• "Laguna Beach: The Complete First Season" (MTV/Paramount, 2004, not rated, $38.99, three discs). In anticipation of the second season of this show (subtitled "The Real Orange County"), which starts July 25, this MTV reality series gets a DVD release for fans. This is sort of the real-life version of the fictional "The O.C." Except that with all these spoiled rich kids and the obnoxious things they say, "The O.C." actually seems more real. Perhaps "Laguna Beach" is a new concept; a "surreality show."

Extras: Full frame 11 episodes, deleted scenes, interviews, making-of featurettes, music videos, trailers, chapters.

• "H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds" (Goldhil, 2005, not rated, $9.98, two discs). Each of the two discs here contains one documentary. Disc 1 is "100 Years of Terror," a superficial look at Wells' life and writings, with discussions of Orson Welles' 1938 "War of the Worlds" radio show and the 1953 movie — without any audio or video clips! The second disc, "Mars: 100 Years of Discovery," is better, with a look at space exploration and specifically what we've learned about Mars.

Extras: Full frame, chapters.

• "Simply Ming" (WGBH, 2004, not rated, $39.95, three discs). Chef Ming Tsai demonstrates how to whip up East-West dishes with his "master recipes." Ming has authored three cookbooks and is the chef-owner of BlueGinger in Wellesley, Mass.

Extras: Widecreen, recipes, Ming's five best tips, recipe cards, pantry list, top 10 cooking tools, chapters.

• "What's New Scooby-Doo? Vol. 5: Sports Spooktacular" (Warner, 2005, not rated, $19.97). Four episodes from the animated series, all with sports themes: "The Unnatural," "The Fast and The Wormious," "Wrestle Maniacs" and "Diamonds Are a Ghoul's Best Friend."

Extras: Full frame, four episodes, two featurettes with Hank Aaron, optional English subtitles, chapters.

• "Dora the Explorer: Super Babies" (Nick Jr./Paramount, 2005, not rated, $16.99). This DVD's episodes from the TV show are "Super Babies," "Catch the Babies," "Baby Dio" and "Por Favor."

Extras: Full frame, four episodes, interactive game, tips for parents, music videos, optional English subtitles, chapters.

• "A Pup Named Scooby-Doo: Volume 1" (Warner, 1988, not rated, $14.98).

• "A Pup Named Scooby-Doo: Volume 2" (Warner, 1988, not rated, $14.98). These animated adventures with the mystery-solving gang shows them all as children . . . think Tiny Toons with the Scooby-Doo gang. Included are these episodes: "A Bicycle Built for Boo," "The Sludge Monster from the Earth's Core," "Wanted Cheddar Alive," "The Schnook Who Took My Comic Book," "For Letter or Worse," "Babysitter from Beyond," "Snow Place Like Home" and "Now Museum, Now You Don't."

Extras: Full frame, four episodes (on each disc), language and subtitle options (English, French, Spanish), chapters.

---

E-mail: hicks@desnews.com