Who Needs A Desert Island When You Can Move

I’ve always enjoyed those lists about what 5 albums, books, or movies people would choose to have if stranded on a desert island. Of course the fundamental flaw in these lists is the fact that you’d never have a chance to actually pre-select these items as you don’t usually know when you’ll get stranded on said island. However, due to my impending move I think I’ve discovered a real world way of putting a variation of these lists into practice.

Being that about 95% of my blog readership is familiar with me outside of the e-world, most of you know me as an organizationally motivated person. This of course is a nice way of saying I’m borderline obsessive compulsive about making lists, updating lists, and completing lists. This has translated to my moving, and eventually led me to being pretty much all packed up 3 weeks ahead of time.

When it came to VHS tapes, books, and music my choices were pretty easy. My VCR had just broken so the tapes could be packed away, perhaps never to see the light of day again. Books were easy since I had two I’m reading right now that should easily last until my move is done. Thanks to the iPod, CDs/albums weren’t a concern and were also packed up. DVDs though were another story altogether.

I watch a lot of TV but let’s face it, sometimes there is nothing on and you like to have backup. While my DVD collection is not huge, it’s certainly competent of filling in the occasional 2 or 3 hour vacuum in my entertainment life. The obsessive packer in me wanted to pack them all up but my better judgment won out and I kept a few “desert island” DVDs.

First, I grabbed all 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy is one of my top 3 shows of all time and had been on mind of late. I figured I might not watch all 7 seasons but there is at least 1 episode on each disc that would be fun to watch. It’s one week later and I’ve been crushing pretty heavy on the show and am already up to season 6. What started out as one episode a disc has turned into watching at least parts of every episode. There are so many moments and lines from this show that are a part of my consciousness, and yet I always find new stuff too. For example, one line that worked its way into my day to day speak had been “A world of no,” from the musical. It has grown stale for me so imagine how excited I was to discover its sister saying “A zillion gallons of no,” in a later episode. This is the kind of stuff that always keeps Buffy fresh to me. You would think that a complete 7 seasons of a show would be enough to last me 3 weeks but I anticipated that once I started Buffy I’d become totally engrossed, so I grabbed a couple of backups.

The second DVD I grabbed was the 10th anniversary edition of Clerks aka Clerks X. Since we’ve got Clerks II, my #1 most anticipated flick of the summer, coming out on Friday I figured why not take a viewing of the original. Clerks is not my favorite Kevin Smith film but it holds a special place in my heart. It was one of the movies that inspired me to write and work in the film industry. It was also the first film I felt truly spoke to my generation. This edition of the DVD is also one of the finest sets I’ve ever seen. In addition to the 2 versions of the flick and the multiple commentaries, there’s a stellar documentary that runs about 90 minutes. All of K Smith’s movies have had top notch DVDs but this one is the bomb, yo.

Lastly I figured I needed another multiple season set so I went with the natural progression from Buffy which of course would be the 5 seasons of Angel. A highly underrated show if ever there was one, Angel lacks the consistent quality of Buffy but exceeds it in some individual episodes. We’ll see how much I dig into it after I’m done with Buffy but I figure I’ll at least make it through the Buffy crossovers and the fantastic final season.

So that left me with 13 DVD sets which is certainly an odd number (and also a prime number). If I had to rank them I think I’d go:

1. Buffy Season 3- I think Faith and the mayor put this slightly ahead of season 2 with Spike, Dru, and Angelus..
2. Buffy Season 2- A narrow miss from the one spot thanks to some forgettable early season eps.
3. Clerks X- One of the best parts of this edition is the animated version of the missing scene at the funeral home that was deemed too expensive to shoot originally.
4. Angel Season 5- So many reasons to love this season. Spike, Andrew, Fred/Illyria, and of course, what I consider to be, the best last episode of a show ever.
5. Angel Season 2- The Darla factor and the move into the hotel gave the show its own identity separate from Buffy. The two part finale in the alternate universe sounded horrible on paper but really stands out as a high point for the show in terms of execution.
6. Buffy Season 5- I’ve never been a Dawn hater and Glory was my favorite big bad next to the Mayor.
7. Buffy Season 6- Two of my favorite episodes from the show with the musical and it’s follow up Tabula Rosa, along with one of the most disturbing scenes ever when Spike attempts to rape Buffy, make this season memorable for more then it’s soul crushing depression.
8. Angel Season 3- Up until the arrival of the Connor man child, this season was humming along. The ballet episode is one of the best the show ever did.
9. Buffy Season 7- The ending felt a bit rushed and surprisingly it seemed like Eliza Dukshu (Faith) was phoning in her performance. Still, the writers did a nice job of giving all the characters some form of closure.
10. Angel Season 4- The whole Cordy/Connor thing was ick, but the return of Angelus and a great season finale with the wolf, the ram and the heart tend to make me like this season more and more.
11. Buffy Season 4- The Initiative and Adam never floated my boat but the standout eps of Hush and Restless truly showed how Joss Whedon was growing as both writer and director.
12. Angel Season 1- I know Doyle’s exit was planned but I still find it more annoying then emotionally jarring. I still don’t think Joss knew exactly what this show was going be then.
13. Buffy Season 1- Glimpses of perfection but overall very uneven. The Master was great but when I watch this season now I really just got more of a nostalgia vibe then anything.

So there you have it, the 13 DVD sets I’d leave out when moving or if you prefer, take to a desert island. Of course if I knew I was going to a desert island, I think I’d load up on food, drink and living supplies but that’s a list for another day.