“Cheaper by the Dozen 2”: Truth in advertising. Steve Martin, slumming after “Shopgirl.” Carmen Electra, happy to show off the twins. Predictably, this harmless sequel to the 2003 remake is only ever more of the same, though it can be grotesquely earnest, as if making us laugh isn’t enough. Toward the end, even Bonnie Hunt, so reliable for so long to bring an edge, turns to mush in the midst of the Baker family’s slapstick, rat-infested holiday. Rated PG. Grade: C-

“Everybody Loves Raymond: Season 6”: This sixth season of “Raymond” finds Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Peter Boyle, Doris Roberts and Brad Garrett once again sparring amid the heated comedy. Highlights include the episodes “The Angry Family,” “Kicker” and “Raybert,” in which Robert (Garrett) passes himself off as sportswriter Ray to woo a woman. It’s disastrous, of course, and one of the series’ best. Clever writing underscores the cast’s easy chemistry. Includes commentaries and a fine retrospective of the first six years. Grade: A-

“The Facts of Life: Complete First and Second Seasons”: Two seasons of a television show filled with good intentions and life lessons. That will either make you smile or gag. The show hasn’t aged as well as some – it was for another time and its naivet? can be a bit much. Still, for parents of preteens, there is something to be said for the issues it tackles, all of which remain relevant today – adoption, divorce, race, wealth, poverty, body issues, sexuality, drug use. The neat conclusions undermine it, though the likability of the cast does carry you through. Grade: C

“King of the Hill: Complete Season 6”: Hank R. Hill, riddled with more disappointment than any truck-driving, beer-drinking, gun-toting Texan deserves. The show roasts conservatives but it also toasts them, giving them an affectionate hug while revealing unflattering shades to their personality. Much of this deceptively smart, animated show’s humor is steeped in racism, sexism and bigotry, the lot of which is fueled by that great divider – ignorance. Six years into the show, Hank and his friends still have plenty to learn. Their internal struggle remains stifled, but at least it’s there. Grade: B

“Life Goes On: Complete First Season”: Here are your facts of life. From 1989, this first season of the groundbreaking ABC television show followed the Thatcher family as Corky (Chris Burke), a young man with Down syndrome, made his way into a world filled with its share of unique challenges. As with any television show that revolves around a sensitive issue such as this, “Life Goes On” could have laid it on thick, which it occasionally does, though not without earning it. As Corky’s mother, Patti LuPone levels the playing field, keeping the emotions mostly in check. Grade: B+

“Rescue Me: Complete Second Season”: The strange, rambling hybrid that is Denis Leary turns out to be perfect for the strange, rambling hybrid that is “Rescue Me,” a dramedy about firefighters that shouldn’t work as well as it does, but it does. The plots are dense, chaotic and swift, every bit as wired as Leary himself. The show’s energy and its fearlessness grab you. Here, as firefighter Tommy Gavin, a drunk with more problems than he or anyone around him can bear, Leary has never been better. Finally, at 48, the comic has landed his breakout role. Grade: B

“Serenity: HD DVD”: The HD DVD release of Joss Whedon’s sci-fi powerhouse “Serenity” is the best showpiece yet for the new medium. In high definition, this lively, visceral film is a feast, with clean, crisp transfers that are stunning. Based on Whedon’s ill-fated, 2002 Fox television show, the movie employs stock Asian, sci-fi and Wild West elements and twists into a fine intergalactic space adventure. There are genuine surprises here, particularly at the end, which gives this swift, beautiful-looking movie a formidable kick. Rated PG-13. Grade: A-

“Transamerica”: Occasionally, it feels like a sitcom cross-dressed as a drama – and vice versa. There are a few big laughs here – and one beautifully unexpected moment that comes as a genuine shock – but the undercurrent is serious. Felicity Huffman’s Bree, a Los Angeles-based, pre-op transsexual male a week away from the knife, is on the cusp of calling it quits with her gender when into her life comes something of a surprise – the 17-year-old child (Kevin Zegers) she fathered when she was called Stan. The road movie that ensues is about their tug-of-war relationship, with Huffman’s excellent, Academy Award-nominated performance keeping at bay the average film threatening to seep through. Rated R. Grade: B

“Training Day: HD DVD”: Purely for the purist. Its appearance on HD DVD presents the opportunity to watch Denzel Washington bully the screen in high-definition – look, you can see his pores. As Alonzo Harris, a dirty L.A.P.D. narcotics cop out to prove to the world that he’s one mean S.O.B. worth fearing, Washington’s performance is at once compelling and repellent. He’s a larger-than-life caricature, uncontainable on screen. Ethan Hawke is his rookie partner, with whom he shares an orchestrated day of bloodshed. Fans will appreciate the print, which is better than the movie. Rated R. Grade: C+

“West Wing: Complete Sixth Season”: An improvement over the lackluster fifth season, in which the loss of series creator Aaron Sorkin showed in the diminished quality of the writing and the development of the characters. This sixth season recognizes it has something to prove and so it goes for it, taking place during an election year, with Alan Alda firmly pitted against Jimmy Smits. The politics are absurd, way off the map, which is a plus – it makes the series feel timely. Good show. Grade: B

Visit www.weekinrewind.com, the archive of Bangor Daily News film critic Christopher Smith’s reviews.