True Blood The Complete Second Season
DVD/Blu-ray
Writers/Directors: Alan Ball, Adam Davidson, Daniel Minahan, John Dahl, Michael Cuesta, Michael Lehmann
Starring: Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Sam Trammell, Ryan Kwanten, Rutin Wesley, Alexander Skarsgård, Nelsan Ellis, Deborah Ann Woll, Michelle Forbes
HBO Home Video
Release Date: May 25, 2010

The first season of HBO’s True Blood was something of a surprise hit. The crazy new b-movie-like series took some getting used to at first, but once you were engaged, there was no going back. With franchises like The Twilight Saga making loads of money off dumbed-down, sparkle-happy, family-friendly vampires, the ultra-violent and relentlessly graphic vampire drama unfolding in the southern town of Bon Temps was a bloody fresh new title to embrace.

The one thing about True Blood, however, that was hinted at in the first season and was completely unleashed in this second season, was that this is NOT just a show about vampires…not even close.

Amazon’s week of HBO DVD deals continues with today’s Gold Box spotlight deal of the day, Six Feet Under: The Complete Series DVD box set for only $67.99 (that’s 62% off the list price of $179.98).

This sale is for today only while supplies last.

The set 25-disc set contains all five seasons of the Alan Ball dramatic series, plus two bonus soundtracks, audio commentary, deleted scenes, episode previews and recaps, and several featurettes (Ball is also the creator of HBO’s True Blood). [Update: the latest set has similar design, but is not as pictured.] The packaging on this one is mighty creative: the top of the box looks like a stone grave marker with the show’s name and years of running (2001-2005) surrounded by grass, with the rest of the box made to look like dirt. The set also comes with an exclusive illustrated booklet with character obituaries and memories from the show’s creators.

For those of you not familiar with the show, its main selling point right now might be that it starred Michael C. Hall, known now for playing the serial killer who offs serial killers on Showtime’s Dexter.

True Blood
Season 1 DVD
Series Creator, Writer, Director: Alan Ball
Starring: Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Ryan Kwanten, Sam Trammell, Rutina Wesley, Nelsan Ellis
HBO Home Entertainment
Release Date: May 19, 2009

By taking the blood of the night into our bodies, we water the flowers of our souls.

Nothing is real.

Everything is permitted.

Deep south. Rednecks. Vampires that live among us. These are the main components to True Blood, the ultra-graphic HBO show from Alan Ball (American Beauty) which has completed their first incredibly successful first season and is currently moving into their second season.

The show is based on the The Southern Vampire Mysteries series of books and follows young Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a simple southern belle with the mysterious ability to read minds who works as a waitress at Merlotte’s, the local bar in Bon Temps, Louisiana — a religious town that doesn’t have any known vampire residents. One day in this quiet town, a vampire named Bill (Stephen Moyer) shows up at the bar, and Sookie immediately greets him with a glowing curiosity which turns into real chemistry after she saves his life. This newfound vampire connection has Sookie’s boss Sam (Sam Trammell) and best friend Tara (Rutina Wesley) angry and watching carefully. Unfortunately, right around the time that Bill the vampire shows up, multiple women in this small town start showing up dead and no one really knows why — but many are quick to point a sharp finger, either at Bill, or at Sookie’s ladies man brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten), who is always romantically (physically) connected to the victims.

In this last day of Amazon’s week of HBO DVD deals, today’s Gold Box spotlight item is Six Feet Under – The Complete Series Gift Set for $59.99 (down 67% off the original price of $179.90).

The set 25-disc set contains all five seasons of the Alan Ball heavy dramatic series, plus two bonus soundtracks, audio commentary, deleted scenes, episode previews and recaps, and several featurettes (you might recognize creator Ball’s name now for his latest HBO offering True Blood). As far as packaging goes, this one’s genius: the top of the box looks like a stone grave marker with the show’s name and years of running (2001-2005) surrounded by grass, with the rest of the box made to look like dirt. The set also comes with an exclusive illustrated booklet with character obituaries and memories from the show’s creators.

Math time: At a total of $59.99, that works out to just under $12 per season, which usually run at nearly $40 each, so this is a super savings.

For those of you not familiar with the show, it’s main selling point right now might be that it starred Michael C. Hall, known now for playing the serial killer who offs serial killers on Showtime’s Dexter. In Six Feet Under, after their father dies, two brothers must help their meek mother Ruth (Frances Conroy) by running the family business — a funeral home. Hall’s character David, who’s in the closet, is actually the good son, while prodigal son Nate (Peter Krause) returns home reluctantly to serve as co-director of the funeral home.