Deny it all you want — but as our neighbourhood Lowes Starbucks made it abundantly clear this week by decking itself in holiday cheer — ’tis the season. And to help you get the most bang for your buck, theTVaddict.com will periodically be highlighting ridiculously good TV on DVD deals for the TV Addict in your life.

Today’s stocking-stuffer, ALLY MCBEAL: THE COMPLETE SERIES on DVD for a mere $78.99. That amounts to a whopping 61% off the regular price of $199.98 for the show that turned Calista Flockhart into a star. Click here to check it out.

Thanks again to @justjody for the TIp!

Starring the multiple award–winning Kyra Sedgwick as one of television’s feistiest and most provocative police women, this DVD will showcase all 15 episodes from the series’ fourth year, as well as bonus material in a four-disc collection. All of which can be yours (for free!) should you be able to answer this ridiculously challenging skill-testing question: How many degrees is Kyra Sedgwick away from Kevin Bacon and why?

One winner will be chosen at random and notified via email on June 3, so be sure to enter using a valid email address. Not a winner? THE CLOSER Season 4 is now available on Amazon for only $25.99.

KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL
Before THE HANGOVER propels small screen star Bradley Cooper into the big screen leading man that he so richly deserves to be, why not be the quasi-obnoxious guy/gal who can say, “I remember him when!” by checking out his 13 episode stint as brilliant bad boy chef Jack Bourdain, in the short-lived FOX series that took us behind-the-scenes of the zany and unpredictable world of New York Eateries. A behind the scenes that we should also mention features an unforgettable supporting cast including Nicholas Brendon, John Francis Daley, Jaimie King, Bonnie Somerville, Owain Yeoman, John Cho, Frank Langella, Sam Pancake and guest appearances by John Larroquette and Michael Vartan. (Only $13.99 on Amazon)

GROSSE POINTE
Chronicling the on-screen and off-screen antics of a spoiled group of twenty-something actors that may bare a passing resemblance to the gangs from BEVERLY HILLS 90210 and DAWSON’S CREEK comes this wickedly funny and spot on satire from Darren Star, the man who practically invented the genre. Don’t believe us, see for yourself by checking out this hilarious opening scene. (Only $14.99 on Amazon)

KIDNAPPED
The best part of KIDNAPPED, aside from the well-paced story and all-star cast (including Jeremy Sisto, Timothy Hutton, Delroy Lindo and Dana Delaney to name a few) is that when NBC yanked it off the air after a mere three episodes, they did so with enough time to allow creator Jason Smilovic to craft a proper ending. Thus making this brilliant-but-cancelled series 13 episodes of suspenseful, high quality story-telling that best of all, won’t have fans pulling out their hair out and asking what happens next. (Only $14.99 on Amazon)

SPORTS NIGHT
Aaron Sorkin’s journey behind-the-scenes of an ESPN-style Sports Centre was not only the perfect guise to deal with polarizing issues like drug abuse, steroids and racism [both on the field and off], it featured an absolutely all-star cast and a will-the-or-won’t they between Casey and Dana [Peter Krause and Felicity Huffman] that still makes us smile. ($40.29 on Amazon)

EVERWOOD
And while this last pick may not exactly fall within our criteria of short-lived, now is the time to catch up on EVERWOOD’s first season, prior to the much-anticipated June 16 release of EVERWOOD season two. (Only $19.99 on Amazon)

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Now, the folks at Shout Factory have released the first 31 episodes of the primetime drama (with a second 31-episode set due to be released on July 14). So how does the show hold up some 45 years later? Better than it’s modern-day counterparts. For where today’s soaps tend to focus on splashy tales about tornadoes (ALL MY CHILDREN), Mob wars (GENERAL HOSPITAL) and psychos-du-jour (AS THE WORLD TURNS), PEYTON PLACE takes us back to a time when plots were character-driven as opposed to event-driven.

As the black-and-white episodes unfold, we are introduced to young, innocent Allison MacKenzie (played by an impossibly young Mia Farrow), who is being wooed by rich bad boy Rodney Harrington (Ryan O’Neal). Of course, a two-person love story is rather bland, so thrown into the mix is Rodney’s ex, troubled Betty Anderson (Barbara Parkins), whom we actually get to watch evolve from a selfish child into a budding vixen thanks to the cruel fates and the pressures of living in a town where everybody knows everyone else’s dirty little secrets.

The romance is swoon-worthy as Allison falls in love for the very first time and viewers, privy to what’s going on with rival Betty, anticipate the heartache to come. Meanwhile, Allison’s mother, Constance MacKenzie (Dorothy Malone) has both a secret and a romance of her own… if she can get handsome new town doc Michael Rossi (Ed Nelson) to stop spending so much time with Laura Brooks (Patricia Breslin). Meanwhile, Betty’smom, Julie (Kasey Rogers), divides her time between avoiding the fists of her abusive husband, George (Henry Beckman), and the not-entirely-unwanted kisses of her boss, Leslie Harrington (Paul Langton), who happens to be Rodney’s pop. When Rodney catches his dad kissing Betty’s mom, a chain of events is set in motion that impacts all their lives.

This is classic soap opera, complete with cliffhangers and overwrought musical cues, scandalous secrets and romantic rivalries, and it’s a must-have for any fan of the genre (or any viewer who misses “the good old days” of soaps). But one word of warning: Don’t start this five-disc collection unless you have several hours to kill, because anyone with even the slightest tendency toward addictive behavior will find themselves saying, “Okay, just one more episode” until they’ve raced through the entire collection.

PEYTON PLACE is available on Amazon.com

After an almost intolerable five year wait, my fellow TV Addicts (and more specifically, podcast partner Ariel) who only discovered the magic of EVERWOOD through DVD will finally get to find out, “What happened to Colin?!” With Warner Home Video officially announcing this morning that EVERWOOD: The Complete 2nd Season is finally coming to DVD this June 16, 2009.

According to TV Shows on DVD, who broke the news, the 6-disc set running 968 minutes will include all 22 hour-long episodes in beautiful widescreen and cost $39.98 (SRP).

Needless to say, stay tuned to theTVaddict.com for announcements with regards to when the DVD will be available for pre-order on Amazon and what fans can expect in terms of extras. We think it goes without saying that our fingers remain firmly crossed for a very special episode commentary courtesy of Everwood’s resident doctor’s Andy Brown and Harold Abbott.

UPDATE: EVERWOOD: The Complete Second Season is now available for pre-order for only $25.99 (That’s 35% off!) Click here to head on over to Amazon.com.

Thanks to theTVaddict.com reader Luke for the Tip!

KYLE XY takes teen alienation to a whole new level. Most teens don’t feel like they belong to their peers, family and sometimes the human race. That’s never been truer as in the case of Kyle XY (Matt Dallas) who in season one of this ABC Family series woke up nude in a forest near Seattle with no memory of how he got there. In fact, Kyle woke with no memories at all and no connection to any family, place or time. Yet Kyle he possesses superhuman strength and a powerful brain that can do complex calculus like most of us add one plus one. Kyle’s purpose is to find out who he is.

In season two (a full 23 episodes compared to the opening season’s 10), Kyle’s continues to study under Adam Baylin (J. Eddie Peck) who teaches Kyle about his otherworldly powers, like mental telepathy, and provides further clues about his origins. The crucial one being that Adam wasn’t born, but created in a lab.

However, Kyle keeps his studies with Baylin secret from the Tragers, his adopted family. This strains Kyle’s relationship with parents Nicole and Stephen (Marguerite MacIntyre & Bruce Thomas) who continue to prefer Kyle to their own teenage children, Lori and Josh. Meanwhile, Kyle further develops his attraction to neighbour girl Amanda (Kirsten Prout).

In season two, a major storyline emerges when an “XX” female like Kyle (played by Jaimie Alexander) is “hatched” and wakes up naked in a forest as a wild savage. She roams the Seattle area until the company that created her, Madacorp, hunts her down and reprograms her into Jessi. Jessi becomes Kyle’s foil: vicious and ready to kill. And her target is Kyle.

With its brooding pacing, paranoid atmosphere and setting in the American northwest (filmed in B.C.), KYLE XY sometimes feels like the son of X-Files. It’s really a whitebread soap opera about teens searching for their identity. However, the show avoids slipping into cheesiness due to its strong writing and smart casting starting with lead, Matt Dallas, who plays Kyle as strange, yet always sympathetic. We want to learn who Kyle is.

The DVD package rewards fans of the show. It packs eight incisive audio commentaries by the producers, writers, directors and stars across six discs. Further commentaries are found on all the many outtakes, including the alternate ending to the season finale. Two of the three featurettes are worth viewing. The Science of XY reveals the influence of Einstein, the genius who gestated longer than usual and inspired the show’s premise: what if someone gestated for 16 years? Living with the Xs is a fun day-in-the-life of stars Dallas and Alexander, from dawn to dusk as they arrive early on set, work out in a gym, record voice-over in a studio, and do promo events like a block party. The other featurette, Facing the Future, is a fluffy cookie-cutter promo where the stars and creators hype the current season.

Overall, this is a worthy package for KYLE XY fans and serves to promote season three which premieres on January 12.

In celebration of GREEK: Chapter Two hitting shelves (and Amazon) this week, we’re giving away one copy of the DVD to one lucky reader.

To enter to win one of this TV Addict’s favorite shows of 2008, simply let us know in the comments below who your favorite student at Cyprus-Rhodes University is. And be sure to check your email box on January 7, 2009 to find out if you won.

With Juno making teen pregnancy palatable to mainstream American audiences, ABC Family’s THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER seems to have struck a chord among teens looking for a TV drama that talks about sex and parenting on their terms.  Well, they’ve found it here, though the overall show could be better.

The DVD cover says it all: star Shailene Woodley (as sweet 15-year-old Amy Juergens) in profile gazing down at the bulge within her blue maternity dress.  That’s the result when she lost her virginity to fellow marching band member Ricky Underwood (Daren Kagasoff) at band camp over the summer. 

Early episodes find Amy struggling to tell her parents (including her mother played by former teen movie queen Molly Ringwald) and current boyfriend Ben (Kenny Baumann) who is a nice kid who offers to marry her.  In later episodes, it gets harder for Amy to hide her pregnancy, and her circle of family and friends  at Ulysses S. Grant High School have to deal with her situation.

Meanwhile, Amy’s ex and the father of her child, Ricky receives counselling to treat his rampant promiscuity.  His therapist (Ernie Hudson best known for Ghostbusters) traces Ricky’s condition to sexual abuse inflicted by Ricky’s father.  Ironically, Ricky is now dating the school’s blonde cheerleading babe, Grace Bowman (Megan Park), who is a devote Christian committed to abstinence until marriage.  That’s right: the school nympho and the Born Again are a couple.

The show scores points for talking about teen sex and pregnancy openly in a society that’s still debating whether to make sex ed and contraception obligatory in all its schools.  There’s no cheap innuendo on this show.  Instead, this is a rare and honest reflection of teen sexuality on American TV.

The show’s diverse casting also deserves credit.  By this I mean seeing not only  Asian and black faces, but those with handicaps (Down Syndrome), single-parent households (Amy’s) and foster care (Ricky).  THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER is more realistic than the bland whitebread cast of say THE OC which in the age of Obama suddenly look old.

That’s not to say THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER is perfect.  It’s a soap opera driven by various storylines about relationships, cheating and betrayal threaded together as in so many other series.  The show needs more laughs to relieve the melodrama and speed up the sometimes plodding tempo, but ABC Family may fear that would trivialize the show’s issues.

The DVD set is threadbare.  The first 11 episodes are presented on three discs, and the only bonus feature is a forgettable on-set peek at the cast.  Really, this set is to warm up viewers before ABC Family broadcasts new episodes in a few weeks.  While I applaud this series for having integrity I hope it  sharpens its edges and finds its voice.

THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER hits shelves on Tuesday December 30, 2008

Adds the TV Addict: I’m with you CouchTater. Because really, who needs to add such favorites like EVERWOOD and JACK & BOBBY to my DVD collection when CBS/Paramount just announced that the second season of CAROLINE IN THE CITY will be released on March 10th, 2009!

Got a TV-related pet peeve you need to get off your chest? Send it to us at info@thetvaddict.com or better yet, a tweet via twitter.

Since Halloween is just around the corner, theTVaddict.com thought we’d have a little fun with our latest giveaway, 30 ROCK Season 2 on DVD.

Available in stores on October 7, 2008, the second season of 30 ROCK not only includes all fifteen episode of the Emmy Award Winning Series. But also some genuinely unique bonus features. Including an episode table read, a behind-the-scenes look at Tina Fey preparing to host SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE and 30 ROCK LIVE AT THE UCB THEATRE, where the entire cast gathered to do a live performance of the 30 ROCK episode “Secrets and Lies” to benefit the striking members of the Writer’s Guild of America.

To enter to win, simply post way in the comments below with what you’re planning on wearing for Halloween.

But before you take your DVD behind the middle school to get it pregnant [as TGS' Tracy Jordan might put it] there’s a catch. Or rather a trick! TWO winners will be notified via email on October 31st, 2008. But only one will be open their mailbox to find 30 ROCK on DVD. One of our ‘lucky’ winners will be receiving a Halloween Trick, also known as season one of FOX’s short-lived Michael Rappaport ‘comedy’ THE WAR AT HOME.

So enter to win, if you dare. [BWA HA HA Ha ha hahaha]