'GREY'S ANATOMY: SEASON ONE'

Did you miss any of the initial season of this first-rate, sexy dramedy about surgical interns finding their way through medical land mines, hospital politics and personal boundaries? If so, this two-disc set from Buena Vista Home Entertainment ($29.99) gets you back to the roots of Dr. McDreamy, the Nazi, Dr. Model and all the other finely drawn characters who populate the fictional Seattle Grace hospital.

But even if you've seen the first season centered on five fresh interns, including the eponymous Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) and hot-shot doc/love interest Derek Shepherd (hunky Patrick Dempsey), this set offers enough extras to satisfy a hardcore fan's curiosity.

In addition to all nine shows, the discs include several truly insightful bonuses. "Anatomy of a Pilot" has "the toughest cuts" from the introductory episode, along with commentary by creator and executive producer Shonda Rhimes and director Peter Horton (Gary from "thirtysomething"). Rhimes is a pure delight, and her enthusiasm for the show and its characters is infectious, no pun intended. The unaired scenes are fun to watch, especially when you see how the producers moved dialogue and back story from one setting to another.

"Under the Knife" goes behind the scenes with, among others, the medical adviser who furnishes various animal innards to stand in for human organs.

There's also an "Avant-Garde Trailer" in arty black and white, and an alternative main title. While striking, it cannot compare with the show's brilliant opening credit sequence, which fades from zipping up a slinky dress to tying on surgical scrubs, and from a saline drip to a stream of vodka into a martini glass.

-- Sally Kalson, Post-Gazette staff writer

'COMEDY CENTRAL ROAST OF PAMELA ANDERSON'

Here's some advice in the event you find yourself the subject of a roast on Comedy Central: Bring Courtney Love.

Pamela Anderson has the walking train wreck in the next seat over and, all told, Love gets the worst of it. In fact, just the visual of the bloated rock star sliding her off of her chair is enough to make Anderson, with her see-through top, look like Princess Diana by comparison.

Little-known comedian Jeffrey Ross takes the most wicked shots: "Courtney Love, you're like the girl next door, if you happen to live next to a methadone clinic." It almost comes to blows when he adds, "How is it possible that Courtney Love looks worse than Kurt Cobain?"

As you can see, these roasts are not for the civil and this one in particular manages to make you feel dirty just for watching. That's because there are few people who make better punchlines for sex jokes than Pamela Anderson and her ex Tommy Lee, who is graciously on hand for the festivities. There are endless jokes about the sex video, Pamela's "assets" and the size of Tommy's, um, drumsticks. They even go after her bad acting. "You have the emotional range of Terry Schiavo," says Nick DiPaolo.

Anderson endures not only the wrath of the sweet and dirty Sarah Silverman and the vicious, vicious Lisa Lampanelli, among others, but lets Andy Dick get to second base with her, all for the sake of Comedy Central writing a check to her pet charity, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

The former "Baywatch" babe comes out golden. It's Love who's a sloppy mess. "I was curious to see which Courtney Love was going to show up," Silverman says. "The smeared-lipstick crazy coke whore or the violent smeared-lipstick crazy coke whore ..."

Let's just say no one was injured, except maybe Anderson when Love trips and falls on her at the end.

If you saw this on Comedy Central, let it be known that you didn't really see it.

-- Scott Mervis, Post-Gazette

Weekend Mag editor

'CHARLES IN CHARGE: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON'

Ah, Scott Baio. I thought I had lost him, and not just to Joanie, when "Happy Days" wrapped in the summer of 1984. But that fall, Chachi traded in his jeans and bandana for ties and sweater vests and moved to CBS to become "Charles in Charge." The first season of the series about the college boy/nanny is now available on DVD ($34.98; Universal Studios Home Entertainment).

This is not the Charles who was in charge of future "Baywatch" babe Nicole Eggert, as most people may remember. She came along with a new family when the series went to first-run syndication. The pilot of that second season is one of the extras included in this set. The first season, the only one to air on network TV, featured the Pembroke family: Julie Cobb and Pittsburgh native James Widdoes as the parents and April Lerman, Jonathan Ward and Michael Pearlman as the precocious children. The show also starred "Eight Is Enough" alumnus Willie Aames as Buddy, Charles' doofus best friend and the only other original cast member besides Baio to survive past the first season.

The only other extra offered here is a half-hour documentary, "The Great '80s Flashback," an entertaining but not comprehensive look at that decade's shows, including "Charles" and several others that just happen to be on DVD from Universal. It's disappointing that there aren't more bonuses. Baio manages to trot himself out for "Happy Days" reunions -- couldn't he have freed himself to talk about the star vehicle that followed?

-- Karen Carlin, Post-Gazette staff writer

'GIMME A BREAK!: SEASON ONE'

As a child of the '80s, I enjoyed watching "Gimme a Break!" As an adult with a greater awareness of the power of racial images, I don't find it as humorous.

The popular half-hour sitcom featured black singer-actress Nell Carter as Nellie Harper, a housekeeper turned surrogate mother in the home of a white widower and police chief (Carl Kanisky, played by Dolph Sweet) and his three daughters. Nell was a racial stereotype, a caricature. She played an evolved version of the sassy, overweight, buffoonish and endearing mammy role that black women were relegated to in Hollywood for so long.

But thankfully, by the time the show debuted in the '80s, America's racial climate had improved to the extent that writers could poke fun at the irrationality of racism and bigotry. "Gimme a Break!" did so with disarming humor, and Carter was twice nominated for Emmy and Golden Globe awards for her acting.

The three-disc DVD set ($34.98 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment) is basically the 19 episodes that comprised the program's first season. Extra footage is extremely disappointing: One episode from the second season, a 30-minute segment on influential TV shows of the '80s, and a season-one episode each of "Kate & Allie" and "Charles in Charge."

-- LaMont Jones, Post-Gazette staff writer