I am – Hercules!!
HANK SCORPIO: Hello. Oh my God, when did that happen? How much of it? Okay, I will be right there. (hangs up phone) Homer, I gotta go. Somebody ate part of my lunch.
I’d been thinking that “The Simpsons” didn’t start to lose what made it great until the beginning of season 10, but in re-watching the eighth season of “The Simpsons” 
, I can feel the series already coming off the rails. Had some key creative force (longtime showrunner Sam Simon?) just fled the show?
On the upside, Albert Brooks (in his last “Simpsons” appearance for nearly a decade) returns to play well-paying evil mastermind Hank Scorpio. Sideshow Bob gets paroled and begins building a dam with his brother Cecil. And in “Treehouse of Horror VII,” Homer cannot convince anyone that Kang and Kodos have been impersonating Bill Clinton and Bob Dole.
Other plotlines. Homer boxes a newly paroled heavyweight champ. Burns’ illegitimate son fakes his own kidnapping. Bart works as a stand-up comic in a burlesque house. Milhouse’s folks get divorced. Lisa falls for bad boy Nelson. Flanders goes nuts after God destroys his house. Homer eats a Guatemalan insanity pepper. Mulder, Sculley and Leonard Nimoy investigate Homer’s claim of extraterrestrial encounter. Marge’s pretzel business gets help from mobster Fat Tony. Homer and Burns get buried together under an avalanche. The family hires a magical new nanny. Homer auditions for Poochie, an “edgy” addition to the venerable “Itchy and Scratchy” franchise. Homophobic Homer unwittingly befriends a homosexual antique dealer. Lisa is hired to babysit her older brother. Homer becomes a “Beer Baron” when Springfield reinstates prohibition. Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabapple are fired after their affair is revealed. Bart buys Laddie, a replacement for Santa’s Little Helper. Mr. Burns loses his fortune. Homer discovers his face on a box of Japanese dish detergent. At at auction, Bart buys an abandoned factory for $1. Troy McClure introduces three potential “Simpsons” spin-offs: “Chief Wiggum, P.I.,” “The Love-Matic Grampa” and “The Simpson Family Smile-Time Variety Hour.” In the season finale, Bart is shipped off to military school.
Remember please that The Complete Eighth season comes in two packages: the conventional box and the Maggie-head.
HBO’s “Rome” was my fifth favorite scripted hourlong of last year, right after “Battlestar Galactica,” “Veronica Mars,” “Gilmore Girls” and “Lost.” It was one of the best period pieces I’ve ever seen on a screen of any size. Rich characterization, propulsive plotting, tight dialogue, and everybody still believed that invisible people in the sky shaped our destinies. Idiot Romans. The slave girl taking Titus Pullo’s hand provided some kind of perfect ending. To anticipate the inevitable talkback query, the second season is slated to begin airing in January.
Herc’s Popular Pricing Pantry
CHEAPEST FUCKING STAR TREK EVER.
In 1999, Paramount Home Video began rolling out all the 1960s “Star Trek” episodes in two-episode DVD sets retailing for $17.99 each. Buy that way (and I’m certain some people did) and you’re spending $719.60 for the complete series.
Last week the first season of the original Kirk/Spock series sold for $92.76. The second and third seasons of the 1960s “Star Trek” series sold for north of $100 apiece. Last week seasons six and seven of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” sold for $134.99 per season.
As of this week, not so much!
Star Trek: Kirk/Spock/McCoy Baby!!
$69.98 The Complete First Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
$51.99 The Complete Second Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
$51.99 The Complete Third Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
$175.98 The Complete Series <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
Star Trek: Picard/Data/Worf!!
$49.28 The Complete First Season
$51.99 The Complete Second Season
$51.99 The Complete Third Season
$51.99 The Complete Fourth Season
$51.99 The Complete Fifth Season
$51.99 The Complete Sixth Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
$51.99 The Complete Seventh Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
$331.20 The Complete Series <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
Star Trek: Sisko/Odo/Garak!!
$51.99 The Complete First Season
$55.99 The Complete Second Season
$55.99 The Complete Third Season
$55.99 The Complete Fourth Season
$51.99 The Complete Fifth Season
$51.99 The Complete Sixth Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
$51.99 The Complete Seventh Season <--- NEWLY ENCHEAPENED!!
UPDATE!! Amazon has knocked 50% off a load of Universal season DVD sets, setting all kinds of record pricing lows. (The “Rockford Files” and “Columbo” sets, especially, are to my eyes gigantic steals.) Unlike Paramount’s “Star Trek” price cuts, these encheapenings feel HIGHLY HIGHLY TEMPORARY, like “less than a week” temporary, so stock up for Chrismukkah while the getting’s good.
Columbo
$19.97 The Complete First Season
$19.97 The Complete Second Season
$19.97 The Complete Third Season
$19.97 The Complete Fourth Season
$19.97 The Complete Fifth Season
Northern Exposure
$29.97 The Complete First and Second Seasons
$29.97 The Complete Third Season
$29.97 The Complete Fourth Season
The Rockford Files
$19.97 The Complete First Season
$19.97 The Complete Second Season
House
$29.97 The Complete First Season
Monk
$29.97 The Complete First Season
$29.97 The Complete Second Season
$29.97 The Complete Third Season
$29.97 The Complete Fourth Season
Law & Order
$29.97 The Complete First Season
$29.97 The Complete Second Season
$29.97 The Complete Third Season
$29.97 The Complete Fourth Season
$29.97 The Complete 14th Season
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
$29.97 The Complete First Season
$29.97 The Complete Second Season
$29.97 The Complete Fifth Season
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
$29.97 The Complete First Season
$29.97 The Complete Third Season
Find all of Universal’s 50%-off sets here.
Similarly, Fox Home Entertainment has knocked 50% off a load of its first season DVD sets. The same caveat about the temporary nature of this pricing applies:
$24.97 Alien Nation: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Arrested Development: The Complete First Season
$24.97 The Bernie Mac Show: The Complete First Season
$19.97 The Big Valley: The Complete First Season
$24.97 Boston Legal: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Dark Angel: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Dharma & Greg: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Dynasty: The Complete First Season
$24.97 Family Guy: The Complete First and Second Seasons
$24.97 Firefly: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Harsh Realm: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Hill Street Blues: The Complete First Season
$19.97 King of the Hill: The Complete First Season
$19.97 In Living Color: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Malcolm in the Middle: The Complete First Season
$19.97 NYPD Blue: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Over There: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Reba: The Complete First Season
$19.97 Remington Steele: The Complete First Season
$29.97 The Shield: The Complete First Season
$24.97 That '70s Show: The Complete First Season
$29.97 24: The Complete First Season
$19.97 The White Shadow: The Complete First Season
$24.97 The X-Files: The Complete First Season
Find all of Fox’s 50%-off first-season sets here.
TV-on-DVD Calendar
Last Week
Beautiful People 1.x
The Brak Show Vol. 2
Candid Camera: Greatest Moments
Dante's Cove 1.x
Farscape 4.x Vol. 2
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air 4.x
Grounded For Life 3.x
Laguna Beach 2.x
Noah's Arc 1.x
Prison Break 1.x
Sealab 2021 4.x
The Wire 3.x
The Wire 1.x-3.x
Xiaolin Showdown 1.x
This Week
The Duchess of Duke Street 2.x
The Flying Nun 2.x
Full House 4.x
Full House 1.x-4.x
Hogan's Heroes 4.x
Hong Kong Phooey: The Complete Series
The Jeffersons 5.x
Magilla Gorilla: The Complete Series
Masters of Horror: Haeckel's Tale
Masters of Horror: Jenifer
Masters of Horror: Jenifer/Haeckel's Tale
Remington Steele 4.x/5.x
Rome 1.x
The Simpsons 8.x
Surface: The Complete Series
3rd Rock From the Sun 5.x
The Weird Al Show: The Complete Series
Next Week
The Bill Cosby Show 1.x
A Bit of Fry & Laurie 1.x
A Bit of Fry & Laurie Vol. 2
Blackstar: The Complete Series
Blue Thunder: The Complete Series
Conviction: The Complete Series
Elizabeth I: The Complete Miniseries
House 2.x
Invasion: The Complete Series
Redwall 3.x
Renegade 2.x/3.x
Space Sentinels & Freedom Force: The Complete Series
Theshold: The Complete Series
Veronica Mars 2.x
The Worst Week of My Life 1.x
August 29
The Andy Griffith Show 7.x
Arrested Development 3.x
Astro Boy: Set 2
The Awful Truth: Best Of
Criss Angel: Mindfreak Halloween
Dante's Cove 1.x
Darkwing Duck Vol. 1
Desperate Housewives 2.x
Ellen 4.x
Flavor of Love 1.x
Kids in the Hall: Best Of
Monty Python: Personal Best
Mr. Bean: Best Of
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: Vol. 10
NASCAR: Driven To Win 1.x
Nip/Tuck 3.x
Roseanne Halloween
South Park 8.x
Survivor Pulau
Tale Spin Vol. 1
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Vol. 5
The Tick Vs. 1.x
Will & Grace 5.x
