'BIG LOVE: SEASON ONE'

There's no denying that HBO airs some of the most complex shows on TV. Why are its DVD boxed sets, which always come with a premium price tag, so skimpy on extras compared to other DVD releases?

"Big Love" ($99.98, HBO Video), the network's polygamy drama that premiered early this year, is a smart show about a culture most Americans know nothing about. It's the perfect opportunity for adding interviews with the show's creators on why they chose this setting, how they plotted the first season, etc.

But the DVD has one measly 12-minute featurette about the making of the opening credits, as husband Bill (Bill Paxton) ice skates with his three wives.

An audio commentary on the first season finale by stars Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin contains many applause for their fellow actors, but few revelations.

"I feel as though we're not doing a great service to our show," Tripplehorne says. No kidding.

-- Rob Owen, Post-Gazette TV editor

'WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY? UNCENSORED SEASON ONE, VOL. 1'

For improvisational comedy fans, Drew Carey's second ABC show, "Whose Line Is It Anyway?," must have been manna from heaven. There wasn't anything like it on television at the time. It let us see the kind of improv on which Second City-vets-turned-"Saturday Night Live" stars sharpened their teeth.

The show also introduced us to comedians Colin Mochrie, Ryan Stiles and Wayne Brady.

"Whose Line Is It Anyway? Uncensored Season One, Volume 1" is available on DVD for a suggested retail price of $26.97. But you can find it cheaper if you shop around.

There are two discs, one featuring the broadcast sketches which are hilarious. It's almost as much fun to watch their reactions to the crazy things they're given to portray as the skits themselves.

The second disc, which includes outtakes and skits not broadcast, carries a mature themes and sexually explicit label. However, it's not as explicit as it's hyped to be, and it's certainly much more tame than some of the things you see on cable.

-- Monica Haynes, Post-Gazette staff writer