• Curse of Lontiki - The Chipmunks are doing a tour in Hawaii and Alvin enters a surfing contest, but he thinks the trinket he found on the beach is cursed and will bring him bad luck.
• Mr. Fabulous - Theodore enters a wrestling match against a Russian wrestler named Ivan the Terrible, but Simon and Alvin create a super suit to give him the edge.
• Unidentified Flying Chipmunk - Alvin convinces Theodore to dress up as an alien to provide a boost in their publicity, but government forces capture him and plan to do experiments on him.
• A Horse of Course - Alvin, Simon, and Theodore buy a horse hoping to turn him into a racing champion. An old horse.
• New Improved Simon - Simon has a crush and Alvin helps him change his image to get the girl. On a side note, listening to The Chipmunks perform "Born to Be Wild" killed a little of my soul.
• Snow Job - Alvin fast talks his way into a skiing competition. The only problem, he doesn't know how to ski.
• Maids in Japan - The Chipmunks' concert tour in Japan is going poorly because there's no publicity, but Alvin has a plan to fix this. A plan that involves Kabuki theater.
• Every Chipmunk Tells A Story - After an accident involving pudding and a piano, Alvin, Simon, and Theodore explain how it all happens, separately. It goes without saying their stories don't exactly match.
• Romancing Miss Stone - Alvin's sudden interest in school is explained by his new teacher, Miss Stone, who is hot... at least she's hot compared to most cartoon characters.
...What?
• Three Alarm Alvin - The Chipmunks decide to start a fire department, but when they go into a home to put out a fire, they are the ones who need rescuing.
• Alvin's Oldest Fan - The Chipmunks hold a contest to win a date with Alvin, but when the winner turns out to be an old lady, Alvin tries to ditch her.
• A Chip Off the Old Tooth - Theodore has a tooth ache, but he's too scared to go to the dentist, so he hides it from Dave while the gang think up ways of pulling it themselves.
• Whatever Happened to David Seville - Something about Zomboidrigidosis, a bad soap opera, and a wax statue. Quite frankly, it made no sense to me.
• Cadet's Regets - The double-length episode. Here the boys sign up to go to Camp Eagleton, to become men, but they quickly learn that the army life is no life for them and they try to escape.

Alvin and the Chipmunks is a cartoon series with nostalgia as its main appeal. However, I can't image there are a lot of fans excited about The Alvinnnn!!! Edition 2-disc set. It is a Best Of... TV on DVD release without any extras, or even a hint of more volumes to come. It's not even that cheap on a per minute basis. If you loved the show as a kid and haven't seen it in a while, give it a rental. But for most fans, that will be enough.

Caillou - Caillou's Winter Wonders - Buy from Amazon
The latest DVD release for Caillou. Caillou is a Canadian animated series that focuses on the adventures of a 4-year old boy and his family. The show aims to be realistic, which means Caillou occasionally is stubborn, can grow frustrated at times, and forgets to be polite. These behaviors mean he is not always the best role-model, but by showing a protagonist going thing the same situations as the target audience it is more empathetic and as long as there are adults watching with the kids to explain why such behavior is wrong, it should help kids.

This single disc release contains four episodes with fourteen stories that run for 84 minutes in total. There's a winter theme to the stories and in them Caillou waits for the first snow to fall, makes snow angels, learns to skate, goes tobogganing, plays hockey (it is Canadian after all), goes caroling (which I always considered a form of punishment (for both the people wandering in the cold singing and those forced to listen)), learns about winter celebrations (io, Saturnalia!) and learns how Maple Syrup is made.

Extras are limited to short character bios, DVD-Rom features, and a message to parents. This is not much, but it is on par with previous releases from this franchise.

Fans of Caillou should have a fun time with Caillou's Winter Wonders, even if it is way too early for Christmas. (No Christmas before Halloween. Thanks.)

101 Dalmatians 2: Patch's London Adventure - Buy from Amazon
Patch, one of the 99 Dalmatian puppies is depressed. He can't seem to stand out amongst his brothers and sisters and always seems to be pushed back to the rear of the crowd. So while the gang prepared to move to the country, he runs away to London, and runs into his hero, Thunderbolt, the famous TV dog. In the meantime, Cruella De Vil is back on the streets and in an attempt to cure herself of her obsession with the Dalmatian puppies, she become obsessed with an artist... an artist who paints black dots on white canvases. This will end poorly.

A direct-to-DVD sequel to a Disney animated classic. I've lost track of how many such movies there have been. I bet there are very few people at Disney that know exactly how many such films have been released. Granted, this one is better than average compared to the rest of these films, but it is still a far cry from the original. Additionally, there is only one new extra on this version of the DVD compared to the original release, a game called Patch's Twilight Adventure. In this game, you must solve puzzles, travel around a map, play a few mini-games, and collect keys to save your brothers and sisters. This is actually a lot better than most DVD games are and should entertain the kids as they play it a couple of times. And with the other two games, two music videos, and a making-of featurette, the DVD doesn't feel barren, but it doesn't feel worthy of upgrading either.

101 Dalmatians - Buy from Amazon
While making direct-to-DVD sequels to a Disney animated classics is common place, turning them into a live action remake is not. There have been a few updates to the story, including making Roger a computer programmer instead of a songwriter, and Cruella De Vil is the head of a fashion design empire instead of a... I'm not sure what she was in the original. However, while these changes are rather minor, there is a major change. In this version we focus more on the humans, and less on the dogs.

Granted, the movie has an impressive cast, including Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil, and plenty of British actors in smaller parts (Hugh Laurie, Tim McInnerny, Mark Williams, and others). But the dogs should be the stars of the show. Without hearing the voices of the animals, or at least the inner voices of the animals, the film loses a lot of its effectiveness, as they don't have real personalities. I think the filmmakers were assuming Glenn Close performance as Cruella De Vil would be enough, but it wasn't. Additionally, there are no special features on this DVD.

102 Dalmatians - Buy from Amazon
While 101 Dalmatians earned poor reviews, it earned a bundle at the box office and a sequel was inevitable. This time we follow Oddball, the daughter of one of the original 101 Dalmatians, who is born without spots, and Waddlesworth, a parrot who is convinced he is a rottweiler. However, again the star is Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil, who starts the movie in a mental hospital being cured of her obsession with fur coats and paroled. However, the ringing of Big Ben somehow reverses the cure, and she again begins her mad quest to get a Dalmatian puppy fur coat.

If 101 Dalmatians was an unnecessary remake of a classic, this movie is an equally unnecessary sequel. It's not bad per se, but there's little here that sets it apart from the original, which wasn't very good to begin with. The limits its appeal dramatically.

Strangely, while the movie earned barely half of what the original made, this DVD is loaded with extras, especially compared to the original's DVD. Things start with an audio commentary track with the director and several of the animal trainers. There are also three behind-the-scenes featurettes on Cruella De Vil, the animals in the movie, and the sets and costumes. They can be watched separately, or together as an 18-minute featurette. There are four scenes you can watch with various levels of computer special effects. Adults won't learn a lot, but it could be fun for kids. There's a minute-long deleted scene, with optional audio commentary. A short montage with the puppies and finally a featurette on how to choose the right dog, which basically says nothing more than check with a local expert.

Of the three 101 Dalmatians-related films Disney is releasing on DVD this week, it is hard to be enthusiastic about any of them. 101 Dalmatians 2: Patch's London Adventure is arguably the best, but there's little reason to grab this movie over the original, and little reason to grab this DVD over the original release. The weakest of the three movies, 102 Dalmatians, has the best DVD, but I would only check out the live action films if you liked the original, but didn't like hearing the animals talk. I think it is safe to assume there are not many people like that out there.

After the first episode, I was worried that this show would just be another nighttime soap opera about the lives of the rich and power and their petty, self-inflicted problems. Besides Tripp and his wife, Letitia, there are five adult kids to deal with. Patrick is the eldest son, who is being pushed into politics by his father and his wife, but who has a secret that would destroy his career if it ever got out. Karen is the chronically divorced second child who was the childhood sweetheart of Nick, and who still has feelings for Nick, and won't let his marriage, or her upcoming marriage, get in the way. Brain is the outcast of the group who never fit in and instead of going into the family business, he went into the seminary. However, he is anti-social and a misanthrope, which extends to his illegitimate son. Finally there are the two youngest, the twins Jeremy and Juliet, who are the epitome of the spoiled rich kids who are so used to living off of daddy's money that they've lost contact with reality. However, while I was worried this would just be another Dynasty, the writing on the show is amazing, as is the acting. Not all of the storylines were equally interesting, for instance Brian's situation takes up a lot of the first season, but I didn't care because he was too much of a jerk. Also, the twins don't interact with the political intrigue in the show, which limits their screen time. However, while Jeremy became a larger character in the last half of the shortened season, Juliet barely appeared. This was disappointing to me, because she was at least a sympathetic character.

Extras on the 3-disc set are in line with current TV on DVD releases with audio commentary tracks on three episodes (but not the season finale). There are also several deleted scenes, a featurette on the genesis of the show, and another on the style. There are also subtitles, proper chapter placements, and play all buttons.

The writers' strike ended the season after just ten episodes, which means the price per minute on this 3-disc set is a higher than a lot of other network shows. However, Dirty Sexy Money is certainly worth checking out and Season One is worth picking up over just renting.

Iron Man - Buy from Amazon: Single-Disc Edition, Two-Disc Collector's Edition, or Blu-ray
The 2008 summer blockbuster season got off to a great start, as Iron Man beat almost all expectations and opened with $100 million during its first weekend (assuming you count Thursday's box office) while it ended north of $300 million. And it wasn't a case of hype drawing people into the theaters, because the film's reviews were even better than its box office performance.

The movie starts with Tony Stark in a war zone demonstrating his company's latest weapon. However, his convoy is ambushed on the trip back and he is captured by a group of terrorists who force him to build them a weapon. He has other plans. This is one of the best Super Hero movies ever made and combines action with character development. Especially Tony Stark, who is played to perfection by Robert Downey, Jr. And character development is important, as we don't actually see the iconic Iron Man suit until about halfway through the movie. There were a couple times where suspension of disbelief was stretched, but this is a minor complaint, especially given its genre.

Extras on the Single-Disc Edition are terrible with just some deleted scenes. I was really hoping there would be an audio commentary track with the director, Jon Favreau, and star, Robert Downey, Jr in a commentary track, but we only get 11 extended / deleted scenes that run 24 minutes. Some are cool and perhaps could have fitted in the movie, but most were wise choices to cut.

The Two-Disc Collector's Edition has the above deleted scenes, and several major featurettes, starting with I Am Iron Man, a 7-part, 109-minute long making-of documentary. (It's not as long as the movie is, but it is close.) It's very comprehensive and deals with just about every aspect of the filmmaking process, especially the special effects. The Invincible Iron Man is a little under half as long and deals with the character of Iron Man, including its comic book origins and the depth of the mythology. Even hardcore fans of the character should learn something new here. Wired: The Visual Effects of Iron Man is a 27-minute featurette on the special effects, which is clearly an important aspect of the movie. There is a 6-minute screen test for Robert Downey, Jr and a 4-minute behind-the-scenes look at Robert Downey, Jr and Jeff Bridges rehearsing a scene with Jon Favreau. There's also a bit from Onion News Network, which many have probably seen on their official site. Finally, there are a boatload of images.

Unfortunately, I don't have the Blu-ray edition yet, but there will be a BD-Live extra on the disc for those with Profile 2.0 players, as well as other High Definition exclusive extras.

Iron Man is one of the best movies of the year, and one of the biggest hits. Fans of high action summer blockbusters will certainly want to add this movie to their collection. The only question is what version. The Single-Disc Edition is too bare-bones to be worth the meager price. The Two-Disc Collector's Edition is an excellent value and likely will be the DVD Pick of the Week when it comes out. Meanwhile, the Blu-ray edition appears to be worth the upgrade, and depending on how well the additional features are implemented, it could be enough to sell hardware and become the fastest selling Blu-ray ever.