Upcoming Spy TV On DVD

TVShowsOnDVD has done it again, posting exciting news about two eagerly anticipated new season sets of spy shows. First come full specs on 24: Season Six, and it looks to be the most loaded season yet in terms of extras! Highlights include more commentaries than ever before, loads of deleted scenes including (weirdly) a deleted cameo from the great Ricky Gervais (who made his first post-Office appearance and dramatic debut on another spy show, Alias), mobisodes, a whole slew of featurettes on pretty much every aspect of production, a Season 7 Preview, and the icing on the cake, the entire 24 parody episode of The Simpsons, to which Kiefer Sutherland and Mary Lynn Rajskub lent their voices! What's not included, however, is a "prequel" to the next season, a feature that's proven popular on the last couple of DVD sets, even if it usually amounts to nothing more than an extended car commercial. This is probably due to all the delays on shooting Season 7. But, hey, we get that Simpsons episode! Which is awesome. (Even if it is billed as an Easter Egg.)

Next up is the long-awaited American debut of the fifth season of MI-5, or Spooks, as it's known in England. MI-5 started out as a superior British alternative to 24, but has become more and more like 24 as it's progressed. Still, it's a terrific, engaging espionage show, and I continue to find it more enjoyable than its American counterpart. Season 4 ended on a cliffhanger (as most seasons do), and the wait for Americans to find out what happens has seemed interminable. Indeed, when Season 5 finally does debut on DVD on January 8, 2008, it will have been a whole year! This DVD release also comes prior to the season's Stateside broadcast premiere, which is just as well as the broadcast versions of the hour-long show are severely cut. It initially aired on A&E in the US, but now appears on BBC America. More good news is that the five-disc set will be considerably cheaper than previous installments at just $35.98.