Disappointing DVD releases
- Thread starter Miss Chicken
- Start date
You forgot: Shitty packaging.
The TNG sets had this problem, and how. You had to take one box out of another box, then unfold about six or seven times before you could get to the disc you wanted. Nowadays almost all DVD boxed sets have those little slimline cases inside, one for each DVD, which is much better. But those damned fold-fold-fold-fold...
I got a Northern Exposure DVD the other day, and all 6 discs were fitted into one standard size DVD case they use for one movie.
Makes me wish they had just started doing this from the beginning, as I would have a lot more room on my shelves.
Think that's bad? I complained to Paramount because the plastic trays that held the discs in the UK release of DS9 actually cracked the centres of the discs when trying to remove them. They replaced seasons 1-4 for me free, without question. 5-7 didn't have the same problem.
The discs actually are still playable though, they just have hairline cracks in the centres, so I transferred the discs to soft cases that still fitted inside the main box, and then sold the new ones on Ebay.
Ian Keldon
Fleet Captain
^You're lucky they were so accommodating.
^ Well, they were legally obliged to send me new ones, since there was a manufacturing fault with the originals. So it wasn't really accomodating as much as it was their responsibility to do so.
It was obviously a known issue as well, as the guy I spoke to already knew about the problem.
It was obviously a known issue as well, as the guy I spoke to already knew about the problem.
Apparently whoever was in charge of caring for the master copies of many early episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000 was asleep at the switch, because the DVDs released since 2006 have been riddled with glitches. Thankfully the majority are still watchable, but "The Dead Talk Back" from season 6 is decidedly not.
I am also most displeased that after releasing three out of four volumes of Animaniacs, Warner Home Video is holding out on those last 24 episodes. Sure, they're mostly the lame ones from late in the show's run when Pinky and the Brain had been spun off into their own show and the WB network was doing their best to bury it in favor of Pokemon, but it'd be nice all the same if a show so very close to being completed on DVD could be finished.
I am also most displeased that after releasing three out of four volumes of Animaniacs, Warner Home Video is holding out on those last 24 episodes. Sure, they're mostly the lame ones from late in the show's run when Pinky and the Brain had been spun off into their own show and the WB network was doing their best to bury it in favor of Pokemon, but it'd be nice all the same if a show so very close to being completed on DVD could be finished.
That's my biggest pet peeve, but I always assumed it was a business decision, meaning the first seasons didn't sell well so they aren't going to invest the money to transfer more seasons to DVD. A few series just off the top of my head are TJ Hooker, The Beverly Hillbillies, and Nash Bridges. I know there are a lot more. I would love to have complete collections of all these series but I figure it will never be.
It Takes A Thief. I guess they thought they were being clever issuing the series in an odd sized square box that was twice as big as necessary (since the disks are in little cardboard folders), and included some coasters. 
I threw the box away, not wanting to take up 6" of shelf space for 1" of disks.
I threw the box away, not wanting to take up 6" of shelf space for 1" of disks.
I'm sure it was a glitch but I've just watched all 75 episodes of Lion Force Voltron from the '80s. Each set came with a booklet. Except Volume 5-Black Lion, it did not have a booklet with it. The booklets had a large size thumbnail of a scene from the episode and a write up several sentences long. The last page of the book contained Voltron behind the scenes history. I really don't think they didn't do a booklet for S5, I think the machine glitched and I got that set.
Also, in support of the film I got the initial week release of Underworld Awakening. Now I've know for awhile they were pushing people to Blu-Ray by placing more and more extras there. The DVD release was bare bones. A commentary means not much to me, may as well be nothing.
Also, in support of the film I got the initial week release of Underworld Awakening. Now I've know for awhile they were pushing people to Blu-Ray by placing more and more extras there. The DVD release was bare bones. A commentary means not much to me, may as well be nothing.
Same here. All my DS9 sets are held together by a few hundred miles of scotch tape. The DVD trays themselves have held up pretty well, but the outside packaging, ugh. They fell apart almost immediately, and certainly were not worth $99.00 set.
At least Paramount wised up when TOS and ENTERPRISE came out and released them in much sturdier clamshell cases.
Ian Keldon
Fleet Captain
Another disappointment I forgot to mention is when a show gets released only in some super-special deluxe limited edition all-or-nothing set for some outrageous price by a boutique outlet like Time-Life Home Video.
The Man from UNCLE suffered that fate. Only hard-core (and I do mean hard core fans) will get the chance to own that because it's too much all at once for most of us to spend.
Amazon has the whole series for $100 ($90 used). That's certainly less expensive than you'll find any batch of 105 episodes from the Star Trek franchise (any series).
That's another irritant. It seems certain the remaining seasons of Hill Street Blues will never be released, which is a major disappointment for this dyed-in-the-wool fan.
As for Paramount's pricing...eh, don't get me started. The Trek box sets initially sold in Australia for up to A$130-$150 per season
, and they're not much better now. The packaging quality wasn't all that great, either - or it wasn't on the one season of Voyager I got (at a very significant discount; I certainly wasn't going to be gouged on any other sets of any of the series).
Smaller operations like Shout! Factory have begun releasing shows (and/or specific seasons of shows) that the major studios haven't bothered with due to lack of sales. There's also the Warner Bros. print-on-demand service that could serve as a model for other studios in the future. I expect most of what you're looking for will be released -- eventually.
After waiting many years for it to be released I finally got the movie Orphans (starring Albert Finney, Matthew Modine, Kevin Anderson) from Amazon as an manufactured on demand item. Though it is now selling for $17.49 it cost me around $26 when I bought it and that is without any extras at all.
I have no idea why this excellent movie isn't better known. I would love it come out with commentary and some other extras. No subtitles either.
I have no idea why this excellent movie isn't better known. I would love it come out with commentary and some other extras. No subtitles either.
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Ian Keldon
Fleet Captain
True, if you have the $100. I'm lucky to scrape together maybe $20 every few months for such things. Maybe $30 if I cut corners on my other expenses. That's just about enough for one season set of any other show. At that rate it would take half a year or more to get TMfU, and only if I had an active credit/debit card.
Yes, I realize I would pay more over the long run, but such is the life of a person with a severely restricted budget.
Speaking of stuff that hasn't been released, I'm still peeved that Disney will never release Song of the South, a charming film from my childhood that has some of my favorite Disney songs. I don't even think the film is racist. By this point they've made it obvious that they consider it an embarrassment (In spite of being the basis of one of their most popular theme park attractions).
I've seen the suggestion among critics and film historians that Disney should release Song of the South at a collector's price (say, around $50) rather than at a consumer's price (around $20). If Disney took the bullet and moved on, the backlash they fear would blow over.
Some of those are fine. Some of those have overlapping discs, which is an absolute pain in the ass. (See also: roughly 15 of the 20 seasons in the complete Law & Order set. <_<)
Exactly. they could have had a Leonard Maltin intro, perhaps a roundtable discussion that could discuss the film (both positives and negatives) and that period in American history. If done correctly, they could come out looking really good...like mature adults.
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