Charmed & Smallville @14.99 Each, Walmart (1 Viewer)

Just thought I'd pass this along. Just discovered that my local Walmart has Smallville s1-7 and Charmed s1-8 at Walmart for $14.99 for each set. Finally, I can complete my Charmed series and I can pick up on Smallville.

Mark,

Thanks for the Walmart info. Figures...I was just in Walmart this morning getting Christmas presents in the toy dept.

I picked up Smallville S1 & 2 during Amazon's "Blk Friday" week at the same price as you saw at Walmart. I've never seen the show until watching the first couple episodes in S1. Great show! Recommended by my HTF TV/DVD guru, Gary I'd heard about the show but never seen one until this weekend. Since I liked Lois & Clark, Gary gave me the "go" sign on this show.

I might drop back in Walmart and take a chance on Smallville S3-5.

You're welcome, Jeff.

I have to say that I really enjoyed Smallville, as well. The problem I had with the show was that they turned the relationship between Lex and Clark and killed off Lionel Luthor. This series has so many jump the shark moments that it's ridiculous. The producers and directors seem content with bringing in other Superman and D.C. Universe characters and then writing them out of the series as fast as they enter.

Smallville was supposed to depart from the comic series and be a fresh original take on the series but nobody could stick to that. I enjoyed the series up to around Season 7.

Far as Charmed goes? It has always been one of my favourite shows, if not the favorite show. More like, on the bottom of that list. I'm just disappointed that Paramount hasn't been able to replace that series with a new one.

Hopefully, if Walmart still has all seven sets by Christmas of Smallville, I'll buy them back up again (had the series one before on DVD). I do know that they also have the repackaged Babylon DVD Seasons 1-5 as well.

I read part of your post but I "ducked" some of it since I'm watching it for the 1st time Yeah, I know....I've been living on Mars for the past 15 yrs as far as network TV shows go. I know I've missed out on (imo) a few good ones but I look at it as a plus since I can watch the show released on DVD without commercials, etc. I got an unexpected bonus with Smallville since I didn't know that the DVD's were anamorphic (enhanced for WS TV) until I saw the page at Amazon. That was a pleasant surprise since I didn't know that the show had been shot 16:9 originally (I'm guessing that was true).

As for the show, I've only watched the 1st disc so far but I like what I've seen. Gary filled me in on the "Lois" parallel with the "Cloe" character. I might be off on this one, but it's probably better for me that the show had some commonalities with the traditional "Superman" story (the Kents, Lana, Kryptonite, etc), since I really liked the original Superman show, and Lois & Clark was one of the last 90's shows that I liked a lot. I have all of that one on DVD.

The actor that plays Clark has the part nailed, imo. And John Schneider as "Jonathan" is great. I'm not as fond of "Martha" as I might have been some others cast for that part but she does a good job.

I've never seen "Charmed". Maybe that's another one I can check out down the road. I might be the only one on the 'net that hasn't seen a lot of shows over the last 15 yrs....Lost, 24, Alias, Bones, House, 2 1/2 men,.....etc.....never seen any of them except for the network promos during sports games.

The big difference in most of these recent shows is that someone can, if they choose, get the DVD releases instead of us "old timers" that are still waiting for Batman, Green Hornet, on and on......and the big list of abandoned shows.

Well, my only experience with these new television shows has been through the advent of the DVD. Never seen a single broadcast episode. But, I know how you feel about it. But, all in all, Smallville is a great show. I'm waiting to see the Smallville: Extreme Justice movie/two-part episode, when it returns this January. It features the Justice Society and there's a preview on Ausiello's website on EW.com.

I just hope they end the series. The problem is that Warner Brothers might not end the series until it's too late and the ratings start declining. Studios are reluctant to end a series when they don't have anything that's strong enough to replace it. Other networks have been lucky so far with such great shows as Bones, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, Leverage and so forth.

But, I would give Charmed a try. It really is a pretty great series, once you get through the first few episodes.Besides, it has Alyssa Milano, Rose McGowan and the great Hollie Marie Combs. You'd really like it. Think of it as Witches of Eastwick with a twist.

Smallville jumped the shark years ago; if you want to pick up the first few seasons, by all means do so. But these days it's certainly worn out its welcome...and yet it goes on and on...

Charmed was a problem for me to watch in its Shannen days; not because of her, but because the writing had no internal logic or consistency whatsoever. The backstory and rules of the usage of magic would change from episode to episode. The witches had selective memory; if a certain way of doing a spell wouldn't work in one episode, it would in the next, and a year later, they couldn't do it. I mean, Bewitched set down its rules of magic early on, and stuck with them. Buffy had its internal rules of how magic and vampirism worked, and (usually) stuck by those rules. Charmed did a better job of internal consistency in its later years, but it was kinda too late by then. I just wish they'd have put down the ground rules a little better, thereby paving a little more ongoing logic into the stories.

Originally Posted by Ethan Riley

Smallville jumped the shark years ago; if you want to pick up the first few seasons, by all means do so. But these days it's certainly worn out its welcome...and yet it goes on and on...

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Ethan,

Have you seen any Smallville this season? Its found a new groove. And with the JSA coming in Feb. Its looking better.

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Originally Posted by todd s

Ethan,

Have you seen any Smallville this season? Its found a new groove. And with the JSA coming in Feb. Its looking better.

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To each his own but I couldn't disagree more. Unless you are an uber fan of Erica Durance this season is easily the worst yet. I thought Season 5 was the last truly good season of the show and for my interests that's where it ended. While there were a couple of good moments after that point basically the show abandoned it's own mythology once Season 6 kicked into gear. That's when the retcons and lightswitches really began to take place and it's gotten worse every year since. But again, to each his own. I'm content to own the first 5 seasons and leave it at that.


Gary "it just seems to me the show had a completely different 'feel' to it after S5" O.

Ethan, I agree with you on Charmed about Shannon Doherty. The series didn't start getting good until the fourth season. I think the main reason why the first three seasons weren't all that great were because of Shannon's constant strife with the production team and the earlier seasons suffered. If she weren't so antagonistic against production staff, she would actually last till the end of the series. As a result, she has been canned from (drum-roll please), Beverly Hills 90210, Charmed and even Scare Tactics. She just has an attitude and anger management problem.

Some of the episodes of the earlier seasons with Shannon did show promise. However, he behavior problems often led to inadequate production and caused the show to suffer. At any rate, the show, overall, is pretty decent.

I appreciated all eight seasons relatively equally. I loved Shannen Doherty as Prudence, and thought the chemistry between the three of the sisters was excellent. But I also thought that Rose McGowan did a fine job in her role with the beginning of the fourth season, and I particularly liked how her character was introduced in the series.

If push came to shove, I'd have to say that I prefer seasons 3-5, mostly because they contained Cole. (His appearance in the season seven episode The Seven Year Itch was IMO just so-so.) I thought his dichotomy was one of the strongest parts of every episode he was in, and the relationship between he and Phoebe was IMO one of the strong points of the series. Season eight was a bit of a letdown for me. Although I liked Billie, I wish that Morris had been contracted for that season. He was such a wonderful character throught the series, even when he was Andy's subordinate.

Speaking of Andy, I hated seeing his demise in the final episode of season one. That was not something I expected, and in retrospect, I wish that it hadn't occurred. But by far the worst in that regard for me was All Hell Breaks Lose -- a fine episode (esp. Shax), but a very bittersweet one for this viewer.

Ocky, I know what you're talking about. I thought it was cheap of the producers to kill off Andy as well. Many fans know Andy as the Police Detective, who was a friend of the Halliwell sisters, who often looked out for them when they were about to be discovered. I just thought that Rose McGowen was a far better choice than Shannon. It's just something about her that I don't like.

Mark,

Yeah, I can understand Doherty getting under people's skin -- she seems to do that quite well. And McGowan, as I mentioned, did a fine job. She really did shine in that role.

Re: Andy --

I never have been able to find out if the actor (T. W. King) asked to be out of his contract, or if he had other commitments at that time. I'd really like to know why he was 'killed' off (beyond the reasons in the script), if there are any other reasons.

It just seems to me that producers, writers and directors don't have a single ounce of brain between them. You would think they could come up with a better way for the character to be written out of the show instead of always killing them off. Let's see, Sasha Alexander wanted out of NCIS, so they killed off her character in Season 2 finale. Teryl Rothery wanted out of Stargate SG-1, so they killed her off. Tori Higginson wanted out of Stargate Atlantis so they killed her off.

It seems that every time an actor wants to be let go from a show, their only response is to kill that character off. Why does the character have to be killed off? It's a cheap way to get rid of the character and it's become a cheap way for producers, who are too "peed off" about the actor, to come up with an original way to write the character out of the show.

Originally Posted by Gary OS

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To each his own but I couldn't disagree more. Unless you are an uber fan of Erica Durance this season is easily the worst yet. I thought Season 5 was the last truly good season of the show and for my interests that's where it ended. While there were a couple of good moments after that point basically the show abandoned it's own mythology once Season 6 kicked into gear. That's when the retcons and lightswitches really began to take place and it's gotten worse every year since. But again, to each his own. I'm content to own the first 5 seasons and leave it at that.


Gary "it just seems to me the show had a completely different 'feel' to it after S5" O.

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I'm gonna have to go with Gary on this one. I think some viewers like all the DC comics characters introduced into the series; I don't. The reason why is that usually they're just flinging poop at the wall, trying to see what sticks. Meaning: they're only introducing these characters in order to discover some spin-off material. That ain't gonna happen, because 99% of the time, the other super-heroes we've seen would kinda suck if they had their own series. I think any spin-off featuring these characters and actors would end up being as good as, shall we say, Birds of Prey?

I have to agree, Ethan. What I think Warner Brothers should do, since they obviously love to introduce other heroes from the D.C. Universe is to produce a Justice League of America television series. Such a series would allow the studio to introduce all of the characters they wish to introduce and they wouldn't need to settle on just one or two characters in every single episode. They could hire actors and actresses to appear in multi-episode storyarcs and every three or four epsiodes they could bring in a new batch of characters.

Not to mention recurring actors in case they want to bring back such favourite characters such as Green Lantern, Superman or even Batman.

Count me in as a Rose McGowan enthusiast. While I had been aware of the show and watched a couple of episodes here and there during the Shannen Doherty years, it was the announcement that she had been cast as new sister Paige that made me a regular watcher. As soon as I heard she was doing it, I knew the show would be fine and the "cancellation coming soon" rumors would quickly die down.

From what I have read, T.W. King asked to be written out of the show, because when he signed on, he hadn't realized how much of the show's focus would be on the female characters and how limited the amount of material he would get was going to be. Insterestingly enough, he is one of the two main actors from the first season that did not appear in the unaired pilot, the other one being Alyssa Milano, who got cast as Phoebe after Lori Rom chose not to pursue it. He decided to explore other opportunities, only to end up in a dead-end job on a daytime soap. That being said, I still think Andy got more development over the course of one season than Darryl got over seven seasons, before being unceremoniously dropped from the cast for Season 8.

Regarding the introduction of various D.C. Comics characters in Smallville, I agree that we could certainly do without them. I watch the show on DVD and have fallen behind quite a bit, but the "freak of the week" and "special guest superhero appearance" episodes tend to be a distraction from the show's main focus, which is Clark's journey on the path to his destiny. While contrary to the vast majority of watchers according to what I've read online, I have no particular problem with either the character of Lana Lang or Kristin Kreuk's acting, I understand that some people could find the Clana love story tiresome, since it was established well before the series premiered that Clark would end up with Lois. I have to admit I do like the show's take on this particular character and enjoy Erica Durance in the part quite a lot. While she's probably not supposed to, she reminds me of Charisma Carpenter's Cordelia Chase on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. I also really enjoy Michael Rosenbaum's take on Lex Luthor... and funnily enough, I've often found myself thinking that if I had my own television series, I would probably end up casting him and Rose McGowan as a couple.

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Interesting. As I said upthread, "to each his own" is really the story with this show in particular. There have been, for all intents and purposes, 3 leading ladies who could conceivably be Clark Kent's soulmate. We knew going in that Lana is his love before he becomes Superman so at some point the character had to go bye-bye. The problem for me with her eventual exit from the show was that Clark never actually got over her. She had to be forcibly removed from his life. He didn't move on or let her go. She had to push him away. That, in and of itself, demonstrates that any future love for the Man of Steel will be sloppy seconds. That's my only problem with the Clana. Clark never actually broke it off because he realized she wasn't right for him. And by all accounts that should have happened and it didn't. Very poorly executed by the producers/writers.

Then we have this woman that has the iconic name, Lois Lane, but is lacking in so many areas it's not even funny. In pretty much every incarnation LL has been a woman that's wanted to be a reporter at the Daily Planet for years, even going to back to childhood. Not this girl. She starts off in Season 4 doing a couple of things for the high school paper Chloe and Clark work at but it's short-lived as she moves on to college (and subsequently gets kicked out for being a drunkard). In Season 5 she has zero interest in reporting even though her cousin, Chloe, is working at the Daily Planet. That really nailed it for me that this girl isn't anything like the Lois Lane's I've always watched on the big screen, on TV, or read in comics. In fact I don't mind saying I hate Erica Durance's portrayal of the character with a passion and honestly felt up through the end of season 5 she wasn't the "real" Lois Lane for this series. That role clearly went to the third girl.

Chloe Sullivan was a unique creation of Al & Miles and they endued the character with so many Lois Lane traits that she basically filled that role up through Season 6 and most of Season 7. There were so many "hints" the showrunners would throw out from time to time that made me think they were actually gutsy enough to pull off a stunner of a twist ending when the series would finally come to a conclusion by having Chloe take on the name of "Lois Lane" to publish by. Over the years we had Clark's superhearing only unconsciously activated by Chloe (not Lana and certainly not Lois). This is a huge point in Superman mythology. Superman always is attuned to Lois' heartbeat and without thinking picks up her cries for help above all others. This was clearly demonstrated as a trait Chloe had in this show. Her and Clark worked great together, especially in Season 5 when I honestly felt Tom Welling's Clark Kent was closer to acting like Superman than at any other point. After Season 5 he began to regress in certain areas and to this day I dont' think he's as strong a character as he needs to be after 9 years of "growth."

As I said before, I felt things were top notch with this show up through the end of Season 5. But once the flying barn door of inspiration hit at the beginning of Season 6, the lightswitches and retcons started flying hard and fast and the show lost it's footing terribly. I've never thought Erica and Tom had any onscreen chemistry, while I could see it clearly with Tom and Kristin and especially with Tom and Allison. Put those two together in a scene and it was made of win.


Gary "the show runners should have just renamed the show last year to Metropolis because it stopped being about Smallville after Season 5" O.

Gary,

I took your advice and skipped over your post, thanks

"Hook 'em, Horns"

I hope you all are happy.

Originally Posted by smithb This show, to me, strikes a near-perfect task of combining the traditional Superman story with a somewhat different take during Clark's younger life growing up in Smallville with his foster parents.

Casting: They hit paydirt with the casting in this show. Wait till you watch the "home" scenes with Clark and his Mom/Dad at the farm. John Schneider ("Dukes Of Hazzard") is amazing as Jonathan Kent. Annette O'Toole is cast as "Martha". I like her as well but not quite as much as John S. It's close but I just liked his casting for the part a little better.

Tom Welling as Clark....a "10" for that part. Enough said.

I'm not going to say anymore here until you have a chance to watch a few S1 episodes. Keep and eye out for the "Stray" episode. It's one of my top episodes in S1.

Bottom line: If you like the main Superman story line and "Lois & Clark" show from the 90's, this one's a slam-dunk for you.

The "Millinum Kid" backscore took a little adjusting for me to get used to it but I'm ok with it.

Someone said....don't know who...but it's true...

"Open up your horizons.....branch out" (something to that effect). As a primarily 50's-80's TV/DVD guy, there's definitely some jems out there in the 21st century.

"Mark T": Thanks for that Walmart tip! I owe you, dude.

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Brad, just something to think about....you might want to consider getting to Walmart and picking up the S2-5 sets while that price is low. That's what I did after talking with Gary about this show. I'm so sure you'll like this one so I just wanted to put this out there for you to consider it. My local store didn't have S3 but I found it at Walmart.com for only a couple of $"s more than the local store and with free shipping. I got that one yesterday with a 1-day shipping time. Now I'm set for S2-5 on the shelf.

I did encounter a defective disc in the S1 set. It was disc 5 in the last episode. I have a relacement coming from Amazon. I bought the S2,4,5 sets during the "Blk Fri" week for the same $15 price.

This show ranks as probably the top blind-buy for me so far with "Donna Reed" a close 2nd place. Most of my other sets were bought with having seen at least some of the shows back in the day.

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