5 - "Yes, there are no bonus features. And yes, work is underway on special editions to arrive next year. But.. when it comes to this playhouse, the secret word is genius."

  10. Crazy People - "[One of] those little underappreciated gems that you were convinced you and only you loved can now be enjoyed in the privacy of your own home."
The Worst
  1. Reality Unleashed - "C-list reality 'stars' sit around a bar bitching about acting jobs they didn't get and how long it takes them to pee."

  2. The Stepford Wives - "[Director] Frank Oz had 92 minutes during to get into all the alleged on-set screaming matches... Instead we learn that 'Glenn [Close] is so wonderful.' Yeah, thanks for that."

  3. The Nick & Jessica Variety Hour - "Suffice it to say that this is on the list because of Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey."

  4. Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat - "This DVD was sent to me by my bank, causing me to seriously consider changing financial institutions."

  5. Celebrity Mole: Hawaii - "Even reality shows can jump the shark, and in this case, the shark's name is Ahmad Rashad... [He] hosts this 'celebrity' edition of the series -- if you consider Erik von Detten and Michael Boatman celebrities."