Duck Dynasty: Duck The Halls (Lionsgate DVD) + Season Six (Lionsgate Blu-ray)/When Santa Fell To Earth (2014/Anchor Bay DVD)

Here's various holiday releases you might want to know about...

Duck Dynasty: Duck the Halls

Picture: C Sound: C Extras: D Main Program: B-

It's Christmas with the Robertsons, but in no way will it be an ordinary one. This Christmas the Duck men get to play the nativity scene for their church, but the Duck men don't buy their Christmas Turkey; they prefer to shoot and hunt them down themselves for the annual Turkey cook off between the Robertson men and woman. It's going to be a Christmas they'll never forget.

The men of Duck Dynasty are your usual Southern multi-million dollar family, together they work at the Duck Commander Warehouse. And by 'work', really meaning goofing off as much as possible. As far as Christmas is concerned, the men think it is a woman's holiday, an excuse for them to dress them up, go shopping and partying. The only thing the men enjoy it is the excuse for them to go hunting and drinking, but all's good holiday family fun.

Duck Dynasty is your typical Southern reality TV show, it makes fun of all the Southern prejudices and stereotypes. Everything is about the men, and how the men look and act like hillbillies. More often they give their own twist with their family relations. Extras include a recording of a duck roasting over the fire (!?!?!).

Or you could simply settle for...

Duck Dynasty: Season 6 Blu-ray set

Picture: B Sound: C Extras: C Episodes: C+

A little of this goes a long way, with Season 6 of Duck Dynasty delivering more Southern family funny business with the Robertsons. Between working at the Duck Commander warehouse (or lack of work to be more accurate) and taking care of family business the Duck men share their adventures with their sons and daughters. Watch as Willie teaches his son how to do public speaking, Bella's first date, the guys trying not to either shoot or blow themselves up. But between all the 'fatherly' advice, the male bonding and all the wild animals it's a non-stop season of hijinks and laughter.

For those somehow unfamiliar, Duck Dynasty is about the Duck men their love of their beards, guns and how live their daily lives with each other. Willie as the head of the family tries to inspire and get the rest of the guys to pull their weight at Duck Commander Warehouse business, but between Si's crazy ideas, Phil peanut gallery advice, the guys avoiding work and their wives popping in for visits, it's a miracle that all of them are alive at the end of the day. Each day the search for new ways to either amuse each other or to go out hunting, but at the end of the day they are grateful to be able to sit down at the family table and appreciate their wacky family members.

Duck Dynasty is a reality/parody TV show about Louisiana/Southern culture. A group family men, where the only thing they love more than their wives (and daughters) is their guns and beards. Granted, while most of the things they do are probably dangerous, need adult supervision and sometimes questionably legal, they are not without laughter and merit (but I guess when you are rich and you are millionaires you can get away with almost anything). Extras include deleted scenes and 10 featurettes.

When Santa Fell to Earth

Picture: B- Sound: C Extras: C Telefilm: B-

'Tis the 2 weeks before Christmas and the last thing Ben and Charlotte expected was for Santa to crash land in their neighborhood ...and now Santa needs their help to save Christmas. Christmas Land has been taken over by the Great Christmas Council and the evil Gerold Geronimous Goblynch and they are turning all the Santas into ice and turn Christmas into a money grubbing conglomerate. But can 2 little kids save Christmas and the last Santa?

In this world 'Santa Claus' is more of a 'occupation' and they are controlled by an organization, the Great Christmas Council, but they have turned Christmas into a profit organization for toy companies that employ 'human' made toys. They fired all the elves and killed all the magical reindeers. Now the last Santa along with 2 kids, 2 angels, 2 elves and one invisible reindeer named Twinklestar must somehow save Christmas and help people believe in Santa once again.

Why is it Christmas is always in need of saving? First of all, this was painfully obviously this was not the original film and dubbed over with English voice actors (you should always include original voice tracks, otherwise it you make it seem like you seem like either uneducated/cultural bigot or simply too lazy to read subtitles. Otherwise, this was a fine Christmas holiday movie with kids saving Christmas from evil Nutcrackers. Extras include photo gallery and trailer.

The sound on all discs is weak, even the lossless DTS-MA on the Duck Blu-rays with location audio issues and the Duck DVD is softer than expected, while the Blu-rays look the best here of the three being the only release here in the format. I cut Santa some lack for its softness because some of it is that hazy holiday style, but you might not feel the same way.

- Ricky Chiang