Ken Burns' Civil War Gets A 150th Anniversary DVD Release

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My Dearest Margaret,

I write to you now a broken and weary man. The days are long, here in the trenches of bloggerdom. Not a day goes past when my soul is not wracked by horrors the likes of which I pray you never see. These eyes of mine, once content simply to gaze into yours in less treacherous and trying times, have seen such things, my dear. Promising new programs cut down in their youth, left to molder in a shallow ditch without ceremony while scampering packs of game shows and cookie-cutter procedurals live on to underserved old age. Original storytelling left crying and gut-shot on the field of battle, while the thinned box-office ranks are replenished with ill-conceived scripts based on nostalgic TV shows, old board games, and anything containing vampires and hair gel. And the remakes...every time I close my eyes, I see them. I find myself begging the almighty to scourge my memory of the very word. There are just so many...

But I take comfort, dearest Margaret, that some embattled borders of home entertainment still stand strong against the perpetual assault of mediocrity and lowest common denominators. There is still hope in these dark days, dimmed though it might be in the glare of Twilight sequels and Jersey Shore box sets. I pray that in my continuing absence you will perhaps take comfort in the upcoming arrival of a new DVD release of documentarian Ken Burns' acclaimed and beloved Civil War miniseries. Honoring the 150th anniversary of that great conflict, this new release will arrive on the 29th day of March, the Year of Our Lord 2011, and its reasonable $99.99 price point will hopefully deprive neither you nor our household of any more important staples.

I include with this message what information I have been able to smuggle across enemy lines regarding the make-up of this particular compilation. I hope it finds you well, and that its many bullet points gladden your heart and ease the strain on your eyes. I return now to the darkened corners of these cursed interwebs in search of unheard news and unseen cover art. Think of me often, my dearest, and pray that I will soon be returned to your arms and not cut down by the predations of studio executives and poorly spelled press releases.

Yours,

Thaddeus

The Civil War: 150th Anniversary Edition DVD

Disc 1:

  • Commentary
  • Battlefield Maps
  • Civil War Challenge -- 1861
  • Civil War Biographies

Disc 2:

  • Episode 2: 1862 -- A Very Bloody Affair
  • Commentary
  • Battlefield Maps
  • Civil War Challenge -- 1862

Disc 3:

  • Episode 4: 1863 -- Simply Murder
  • Commentary
  • Battlefield Maps
  • Civil War Challenge -- 1863

Disc 4:

  • Episode 6: 1864 -- The Valley of the Shadow of Death
  • Commentary
  • Battlefield Maps
  • Civil War Challenge -- 1864

Disc 5:

  • Episode 8: 1865 -- War Is All Hell
  • Commentary
  • Battlefield Maps
  • Civil War Challenge -- 1865

Disc 6 (bonus disc):

  • From the Archive: Shelby Foote Interview/Outtakes
  • Part 1
  • Part 2
  • Shelby Foote
  • George Will
  • Stanley Crouch
  • Jay Ungar & Molly Mason
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David Wharton