There are a number of good choices this week, starting with one of my favorite TV shows: Eureka Season 3.5. Another good show from the same channel has its season 1 release as well, Warehouse 13. This is just in time to catch up with the previous season before the new seasons launch on July 6th and 9th, but also on the 9th they are launching a new Steven King TV series on Syfy, Haven.
While it wasn’t a traditional TV series but more of a Machinima, I am excited to note that Red vs Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles is being released this week as well. This box set DVD includes the complete first 5 seasons of this very funny and combat intensive program.
There are some good selections from the world of live action movies. Kicking off a new franchise that hopes to pull from the ranks of the Harry Potter phenomenon, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief was thoroughly enjoyable. Like Potter, the movie was based on the first of a series of books, so there is the promise of more fine adventures to come. Another good film is Hot Tub Time Machine, which surprised me in the theaters. I went in expecting just some silly fun, but there was a bit more depth than the trailer would lead you to believe.
On the Anime front, Gintama 2 continues the story of Edo-era Japan invaded by aliens who installed a spaceport and modern city in the 17th century. They also made it illegal for Samurai to use their swords, and put the majority of the population into sweatshops working for the alien masters. Our protagonists are a Samurai named Sakata Gintoki and his companions in the Yoruzuya Gin-chan odd jobs shop, taking any job from finding lost pets to saving the world to try to pay the rent. Also this week, the re-release of the Basilisk Complete Series box set Viridian Collection, making the classic Ninja Shogunate supernatural martial arts epic affordable again.
Out of the imported live action choices, Nine Girls and a Ghost appears to be a rather uneven high school wish fulfillment presentation that should entertain anyone in that age range. Likewise Samurai Avenger: Blind Wolf is targeting a limited demographic, the Samurai Cowboy Zombie Gorefest crossover fan base. It actually looks like it might just be campy enough to be entertaining, though. I can’t say the same thing for Ultimate Machine Girl, a release so underwhelming that no one at Rotten Tomatoes even bothered to review it.