Mad Men: Season 2
Reviewed by: Eric Alt
The Skinny: Sterling Cooper's drinkingest, womanizingest, barely workingest bad boys return in this 1960s-set drama about an advertising firm and its mysterious alpha dog, a man known as Don Draper.
The Good: After the greatest of season 1, you would expect a dip in quality. That's not to say there isn't one, but it's relatively minor. This is still one of the best dramas on TV—sharp, funny, and engaging. It's nice to see some characters get some added depth (Hello, Joan) and the Blu-Ray presentation is crisper than Pete Campbell's collar. The bonus material does a superb job of placing some of the show's plot elements in a broader cultural perspective.
The Bad: The show does get a tad soap opera in season 2, and it gets away from the office inner workings that made the first season so great. But it eventually finds its footing, and pulls it together. And do you really need two separate commentary tracks for every episode?
Best Extra: "Time Capsule: Historical Events of the 1960s" is as engaging as the show itself. We would have loved to have seen the Jon Hamm episode of Between Two Ferns included, though.
Buy, Rent, or Ignore: Buy it, and get caught up for the start of season 3.
[Rec]
Reviewed by: Eric Alt
The Skinny: A TV news reporter shadowing a group of firefighters gets trapped inside an apartment complex where the dead aren't necessarily so dead all the time.
The Good: Remade as Quarantine here in the States, [Rec] really should be seen in its original form. This gritty, nasty little Spanish film has the perfect mix of seeming authenticity and real scares that so many "found footage" horror movies can't seem to get right. The making-of doc on the disc is especially good, too, since how this film was put together tells you a lot about why it works so well.
The Bad: You may have already seen Quarantine, which'll take some of the punch out the movie's impact. And apart from the excellent making-of doc, there's really nothing else to sell you on the disc.
Best Extra: Once again, check out the making-of featurette.
Buy, Rent, or Ignore: This is a highly recommended rental, and a purchase for true fans of horror.