Small Screen, Big Boxes

Babylon 5 The Complete Series

BLU-RAY (WARNER) Farscape The Complete Series BLU-RAY (SHOUT! STUDIOS)

Creator J. Michael Straczynski’s slick mid-‘90s Babylon 5 brings together disparate alien races in good times and bad. The space station of the title is a U.N. of sorts, headquarters for an epic five-year arc (111 episodes) of high-stakes intergalactic politics. This “novel for television” is a commitment but definitely worth it for fans of serialized sci-fi. Debuting a few years later, Rockne S. O'bannon’s Farscape took a more free-spirited approach, following fish-out-of-water human astronaut Crichton as he’s delivered to a strange, distant galaxy. There’s an abundance of weird creatures, including plenty of Jim Henson Company animatronics (don’t call them Muppets!), making and breaking alliances in their bid to stay one step ahead of the Peacekeepers. Cancelled after four seasons (88 episodes), the series includes here the cliffhanger-resolving Peacekeeper Wars mini-series, along with 30 commentary tracks, a new retrospective and lots more.

ALF The Complete Series

DELUXE EDITION DVD (SHOUT! STUDIOS)

For sci-fi with big dash of comedy, the lovable “alien life form” better known as ALF lands with all 99 episodes (including the edited "Try To Remember"), restored to full broadcast length, plus the cleverly cast 1996 TV movie finale, Project: ALF. Also here are The Animated Series prequel and ALF Tales, putting the furry visitor from Melmac into popular children's stories. A new retrospective gives creators Paul Fusco and Tom Patchetta chance to reflect, and select episode commentaries are delivered by ALF and Patchett.

Columbo The 70s

BLU-RAY (KINO LORBER STUDIO CLASSICS)

Following two pilot movies, Lt. Columbo became a more-or-less-monthly staple as part of NBC’S rotating Mystery Movie lineup, starting with the Steven Spielberg-directed episode, “Murder by the Book.” The rumpled genius with an endless list of pointed questions has graduated to television icon status. All seven “seasons” from that 1971 to 1978 run have been remastered at 4K by Universal and are presented by KLSC in excellent 1080p quality, with crisp digital audio and even an isolated music/effects track for all episodes plus a handy printed series guide.

The Flash The Complete Series

BLU-RAY (WARNER)

The longest-running (see what I did there?) show in DC’S interconnected “Arrowverse,” The Flash (starring Grant Gustin, not Ezra Miller) crossed the finish line this year, leaving behind a gallery of defeated super-powered rogues and heaps of personal drama. Surprisingly ambitious for weekly broadcast TV in its scope and its visual effects, Flash was good comic book television, fun and exciting, and all 34 HD/5.1 discs from the nine single-season releases are neatly repacked here, so all of the extras are intact.