1991 Series To Be Released On DVD

Thanks for the explanation Darren.  I just finished watching Ep. 1 and did notice an improvement.  What jumped out at me was (sorry to say) more noticeable lines in the older actors' faces.  But I was disappointed just the same because I expected a better picture overall.  

What's driving me nuts, however, is that the tops of the actors' heads are often cut off, especially when you're seeing a character in the background.  If the WB pilot had been shot like this, we would be falling all over ourselves to rail at the incompetence of the director, yet here I'm seeing it scene after scene and find it very distracting.  Combine that with Curtis' trademark weird camera angles and it's almost dizzying.

I love the '91 series but could not feel more frustrated by the way this turned out.

What's driving me nuts, however, is that the tops of the actors' heads are often cut off, especially when you're seeing a character in the background.  If the WB pilot had been shot like this, we would be falling all over ourselves to rail at the incompetence of the director, yet here I'm seeing it scene after scene and find it very distracting.  Combine that with Curtis' trademark weird camera angles and it's almost dizzying.

I love the '91 series but could not feel more frustrated by the way this turned out.

Yeah, all the cut off heads is due to the cropping for the DVD release. This problem doesn't exist on the tapes or the 4x3 TV masters...

Is it illegal or impolitic to suggest the obvious solution--folks get the MPI videos and record their own DVDs, if they really need the series in that format?

I have a friend who has a DVD burner.  He made an incredible disc for me from my old SLP tape of "The Devil's Daughter" (co-starring Shelley Winters and Jonathan Frid).  Of course I don't have the training or technical knowledge of the people on this board, but I did notice that the DVD could be freeze-framed or zoomed in, which wasn't possible with the videotape.

G.

Hi Steve.

It's not illegal or impolitic at all. The law accepts that a person is allowed to make one or two backup copies of a video or music recording that they have purchased. It's called Fair Use.

The second you start making copies for friends or selling them, then it's illegal.

(This, of course, is my own personal understanding of the law as I have read it and should not be construed as legal advice. If you have serious questions about this issue, I would recommend consulting a licensed attorney.)

There, now I've covered my ass.

The shame though is that a VHS only has half the resolution of a DVD. (VHS has 250 lines of resolution, DVD has 480).

The zoom feature is pretty much an exclusive DVD player feature, though some TVs have it and the odd high-end VCR...

This DVD set is my first exposure to the '91 series, and the cramped compositions are driving me nuts. I'm considering getting the tapes and burning them to DVD, like some other posters have mentioned, but I have a couple of questions:

Were the '91 episodes released in their broadcast versions before the extended versions were released, in other words, do I need to be on the lookout for "special edition" VHS releases?

Also, has anyone else done this, and how does it look? I could deal with slightly less clarity in exchange for proper aspect ratio, but not too much.

Finally, what are the chances of a release in another region with original aspect ratio? If the chances are good, I might wait.

Thanks - 

There's a possibility it could be released correctly in another region. There's no release currently pending in other territories but I'll keep my eyes open and post here. The most likely correct one would be a Japanese release. Their quality standards are much higher than the US.

There was only 1 set of VHS releases of the 91 series episodes, so you don't have to worry about differing cuts on videotape.

The degradation from VHS to DVD (if you copy them) shouldn't be noticeable, particularly if you use an S-Video connector.

Thanks Darren -

My pleasure.

Also, has anyone else done this, and how does it look? I could deal with slightly less clarity in exchange for proper aspect ratio, but not too much.

I notice the fine lines that appear when playing these videos with the DVD copy.  However, my eyes have become sensitized to watching DVDs.  I almost never watch video tapes and notice the difference between the two.  This may have to do with fancy video cable, progressive scan DVD player, etc. that my system has.  Plus, most of the DVDs I watch are digital.

Sort of like old audio recordings, it's the difference between hearing noise on the recording or not.  Consider a good DVD like a visual noise reduction.

There is no real deprecation between the DVD copy of the video and the video.

Thanks Victoria -

Another favorable review of the series ("The cast was first rate, the story line established and the sets lavish") but not so favorable for the DVD set:

Halloween treats released on DVD
(The Kolchak: The Night Stalker series DVDs are also reviewed.)

Having just watched the DVD set, I'm all the more perturbed by its lack of extras and the hacked aspect ratio because I enjoyed watching the series more than I ever did in the past. I guess the passage of time gave it a somewhat fresher feel, and I really did like the cast and the look of the setting didn't seem as offensively "California" as I remembered. The 1790 scenes are perhaps its shining moment, the characters wonderfully done (except perhaps Cavanaugh's wooden portrayal of Andre, not to mention his dreadful French accent). All in all, I found it a treat to see it start to finish and I -really- wish it had been allowed to continue in its day.

Did anyone notice the similarities between the cover for MGM's crappy DVD release and the cover for Universal's great DVD release containing 8 Hammer Film Productions (including 2 Gothic Vampire movies: "The Brides of Dracula" and "Kiss of the Vampire")? I didn't notice it at first, but last night as I sat down to watch the first film on the set "The Brides of Dracula" and I removed the plastic slip case which holds the set together, I couldn't help noticing how the inside cover (which you see partially through the clear plastic slip case) looks almost IDENTICAL to MGM's cover.

Check these out to see what I mean:

Dark Shadows DVD cover
Dark Shadows The Revival - The Complete Series (1991)
(Click on the "See larger image" link.)

The Hammer Horror Series DVD cover
Hammer Horror Series
(Click on the "See larger image" link.)

The full color portions of the cover (Peter Cushing, the Werewolf, and the frame with the title, etc... are all part of the plastic slip case (which looks great BTW). The slip case has a clear section and through it you see part of the inside cover. This is the part that is pretty much identical to the DS cover. We've got the same vampire in moon motif, the same spooky castle/house motif, the same bats flying around motif, the same lightning coming down motif. Even the color scheme is the same. But the difference is that Universal spruced theirs up with the nice full color slip case. Looks 100 times better.

Anyway, it can't be a coincidence that these look so much alike. Someone must've copied the other's concept (or at least part of it). I wonder who the copycat was...?

Dan

I see what you mean. I think it's that they both have a vampire in the full moon on both cases.

Universal's art looks better though. The crappy picture on the Dark Shadows DVD is just awful. I just don't know if I should buy it or not. I want to support Dark Shadows, but I certainly don't want to encourage this kind of junky presentation and hatchet job.

I want TPB to show our show the respect it deserves. I also don't like wasting my money.

Misa