Brent Reid
Supporting Actor
Can any knowledgeable fan out there give me some factual advice on the DVD releases? I'd like to buy the entire run of episodes, as well as the five TV specials, on official DVD. Although I live in the UK, I'm happy to buy DVDs from any region, anywhere in the world, as long as the episodes are as complete as possible. I know that many of the US NTSC DVDs contain cut episodes and that the PAL countries' DVDs are apparently mostly uncut and have generally better A/V quality, though I can't find a definitive answer on this.
DVDs have been issued in these countries; does anyone know their exact spec or extras?
Lastly, what's the score with extra features; are all the ones on the US DVDs available on the other region's releases?
I'm really just looking for straightforward, practical advice on the above questions. Please don't weigh in with a general moan about how it's a travesty this brilliant series has been released in such poor quality, that the syndicated episodes are an aberration, I should seek out VHS-derived fan dubs/edits on the internet and it's high time all the original masters were rescanned and released in HD, etc... I know all that and it's been said elsewhere a thousand times before. This is my all-time fave series, yet I've resisted watching it in over 20 years, waiting for a decent release. Now I just want to see it again before I get even older!
EDIT:
Less than eight months after I wrote the above, better than my wildest dreams came true and we got reissues of the entire series, restored from 35mm vault materials and released on US DVD* and Blu-ray! English, French and Spanish audio and English subtitles were included, alongside the following extras:
Missing footage, etc
Missing extras
Interviews:
Now, where's that complete series Blu-ray set of The Waltons?
*Remastered Complete Series DVD box sets followed in Germany and Australia.
DVDs have been issued in these countries; does anyone know their exact spec or extras?
- US: Complete Series box set (55 discs)
- Holland: Complete Series box set (54 discs)
- Germany: Complete Series box set (58 discs)
- Australia: Complete Series box set (55 discs)
- UK: no box set, but the seasons 1–9 sets total 54 discs (the last three films are unissued in the UK)
Lastly, what's the score with extra features; are all the ones on the US DVDs available on the other region's releases?
I'm really just looking for straightforward, practical advice on the above questions. Please don't weigh in with a general moan about how it's a travesty this brilliant series has been released in such poor quality, that the syndicated episodes are an aberration, I should seek out VHS-derived fan dubs/edits on the internet and it's high time all the original masters were rescanned and released in HD, etc... I know all that and it's been said elsewhere a thousand times before. This is my all-time fave series, yet I've resisted watching it in over 20 years, waiting for a decent release. Now I just want to see it again before I get even older!
EDIT:
Less than eight months after I wrote the above, better than my wildest dreams came true and we got reissues of the entire series, restored from 35mm vault materials and released on US DVD* and Blu-ray! English, French and Spanish audio and English subtitles were included, alongside the following extras:
- The four full-length films, on seasons 1, 6 and 7.
- "The Little House Phenomenon": a new documentary in six parts (14/16/19/17/15/16 min), on seasons 1–6.
- Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert original screen test (2min), on season 1.
Missing footage, etc
- S1 "Family Quarrel": mistakenly repeats subtitles from "Christmas at Plum Creek". A replacement disc can be obtained by emailing [email protected]. Presumably this has been included on subsequent pressings.
- S1 "Country Girls": missing a 20sec scene of the Kennedy boy reading his summer poem.
- S1 "Child of Pain": possibly missing around 1min (scenes unknown).
- S1 "To See the World": possibly missing around 1min of unknown scenes.
- S2 "Remember Me (Part 1)": ends abruptly with a newly overlaid "To Be Continued" notice. Euro DVDs have the original ending.
- S3 "Little Women": messy edit at 9.54; Euro DVDs have the missing couple of secs.
- S3 "The Music Box": messy edit at ?; missing a couple of secs?
- S3 "The Election": messy edit at ?; missing a couple of secs?
- S3 "Gold Country": possible missing footage. Has a runtime of 92min, as opposed to all other double length/two-part episodes, which clock in at 96–97min.
- S6 "Whatever Happened to the Class of '56": possibly missing around 15sec of unknown scenes?
- S6 "Darkness is My Friend": possibly missing around 30sec of unknown scenes?
- S7 "Divorce, Walnut Grove Style": missing around 3min, including the 'different glass' scene, among others.
- S7 all episodes: not quite up to the same high visual quality of the previous seasons, especially the "Laura Ingalls Wilder (Part 1)" episode.
- S7 all English subtitles: slightly unsynchronised.
- S7 and S8 all audio tracks: mastered too high and thus slightly distorted.
- S7 all French and Spanish audio tracks: slightly unsynchronised.
- S9 "Home Again": originally aired as a 2 hour special but split in two parts for syndication. The remaster misses around 4min off the end of Part 1 and finishes with Albert stealing sugar to substitute for morphine. On the original DVDs he then delivers a box of medical supplies to Doc Baker, who examines the contents and tells a nervous Albert where to find a key he can use anytime he wants to come in and read Doc's medical books. Albert then runs off and has a lengthy interaction with Charles & Mr. Edwards.
- Film "The Last Farewell": in the final scene of the townspeople singing a triumphant hymn, the English audio is faulty and they can barely be heard. As the hymn is undubbed on the Spanish and French audio tracks and there is no further dialogue, it's possible to simply switch tracks when the singing starts.
- Film "Bless All the Dear Children": the original DVD ran 40sec longer, though it could be for technical reasons as opposed to missing footage.
Missing extras
- "The Little House Years" (1979): originally aired as a 3 hour Thanksgiving special; the 2 hour Internet Archive upload presumably has the actual runtime, minus ads.
Interviews:
- Dabbs Greer (10min)
- Alison Arngrim (10min)
- Dean Butler (10min)
- Merlin Olsen (19min)
- Patrick Labyorteaux (20min)
- Matthew Labyorteaux (20min)
- Richard Bull (21min)
- Katherine MacGregor (20min)
- Karen Grassle (21min)
- Melissa Sue Anderson (51min)
- "A Little House Conversation" with Melissa Gilbert (50min)
- "Bunny"
- "Here Comes the Bride"
- "The Cheaters"
- "Oleson Versus Oleson"
- "The Return of Nellie"
- "Casting Little House" (?min)
- "Ed Friendly: Creating Little House" (11min)
- "Remembering the Last Farewell" (26min)
- "The Genius of Michael Landon" (30min)
Now, where's that complete series Blu-ray set of The Waltons?
*Remastered Complete Series DVD box sets followed in Germany and Australia.
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