Punk'd: The Complete Second Season

In the introduction to the DVD of the complete second season of Punk'd, Ashton Kutcher enthusiastically notes that the term "punk'd" is now in the dictionary. Huh? After years of being "on candid camera" or, more recently, being "x-ed," it was Kutcher that "officially" termed the idea of being caught on camera by a reality show. I guess the only difference between being "punk'd" and being "on candid camera" is that to be "punk'd" one must be a celebrity, which I guess is why the people at Webster's deemed it so much more substantial. The second season of Punk'd is pretty much indistinguishable from the first: Kutcher and his gang of pranksters wreak havoc on unsuspecting actors, singers and the like. Sometimes the results are quite clever and humorous (my personal favourites include not allowing Halle Berry inside her own movie premiere and making Katie Holmes an accessory to a film director's supposed extra-marital affair), and others, though less so, are still mildly entertaining. But what is bothersome about Punk'd is Kutcher himself. His monologues between the segments are irritating and often horribly unfunny. But at least on DVD you're able to skip through them to get to what you really want: the celebrities. And, sadly, that's really the only thing that makes Punk'd anything special. But even I'll admit it's a lot funnier to see Hilary Duff's driving instructor yell obscenities at her than just some average Jane's. In addition to allowing for an Ashton-less Punk'd, the DVD set offers some cut scenes, which, for the most part, were cut for a reason, unnecessary commentary (as Punk'd already kind of has a running commentary) and a generally entertaining "making of Punk'd" segment featuring Outkast. (MTV/Paramount)