New DVDs: TV Series, Nonfiction and Feature Length Films – October 2010

The Big Bang Theory: Season Three

The third season of this hit comedy follows the further adventures of pals Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Sheldon (Emmy winner Jim Parsons), brilliant young physicists and hopeless dweebs, as they try to attract members of the fairer sex, especially their sizzling hot neighbor, Penny (Kaley Cuoco). As Penny and Leonard flirt with an actual relationship, fellow geeks Howard (Simon Helberg) and Rajesh (Kunal Nayyar) contend with their own hang-ups about women.

Bones: The Complete Fifth Season

After a provocative Season 4 finale, a new dynamic heats up between our heroes — brilliant forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance “Bones” Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and FBI Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz) — in the latest installment of the slyly comic Fox mystery series. Together they team up on a new slate of cases in which Bones employs her trademark methods of digging up clues from victims’ skeletal remains.

Brothers and Sisters: The Complete Fourth Season

Tireless matriarch Nora Walker (played by Sally Field, who won an Emmy for the role) leads her affluent progeny through more triumphs, tragedies and surprises in the fourth season of this classy ABC soap opera. A whole new round of professional and personal dramas unfold for Justin (Dave Annable), Kitty (Calista Flockhart), Tommy (Balthazar Getty), Sarah (Rachel Griffiths), Julia (Sarah Jane Morris), Rebecca (Emily VanCamp) and Saul (Ron Rifkin).

Clash of the Titans

This epic mythological adventure stars Harry Hamlin as Perseus, son of Zeus (Laurence Olivier), who embarks on a series of perilous quests in the hopes of rescuing Princess Andromeda (Judi Bowker) and winning the keys to the kingdom of Joppa. With winged horse Pegasus as his steed, Perseus must answer vexing riddles, capture the head of Medusa and slay a ravenous sea monster. Burgess Meredith and Ursula Andress co-star in this classic tale.  (1981) Rated PG

Clatterford: The Complete Season Three

Provincial eccentrics crowd the life of nurse Sal Vine (Sue Johnston) in the third and final season of the BBC comedy created by Jennifer Saunders (“Absolutely Fabulous”). Sal’s daughter Tash (Sally Phillips) leaves home, but just barely, moving into a van parked outside the house. Meanwhile, the Clatterford Women’s Guild works itself into a maelstrom of excitement when a rumor spreads that a famous actor plans to take up residence. Not rated

Criminal Minds: Season Five

Special Agent Aaron Hotchner (Thomas Gibson) leads the Behavioral Analysis Unit — a crack team of FBI profilers who examine the country’s most inscrutable criminal minds and determine when and how these villains will strike again. The fifth season of the CBS crime drama also stars Joe Mantegna as veteran agent David Rossi; Paget Brewster as high-powered diplomat daughter Emily Prentiss; and Shemar Moore as obsession expert Derek Morgan. Not Rated

Dalziel & Pascoe: Season Two

Warren Clarke and Colin Buchanan star in this BBC crime-solving series as polar-opposite Yorkshire detectives Andy Dalziel and Peter Pascoe, a seemingly oddball duo whose vastly different styles make them the perfect match. Among other cases, the second season finds the detectives searching for a connection between three so-called “accidental” deaths. The catch, of course, is that the first one occurred 30 years earlier. (1997) Not rated

Glee: Season One, Volume  Two

A musical comedy that follows an optimistic high school teacher as he tries to transform the Glee Club and inspire a group of outcasts to make it to Nationals. Includes the episodes from the second half of season one and bonus features.

The Good Wife: The First Season

Art imitates life in this television drama starring Golden Globe winner Julianna Margulies as Alicia, a politician’s wife who’s forced to return to the workforce after a sex and corruption scandal lands her husband in jail. Resuming her career as a defense attorney after more than a decade away from the legal profession, Alicia slowly recaptures her identity in this series co-starring Chris Noth, Christine Baranski and Emmy winner Archie Panjabi.

Grey’s Anatomy: Complete Sixth Season

With the fates of Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) and George O’Malley (T.R. Knight) hanging in the balance as the series’ fifth year came to a close, the new season brings more drama into the lives of the young doctors at Seattle Grace Hospital. Returning for another round of hope and heartbreak are Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh and Patrick Dempsey. Rated TV-14

House, M.D.: Season Six

Two-time Golden Globe Award winner Hugh Laurie returns for a sixth season of this Emmy-winning drama series as Dr. Greg House, the brilliant yet incorrigible MD who heads up the team of infectious disease specialists at Princeton-Plainsboro Hospital. Omar Epps, Robert Sean Leonard, Lisa Edelstein, Jennifer Morrison and Jesse Spencer also return as the irascible House’s team of skilled diagnosticians.

The Mentalist: The  Complete Second Season

Simon Baker returns for another season as Patrick Jane, a phony psychic who turned over a new leaf and now uses his extraordinary powers of observation to help California law enforcement solve high-profile crimes. But as Jane helps bring dangerous criminals to justice, he must also contend with fallout from his past, including the sinister presence of Red John, the at-large serial killer who murdered Jane’s wife and child.

Midsomer Murders: Set 16

The cozy villages of Midsomer County reveal their most sinister secrets in these contemporary British television mysteries. Inspired by the novels of Caroline Graham, modern master of the English village mystery, the series stars John Nettles as the unflappable Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby, with Jason Hughes as his earnest, efficient protégé, Detective Sergeant Ben Jones. Guest stars include Tim Pigott-Smith, Ronald Pickup, Pooky Quesnel, Simon Williams, Anton Lesser, Tom Goodman-Hill, Niamh Cusack, and Judy Parfitt.

Moonshot

From their incredible lunar landing to their safe return back to Earth, shadow the intrepid astronauts of Apollo 11, Neil Armstrong (Daniel Lapaine), Buzz Aldrin (James Marsters) and Michael Collins (Andrew Lincoln), as they explore outer space and take “one giant leap for mankind.” Blending convincing reenactments with original NASA footage, this Emmy-nominated docudrama offers viewers an insider’s perspective of one of modern history’s most important events. Not rated

Paulie

Wise parrot Paulie (voiced by Jay Mohr) can ask for more than crackers, as Misha (Tony Shalhoub), the janitor at an animal-research lab, discovers. Paulie reveals via flashbacks how he ended up at the facility after being separated from his original owner, 5-year-old Marie (Hallie Kate Eisenberg), then embarked on a decades-long search to reunite with her. Upon hearing Paulie’s tale, Misha decides to help the loquacious bird realize his dream. (1997) Rated PG

Pie in the Sky: Series Three

This whimsical crime drama stars Richard Griffiths as Detective Inspector Henry Crabbe, an outstanding police officer who longs to quit the force for good and indulge his other passion: cooking in the restaurant he owns with his wife (Maggie Steed). But every time Crabbe’s stubborn boss on the force (Malcolm Sinclair) faces a tough case, he drags Crabbe back from the brink of retirement to help solve the crime. (1996) Not Rated

The Prisoner

Ian McKellen and James Caviezel star in this miniseries remake of the British cult classic about Number Six, a government agent exiled to a mysterious town called the Village that’s run by an enigmatic leader known as Number Two. With no memory of his former life or why he’s a captive in this strange prison, Number Six (Caviezel) begins the daring task of plotting his escape. (2009) Not Rated

Private Practice: The Complete Third Season

Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) continues to adjust to her new life at a fancy Los Angeles medical practice in the third season of this hit Grey’s Anatomy spin-off. While working alongside old friends from medical school, divorced couple Naomi (Audra McDonald) and Sam (Taye Diggs), the renowned surgeon finds herself handling complicated health problems and juggling potentially knotty romantic issues. Rated TV-14

Rick Steves’ Austria & the Alps

All 7 half-hour shows on Austria and the Alps, filmed entirely on location.  Originally broadcast as episodes from the public television series Rick Steves’ Europe in 2000-2009.

Stories of a Third Generation Independent Oil Producer, As Told by Bill Huber

Independent oil producer Bill Huber discusses oil production in Pennsylvania from the birth of the industry in the mid-nineteenth century to the present day, sharing his insights into the trade and relating stories passed down to him from his grandfather and father.

Supernatural: The Complete 5th Season

Regrouping after a tumultuous year, brothers Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) continue their quest to rid the world of demons. Has darkness gone underground for good, or will the brothers require more help from beyond to keep evil at bay?

Temple Grandin

From HBO, Emmy winner Claire Danes stars as Temple Grandin, a brilliant young woman coping with the stigma of autism at a time when it was misunderstood. With the support of her loving family, Temple dedicates herself to learning and becomes a famed animal behaviorist. Her passion for animals gives her a unique ability to understand them, and she fulfills her love of education by teaching about autism and the most humane ways to treat both livestock and pets. Not Rated

The Valley that Changed the World

Documentary on the birth of the oil industry in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Film was produced to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Edwin Drake’s discovery of oil on August 27, 1859.

You Don’t Know Jack: The Life and Deaths of Jack Kavorkian

Al Pacino stars in this enthralling, Emmy-winning HBO biopic that focuses on the life of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the controversial physician who boldly advocated the legalization of euthanasia and personally helped over 100 terminally ill patients commit suicide. Directed by Hollywood veteran Barry Levinson, this drama co-stars Susan Sarandon as vocal activist Janet Good and John Goodman as Kevorkian’s trusted friend and supporter Neal Nicol. Rated TV-14