DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
Buena Vista Home Entertainment

- From the very first episode, "Desperate Housewives" was a runaway hit! It's as if the show's creator, Marc Cherry taped into a hidden vein in the American psyche because audiences immediate related to it and tuned in by the thousands each week. As you watch the 23 episodes back to back, you understand why this show is so entertaining. It is dishy, quirky fun! Cherry gathered an enormous ensemble cast and weaved an engaging plot about a group of women, their pain and pleasure, their families, their love and the consequences of desperate actions.

The dear friends of Mary Alice (Brenda Strong), the narrator of each episode, become even closer as they recover from the shock of her suicide. The beautiful, well-manicured upscale Wisteria Lane neighborhood can't believe that this happy housewife has killed herself. In fact, like Mary Alice, her friends -- Susan (Teri Hatcher "Superman"), a divorcee with a teenage daughter; Bree (Marcia Cross "Melrose Place"), a Martha Stewart-type A personality; Lynette (Felicity Huffman "West Wing"), a former corporate star who is now a frazzled mommy and Gabrielle (Eva Longaria "General Hospital"), a former model dying of boredom -- appear to be perfect, too. But behind closed doors they struggle with loveless marriages, loneliness, infidelity and pent-up anger. However, when they find a threatening letter sent Mary Alice, they realize that she was being blackmailed and they set out to investigate.

Meanwhile when handsome plumber Mike Delfino (James Denton) moves to town, Susan must compete for his attention with wily sex kitten, Edie Britt (Nicollette Sheriden "Knot's Landing"). Gabrielle is sleeping with her teenage gardener and must outwit her mother-in-law. Bree's family declares war on her "Stepford" wife attitude about everything and Lynette tries to regain to control in her household. Also, Susan stumbles onto Mike's true reasons for moving to Wisteria Lane.

This is high-class soapy melodrama with murder, kidnapping, blackmail and more plot twists involving relationships than you can imagine. Somehow, Cherry manages to create creditable women and men. He certainly illuminates every woman's frustration with family who take her for granted, selfish kids and distant husbands. He also spotlights subtle problems that men possess too. We can understand Mary Alice's husband's (Roger Bart) anger toward the blackmailer, Mr. Hooper and we sympathize with Rex van der Kamp's (Steven Culp) issues too. And, who hasn't wanted to wring the necks to misbehaving kids! Of course, everything leads up to a breathless finale. All of the actors are magnificent.

The 6 disc set is stuffed with features that fans will adore. There are unrated, extended episodes, deleted scenes, audio commentary with Marc Cherry and a walk through Wisteria Lane with Cherry. Furthermore, Oprah Winfrey (the woman with everything) stars in featurette as a new neighbor on Wisteria Lane and it's clear that she wishes to be a part of the show! Poor Oprah! There is also a behind the scenes documentary and much, much more! This is a very entertaining DVD set and everyone will absolutely love it!

MIND HUNTERS
Dimension Home Video

- Director Renny Harlin's latest thriller, "Mind Hunters" should have been a tight, well-constructed thriller but unfortunately it's not. While there are spooky elements and some fancy red-herrings among the clues in this whodunit, the finale is a bit of a letdown.

A group of FBI agents are in the finale stages of 'Profile' training. Of course, the whole point of the training is to track and catch serial killers. But the instructor (Val Kilmer) feels that the agents need one more extreme exercise. He drops the group on a remote, isolated island off the coast of Virginia and tells them that they must profile a killer as a group. Each member has their strengths and weaknesses. Kathryn Morris (TV's "Cold Case") stars a woman whose sister was brutal murdered by a killer who was never caught. Christian Slater portrays the natural leader of the group; Johnny Lee Miller is the shy guy who has grown close to Morris and Patricia Velasquez ("The Mummy") is a hot-spot agent whose weakness is cigarettes. There is also an agent in a wheelchair, an explosives expert and a new addition for the exercise, an Washington investigator played by LL Cool J.

Of course, there quickly go wrong and one of the agents is actually murdered. When the team realizes that help is not immediately on the way, they also figure that the killer is on the island and that it is one of the team. There is some interesting tension as the cat-and-mouse plot unfolds, loyalties are tested and betrayed, and more members of the group die. But, the payoff is not as exciting as the initial idea!

The disc includes audio commentary by Renny Harlin, featurettes about the cast, stunt sequences and a director's walk through the unique set.

PRINCESS STORIES Vol 3: Beauty Shines Within & PRINCESS SING ALONG SONGS
Disney DVD

- Disney's delightful animated series will thrill every little girl that sees it! The latest volume of "Princess Stories" are tales about being true to yourself. Jasmine and Ariel discover that what really matters is self confidence and Cinderella reveals how she became a princess. In "Princess Sing Along," there is a wonderful tea party with games and delightful songs like "Some Day My Prince Will Come," "So This is Love," and "Something There" from your favorite Disney movies like "Beauty and The Beast," "The Little Mermaid" and "Mulan."

Each of the discs has wonderful treats. "Sing Along" has karaoke music and games. "Princess Stories" has a story builder that lets little girls create their own stories.

POWER RANGERS SPD: Stakeout & POWER RANGERS SPD: Wired
Buena Vista Home Entertainment

- These new editions of Volume 2 & 3 of Power Rangers SPD feature exciting action for their fans. In "Stakeout," our heroes find themselves battling intergalactic wrongdoers who are committing crimes and turning everyone into living dolls. In, "Wired," S.P.D. defend Earth from a seismic catastrophe, a secret supernatural stone and demons from the past. It's an all-out alien search-and-destroy mission with plenty of action.

Each disc includes S.P.D. featurettes and Flight Simulator.

Edited by Veronica Mixon
images courtesy of Buena Vista, Dimension and Disney.

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