Product Details

• Actors: Rick Harrison, Corey Harrison, Chumlee
• Directors: The History Channel
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: A&E HOME VIDEO
• DVD Release Date: August 14, 2012
• Run Time: 352 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B007IMOWLG
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,491 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

These installments of the History Channel's proto-series about average joes selling their stuff to a crew of pedigreed pawnbrokers are taken from seasons three and four, in keeping with the release strategy of other episodes. Though it seems an insignificant detail, it should be made clear to the many Pawn Stars fanatics out there that these discs don't represent seasons four and five, but rather are a selection of 16 "fan favorites." To quote a review of other DVD volumes, Pawn Stars is sort of like Antiques Roadshow in Vegas, or Antiques Roadshow on crack. People come in to the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop with treasure or trash from their closets or garages and hope to walk away with wads of cash. How much they get is usually a lot less than what they expect. That's because the shop is run with tight iron fists by the Harrison clan, three generations of wheeler-dealers who drive hard bargains. The boss is Rick Harrison, a burly, take-no-prisoners type who is the Pawn Stars equivalent of Paul Teutul Sr. on the long-running Discovery Channel reality show American Chopper. Rick's father Richard Benjamin Harrison--a.k.a. "the Old Man"--cofounded the shop with his son and conveys the aura of godfather to the operation in many ways. Rick's son Corey goes by the moniker "Big Hoss" and plays an important role in business operations that was like Paul Jr.'s on American Chopper. The fourth key staff member and the one who takes on dramatic duties similar to one of Shakespeare's fools is the knuckleheaded yet lovable lardo Austin "Chumlee" Russell, who was Corey's childhood friend. The tension in the show is often built to overheated levels when the haggling sets in, and it relies heavily on the opportunistic placement of commercial breaks as cliffhangers. The device makes DVD viewing feel somewhat repetitive, but the show is as creatively paced as any reality series that focuses on a family dynamic or a similar concept. Storage Wars certainly comes to mind, as does the quasi Pawn Stars spinoffs Auction Hunters, Counting Cars, Auction Kings, and Cajun Pawn Stars. Each episode is fairly predictable, but that doesn't mean there's no cause for addictive or binge viewing. Some of the items that are brought in for the Harrisons' review on these two two-disc volumes are life-sized Darth Maul and Jar Jar Binks figures, a possible Stradivarius violin, a check signed by mob boss Carlo Gambino, a pair of mint-condition 1990 Air Jordan V sneakers, a blackjack table from the defunct Stardust Casino, a 1936 Rolex watch once owned by Bernie Madoff, and a hat supposedly worn by John Wayne. That barely scratches the surface of the variety of objects brought in for appraisal. The Harrisons know a lot about pretty much everything, but when they don't, they bring in a revolving cast of experts to provide details about provenance and worth. But an item is only valuable to the Pawn Stars if someone else wants to buy it. Observing the calculating eye and the haggling skills on display is all part of the fun. The other part of the fun is the interplay between the shop's staff, which is played almost entirely for laughs and rarely feels extemporaneous. But even though some moments may be scripted, the Harrisons have been at it long enough to make it work--for the cameras and their wallets. --Ted Fry

Product Description

Product Description

The top rated series from HISTORY returns to DVD!

There is no better example of today's pawnbrokers than the Harrison family's Gold and Silver Pawn shop on the outskirts of Las Vegas the modern day Mecca for people in need of quick cash. Three generations of Harrison men clash with friendly camaraderie over items from classic cars to samurai swords. Here, everything has a history, and everything has a price. And you never know what's going to walk through the door. PAWN STARS: VOLUME 5 features 16 episodes never-before-released on DVD including the usual assortment of oddities for the Harrisons to consider like a 31-ton car-crushing Robosaurus, a mandolin that could be worth over $100,000 and an authentic Batmobile.

DISC 1: Darth Pawn / Put Up Your Dukes / Pawn Illustrated / Striking a Chord / Harrison For President / Wise Guys / Robosaurus / Ah, Shoot!

DISC 2: Going Postal / Chummobile / Evel Genius / Pablo Pawncasso / Sub for Sale / Missile Attack / Not on My Watch

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Volume Debate Continues: 16 More Episodes, Half A Season And Half The Price August 7, 2012

By K. Harris HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWER

Format:DVD

Quick Take: Essentially, this is half a season for half the price. A non-sale, non-discounted price of 19.95 fits in line with almost six hours worth of DVD content. A full season, had it been released that way, would simply have doubled the asking price.

Last year, History and A&E Television made the dubious decision to start releasing Volumes of their most popular shows as opposed to Seasons. I was one of the most vocal opponents of this move and some of my scathing tirades can be found on those initial releases. In truth, though, I have nothing against the idea of volume releases (especially for shows that aren't held together by continuing plot threads) as long as three things are clear:

1) They need to be priced according to content and no more expensive individually than a season set would be.
2) Don't start releasing Full Seasons and then switch tactics mid-stream to confuse unsuspecting buyers.
3) If it isn't a season, all content needs to be disclosed on the DVD packaging so the consumer knows what they are getting!

Last year, many of these early Volume releases broke my second and third rule. I mean really! How can you release a DVD when it's not a full season and NOT tell buyers how many and which episodes are included? Absolutely unforgivable. I need that information to decide whether or not I want to purchase the set. As we have progressed, though, and the notion that we're to continue with Volume releasing has stayed with us, the point becomes rather more muddy. Now, we're past the second issue and the third issue has been corrected. All of these Volume releases now contain information about the content. So, there is no deception and no confusion. You get "x" number of episodes for "x" price. It's now up to you whether or not it's worth it. That's fair. If you don't like it, don't buy it.

Volume Five of "Pawn Stars" contains sixteen episodes over two discs for just shy of six hours worth of content, coming from most of Season Four. If you have collected the earlier entries in the Pawn Stars DVD releases, this is the next group of chronological episodes. There are no Special features, but English and Spanish subtitles are optional. Included:

(1) Darth Pawn, (2) Put Up Your Dukes, (3) Pawn Illustrated, (4) Striking A Chord, (5) Harrison For President, (6) Wise Guys, (7) Robosaurus, (8) Ah, Shoot!, (9) Going Postal, (10) Chummobile, (11) Evel Genius, (12) Pablo Pawncasso, (13) Sub For Sale, (14) Missile Attack, (15) Not On My Watch, and (16) Take A Seat.

The show is entertaining for several reasons. Of course, some intriguing merchandise passes through their hands and you just might learn something. But as in any reality show, this one is as much about interaction and conversation as it is about the art of the deal. The Harrison guys are a colorful crew--real old school Vegas. Perhaps the biggest scene stealer is Chumlee (like an adopted son) who plays village idiot, but can surprise you as well. It's comical and engaging for the most part. All in all, it is rather like the unsavory and confrontational cousin to the classic "Antiques Roadshow" with more grit and edge. KGHarris, 8/12,

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining junk April 25, 2013

By Tridacna

Format:Amazon Instant Video|Amazon Verified Purchase

I've been watching these since the first season. If you can get over the fact that most items brought are done by actors with artifacts from auction houses and that it's all scripted, it's still fun to watch. The transactions are staged and goofy. I went to the actual store in Vegas and was disappointed to find out that it's mostly a souvenir store. T-shirts, coffee mugs and other crap. Despite all this this, I still think that they're fun to watch.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Pawn Stars: Guilty as Charged April 25, 2012

By G. Robinson

I've actually never seen Pawn Stars but the promo showed some fun stuff so I tuned in. The store owners were pretty funny. My brother and I collected coins and stamps as kids, so it was cool to see it taken so seriously on a tv show. The owners brought in a coin and stamp expert named Jay Tell to appraise a book of stamp misprints that came into the shop. I looked him up, and he's been involved in lots of historic coin and stamp transactions, so it was fun to see a real authority at work on the show. And the broken vase with the Star Trek prop reminded me of the youtube Star Wars kid. Great show!