HBO also just issued a mammoth boxed set of The Sopranos, but this poetically profane Western is the mob series' dramatic peer and — at $179 to The Sopranos' $399 — far more recession friendly. Over three seasons, David Milch's gold-rush drama explored the evolution of a South Dakota mining town, populated by dreamers, grifters, whores and immigrant laborers, and overseen by cunning saloonkeeper Al Swearengen (Ian McShane). The series was cut short one year shy of its intended four seasons; in a bonus feature, "The Meaning of Endings," Milch talks about what he'd have done with a fourth and final season. With this endlessly rewatchable collection, at least, the end need never come — thanks to the replay button.
—James Poniewozik