Bat-blues continue...

I was asked by a fellow writer at my college paper to write a couple things on how' Heath Ledger's death will impact the Batman film and how it's viewed. Here's what I came up with:

Heath Ledger's untimely death will with out a doubt impact the Batman franchise. There was a lot of commotion in the geek community about whether the young actor could handle such an iconic role as the joker. In my opinion the Joker is one of the deepest and greatest characters in comics, probably one of the most intriguing characters in all of pop culture--not to mention easily recognizable.
Jack Nicholson played the role with gusto back in the 90s, under the direction of Tim Burton. His portrayal set the bar for the character. However, all of the press material and previews/sneek peeks that have been released pertaining to the Dark Knight have surpassed expectations vis a vi Ledger's portrayal.
Even before this tragic event, The Dark Knight was going to attract a lot of attention towards Ledger and, what has already been refered to as, his breakthrough performance. There's no doubt that if the title of the film (The Dark Knight--referencing Frank Miller's ((Sin City, 300)) sucessfull re-vamping of the caped crusaider) has any effect on the story of the film that Ledger's role, as well as his performance, will be the most pivitol part of the movie.
Though the previous Batman movies have swapped out villains with each new film, there was a chance that Ledger's performance could earn him a role througout the rest of the franchise. There have been so many amazing Joker/Batman storylines througout the enormous comic book history of the Dark Knight that fans would have enjoyed seeing said stories--i.e. The Killing Joke, Laughing Fish--on the big screen.
It's very likely that if there is another Batman film made by this current core of bat-players, the Joker will not be involved.

Tell Me its a 'Joke'...

So I am sitting in my office, doing some work for my internship, and my friend Steve shoots me an IM.
"Dude, Heath Ledger is dead"
I really can't describe my feelings or thoughts without profanity. I was utterly stunned. In the last couple of months or so I have read, heard, seen and talked about Ledger so much in the context of the new Dark Knight movie. All of it positive, all of it pleasantly surprised.
However, as surprised as I was at how well he seems to handle the Joker character--in my opinion the top character in comic book history in terms of depth, vitality, and intrigue--is how mortified I was to learn of his death.
I, like any other 20-something, first was introduced to the young actor when he played against Julia Stiles in Ten Things I Hate About You. The man was funny, charming, charismatic and had a decent set of pipes. Though I was not a fan of the idea of Knight's Tale, I heard nothing but how good he was in a pretty lame movie. Then, in a breakout role, Ledger played Billy Bob Thorton's son in Monster's Ball, an amazing film and a seriously deep role for the actor.
The hopeless romantic and 8-year-old-can't-grasp-death kid in me wants to believe that its some kind of viral ad campaign for The Dark Knight movie. We've seen so many guerrilla type publicity stunts from the Warner Bros. and DC Comics camps that we can't really think about his death without a small, somewhat muted, alarm going off in the back of our heads. Were that it were only a stunt, that this actor--who was supposed to blow up in Hollywood on the heels of his performance in The Dark Knight--was still with us. If only it was a joke.

The Star Wars wars...

George Lucas, I should have known it would be you at the end of Vader's leash.
OK, I actually have nothing against the man, I just thought it was a cool way to start out this blog. But I digress.
As a geek (shocking to some of you, I know but take a moment and compose yourself) I cannot go one single day without seeing something that is related to Star Wars--and I'm not using hyperbole here I seriously am not allowed to go one day without looking at something Star Wars related, they'll take my card away. The proliferation of Star Wars memorabilia is something start out of Space Balls, though I haven't seen Star Wars the flamethrower yet. It seems that everyone and their mother is trying to make money off of Lucas' masterpieces (OK, I'm going to say that 4 out of 6 were genius. This obviously is referring to Episodes II, III, IV, and V, Phantom Menace was god-awful and Jedi, as was brilliantly stated by Kevin Smith, only had a bunch of Muppets)
Now, of course, as a member of the large group of geeks that have been inspired and enthralled by Star Wars from birth, I am in hog heaven with most of this stuff. However, I, a poor college kid, cannot afford to be caught up in all of the geekdom that comes along with a life-long affinity for the Wars. However, recently there have been three particular facets of the Star Wars wars (as I called it in the title) that have caught my eye.

LEGO STAR WARS

Luke, I am your builder.

So I'm a bit slow on the up-take on this front. The first of three LEGO related SW games came out quite a while ago and I was lucky enough to play a demo way before it came out. From the minute I started the game I was hooked. It was fun, easy, smart and down right cute from the first nano-second.

For Christmas I received LEGO STAR WARS: THE COMPLETE SAGA for Wii and it is one of the better action/adventure games I've played since Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, for obviously very different reasons. You can breeze through the story mode of each movie very quickly and if that was it for the game then it would be horribly unfulfilling. However, the people at Traveler's Tales have thought of that and the replay ability of the game surpasses all expectations. The unlockables are plentiful and the characters number over 100 (I think, didn't do the math...English major)

MIGHTY MUGGS

That's no moon, that's how big their heads are.

Speaking of cute. What's cuter than a wookie with a giant head? That's right, nothing. There is a movement in the action figure community that is known as the Art Toy or Urban Vinyl movement. Basically it means that action figures and toys in general are becoming pieces of art and not necessarily play things or just cool little statues.

These Mighty Muggs are the second in a line from Hasbro (started with Marvel Comics) of over sized cranium-ed figures that are as cool to look at as they are adorable. I, and the toy/action figure world expect these to be a very hot ticket as soon as they hit the shelves (which could be as soon as next week). The only downfall to these awesome little collectibles statues is that their price is reasonable per piece but for an entire collection its going to be quite a blast to your wallet. But this is the price we pay to have trendy toys.

FAMILY GUY: BLUE HARVEST

The force is freakin' sweet with this one.

A time not far from now on a DVD player very close to my television...

That's right. The full-hour Family Guy episode that is almost a shot for shot remake of Ep IV is coming out to DVD on Tuesday. I remember staying up to watch the tape I made of this episode late the night it aired. If I hadn't had a test the next day, I would have watched it twice. Exactly the kind of uproariously funny homage that you would expect from the Family Guy camp, "Blue Harvest" mixed their brand of irreverent humor with the everything that Fanboys wanted to see and hear. That included Stewie as Vader and Lois with braided hair ear muffs!

But what is really cool is the special edition that is coming out, this set includes a lot of extra features that aren't on the regular DVD and will be worth the extra $10 or so. It'll be part of my collection as soon as I get my next paycheck.

Now usually, the cynical side of me would go on a rant about how awful it is that it seems that everyone is just trying to make a bunch of bucks off of the best sci-fi ever created. But the truth of it is, all these new Star Wars related entities are simply paying homage to brilliance in their own ways. The best part is that Lucas and LTD and Lucas Films and everyone on the Star Wars end, for the most part, is totally cool with it. Family Guy in particular has gone on record to say how supportive and cooperative Lucas has been with their spoofs and goofs, wanting to make sure that their characters and even music look, act and sound the same as the ones in the movie. Finally, a legend that can take a joke.

That's it for now, may the force be with you.

Photo Credits:

Lucas - www.vegasartscorner.com

LEGO STAR WARS - www.smh.com

Mighty Muggs - www.blogdebrinquedo.com

Family Guy Blue Harvest www.tv.ign.com

Practical uses for video games besides Army recruitment...

The future looks bright for gamers. Thanks to the great, inventive and brilliant people at NINTENDO, it looks like even as early as 5 years into the future, the stereotype of a gamer could change from an overweight, friendless loser to an in-shape, party animal with great social skills.

Today I was reading my monthly issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) and came accross the preview of Wii Fit, due out in the Spring, a personal trainer in your home at your disposal 24/7. The game comes with a balance board controller (right) that will use sensors to read the mass that is distributed throughout your body. When you start the 'game' it will take your weight and then ask you to input your height. Then it will calculate your body mass index (BMI) to track your fitness level. It will do so weekly and, if I understand the concept correctly, it will, through the various gameplay modes (which haven't been clearly discussed anywhere I can find yet) help you lose weight or at least tell you how over or under-weight you are. Aparently the Mii that you've created for the Wii will also fluxuate it's body type based on how thin or full bodied you may be.

Wii games in general can make you work up a sweat, just ask my roomates. Heated and intense games of Wii Sports tennis or Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games can escalate heart rates and result in a fair share of sore muscles.

The folks at Wii, and Nintendo in general, have already given the gaming community the ability to shape and sharpen their minds through video games with titles like Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree (Left) and Flash Focus for the Nintendo DS. This trend of self help through video games is actually very refreshing and offers some hope for our increasingly overweight and obese society.

We've all seen those (annoying) commercials where the mom tells her kids "Make sure you're playing your video games!" Pretty soon, if the general trends continue for younger gamers and for family ethics, this will become an increasing part of our reality. It's crazy to think that what we used to do instead of real things are actually quickly growing into...real things.

They're not dolls....

He's Wrong. We're not wearing costumes. For those of you who are not lucky enough to have read TMNT #1, these words are spoken by Leonardo in their first appearance.
What many people don't know, and unfortunately don't care about, is that way before the Saturday morning cartoon show, and the millions of licensed products later, the Turtles made their debut on the page.
Well the folks at NECA have not forgotten that and I, as a huge fan, applaud their efforts and their most recent toy line. For the first time ever, the Turtles are getting the comic treatment in plastic. Sure there have been many, many variations on the turtles in action figure form throughout the years, but never has any company paid tribute to Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird's original design of the heroes in a half-shell.
All of the photos that I've seen so far make this new line of figures look amazing. The detail of sculpture and painting is phenomenal. Just like on the covers of the books, each turtle is clad in a red bandanna and not clad in their color coded clothing that was introduced in the TV show. Each turtle will come with a base and their weapon and there is talk of a collector's edition that will also come with "more bells and whistles," according to Lee's Toy Review (the magazine that first brought all four turtles to light).
You can bet they'll be on my shelf as soon as they come out!

To find out more about the figures check in periodically at http://www.necaonline.com/ , http://www.ninjaturtles.com/ , or Steven Murphy's blog http://www.the-5th-turtle.blogspot.com/ all are great sites and the latter two are treasure troves of turtle tidbits.


Both photos taken from The 5th Turtle.

Some of the best issues are 'CompleX' issues...

Recently, Marvel comics has been attempting to keep up with DC's amazing over-arching, interwoven tales that encompass their biggest and best heroes. With comic events like Civil War, Marvel has come close to the same brilliance as something like DC's Identity Crisis. (I know that Infinite Crisis, 52, and Countdown are all more recent references than the one I give, but let's face it, IdC was groundbreaking and refreshing.)
Where Marvel shines, however, where they've always had success, is in the smaller over-arching story arches within specialized titles (i.e. Fantastic Four, Avengers, The X-Men). Today, X-Factor #46 hit shelves in comic stores, it marks issue 11 of 13 in the Messiah CompleX story.
Ever since House Of M (another great comic book multi-title-tie-in event) the number of Mutants has been dwindling, dropping below a couple hundred. However, there is a new mutant birth. Now the X-Men find themselves on a search for this 'Messiah' (that's where the name comes from) but they aren't the only ones looking for the kid. The Purifiers (a cookoo religious group that thinks mutants are the devils work) and the Marauders (led by Mr. Sinister and former X-Man Gambit) are also looking to destroy and abduct the baby, respectively. That's not to mention that Cable also has plans for the nubile mutie.
Now that all the exposition is out of the way (they call that 'laying the pipe' in the biz), I can tell you why you should care.
This crossover event is one of the best in recent Marvel, and comic book, history. Not since the Age of Apocalypse epic has there been an X-Men multi-title arch written so well. House of M and the subsequent DeciMation titles were decent and very solid, however they lacked the cohesion and consistency of MC.
Each individual writer/artist team is responsible for the part of the arch that reaches through their title and each one has managed to not only keep the story moving and make it look good but also lead seamlessly into the next title. Of course there's a shift in the artistic style but all of them are above par and each highlights a unique aspect of the action that seems to perfectly coincide with that part of the story.
Marvel is handling this crossover brilliantly. Its unfortunate that this kind of quality and this kind of excitement is only seen during these mini-series that involve a pool of writers and artists. The X-titles are a very unique entity in comics, there are literally hundreds of characters that can be used in each book. But the problem is that all of these characters are split between Uncanny X-Men, X-Men, X-Factor, New X-Men, Cable & Deadpool (soon to be Cable, Deadpool), The EX-iles, and New Excalibur...I think that's all of them...no, wait, forgot the new X-Force and Young X-Men that will start after the MC is over. With all the characters, save Wolverine who seems to be in 8 out of 10 Marvel comics published every week, being delegated to certain teams, it means that artists or writers that have a talent for writing or drawing that character cannot always wield that artistic weapon. It's hard enough to understand what has happened in the X-Men series in general let alone all of the off-shoots.
Of course there is always the option of the continuity-less Astonishing X-Men, the old school glory of X-Men: First Class, or the alternate continuity of Ultimate X-Men, but each of those lacks a certain je ne sais quoi. Don't even get me started on trying to figure out who's dead, or depowered, or married, or gay, or a skrull.
The bottom line is that the Messiah CompleX storyline is fantastic and worth every penny, but unfortunately after the CompleX...X-Men will simply suck.

Goes down smooth...

Hey everyone, in lieu of writing something fantastically witty and entertaining, I figured I would post the new Coffeehouse Series poster that I designed. Everyone in the Annville/Lebanon area should definitely go check out these awesome acoustic sets! If it weren't for prior commitments, I would be at every single one of them!

Do you still like Gladiator shows, Timmy?...

Howl and Grrroooowll -- Two of the newest American Gladiators on NBC's revival. Wolf (left) and Crush (right) Photos from www.nbc.com

Tonight marked a very special occasion for people, such as myself, who are still feeling nostalgic for decades old television shows. That's right, it was episode one (and two) of the all new American Gladiators series!
Though it had a complete lack of Larry Zonka, it boasted a bevy of new muscle-bound, spandex-clad, bulging and bronzed freaks of nature...and besides Laila Ali and Hulk Hogan there was also some pretty muscular Gladiators too. ((Oh, I don't feel good about that one...Ok, maybe I do.))
So, anyway, as an avid fan, and imaginary contestant, of the old-school show. Let me break down the new series for those of you who may have missed it:

Announcers/Personalities: B+
Hulk Hogan still has everything that made him so huge in the WWF, WCW and again in the WWE. He's charismatic, charming, energetic and bigger than life itself. However, he is foiled by the dreadful Laila Ali, who trips over her words more often than Brittney hits rock bottom. The stammering pugilist is enough to tune-out (if not mentally than literally changing the channel) between the events, maybe squeezing the show into a picture in picture box to catch up on some Desperate Housewives. (NOTE: The show won't be on again on Sundays but I really am not certain what the big Monday night show is besides football...sorry? No.)
Though he isn't featured, Al Kaplon (the tournament Referee from DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story) is the referee. One of the highlights of the evening was him telling off one of the contestants, telling the overconfident and over-the-hill d-bag to stop "giving him the business!"

Gladiators: A-
The men are huge, muscle-bound, crazy and unintelligent while the women are...well...the women are huge, muscle-bound, crazy and unintelligent. This is not to mention that they were kind of a let down in each of the first two shows. I remember watching Nitro, Turbo and Gemini blank competitors in every competition, putting up goose eggs like they were Martin Brodeur. One could make the argument that the contestants are better, and maybe this is true, but still, I want more bang for my Gladiator buck.
There are some Diamonds in the rough (pardon the pun, but for those of you who got that it was a pun, KUDOS!) Wolf, Mayhem and Toa seem to have taken the lead for the men, the first is a dude who's name deserved, while the other two are just mean mama-jammers with urban and native American flavors.
On the women's side there is the appealing Crush (another great name) and the opposing Siren. However, the women have one horribly named and overly gimmicked Gladiator. That is Helga. A larger than life, Sweedish featured blond girl with braided pig tails. Stereotypical? Yes. Original? No. Hilarious? .....yeah!

Contestants: C+
Wow...my sympathy bone hurts because NBC and their cast of wannabes have picked at it all night long. "Oh this is for my babies," "I've been waiting so long to get on this show," "My husband and I got a divorce," WAH WAH WAH! I don't want to hear their life stories! (And I'm not saying that just to be cute and turn a phrase...I really don't care about their lives) The original show would interview one of the contestants after each event, a quick, short, sweet and to the point question, followed by an out-of-breath response. It was simple and was not annoying.
Now, their personalities aside, some of these newbies are tough S.O.B.s. Though it seems like NBC sought out every fire fighter, health nut and ex-marine to bolster their ratings, these new glory seekers are fast, strong and agile. This should be a good season of highly competitive games.

Old Games: A-
Tonight we got to see the Wall, Assault, The Pyramid, Joust, Hang Tough, the Gauntlet and Power Ball, and they haven't aged a bit. There are a couple new twists on the games, like in the assault contestants have to dive into a sandbox to dig out an arrow (a la Double Dare) to fire in the cross bow at the next station. It's interesting but its not the classic games. It'll take some getting used to but these old gems will sparkle brighter than their new bastard siblings.
Not all that glitters is gold however, as Power Ball needs some major re-tooling. The contestants were able to throw the balls into the cylinders from very far away, negating any of the physical ability to the game. The openings to the scoring zones are way too big and the balls (all the contestants, including the women, were able to palm the ball with ease) were way too small. There is no way that the first four contestants should have combined for 18 points in that event.

New Games: D
There's only two new games in the series and they are both lackluster. First off is the devastatingly boring Earthquake. Think the later half of Breakthrough and Conquer with the added 'twist' of a platform that tips to no more than a 12 degree incline making it slightly harder for the puny contestants to stay on.
Then there is the glorified MXC event, Hit And Run. Contestants do their best B-Movie action star impressions as they run across a plastic bridge while attempting to not get hit by giant silver tear drops of pain. Until we see someone wailed in the face with 20 pounds of padding, it won't be fun to watch.

The Eliminator: C+
They should have called it the Exhauster. This thing is horribly long and tediously boring. First the contestants must scale a wall, then dive into a pool and swim under some fire (this is one of the most exciting parts as one contestant already split open her face, hitting one of the bars that suspends the fire head first...and I'm sure some contestant will pull up to fast to a face full of flame). Then they must climb up a dreaded cargo net, hold on to a giant spool while it rolls down a ramp (again, borrowed from MXC and injected with steroids), traverse the hand bike then run up the pyramid, down the zip line (still fun to watch after all these years), and then up the treadmill and bust through a wall to the finish line, and yes, its as long and drawn out as I made it sound.
Though it is a better equalizer than the last couple of incarnations, it is lacking in one thing...GLADIATORS!!! Where are the walls that the contestants have to break through only to find a face-full of the AG logo on a tackling pad? There are no 10 second penalties or any penalties at all. It's contestant vs. contestant with no interference from their fiendish foes...and who wants to see that?

Overall: B-
It's watchable. It's entertaining. It's not the original...and that's O.K.
If you like trainwreck TV, and are bummed about no new episodes of anything because of the writers strike, its worth watching. At least you'll get to see some people hit in the face.

Holy homoeroticism Batman, look at those chums...

Over the summer I picked up an issue of Newsweek (or maybe it was TIME) because I had a do-nothing job and wanted to look kind of smart. Also it teased a very interesting article on the cover. The article was about male relationships in movies and what makes a true love story in today's medium.
It was a brilliantly perceived article that expounded the theory that the real love in movies today is shared between the men in the films and not necessarily the man and woman the movie is about. The thesis of the piece was genius. As soon as I read the few paragraphs that explained the general idea I instantly said "Wow, this is totally right!"

Superbad was at the heart of the story, because at the time it was all the rage in theatres and in the forefront of America's pop-culture mind. Last night, after watching only the first few minutes I realized how much it actually fit into the guy-love bible.

So with that in mind, I have set out to document the top-10 Man-Love couples of all time. What follows is the closest dude duos in pop culture.

10) Turtle, Eric, Drama and Vince

Not a duo, I know. What a way to start the list, ruining my alliteration. However, you can pick any two of these four young men and prove the point. What is this show about if not the relationship of these guys and how it changes with fame, fortune and fornication.

9) Jay & Silent Bob

Striking a chord for Hetero-life-mates everywhere, this fantastic example of male on male love has been around since the 90s. Although their time on the big screen is over (or is it? Kevin seems to be changing his mind lately), their love will live on through the ages.

8) Colin Mockery and Ryan Stiles

Though it doesn't exactly fit the category of love stories or even stories, these two are as thick as thieves and a chummy as any two men can be. They've kissed countless times on television and have been known to dry hump as well. (But its all in good fun)

7) Steve-O and Heroine Bob

It is heartbreaking when Steve-O awakes to find his partner in crime (and nothing else) has past away. Some great acting by Matthew Lillard gives credibility to the couple's cuteness. SLC Punk ain't exactly a love story but I defy you to not see the love in it.

6) Chucky and Will

It's not his fault...that their love is so strong. It's apparent that their relationship reaches beyond friendship. The scene where Affleck pours on the homoerotic love over lunch on the roof of a truck is just the prime example of duodom and dudes diggin' on dudes.

5) Dr. Gregory House and Dr. James Wilson

This one is more of a love/hate relationship but still the connection is undeniable. One of the greatest episodes of the series, and their relationship, is when Wilson moves in with House and the practical jokes abound. However, the heart of this story is diagnosed with a case of man-love when House erases a phone message that would allow Wilson to move out....oh the things we do for love.

4) Mikey and Trent

They're so honeys and they don't even know it. I feel that's enough to say about this couple, and its probably the worst pun in the whole piece. But I digress. Mikey is searching so hard for love the entire movie but what he doesn't realize is that he's got the perfect beautifully baby right in front of him. He just needs to stop battin' at the bunny with his big claws and sink those huge teeth into his taller half.

3) Dan Rydell and Casey McCall

This duo shares an office, a desk, a love of sports and sometimes they don't have pants on. These sports reporters are more than co-hosts of a nightly sports show, they're co-owners of a lovely man crushes. Dan and Casey will always be "along side" each other.

2) Turk and JD

It's just guy love....between two guys. Whether taking fall foliage trips on their scooters, going to CHiPs conventions, or saving lives, this couple brought man-love to a whole other level. JD will always remember that time that Turk was inside him (don't worry, it was a medical procedure) and Turk will always have the love of his honkey adonis.

1) Dante and Randal

They love pop culture, Star Wars, their jobs and...each other. Any man who didn't get a little choked up at the jail scene in Clerks II just does not have a heart in their cavernous and cold chest. This pair just goes to show that at the crux of every Kevin Smith movie there is a warmth and heart that centers around the relationship of all his male protagonists. The greatest realization of this is his first, and most recent, incarnation of the dude love scenario.

(Photo credits...

Entourage www.nymag.com

Jay & Silent Bob www.uwyo.edu

Colin and Ryan www.ukgameshows.com

SLC Punk www.photobucket.com

Good Will Hunting www.wikedlocal.com

House www.tvguide.com

Swingers www.lazydork.com

Sports Night www.nerdsonsports.com

Scrubs www.usatoday.com

Clerks www.cinemalogue.com

The word Longevity isn't thrown around a lot these days...

"Santa" was kind enough to bring me a copy of the Simpsons Movie on DVD this Christmas. Besides watching it two or three times since December 25th, I've been thinking a lot about what makes this movie, and more importantly this franchise, so successful.
As far as the movie is concerned, it miraculously blends the most lovable parts of the series' essence with everything that you want to see from the Simspons on the big screen. Usually movies, going to the theatre that is, is a sort of individualized experience. It's not a rock show, it's not a panel discussion, it's a movie that you enjoy by yourself and just happen to be in a big room with a bunch of other people. (Note: Rocky Horror is obviously not included in this little theory) However, the Simpsons movie was such an experience, not just a movie. The ambiance of the theatre that I was in was as exhilarating as the film itself. Hear the 'ooh's and 'ahh's when certain characters popped up on screen or sharing an uproarious laugh with the most hardcore of fans made the experience that much more special and worth paying whatever ticket prices were to see it large and in person.
Now that the movie is out on DVD, obviously more people will be able to see it and it will bring back that wave of excitement that initially washed over all fans when it was released. But the real success of the movie on DVD hedges on one key point--The Simpsons really know how to make a DVD.
Ever since the first season appeared on shelves in stores, it has been apparent that the creators, producers, actors, and everyone behind the scenes cares about their fans and the value of their products. The price of a set of Simpsons DVDs is meagerly priced when compared to other series which can cost upwards of $50 sometimes.
When you get that season or compilation home, you tear it open (using your blowtorch and hedge clippers, but DVD/CD security issues will be griped about later), and you notice the detail and the effort that goes into every inch of the discs.
From the artwork on the discs themselves, to the inserts, to the box art, the Simpsons DVDs are some of the most stylish and good looking collections on the market. It's simple but very attractive. This isn't even to mention the work that goes into creating the amusing title menus, writing the inserts, producing the discs and recording commentaries or deleted scene introductions.
The bottom line is that everyone over at the Simpsons camp puts tons of thought, blood, sweat and tears into their products to make certain that the consumer (a loyal fan) will get every penny's worth out of their purchase. For this reason alone, the Simpsons has been able to cultivate a rabidly loyal fanbase that will both continue to grow and retain its membership for (hopefully) years to come.
It doesn't stop at DVDs either. This week (subject to change) the second series of Simpsons figures by McFarlane Toys (the best action figure maker in history, by the way) and the detail in the sculptures, painting and packaging is a reflection of the work ethic and devotion that is shared by the entire staff at FOX and on the show.

Image taken from http://www.toxicshock.tv/ and http://www.toysick.com/ respectively