By William Gallagher BBC News Online

The Simpsons DVDs are worth waiting for

It's that strange point in the year when most of the films coming out on DVD are reissues yet top TV titles are also being released, such as this fourth season of the hit cartoon The Simpsons.

You have never known a DVD series to come out so slowly: it's working out at nearly a year per set but it's for the very best of reasons.

Specifically that each of the 22 episodes comes with a detailed commentary, making this another treasure trove of behind-the-scenes trivia.

So many famous episodes are in this and they all seem fresh 12 years on.

This is the year we had Whacking Day, in which Leonard Nimoy was a guest star and Homer became Mr Plow.

It also featured controversy as George Bush senior criticised the show and, as a short extra explains, the show spoke back.

ER: Season 2

Now seems a good time to tell you to shop around as, especially if you buy online, you can get this for a lot less, though it's a good set at any price.

The early episodes of ER had "bite"

This is ER when George Clooney and Anthony Edwards were in full swing, when Noah Wyle's John Carter was still a young and struggling doctor.

All it's missing is the bite that Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes) brought; we have to wait for season three for her.

The set is again in widescreen, which looks extraordinarily good and the extras are well above average.

The first season's set had more but this one includes an interesting piece about the problems of directing a such an apparently chaotic show.

Sledge Hammer!

You've got to import this - a UK DVD is on the cards but not announced yet - but it's worth the effort if only because you can get it for about �20.

This is the comedy about an incredibly violent officer: he talks a suicide jumper down by shooting at him, he blows up a building to get a sniper.

His catchphrase is: "Trust me, I know what I'm doing." And, you still hear it quoted 20 years after the show and often by people who never saw it.

Here's their chance with 22 episodes including Magnum Farce and extras.