OT - DS DVD: your opinions appreciated

[VAM]

It'd be nice to have some more recnt interviews but the show is what's important for me...How many times will all watch the interviews again...as for the controversial documentary ...I havent seen it but I have never been interested in the private lives of stars...It doesnt matter who did drugs or live  alternative lifestyles...only what a performer does on screen...I think I am in the minority here, probably but I can see why stars like Harrison Ford try to remain basically private people...to even discuss a departed person's alleged drinking problem has NOTHING to do with DS.!

I agree...

[CD_Tate]

Count me as a happy fan of the first DVD set--and someone who's eager to buy the entire series...   It's already a huge improvement over the VHS set, and considerably cheaper to boot...  

Sure the extras on set one are slim--they've got to spread them out over 25 (or however many) sets, and there's not a lot of material to choose from which hasn't already been released on the Special Edition DVD...

As for the quality--I don't have an HDTV, but if I did, I'd fully expect them to be much worse than on a standard set.  None of the current generation of HDTVs do a good job of dealing with poor source material--it's also a big issue with weaker satellite connections.  Better DVD encoding would help, but it's not the sole cause of the quality degradation, much of it has to do with how it's converted to the HDTV screen.  The discs look beautiful on most standard TVs, and perfectly decent (to me) on my computer's DVD-rom--which has a much higher resolution than HDTV...

Given the huge number of episodes/sets that will be forthcoming, I (for one) would not want to see them spreading out their 40-episode packs over a larger number of discs--not for the marginal quality increase that would result, given these original materials...

I agree that we're not being treated to some deluxe presentation.  Other than the nice menu, it's pretty basic.  Then again, this is MPI we're dealing with, not BBC or Warner.  I would love improvements, but I'm pretty darn happy with what we've got.

[VictoriaWintersRox]

(such as Alexandra Molke blowing kisses to the audience).

Do you know if this is on one of the pre-Barnabas episode slates? Becuase I plan on buying those on VHS and I'm wondering if they're pre-Barnabas or after Barnabas' arrival.

[doombuggy69]

>>>>>>>Do you know if this is on one of the pre-Barnabas episode slates? Becuase I plan on buying those on VHS and I'm wondering if they're pre-Barnabas or after Barnabas' arrival.

Yes, the Alexandra blowing a kiss slate,  is on one of the Pre Barnabas tapes. I am not sure which, I would have to comb through them to find it. It's somewhere in the Laura story though.  You can also see this on the DS Behind the Scenes tape that MPI put out years ago.  ((It's on the special Edition DVD too))  

PLEASE put all the production slates on the DVD's MPI!!

[VictoriaWintersRox]

Yes, the Alexandra blowing a kiss slate,  is on one of the Pre Barnabas tapes. I am not sure which, I would have to comb through them to find it. It's somewhere in the Laura story though.  You can also see this on the DS Behind the Scenes tape that MPI put out years ago.  ((It's on the special Edition DVD too))  

PLEASE put all the production slates on the DVD's MPI!!

k, thanks! I plan on buying the pre Barnabas ones on VHS since it's going to take a while for MPI to get around to those.

I haven't gotten the DVDs since I don't have a DVD player (getting one soon tho), but I really wish MPI would keep the production slates on there. Like someone else said, DVDs are supposed to add stuff, not take perfectly good stuff away.

[murph]

I've enjoyed reading the responses and I do appreciate everyone's point of view.  I hope I have not alienated anyone because that certainly wasn't my intent.

I have learned from reading everyone's respones that as far as being a DS fan I am certainly in the minor leagues.  I say this because probably 99% of the reason I purchased the first DVD set is because of the extras. The 40 episodes that are on that set were shown on Sci Fi last October and November.  It hadn't been all that long since I saw them and I wasn't all that excited about seeing them again.  

I have no idea when I started watching the show, I remember the characters more than the storylines.  When the episodes that are airing now, October '68 first aired I was 8 years old.  The storyline does not seem familiar at all but I have a feeling I watched it at the time because I remember at about the age of 8 or 9 of being terrified of being buried alive and with  Elizabeth having the same fear now, I have a feeling that's where my fear came from.  

Anyway, when I first discovered DS again almost 2 years ago they were airing the 1970PT episodes.  I have enjoyed tremendously reliving my childhood through this show.  Looking at the show through the eyes of an adult my love for the show is mostly nostalgic.  So far there haven't been any storylines that I've seen that I loved.  There are bits and pieces that I think are good but so far this is not a show that I would watch at the age of 42 were it not for the impact it made on me as a child.  

The shows I enjoy now are Frazier, West Wing, Law and Order to name a few.  Part of DS charm for me are the many inconsistencies in the storyline the flubbed lines and the boom microphone shadows, etc. But these very things would drive me crazy on a show of today and I would not watch it.  

I guess I've learned that I'm not as big of a DS fan as I thought because I love the show but for me nostalgia only goes so far.  I can't picture myself spending over $1,000. for episodes I love mostly for the nostalgia
and not the content.  

Someone brought up the point that it would be very difficult to have extras in all 31 DS sets and they are absolutely right.  Again, I guess there are more people than I thought that are willing to shell out that kind of money mostly for the love of the show and that is great.
I just know at least for me I'm not one of them.

Thanks again

[ShadowsAtlanta]

I don't remember seeing slates on any of the MPI tapes, and I watched, I believe, volumes 1-50 or so a few years ago.  Are you sure they weren't just on the pre-Barnabas tapes?  If that's the case, then perhaps they don't exist for the episodes after his arrival?  I don't know, just thinking aloud...    :-/

As for the nostalgia factor, I would guess that many DS fans did get hooked on the show as a kid.  Personally, I got hooked on re-runs at an early age in the mid-to-late 70's.  And I remember that Ted Turner's tv station here in Atlanta yanked the show while Vickie was still stuck in 1795.  I wondered what ever became of poor Vickie for years and years, and I finally got to watch the story's resolution in my late 20's!  DS is just kinda part of who I am, I suppose.  

I used to tell people that you really needed to have watched DS as a kid to "get it" as an adult.  However, having just recently developed a Buffy habit as a 32-year-old, I realize I need a new excuse!!  LOL

[Selby_D._Pearson]

I don't remember seeing slates on any of the MPI tapes, and I watched, I believe, volumes 1-50 or so a few years ago.  Are you sure they weren't just on the pre-Barnabas tapes?  If that's the case, then perhaps they don't exist for the episodes after his arrival?  

MPI didn't decide to include the slates until the Collectors Series was a definite "go". The slates do exist for the entire series. When the Collectors Series reaches the point where Barnabas is released and those episodes are presented on MPI tapes in their entirety for the first time, the slates are included. They stop where the Collectors Series stopped, the episode where Jason and Liz nearly marry. Some later slates have been included on various MPI compilation tapes, such as a slate from 1897 where the werewolf and a stagehand are slating.

I wish the MPI representative who frequents here would take note of these posts and let us know why the slates aren't included on the DVDs.  ?!?

SDP

[doombuggy69]

Yes, the production slates do in fact exist for all 1225 episodes. The original ABC commercials are all intact on them too.  There is one wonderful slate scene from 1897, that is included on the MPI Blooper tape. Barnabas is in his coffin, and the stage manager is making fun of Frid, who is complaining about the coffin being too short for him!!  I own some copies of original ABC episodes from 1970-1971 as well, and the slates are all present on them too.

I think we should all forward these requests to MPI to tell them what we want to see. Do they accept email?

[Miss_Winthrop]

Selby_D._Pearson's

For instance, how about Humbert Allen Astredo's screen test for the part of Prof. Dave Woodard on the 1991 DS series?

This is news to me about HAA!  Although I just couldn't force myself to get past episode 4 in the 1991 revival, if HAA had gotten the part of Woodward. it would've been enough to keep me interested.  How could they pass up someone like Humbert for whomever played him

Unfortunately, they selected so many wrong actors for the parts in the 1991 revival.  Ben Cross was all wrong for the part to start with! Argh, I really don't want to go here.    However, there were some bright spots in the casting, like Barbara Steele, the fellow who played the sheriff, the part of David and Roger. But, once Hollywood gets involved in anything, it usually ends up being too 'high gloss' and just about useless IMO.

[mpi_dvd_authoring]

Hello All,

I've been keeping an eye on the DS Forums and enjoy the feedback on our discs. Dark Shadows DVD Collection 2 has just been released, and I look forward to your feedback on them. We did all the encoding and authoring here in our new DVD facilities at MPI, and spent great lengths in preparing the masters, and re-encoding the picture and sound to try and maximize quality.
We are however putting 4 hours on each disc which in itself is such a large amount of video that compression is inevitable (average Hollywood release is less than 2 hours total), that's the trade off for trying to give the most value in the discs.
Since we are trying to put the most episodes  possible, we are limited in space for bonus materials, and we are using bonus interviews from preexisting interview segments due to release schedules.
There are plans for producing new bonus materials on upcoming collections, so that is something to look forward to. In the mean time, we hope you enjoy the interviews from the archives.
Let me know if you see a difference in quality on DS collection 2, and we'll keep trying to give you the best we can!
db

[Gothick]

Hi Doombuggy,

Just curious, do any of your copies of the original ABC episode broadcasts from 1970-71 contain Grayson Hall's Playtex commercial? I know it used to be run sometimes as a commercial for DS (which is a real hoot, when you think about it).  I saw the tape of episodes with original commercials released as the final tape of the original MPI collectors series, and I wish they would issue more of these.  They are a real blast for those of us old enough to remember watching the show during the original broadcast.

Best,

Gothick

[Gothick]

Re HAA testing for Professor Woodard:  WOW, that is wild!  I have never heard about this, probably because I was out of the country during the production and broadcast of that series (I was spending 18 months in China doing research during that period) and I have been MASSIVELY unimpressed by that entire effort, though I did at one point sit down and watch all the tapes.  The worst episode bar none as to be the one where Abigail discovers Barnabas at the Old House.  In the original series, this was a creepy, intense, riveting moment--in the 1991 version, it comes off as a parody of a Dario Argento film!  I'm sure that the actors laughed themselves silly over it once the take was done.

The one thing I enjoyed about it was Barbara Steele's performance as Julia.  Even though nobody could replace Grayson in that role, I found Steele's take on the character fascinating to watch.

Gothick

[doombuggy69]

>>>>>Hi Doombuggy,  
Just curious, do any of your copies of the original ABC episode broadcasts from 1970-71 contain Grayson Hall's Playtex commercial?

No, I am afraid they don't!  But one has Jerry Lacy as "Bogart" in a Right Guard commercial. This is a different one than the Marie Wallace that MPI has released.  I also got Robert Rodan in his 1970 CHEER commercial. TV Land used to run it a few years ago!

[Selby_D._Pearson]

Let me know if you see a difference in quality on DS collection 2, and we'll keep trying to give you the best we can!

Thanks, MPI-DVD-authoring, for clarifying about the picture quality questions. However, you didn't mention why the slates are not included (unless we are to infer that there simply isn't room for them). The slates were a wonderful addition to the VHS tapes. Can't you please include them on the DVDs?  Pretty please?!!  

SDP