IGN FilmForce Weekend Shopping Guide: The Black Books Pick
IGN's FilmForce weekend shopping guide for January 13, 2006 put Black Books in its lineup of geeky picks. Here is what that entry covered and how it fit the column.
In this article
The IGN FilmForce Black Books entry was one pick in a weekend shopping column from January 2006 [1]. If you came across the title and wondered what it was, the short answer is a shopping pick for a British sitcom. The column was titled IGN FilmForce Weekend Shopping Guide 1/13/06: Black Books [1].
The subtitle listed Red Dwarf, Swartzwelder, Pink Panther, and more, so the column mixed several geeky picks instead of focusing on one show [1]. The Black Books entry itself was about the first season of the BBC sitcom, which had not yet reached the US when the column ran [1].
This article explains how the column was organized, what the Black Books pick said, and how you can track down the items it covered today.
How did the weekend shopping guide work?
The IGN FilmForce Weekend Shopping Guide was a weekly column. Each edition gathered geeky acquisitions readers could buy for the weekend, so every week brought a new batch of picks. [1] For more detail, see IGN FilmForce Weekend Shopping Guide.
Think of it as a recurring shopping list for fans rather than a one-time review.
Because the columns ran weekly, that date also tells you how old the picks are when you read about them.
The column opened with a short weekend pitch before any picks appeared. The opening line said readers were heading into the weekend with another collection of geeky acquisitions-in-waiting. [1] That tone tells you the picks were meant for your free time, not for a work list.
Here is how to use an entry like this. Read the pitch, scan the picks, and choose one item you want before the weekend starts. The column was written for that moment, so read it when you have time to shop. A single pick is enough to start, and the next edition arrived the following week.
What did the Black Books entry say?
The Black Books entry was mostly a rave. The writer said they were thrilled that the first season had finally arrived, and they called the show one of the finest comedies ever produced, British or American. [1] That enthusiasm is what made this pick stand out in the weekly lineup.
The listing itself was brief and packed its key details into one parenthetical. It gave the BBC as the release source and Not Rated as the rating, so you could see who put the series out and that no age rating was listed. [1] If you shop for a household with younger viewers, that missing rating is worth noticing.
The price came last. The suggested retail price was $24.98, which is the number the column printed for the set. [1] That single figure told readers what the box was expected to cost before they went looking.
Read together, the three details show what the entry was for. It gave you a clear release source, a rating field, and a price in a few lines, so you could decide in under a minute whether the pick deserved a second look.
How can you find Black Books today?
It is a 2006 suggested retail price, so it won't tell you what the season costs today. Treat that figure as history and look for current listings instead. [1]
Start with the title and the BBC as the publisher. Enter "Black Books" and "BBC" into your favorite store's search box, or into a search engine, to find current editions of the first season. Using the title alone can bring up unrelated items, so the BBC term narrows the results. The column named the BBC as the release source, so those two terms point you in the right direction. [1]
Check the current price on the seller's page before you buy. Prices can differ from one seller to another, so compare two or three listings. For example, a US listing and a UK import of the same season may not cost the same. Compare the price, the format, and the region note on each page before you click buy.
What should you take away from this entry?
The Black Books entry was one pick in a weekly lineup of geeky shopping ideas, so it is best read as a snapshot of what the column recommended. The column is dated January 13, 2006, and the listing gave a $24.98 suggested retail price [1]. Treat both as history.
To buy the first season today, search the title and the BBC as the publisher, then compare current listings. If you want more picks from the same column, browse the other entries in this series next. Each one shows how the weekend shopping guide grouped its ideas. To go further, see IGN FilmForce Weekend Shopping Guide.