New on DVD

Danny McBride is a former Major League pitcher Kenny Powers, a washed-up superstar who bought into the hype and is now despised by those who are, simply put, sick of his crap. Blissfully free of self-awareness, Powers doesn't let the crash and burn of his career put a dent in his raging ego. "That is why I am better than everyone else in the world," is his mantra, even as he moves into his brother's middle-class home and takes a job as a junior high school gym teacher in his hometown, not the best career choice for an arrogant jerk with anger-management issues. Created for HBO by McBride with Ben Best and Jody Hill, and co-produced by Will Ferrell (who co-stars in two episodes) and Adam McKay (who also directs a couple of episodes), this is a cable series created with the same collaborative spirit and improvisational approach as Will Ferrell's movies, and it's funnier and sharper than Ferrell's last couple of pictures. The limited series numbers only six half-hour episodes, but they make for a pretty tight story that even allows Powers to grow up a little. But not much.

Given the show's pedigree, it's a given that the deleted scenes and outtakes collected for the two-disc set are worth the time. The extended "Stevie's Dark Secret," which apparently was too much even for HBO, is so perverse that it's given its own supplement. Also features commentary on multiple episodes with the writers, directors and members of the cast, and the complete version of the Kenny Powers promotional video and the Schaeffer Motors commercials seen in the series.