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Q: I love the series "Homefront" and would love to watch the episodes all again. Why isn't it available on DVD or in reruns?

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Author: 
Adam Thomlison / TV Media

Assuming you mean the early-'90s period drama starring future "Friday Night Lights" star Kyle Chandler, the sad answer seems to be that the show just wasn't on long enough.

"Homefront" ran for one and a half seasons from 1991 to 1993 on ABC, which canceled it midway through season 2. The show told the stories of soldiers returning home to River Run, Ohio, after serving in World War II.

In hindsight, particularly given its short run, it's mostly memorable as one of Chandler's early, failed attempts to find his star-making role on TV.

"Homefront" was his first real crack at being a series lead, and though it didn't last, it paved the way for further success. Three years later he was starring in another show, the heartwarming fantasy drama "Early Edition," and six years after that he finally found his career-defining gig as Coach Taylor in "Friday Night Lights." He's now an established star with major film and TV credits to his name.

Unfortunately, he didn't have that kind of success with "Homefront," and that's why you can't find it anymore. As a rule, to qualify for airing in reruns, a show needs to have produced at least 100 episodes, and "Homefront" only did 42.

As for the DVD option, the show aired before the boxed-set boom of the late '90s. During that era, a number of other canceled shows would get DVD releases -- "Homefront's" timing was just off.

I mentioned earlier that I was assuming you meant this "Homefront," because there was another series by that name produced in the U.K. (also about the toll war plays on home towns, but from the perspective of soldiers' wives). That one is available on DVD, but you'll need a special European (or region-free) DVD player to watch it -- DVDs are coded differently depending on the region for which they were produced.

 

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