Futurama: Volume Two

Hot on the tail of the first volume of this exceptional cartoon series, this collection of episodes is even better, with the same humour that went over so many heads and unfortunately ultimately led to an untimely death of the series. Fry has grown accustomed to his life 1000 years in the future, something that is dealt with in the final episode of this box-set, in which his girlfriend from his previous life joins him and is overwhelmed and disgusted by Fry's adaptation. This second volume also includes some of the series' best chapters, including "The Deep South," in which Fry falls in love with a mermaid from the lost city of Atlanta, as well as "Put Your Head on My Shoulders," in which Amy has the misfortune of having Fry's head surgically attached to her body. Heavily, though understandably, compared to The Simpsons in its beginning stages, Futurama was at this point coming into its own, and a whole new crop of characters and voices had been welcomed. Billy West really is an incredible talent and the life he gives to Fry, as well as several other characters, is truly remarkable. The extras on Volume Two are almost identical to those of the first, with audio commentary on every episode from creator Matt Groening, David X. Cohen, Billy West and others, and are always entertaining, as the participants always crack each other up. The deleted scenes are very small, but with an extremely fast-paced show like this you manage to get in at least three or four jokes in a 30-second clip. One of the downfalls to this box-set is the lack of information on the packaging and absence of a booklet to help guide you through the four DVDs. Still, with a television series like this you're best to just put in the DVD and watch the disk from beginning to end. Extras: full-length commentary; deleted scenes; animatics; storyboards; concept gallery; more. (Fox)