Carlos Garcia

I wonder how grainy is grainy. The Munsters set looks grainy but it looks great for its age.

I\'m a classic TV fan. Widescreen? What\'s that?

David Von Pein

Mr. Fuller at SitcomsOnLine thinks the LITB-1 PQ is quite good. Per his review.........

"I was very impressed with the quality of the episodes. They look excellent and better than what I've seen in recent years on TV Land. Leave it to Beaver was shot on film, so there is some occasional dust and debris on the episodes. For these episodes being nearly 50 years old now, I don't think they could look any better."

DVP's BLOGS
DVP's VIDEO PAGE

Mike Frezon

I would find that shocking! I've always felt that the quality of most of the prints I've seen when episodes of Beaver aired on TV was excellent.

William: on what kind of set-up are you watching these discs? Maybe its a realllllllly big screen?

And, how many episodes have you sampled/watched?

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

William Miller

I watch all of my TV DVD's on a Sony 34" 4:3 HD-Ready TV.

I have sampled about 10 episodes and they all look grainy. If it wasn't for that problem, I would say they look great. Very deep blacks and a 100% improvement over the shoddy prints we are used to seeing over the years. They are all uncut, not sped up and have the original beginnings.

I don't understand the excuse of a bad transfer being blamed on the age of the show. I Love Lucy is older and they look fantastic. Universal is just a company that takes the easier and cheaper route in everything they do. I never expected the Beaver set to be perfect and once again, Universal didn't let me down.

Another warning. Disc 1 has a paper insert plugging other Universal TV sets and whoever stuck in the insert caused several surface marks on the DVD. Of course, if Universal would not use double-sided DVD's that would not have been a problem but there are enough other threads devoted to that situation.

Bill Parisho

Good job William! You hit the nail right on the head. Naturally, there can be problems with some old TV shows (or movies for that matter) but there have been so many older programs that have been released on DVD that look amazing. Check out the WB releases of Cheyenne and Maverick. Or look at the 20th Century Fox issue of Soup To Nuts from 1930 with The Three Stooges. Unbelievable quality!
Thanks for the heads up on Disc One. To be honest, I've had it with Universal.
Bill Parisho

Greg_S_H

David, I was holding the lunchbox in my hand moments ago, but I forgot to check the positioning of the blue shield! Do you know which version they ultimately went with?

I'm still torn about this release. The regular edition is not only cheaper, but so much more practical. But, the lunchbox is really cool. I couldn't afford either with what else I was buying today, so I have a little more time to decide.

David Von Pein

My copies are in the mail as I type (via an Amazon order). So I'm not sure which version they went with...but I think (given the website changes @ Universal's site & at Amazon too) that the blue circle was eliminated, and they went with the more-drab no-circle version (for some silly reason).

I'll know for certain tomorrow. (I ordered both editions. That's how nuts about the Cleavers I am. )

DVP's BLOGS
DVP's VIDEO PAGE

MattHR

I saw it today. The link (previously posted) depicts
the actual product:

http://www.mcnally95.com/graphics/ne..._S1_Advert.jpg

Paul Sandhu

I just watched the first episode.

Yes it is grainy, but not too bad. In fact its better than what I have seen it before on reruns. It doesn't detract from the overall picture at all.

I do wish that they used the Universal logo of that time perious (1957), oh well.

Paul Sandhu

Jefferson

Mike Frezon mentioned one of my favorite episodes,
where the neighbor lady kisses the Beav.

In Season 1, i find June Cleaver so spunky and upbeat,
compared to the later seasons.
Her reactions in the episode where Beaver has all his hair chopped off are hilarious.
"My baby!"

I will certainly be picking this up.

Mike Frezon

FWIW, my Wal-Mart had this last night for $37.xx

Wal-Mart prices vary, however, from region-to-region and even from store-to-store in many cases...so YMMV.

Noone has yet reported seeing any at Target.

There's Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. Bullseye, he's Woody's horse. Pete the old prospector. And, Woody, the man himself. Of course, it's time for Woody's RoundUp. He's the very best! He's the rootinest, tootinest cowboy in the wild, wild west!

Darrell S.

I bought the lunch box deluxe set and I am sending it back to Amazon. It is rinky-dink and not worth the extra money. There is nothing to protect the disks and there is no episode listing anywhere. I just put in an order for the regular version.

The episodes are grainy, but beautifully-saturated and sharp. This show holds up over time more than any other TV show from the 50s or 60s because they are well-written, hilarious, sincere, believable, natural, and common family situations that are timeless. The acting is so realistic you really believe you are watching a real family that you love and feel a part of. The incidental music and background music is so good it really sets the mood and transports you to this wonderful place that is so comfortable to visit. This is my favorite TV show of all time.

The pilot is interesting because there are different actors playing Ward and Wally and they are horrible. Also, the Ward character smokes and sleeps late while the rest of the family is up doing chores! Very out of character. Beaver is exactly the same: very adorable, funny and believable.

Another gripe is those horrible, ear-splitting Universal music ads in between EVERY episode that knock you out of your chair. They did this also on THE MUNSTERS and it is very irritating.