Why isnt FARSCAPE on Blu-ray?

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by Snick27, Feb 8, 2009.

  1. Snick27

    Snick27 Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    This show would look great in HD!
    So first off does Sony own the rights to season 1? And whom owns the rest of the rights?
    Cause i want to write them a letter which might do nothing but still i want to tell them i want these are blu-ray.

    So if any one can help here with some details it would be great, thanks.


    Watching this show in HD on a 60 inch tv would be so grand.
     
  2. Michael Chris

    Michael Chris Admiral Admiral

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    I don't know if it was done in HD. The transfer on the DVDs is really bad. I wish it was on Blu-Ray though.
     
  3. Hermiod

    Hermiod Admiral Admiral

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    Was it shot with HD in mind ? The IMDB doesn't give much info but if it was shot on video then you're not likely to be in much luck.
     
  4. bigdaddy

    bigdaddy Vice Admiral Admiral

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    The show isn't even on DVD anymore so why would they stick it out on Blu-Ray which a tiny fraction of the people would buy it?
     
  5. Michael Chris

    Michael Chris Admiral Admiral

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    Isn't the reason that it's not out on DVD because Sony bought the DVD rights with a possible Blu-Ray release in mind?
     
  6. Ar-Pharazon

    Ar-Pharazon Admiral Premium Member

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    Blu-Ray is a comparatively new tech. Like the DVD when it was newer, they're going to do new releases, then older ones they think will sell well, and eventually remaster non-HD stuff if they think it will look good.
    There are movies coming out right now for the first time on DVD, I just got Student Bodies, for example, as it was just "officially" released on DVD. I previously had a bootleg obtained on ebay before they got wise. It was crap of course, but it was on DVD at least. But I wasted no time getting the remastered release. Probably too low of quality to ever look better on Blu-Ray though.
     
  7. TheMasterOfOrion

    TheMasterOfOrion Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Yeah, Farscape is great but its following is very cult. It's fandom isn't even a fraction the size of Trek or Lost or whatever else
     
  8. bigdaddy

    bigdaddy Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I'm hoping they release a complete collection DVD boxset first with the 4 seasons and the movie. Then double dip like they always do and then do blu-ray released.

    I have never really seen the show, but a friend of mine doesn't own a single DVD, doesn't even have a TV anymore and the one show he would love to own is Farscape. So I guess that is saying something. :)
     
  9. species5618

    species5618 Commodore Commodore

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    A friend of mine has procurred the series for me on a DVD format...

    I'm going to start it tomorrow night, hopefully it's something I can get into.

    I've only seen Browder and Black on SG-1, so it should be interesting to see them in (from what I've been told) much different roles.
     
  10. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I never bought them because the DVD's were prohibitively expensive or those scattershot double-sided Starburst things. It'd be nice, Blu-Ray or not, to have some reasonably priced good quality season sets.
     
  11. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

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    The show wasn't shot on video, it's clearly 35mm. The question is: were the visual effects mastered on video, or at some higher resolution in preparation for HD? That I don't know.

    Sony picked up the rights to season one (all of the seasons now?) a while back, presumably to release Blu-Ray discs, but hasn't done anything yet. Maybe they're waiting for the webisodes or some other continuation of the property first?
     
  12. Faldor

    Faldor Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    considering s1 was made in 1999 I would have thought it unlikely to master above standard def. apparently two years later it was considered odd for enterprise to be mastering in HD
     
  13. zakkrusz

    zakkrusz Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    The rights were originally held by ADV who lost the first season to Sony. I have no clue if they still have the rest, since they just took a huge financial beat-down last year after their Japanese partner company decided to pull out of their deal and they lost the rights to a bunch of their inventory.
     
  14. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

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    Oh man, if there were ever a show for me to own on Blu-Ray, this would be it. I already own all the DVDs, but I would totally be willing to spend the money on an HD version.
     
  15. Hermiod

    Hermiod Admiral Admiral

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    I did say 'if'. Video was fairly common for shows of that period.
     
  16. BigFoot

    BigFoot Admiral Admiral

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    Same here. :D
     
  17. Mistral

    Mistral Vice Admiral Admiral

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    If my math is right, based on the difference between DVDs and Blue-rays, and taking into account what the MSRP was for the Farscape season boxes, Blue-ray copies should run about...(carry the two, then.....) about $220 a season. So, what, 4 seasons= $880? and then $55 for Peacekeeper Wars in Blue-ray? So you can own it all for $935US-if it ever comes out....
     
  18. Kiltak

    Kiltak Cadet Newbie

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    Actually a lot of older movies are being put on to DVD that were not shot in HD. If you do your homework you can find movies on Blu-Ray that go back all the way to the 80s, which were most certainly not shot in HD.

    It's just a matter of converting it over to Blu-Ray. Now will the picture Qaulity be as good as a movie like Transformers, no. However when they convert it over it will look better then it did when it Aired on TV.

    As to why it hasn't been put out on Blu-ray it's due to various reasons. The first of which is Blu-ray is still rather new and most people don't own one (I happen to be one of those people, though im getting on in March). Once prices start to drop on blu-ray and more people own them then the flood gates will open and will see tons of old movies being put out on blu-ray. However for now it will mostly be popular shows and movies that have sold very well on DVD and they think will do well on Blu-ray, most being new shows and movies.

    The other reason may be due to who owns the rights. However I believe Sony does own all the rights to Farscape, which means were likely to see them on Blu-ray in the next few years.

    Also Farscape has much bigger fan base then Highlander: The Series does and there putting that on DVD, so that has nothing to do with it.

    As for the cost, it won't be any more then the rest out there. The First season will go for about $50 dollars or so, maybe $80 because its a BBC show if I'm not mistaken, which generally means much higher price. So at most you might pay about $400 dollars.

    Right now Blu-ray is still relatively new. The players them selves are rather expensive at the moment. So a lot of stuff will be new or popular shows and movies, as time goes on will see more obscure movies and shows.

    I would love to see Stargate: SG-1/Atlantis on blu-Ray, along with Farscape, First Wave, Star Trek, Heck even the Star Wars Trilogy. I just have to be patient, they will come to blu-ray in time.
     
  19. Ceridwen

    Ceridwen Commodore Commodore

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    Motion pictures are typically shot on film, which has a higher resolution than HDTV. Films from as far back as the beginning of motion picture history, if they've been preserved or restored to their original condition, will continue to look absolutely gorgeous in HD release on Blu-ray.

    The issue is that, starting in the 1980s, video proved to be a much cheaper, more efficient method of storing and editing motion pictures. Video, however, has a drastically reduced level of resolution when compared to film or HD. In the world of television series, though, this didn't matter as much because television resolution has always been fairly low. This is why Star Trek (which was produced on film in the 1960s) is seeing a Blu-ray release, whereas The Next Generation (produced on video in the 80s and 90s) will require a complete re-editing from the film source in order to achieve HD resolution.

    The question being asked in this thread is whether or not Farscape was shot or edited on film or video. If it was shot on film but edited in video, there's a chance it could be re-edited in HD but it would likely require a complete revamp of the visual effects (and the studio might find this cost prohibitive for such a cult series). If it was edited in a medium that was a high enough resolution, though, such concerns would be moot, and a Blu-ray release would be as simple as striking a new transfer.
     
  20. BigFoot

    BigFoot Admiral Admiral

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    ^ I couldn't have said it better myself. Good post. :) It really pisses me off when people try to convince me that HD (as in 1080p) is better then film.