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Universal, $29.98/$34.98; Blu-ray, $39.98

After “Pan’s Labyrinth” solidified Guillermo del Toro’s reputation as a horror/fantasy visionary, the filmmaker applied his new critical credibility toward his beloved, underrated “Hellboy” franchise. “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” improves on the first by moving away from the graphic novel’s creator Mike Mignola’s pulp homage and toward something more “Del Toro-esque,” complete with pop-eyed monsters dredged up from the director’s subconscious.

As always, the heart of “Hellboy” is its title character: a red-skinned, club-fisted demon fighting supernatural nasties alongside a team of offbeat government agents. Sadly, “Hellboy II’s” uber-cool star Ron Perlman isn’t a participant in the Blu-ray or three-disc special edition DVD features, though both sets contain a commentary by Del Toro, a second one by cast members and hours upon hours of behind-the-scenes material.

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Kung Fu Panda

DreamWorks, $29.99/$34.98; Blu-Ray, $39.99

Who would’ve thought that a computer-animated comedy about a rotund panda named Po could be one of the most thrilling, entertaining martial arts movies in years? Thanks to the voice talents of Jack Black as the big, goofy bear and Dustin Hoffman as his mentor -- not to mention balletic action sequences and nicely stylized art -- “Kung Fu Panda” is a real treat. In fact, if it weren’t for “Wall-E,” “Kung Fu Panda” would be the best animated feature of 2008. The single-disc DVD and Blu-ray editions add a commentary track, plus featurettes that cover filmmaking, kung fu and pandas. Also available: A double-disc edition containing a second film, “Secrets of the Furious Five,” that delves further into the legends of Po’s kung fu fighting pals.

The Boys in the Band

Paramount, $26.98

Director William Friedkin’s 1970 adaptation of Mart Crowley’s controversial off-Broadway play preserves Crowley’s alternately loving and self-excoriating portrait of the gay community in late ‘60s New York. Over the course of one monumentally bad party, a circle of friends discuss the highs and lows -- mostly lows -- of being homosexual in the pre-gay-rights era. The DVD includes a three-part documentary and a Friedkin commentary, both of which deal with the ongoing debate over whether “The Boys in the Band” is too bleak and sensationalist or if it’s an accurate record of its time. Whatever its legacy, the film remains a gripping drama.

Firefly: The Complete Series

20th Century Fox Blu-ray, $89.98

Space-opera buffs can revisit Joss Whedon’s superb-but-ill-fated 2002 sci-fi western “Firefly,” newly available on Blu-ray in a nice set that includes all 14 episodes plus new commentary tracks and a cast reunion. It would’ve been nice if Fox had found room in the set for the 2005 feature film “Serenity” as well, but even deprived of the series’ final chapter (for now at least), “Firefly” fans will take any excuse to reimmerse themselves in Whedon’s universe of rakish, galaxy-hopping mercenaries and the powerful forces they defy.

Love Songs

IFC, $24.95

French director Christophe Honore pays homage to his New Wave ancestors in “Love Songs,” which sticks a scoundrel and his girlfriend (played by Louis Garrel and Ludivine Sagnier) in the middle of a love triangle that echoes both Francois Truffaut’s “Jules and Jim” and Agnes Varda’s “Happiness,” complete with musical numbers reminiscent of Jacques Demy and postmodern irony cribbed from Jean-Luc Godard. “Love Songs” starts as a complicated modern romance and then turns into a tragedy, focusing on the indelible moments that follow profound loss. And while the music’s too tuneless and the style too over-intellectualized, Honore is a director of rare talent, heart and playfulness.

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