SCTV Network DVD Volume 4 **SPOILERS**
Finally, the entire 5th season (second on NBC) of SCTV is out on DVD, it just came out last Tuesday. I got it at Best Buy for $65.99 whereas most retailers sell it for $89.99. YIPE!
The box art is a blue-ish green with Johnny LaRue, Ed Grimley, Edith Prickley, Guy Caballero and Bobby Bittman on the cover. This was the season after Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas and Catherine O'Hara left the show, though Catherine came back for the Christmas show (bringing Lola Heatherton back also) and made a VERY brief cameo appearance in the last episode of THE DAYS OF THE WEEK. This was the season where Mary Charlotte Wilcox joined the show and brought in new female characters in Catherine's absence, like Janet Halsey the town gossip on TDOTW.
Celebrity guests: Robin Williams (a brilliant parody of John Houseman), Crystal Gayle, John Mellencamp (then known as John Cougar), America, Fred Willard, Ben Vereen, Betty Thomas and Joe Walsh with original SCTVer Harold Ramis and a quick cameo in the last episode by Carol Burnett.
The best sketches (in my opinion) featured in this collection: John Candy as Divine playing Peter Pan, Krishna sings Manilow, "Celebrity Blow-Ups" of Deney Terrio, Bernadette Peters, Neil Sedaka and Dustin Hoffman as Tootsie, Jane Eyrehead, The Driftwood Inn commercials, the Poltergeist parody during sweeps week, the Towering Inferno parody with Edith Prickley's double, Betty Thomas in "South Sea Sinner (John Candy's memorable performance as Cognac)", Brock Linahan Goes Home, the episode of TDOTW where May Madlock covers her living room with tissues because of bacteria and drinks tea from the spout, and saving the best for last--THE QUEEN HATERS!! Complete lyrics to I HATE THE BLOODY QUEEN are included in the liner notes.
NOW FOR THE BAD NEWS--due to copyright reasons, some sketches were edited, including The Happy Wanderers' Salute To John Williams (they used generic polka music in place of Williams' various movie themes) and Count Floyd's Scary Little Christmas where Football's Gene Upshaw and Ed Garvey make their singing debut (they lip-synched The Righteous Brothers' YOU'VE LOST THAT LOVIN' FEELING, but instead we hear frightening sound effects). Volume 3's omission of STAIRWAYS TO HEAVEN really hurt, but I still have it on tape from THE BEST OF SCTV, which ABC aired as counterprogramming to the Olympics in 1988.
Legal issues aside, the entire NBC run of SCTV is now out on DVD. Rejoice!