What's new

Exclusive Bonus Materials (1 Viewer)

Jeff-Wooten

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Sep 16, 2005
Messages
113
Sorry I don't mean to vent, but it's either this or go out in the parking lot and do my best Shatner "Khaaaaaaaaan!" imitation. After nearly eight years and 250 titles, I think I’m throwing in the towel: I’m done collecting television series on DVD. The reason: These complete series sets that are coming out with exclusive bonus content. The latest culprit: The King of Queens, a series I’ve collected faithfully over the past three-and-half years. Now they’re releasing the complete series with a bonus dvd that could’ve easily been incorporated into the upcoming 13-ep Season 9 set (and judging from the content, it seems it would be a perfect companion to S9).

And the exclusive bonus material list goes on and on: TAGS (“Return to Mayberry” which still hasn’t been released separately); Seinfeld (coffee table book and cast roundtable-exclusive day and date with the final season set—huh?!?); I Love Lucy (a bonus disc with the ILL movie that fans have been anxious to see since its announcement), Star Trek: TNG (I’d have to put a second mortgage on my soul just to be able to purchase that one for basically a lousy bonus disc; no thanks!); X-Files; and many more I’m forgetting about (or just don't have the room to list). Anybody want to place wagers that when Get Smart finally hits the retail market, the complete series set will probably include the Get Smart Again movie as a bonus?

I cannot believe that there doesn’t appear to be an official way for loyal fans who’ve purchased these sets (and have been hinted at to do so, in fear that future season sets might not be released) to be able to send in proof of purchases or pay a little fee to get these bonus discs. Has anyone had any success with studios in this regard for previous “complete series” collections? I know the option to sell one’s season sets on eBay exists, but is there a market for used tv-on-dvd sets when these complete collections are being announced?

I can understand the corporate greed factor at work here: Get fans to “repurchase” the sets all over again. But I feel it’s a little unfair for studios to consider double-dipping like this on tv series. (A movie is basically reinvesting another $20; a tv series is reinvesting another $200—a disposable income of which I don’t really have.) Does anyone have a suggestion as to how to effectively get the studios’ attentions on this matter? Has anyone had any success getting their hands on this exclusive content outside of purchasing the complete series all over again? Now I have no problem with studios putting together these packages for new buyers; however I do have a problem that they appear to be “sticking it” to the long-time fans who’ve already shelled out the cash for the individual releases in order to get exclusive bonus content .

Kudos to the studios who’ve released complete season sets up front; but I’m afraid I’m backing out of any future purchases on single season sets until they’re completely finished—even if it means having to wait four or five years down the road.

Aw, I think I'll still go out in the parking lot and do my Shatner yell.
 

TravisR

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2004
Messages
42,426
Location
The basement of the FBI building
I understand your point but I recommend that you go my route and give up caring about series or store bonus discs. I used to a completist but it's just not worth the effort. The way I go about it now is if I can get it, fine- if not, oh well. I've rarely seen any content that is that good on a series or store exclusive bonus disc anyway.

Just yesterday at Target, I could have spent $7 extra on the deluxe edition of Heroes. It's only $7 but I passed because the bonus disc was a Paley Fetival panel (and small repros of some paintings from the show). It'd be nice to see but there probably won't be any info that I couldn't read in a million other articles or that isn't already mentioned somewhere else in the basic set.
 

Joe*A

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Aug 4, 2006
Messages
186
Real Name
Joe
Jeff, don't forget MASH with their extras in the complete series which they could've included in Season 9. Oh, but wait, Fox decides to "help" the loyal fan by releasing that bonus material separately - at the same price as a season set!?!? Friggin' jerks. I think I'll join you in the parking lot.

But I am more conscious about purchasing TV on DVD of late esp. if one waits long enough, you'll see your $50 sets going for $20 a few months after being released. I'm on to you guys [the studios].

But Travis is right when he says that bonus material is usually not worth the plastic it's printed on but I think Jeff is ticked simply because of the principle of the matter. We've been cash flowing the studios all these years but the "gift" goes to the shmuck who buys the comlete series. Stinks, man!
 

Jeff-Wooten

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Sep 16, 2005
Messages
113

Well you've got $7 more than me right now and all the better for it. I took the bait and realized I now have a bonus disc I'll never watch more than once and remembered that I had already read a transcript of it online at aintitcool. You're right. These extras can be hit or miss. Still the ILL exclusive disc sounds like a must-see, but I refuse to pour that much money into rebuying all those discs again. And I keep hearing the exclusive bonus material on the ST: TNG complete is supposed to "knock our socks off." Sigh.

My biggest nightmare: Six years from now, WB offers the complete Looney Tunes Golden Collection set with the exclusive bonus disc of the controversial shorts ("Coal Black") and the WWII toons.
 

Traveling Matt

Supporting Actor
Joined
Sep 1, 2006
Messages
929
I guess it can be a hit-or-miss thing. But when it's "hit," it's "hit."

The MASH bonus discs are great, especially if you haven't seen that material before. I didn't feel the need to purchase the seasons since episodes (seven or eight each day) run on local cable, but I did buy the stand-alone bonus boxset for $20 (well worth it!)

The Seinfeld bonuses (coffee table book and cast reunion DVD) don't sound like a miss to me. If I had purchased the seasons, I would be royally PO'ed at being shut out of those.

It is a matter of principle - if you support the series season-by-season, you shouldn't be cut off like that. It's bad business by the studios, and eventually it may catch up to them. Or they may smarten up and make stand-alone bonus boxsets a standard.
 

KevinMcConnell

Auditioning
Joined
Feb 21, 2006
Messages
11
Ebay....that is what I do. You can usually find stuff like that for a reasonable price. For instance, the South Park original pitch pilot was a Best Buy exclusive years ago. I got one for $20 earlier this week. So I guess it depends on how much you want something and if you will pay for it or not.
 

Joe*A

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Aug 4, 2006
Messages
186
Real Name
Joe
Does anyone know if the Seinfeld special will be included in the 9th Season - this is the one aired just before the series finale and had great clips of the show and ended with the Green Day tune? Is this the "Cast Reunion DVD" mentioned on this thread?
 

Joe*A

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Aug 4, 2006
Messages
186
Real Name
Joe
TravisR, U da man!!!

Great news! Finally, the Seinfeld people are doing things right.
 

Jesse Skeen

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 24, 1999
Messages
5,033
I'm pissed that I bought each volume of The Brady Bunch as it came out, and now they have the complete set that has episodes of the cartoon show and a couple of the revival shows- there's no excuse for not giving us the option to buy that separately instead of buying all the shows again just to get it!

They had an exclusive bonus disc with the big After School Specials set, after I'd bought the previous releases individually too (and talk about a needless multi-disc set, every disc is single-side and single layer!) I was forced to resort to copyright infringement to get the content of that, which I know is very wrong but I don't feel bad about it in this case.
 

Garysb

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2003
Messages
5,861

As previously mentioned the clip show is on Season 9 set but this is not the Cast Reunion DVD that is going to be part of the complete series set.
That is going to be a reunion of the 4 principals and others , Larry David ?,
talking about the show. This has not been previously broadcast. I will not rebuy Seinfeld just for the bonus disc which I would love to see.
Hopefully someone will put it up on Youtube so I can at least see it.
 

Jeff-Wooten

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Sep 16, 2005
Messages
113

Uh-oh. I fear another parking lot tantrum coming on. Must…calm…down. I still don’t understand why S9 would include EXCERPTS from the cast reunion in the first place. What’s the point? Why not just go ahead and include the complete cast reunion on the S9 extras? (If Sony is so interested in exclusive complete series SEINFELD bonus materials, the coffee table book sounds like enough.) Is the point of including these excerpts just an attempt to rub it in the face of people who bought S1-9 separately? (“You just purchased S9, but to see the entire roundtable reunion, you have to buy the complete series set—which, oh yeah, includes the season you just bought.”) Oh, well, I guess it all comes down to $$$ for these studios and how to get even more from you for the same product.
 

Jonny P

Supporting Actor
Joined
Sep 5, 2002
Messages
649
A few years ago, WB completed "Friends" with the release of Season 10.

At that time, they offered a "box" that you could order to house all 10 of the previous boxed sets.

I thought it was a nice offer. I cost $20, but was a really nice wood case, wrapped in black vinyl with logos printed, and a glass door on the front with a magnetic closure. All 10 previous boxes fit perfectly in there.

The nice thing is that being able to purchase that box didn't make me feel so bad when the "complete series" set came out later on.

I told my wife the other day that "Seinfeld" would soon release its last season. She said, "do you think they'll do a neat box like the one I ordered you for 'Friends.'"

I said, "no, I don't think so...they seem to only supply that sort of thing if you 're-buy' it all in a complete series set."

She seemed dumbfounded that they wouldn't offer a box to folks who'd loyally purchased all of the sets as they were released.

Granted, I purchased the "gift sets" of 1, 2, 3 and 5 and 6, but it'd be neat to have the option of purchasing the box without having to purchase all of the previous seasons again.

I'd pay $20 to $30 to do that.
 

Sky King

Supporting Actor
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
513
Real Name
John
Jeff,

I agree with you.
How many reincarnations have we seen of "The Twilight Zone" or "Star Trek" ?? How many is too many ??
I for one, just buy a release once. I'm not going to waste hard earned money to re-purchase a DVD set just because it has a blooper reel.
I read reviews and base my purchase on that. If I read that a better quality release will be forthcoming I'll wait. I was never one who had to have a DVD set the minute it was released. Patience has it's rewards.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Latest Articles

Forum statistics

Threads
356,810
Messages
5,123,580
Members
144,184
Latest member
H-508
Recent bookmarks
1
Top