SCTV Volume 1 (2004) NR
Other than seeing reruns on cable and listening to Bob and Doug on their Great White North album, I missed SCTV completely. The few episodes I've seen are pure gold and this collection of nine 90 minute episodes is the mother lode. All episodes are drawn from the original season with Bob and Doug McKenzie, Yellowbelly, Lola Heatherton, and Johnny LaRue, as portrayed by the likes of John Candy, Eugene Levy, Rick Moranis, and Catherine O'Hara. Unlike SNL, which tends to deliver humor from below the belt line, the gang from Second City comes across as the North American answer to Monty Python. Commentary by Joe Flaherty and Eugene Levy provides perspective. Four new documentaries, including a memorial to John Candy, are a completely unnecessary bonus to send this collection over the top as the DVD boxed set to acquire in 2004 (the close runner up being Volume 2, due in September). If you know a fan of comedy, this is the perfect birthday gift to complete their DVD collection (mine's coming up on the 29th, thanks for asking).