What DVD release of a classic series has most disappointed you? (1 Viewer)

[shoeshineboy]

One show that I was exposed to in reruns in the 70s that I liked was Peter Gunn; I thought it was sleek, cheeky and hip as a teenager. I bought the whole set last year and after a few episodes was amazed at how to me it seemed banal, lacking in suspense and intensity. On the other hand, Mike Hammer w/ Darren McGavin was completely new to me when I bought it 3 years ago; while it had some episodes that lacked in cohesive plots and threadbare, most of the shows had a lot more zing and a like ability - despite the fact I never cottoned to the other Hammer shows or stories... McGavin seemed just more interesting as a lead than Stevens, and he was able to elevate the material that much more. Now, I know I'm in the minority on this exact topic, but...

 

[Ron1973]

Just like you I skipped Dallas. But I loved Dukes, and The Hulk. Watching them now on dvd still makes me happy, and I count the two series as really good "escapist tv". Tv that is a bit goofy, and unrealistic but takes me out of the confides of the real world when I watch.

I got into Dallas as I got older. I would say by the latter part of the mid-80's I was watching it pretty faithfully.

The Hulk I'll still happily watch, though it doesn't hold the same charm. As you said, it's "escapist tv." You know what to expect, you know when David Banner is going to go into metamorphosis and whip a bunch of bad guys but it's still "fun." In the same genre, Wonder Woman is still quite watchable but I think it is a bit better than when I originally watched it. As an added plus, I never realized what a knockout Lynda Carter was as a kid!

 

[cwilli]

I was mildly disappointed in "Thriller". The stories that were supposed to be scary were rather dated and they seem to fall into the same "formula" with the scary witch appearing in several. It's still a good show though. Just not as scary as I remembered.

 

[Roy Wall]

What thread were you thinking of? Because I pretty much agree with you. I'm not Burgess Meredith and this isn't The Twilight Zone, but there isn't "Time Enough At Last" for me to ever see every episode of the shows I currently have, and all I really need is a sampling. That's why I got the Best of set for Naked City instead of the Complete Series.
There's NO telling as to the thread.....where my mind was...is....will be. I bought "The Complete" Naked City simply to get the half hour shows and 1/2 of the first hourly season because 19 of those missed completely on a previous release. I got to thinking though....rather keeping all these DVD sets....could I store just my favorite episodes of tv shows on an external drive or disc and have them all on one location rather than filter through 100s of DVDs. Still I don't know about the quality/availability issues on DVDs vs streamlining. Just something I started thinking about. Independent ingenuiety, logic and common sense are by no means a strong suit of mine....but I thought hey....reduce the library and save time....not necessarily money....which I'm not good there either...could NOT invest my way out of a dark room...much less a well lit one.

 

[jcroy]

I got to thinking though....rather keeping all these DVD sets....could I store just my favorite episodes of tv shows on an external drive or disc and have them all on one location rather than filter through 100s of DVDs.

I actually did this for numerous tv show season set dvds I have. Though my main motivation was largely to deal with problematic basket-case dvd discs (both double-sided flippers and single sided ones), which were repeatedly skipping, freezing, etc ... on my standalone dvd players. (On the computer, many of these problematic dvd discs played fine without any major problems).

Even with many of these tv season sets on a hard drive with the computer connected to my large screen tv via hdmi, I've found that I still am not clamoring to watch through these tv shows. This is largely due to a shortage of time, due to other life responsibilities.

EDIT: This is the main reason why I have more or less stopped regularly buying dvd/bluray tv season sets.

 

[Richard V]

Not sure it's considered a classic, but Room 222, is a total unmitigated disaster in my opinion. Prints look awful.

 

[Ethan Riley]

Most hour long dramas from the 70s and 80s don't hold up for me.

 

[JoeDoakes]

Number one for me in this category is WKRP. Replaced music and edits also put a big damper on my interst in My Three Sons (although I probably never would have bought the color episodes.

 

[Ron Lee Green]

I enjoyed Gilligan's Island as a kid in reruns, but not so much now. The comedy seems forced and broad. I find Gilligan's exploits annoying.
However, I still like the Brady Bunch. There's something comforting about it. As a kid, I identified with the kids on the show and had a crush on Jan, and then Marcia. Now, as an adult, I identify with the parents more, and find Florence Henderson hot! LOL I guess in 20 more years, I'll start looking at Alice differently.

 

[Bob_S.]

Most shows that I didn't care for as a kid, I still don't care for as an adult. Gilligan's Island, Bionic Woman and Six Million Dollar Man are shows that I loved as a kid but are boring to me now. Love Boat isn't much better. My Three Sons I would have bought if not for music replacement and edits. Bonanza, I'm surprised I didn't like more because I loved watching it when it was on PAX. I have the first 2 seasons and I don't think I've finished them, it seems to be pretty slow going. Maybe the series gets better in later seasons?

Bryan, when you decide to get rid of Moonlighting let me know! I'll take them off your hands. I'm watching the first 2 seasons now through Netflix and I'm enjoying them greatly! Now I remember why it was so popular back then. I love the David and Maddie banter back and forth. They had great chemistry.

 

[JMas]

I'm most disappointed when a series that is a real favorite, such as Harry O and How The West Was Won, is released without being remastered. I'm thankful to have them, but it is still disappointing to know they could have looked so much better.

 

[Roy Wall]

Bonanza, I'm surprised I didn't like more because I loved watching it when it was on PAX. I have the first 2 seasons and I don't think I've finished them, it seems to be pretty slow going. Maybe the series gets better in later seasons?

Yes...it does. The latter portion of season 2 has some pretty good episodes...Bank Run, Vengeance, The Dark Gate, The Gift , The Rescue and The Secret.

Bonanza hits a HIGH note in season 5 Vol. 1 with these episodes...Twilight Town (a little like The Twilight Zone), Calamity Over The Comstock, Journey Remembered, The Quality of Mercy, The Legacy, Hoss and the Leprechauns, Ponderosa Matador and Alias Joe Cartwright.

Season 6 Vol. 1 has some classics, too.....The Invention of a Gunfighter, Between Heaven and Earth, Old Sheba, A Knight To Remember, The Flapjack Contest, The Far Far Better Thing and Woman of Fire.

Season 4, Vol. 2 is pretty good with....The Hayburner, A Stranger Passed This Way, The Way of Aaron, Any Friend of Walter's, My Brother's Keeper and The Boss.

Season 3 Vol.1 & 2 have some classics too...just not as many as the previous three half seasons that I mentioned previously. I own Season 5, Vol. 1..Season 6, Vol.1 and Season 4, Vol. 2 but passed on the rest due to weak writing although I do intend to buy Season 2, Vol. 2 at some point.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

I actually did this for numerous tv show season set dvds I have. Though my main motivation was largely to deal with problematic basket-case dvd discs (both double-sided flippers and single sided ones), which were repeatedly skipping, freezing, etc ... on my standalone dvd players. (On the computer, many of these problematic dvd discs played fine without any major problems).

Even with many of these tv season sets on a hard drive with the computer connected to my large screen tv via hdmi, I've found that I still am not clamoring to watch through these tv shows. This is largely due to a shortage of time, due to other life responsibilities.

EDIT: This is the main reason why I have more or less stopped regularly buying dvd/bluray tv season sets.

I've slowed, I have a wall of TV DVD Sets, converted a lot of them to PC for streaming about 11,000 eps , I watch quite a few, but realize now I'll never see everything I've got. I've slowed my purchases to mostly classic tv stuff that you cannot see anywhere else, I figure most of the new stuff is available on Netflix plus most new shows are serialized and who has time to watch an entire season again, standalone classics are much more rewatchable.

 

[Brian Himes]

The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, was a huge disappointment for me. Loved it as a kid, but as an adult it just didn't hold up very well.

 

[moviebuff75]

Eight is Enough. I thought it was charming when it originally ran, but when I bought it, it came across as depressing. There was a really heavy feeling about the whole thing.

 

[JMFabianoRPL]

DVD quality? Anything from you know who...

Shows that don't hold up? Well, I hadn't seen New Adventures of Batman since it was originally broadcast (as reruns) on SatAM, so it kind of had a legend built up behind it to me. When I got the DVD? So far, the episodes were corny! And Bat-Mite < Orko, or dare I say it, Scrappy-Doo.

 

[MattPriceTime]

This one element a lot of people seem to have, but one i frankly do not get nor do i think i want to ever get. Maybe it makes me a Peter Pan, but the prospect that you somehow get more snobbish as you get older, really seems like a very lame thing. But i see some others older than me with similar outlooks, so power to us haha.

But yeah nothing i liked in my youth has somehow "stopped holding up" to me. I liked it because i liked it and still do. And if anything the reverse is true Given the more i discover the more i like.

My only disappointment gripes have nothing to do with the content of any show, but just things like certain part of my collection standing to never be completed due to certain episodes being skipped. But at the end of the day i'm not that sad over it. Since i'd rather have nearly all of a show then not having any of it at all.

 

[BobO'Link]

^I'm pretty much with ya there. I've been following this thread and trying to come up with something but so far it's a blank. Without exception *every* series I own that I liked as a kid I *still* like! Of course there are shows I didn't much care for as a kid but I've also not purchased any episodes of those to see if I *still* don't care for them. I'd rather spend my time and money on series I know I like!

If I've been disappointed with *anything* about a DVD release of a classic series it's in the *presentation* and *not* that I find I no longer like the series. Honors for those would be *all* of the Universal and Fox releases on DVD-18's (DS/DL) as I've had problems with just about every one of them I've purchased.

 

[bretmaverick2]

The only one for me thus far is "Get A Life".

Now there are certain episodes that are just crazy funny, but there are some real bad ones as well. I think so many cast changes in season 2 did more to hurt than help the show.

 

[ljgranberry]

Naked City - a cornerstone of 1960's TV drama, but the transfers from Image were awful. Route 66 didn't fare much better, with shortened syndicated versions substituted for uncut episodes.