During one of the LAH's weekly searches for great action material, we stumbled upon a treasure-trove of horrid movies. While maybe one out of every five of the DVDs before us was viewable, the fact that the majority were nothing more than a joke distressed us. We reflected on the state of the action genre and eventually began to debate which fate is truly worse for an action hero: being doomed to bargain-bin DVD releases or doing movies exclusively for USA, TBS and Spike TV. This week we continue this discussion, all while examining the influence of both network television and bargain-bin DVDs on the action genre as a whole.

Goat:

When Drock first posed this question, I thought it was a no-brainer. Well, I still do. No matter how pathetic it may seem — and let's not lie, it does — straight-to-television action releases are far superior to finding an action legend's hard work wallowing in bargain-bin land.

Take Seagal's "The Foreigner," for instance. While it certainly wasn't one of his finest, that doesn't mean millions of people didn't watch it. USA Network, the amazing cable channel that brings WWE action to viewers on a weekly basis, basically whored out the film for two months leading up to its broadcast.

Looking at the amount of hype alone that went into "The Foreigner" as compared to Seagal's more recent, and far superior, "Today You Die" is surely a sign of how many people watched each. Though USA has never revealed how much it paid for the rights to air "The Foreigner," I'd wager it dwarfs the amount of cheese pulled in from sales of Seagal's last four DVDs combined. And I'm not a betting man.

Drock:

It's been many years since the majority of action films first appeared in movie theaters — those days are long gone. Today, one can find the action genre taking over multiple major television networks, whether it is a 24-hour Van Damme marathon on Spike or a world-premier Chuck Norris flick on CBS this Sunday. The action genre is alive and well thanks to Newton Minnow's "vast wasteland." However, I wouldn't quite call the new works of Van Damme and Seagal wastes — I would call them microcapsules of the American Dream. To wit:

Throughout the illustrious history of the Last Action Heroes, Joe Ziemer and myself ripped into those embracing and utilizing the domain of the discount bin. Whether it was Pamida or Wal-Mart, the fraternity of the LAH has blasted these DBAGs — discount bin action greats. While living out one's career in the bin is a pathetic existence, it's the honorable domain left for those still adhering to a bygone era — the 1980s and early 1990s.

Goat:

I guess the first thing I'd consider in ranking these DBAGs against network television is which channel the film is airing on. While it certainly could be taken as a sign of weakness to appear alongside "Sex and the City" and "Friends" on TBS, all factors of the network in question must be considered. Although it has its fair share of action movies, they are not cream-of-the-crop, and usually feature stars like LDP and Xzibit — the last action heroes I'd want watching my back in a fight. TBS also does air a lot of questionable shows, so I would daresay they are the less respectable action-movie station.

Looking at the USA Network, they do feature the weekly professional wrestling beat-down extravaganza that is "WWE Raw" and every Tuesday has been re-dubbed "Action Movie Tuesday." Showing spectacular films like "Hard Target" and "Under Siege" on a regular basis proves that USA truly cares for its hordes of action-loving fans. With a resume like that, there is no doubt that USA has more street cred when it comes to action.

Drock:

Well put, Goat. When looking at the progression of the action star, from 1980 to 1995 a low IQ, big muscles, pathetically absurd one-liners and a poor grasp of the English language were sure to land you whatever you wanted. When the cravings of the American movie directors shifted to more "XXX" and "Bourne"-type action heroes, old legends were left scrambling for an audience. The few hard-line action fans that remained were left wondering what happened to the genre they held so dear. Enter the discount bin and the rise of TBS, USA and Spike.

The hard-line action fan was left with disposable income. No longer could they spend five or 10 dollars at the theater on their favorite Seagal or Van Damme flick. A migration had taken place. From Marcus Theaters to Wal-Mart, from Star Cinema to USA, all the great ones trekked: Lundgren, Van Damme, Seagal, Lou Diamond Phillips, Chuck Norris, Nick Nolte, even Stallone. While at first the transgression paralyzed the action community, people began to realize this was a great revolution.

Goat:

Perhaps the greatest shortcoming of straight-to-network TV films is that they happen quite rarely. Sadly, there isn't the demand for action films that there once was. I blame this on the downfall of Seagal, which truly coincides with the fall of action movies in general. Though things have started looking up once more with the emergence of The Rock, a true action great, that's not to say that Van Damme will be opening in theaters any time soon.

Getting back to the matter at hand, television networks are perhaps afraid of boldly making a move to become "the action channel." Spike TV has certainly broken down countless barriers with its programming, but that's not to say that the limitations aren't still there.

For aspiring martial artists and filmmakers trying to compete in this low-budget, low-quality market, it's a no-win situation. If they want action fans to bite, they need to hire a superstar at the level of Van Damme or Norris — no longer can any no-name artist step up and shine for his bad-assery. There very well may never be another JCVD, simply because the nature of the industry does not allow the talented to rise to the top.

Action has-beens like Seagal (trust me, it pains me to say this) need to step down and open the door for the next generation of action heroes to shine. Until that day, action fans will continue to be force-fed their once-favorite stars with countless horrible DVDs.

Drock:

With the proverbial death of action heroes in theaters, the action genre is no longer something that originates on some giant screen miles away and forces action fans to wait months for expensive VHS (and later DVD) copies to emerge so they can enjoy them at home. No. The action genre bypassed this stage of materialism and now comes straight to the action fan. This was not a transgression that would alienate the action fan. Rather, it was a transgression that said, "Hey buddy we know you are out there and we're going to bring our genre right to where you feel most comfortable and we are going to do it cheaply." And into the homes came Seagal and Van Damme.

It's hardly a coincidence that the 1980s and early 1990s rise of cable television coincided with the migration of action heroes from the silver screen to the TV screen. People were already paying for cable and now they could get their action fill too. The cost of discount-bin action flicks was as expensive, if not cheaper, than a movie ticket. The trend continues today where at the relatively low quality discount bin of Best Buy, one can purchase the entire "Die Hard" series for $20. If a low-quality action bin can provide value like that, imagine what high-end action bins like Wal-Mart and Pamida have to offer.

Simply put, the action genre and the discount bin are everything that America was meant to be — value and accessibility for the masses.

Heck, in the case of Van Damme, it's a slice of the American Dream. It proves that anyone can truly succeed at becoming an action hero in America if they work hard enough.

The Last Action Heroes want to hear from you!!! Do you completely disagree with Derek and Ryan's views of the action industry?! Then get all interactive and contact them by e-mail at [email protected]. Keep in mind your questions or comments could be featured in an upcoming column.