In the too-often cookie-cutter world of television, I prize originality above all else. Sure, there’s some merit in doing something old-fashioned very well, but when you can see something on one channel that feels like nothing on the hundreds of others, that’s a special feeling. At first, it felt to me like Flight of the Conchords, the only new HBO show in the last couple years that could reasonably be called a hit (even if it is just a ‘cult’ one), was a little TOO original. There’s a difference between being different and being weird for weird’s sake. But Conchords, the tale of two guys trying to make it in the NYC music scene, is the kind of show that grows on you and HBO clearly hopes that the reasonably priced first season will find a way to grow on fans on DVD and bring them back to the now-troubled network.

Well, it has to be the show (see ‘Worst Feature’ below) itself. The technical specs on Conchords leave a little to be desired. The show is purposefully low-budget, so the grain in the picture isn’t exactly HBO’s fault, but the audio mix is a little frustrating too and that probably is. So, that leaves just the twelve episodes on two discs. For Conchords fans, that will be enough. Everyone else is in trouble.

HBO has long been criticized for over-pricing their TV on DVD sets but most of them were worth the cash. They had perfect technical specs and just the right amount of extras. So, now HBO has gone in the other direction. Flight of the Conchords is reasonably priced (under $30 for a season) but comes without a single special feature. That’s so unacceptable in today’s DVD world, especially for a show like this one. There’s no way they couldn’t have scraped some deleted scenes off the floor or tapped one of the boys for a commentary. HBO should know better.

Sometimes a good show can still result in a pretty bad DVD. Flight of the Conchords: Season One is so reasonably priced, especially for HBO, that it’s hard to complain too loudly, but the whole package feels like a rush job with a lackluster transfer and not a single special feature. The Conchords get no respect. Based on the way HBO put together this DVD, neither do their fans.