DS: The Beginning DVD

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If anyone out there has volume 1, would you contact MPI and tell them about episode # 8? ...  Being a true Dark shadows fan, I would like to have that episode restored.

Yet another cut on the first set of DVD episodes?!

I haven't picked them up yet - and now I'm even more happy that I haven't gotten around to it.

I wonder just how many times they'll ultimately have to redo that set?  Sheesh! 


And welcome to the forum, keywester3! We'll be looking forward to seeing much more from you in the future. 

[I Ching]

Here is info from amazon.com concerning their release of "Dark Shadows:  The Beginning" - Volume 1:

Format: NTSC
Region: Unknown. Read more about region encoding and how it may affect you here.
Studio: Mpi Home Video
DVD Release Date: August 28, 2007
Run Time: 890 minutes
Average Customer Review:  based on 1 review. (Write a review.)
ASIN: B000QGDJGK
Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,161 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

Is it just a coincidence that the release to retail outlets will be around the time of the Festival?

[I Ching]

If anyone out there has volume 1, would you contact MPI and tell them about episode # 8?  MPI told me I was the only person to noctice this, and I have a hard time believing them that they will redo the first disk just for 1 person.  After you contact them, please come back here and post what they said.

My Volume 1/Disc 1 is also missing that scene from episode 8.  Here is an email I sent to the address listed above for MPI:

After hearing a report of a problem, I checked Disc 1 of my “Dark Shadows:  The Beginning” Volume 1 set.  On episode 8, the scene with Mrs. Hopewell and her secretary is not on my DVD disc 1.  I understand this to be the last 30 seconds of that episode.  In fact, the only appearance of Mrs. Hopewell on my disc is of her in an earlier telephone conversation with Victoria Winters.  I have checked and verified that Mrs. Hopewell’s secretary was definitely in that episode; however, her scene is missing from episode 8 of my Disc 1.

I appreciate your promptness in correcting the material that was missing on Disc 4.  I trust that you will do the same for Disc 1.

Thank you.

I will let you all know what reply I receive.

[Midnite]

The TVShowsOnDVD article (there are 2 links to it on the previous page) mentions the 8/28 release dates listed on Amazon (and DVDEmpire as well).

[Jackie]

So does www.deepdiscount.com!  http://www.deepdiscount.com/viewproduct.htm?productId=16235703  Great news indeed. 

[I Ching]

Here is the prompt response I got from MPI:

They will be remastering this disc but we don’t have exact date this will be done.  As soon as it is done they will send it out to you.

Thank You

I have always had very good experiences with their customer service!

[keywester3]

Thank you for letting us know what MPI said. I think anyone who reads this should contact them.  Since they told me I was the only person aware of this, I was leary that they would spend thousands of dollars to re do disk 1 for 30 seconds of footage. The reason I remembered that ending so well, was, (aside from being an elizabeth wilson fan) she starts dictating a letter to her secratary mentioning Wilber Strake. And the timming was really good for the ending music. She finishes the letter as then music ends.  The music starts 3/4 of the way through. I loved that ending and was dissapointed it was not on episode 8.  If enough people contact them, it may get done sooner.   Thank you.

[DLA75]

Will they send replacemet disc 1 to everone who got DS the Beginning Collection from the MPI DS DVD club lie tey did with disc 4 or do we have to request. Thankfully I had picked up The Dark Shadows Collectors series Volume 2 VHS from MPI at the Festival in Hollywood in 2005 (I malied it  and other stuff i had purchased at the fest to my self in New Jesey from a post offrice in Orange county to save space in my luggage) I was abe to find the missing ending of the tape.

[Bette]

I haven't noticed that anyone has mentioned this yet, so . . .

   I was watching Episode 60 (Collection #2, Disc 3) this morning and between scenes two and three  what did I see but two commercials! I have never seen these episodes before, don't have the VHS series, so I don't know what was included on them, but this was very strange. Nowhere on the box does it indicate that there will be commercials in this  (or any) episode. One was a  Palmolive commercial with a very young Ellen Burstyn and the other was for Colgate.  

[Willie]

I'm just amazed that a company can put out a DVD set which must cost them, what?  Many tens-of-thousands if not over 100,000 dollars, and then not pay some guy a few hundred bucks to watch the DVD's and compare them to the video tapes, just to make sure scenes aren't missing or anything.  How much do you suppose it cost them to have new discs manufactured and then mail one to everyone who purchased the set?  And now instead of the manufacturer just running off another order of DVD's they've got to have another disc remastered.

And they were wondering if they'd make any money off these?  Maybe if they did a bare minimum of quality control they might stand a  chance

[Gothick]

They dared to cut a Miss Hopewell scene???

Sacrilege!  Ecrasez l'infame!

A very steamed-up

Gothick

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I don't know if we should necessarily blame MPI for all these cuts on the first DSB set. Why do I still suspect that a certain someone who was responsible for "tweaking" the DS episodes for the Sci-Fi Channel's runs is also behind this latest bout?    All in the name of "improvement," of course. ... NOT! 

[Nelson Collins]

Strange, I joined the club about when set 2 was coming out and got set one, but only received word that set 2 was just shipped.  I was kind of hoping that I would get the first 2 sets and then be on the same schedule for the rest.

[Nelson Collins]

I don't know if we should necessarily blame MPI for all these cuts on the first DSB set. Why do I still suspect that a certain someone who was responsible for "tweaking" the DS episodes for the Sci-Fi Channel's runs is also behind this latest bout?    All in the name of "improvement," of course. ... NOT! 

Are these deliberate cuts, or just dvd authoring errors?

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I was kind of hoping that I would get the first 2 sets and then be on the same schedule for the rest.

That's not the way the club works. They've always sent out sets one every two months based on when a person joins. If they handled it otherwise, members could be overwhelmed with the need to pay for every set released up to the point they've joined - and that wouldn't be a good thing for most people. 

Are these deliberate cuts, or just dvd authoring errors?

I only know that, in the case of the Sci-Fi Channel's runs, the cuts and "improvements" were indeed deliberately made.