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HBO's THE WIRE remastered in HD and probably coming to HBO this Week (1 Viewer)

TravisR

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This was mentioned in another thread and I was wondering if they'd just be the upconverts that available on On Demand but based on that link, it looks like they're HD.

Fingers crossed that they keep the correct 4x3 aspect ratio.
 

Aaron Silverman

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That's lame, but if what they say is true about the framing being protected for 16x9, it's at least a better situation than the Simpsons marathon.

I got an email from XFinity yesterday about HBO and Cinemax being free "this weekend," but I'm not sure if it meant this coming weekend or if it was just late.
 

TravisR

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Entertainment Weekly has some new info:
The Wire, David Simon’s critically acclaimed series, will be re-mastered in HD, HBO confirmed to EW. But as exciting as that news is, the network added that it does “not have further information regarding the timeline.” A promo claiming that a “replay marathon” of the series would start September 4 on HBO Signature ran prematurely, HBO said, and the series will not be airing this month.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/09/02/hbo-the-wire-remastering/

Hopefully, Simon can stop them from using the 16x9 versions.
 

joshEH

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883872249519569954.jpg


Above: Widescreen transfer currently on Amazon Prime.
Below: Original broadcast version.

Much like the new HD rebuild of The X-Files, I'll definitely be taking the 16:9 version.
 

Citizen87645

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I guess I'm glad I never picked up the series. Can Six Feet Under be far behind?
 

Aaron Silverman

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Insley explained, "When the show started 2001 / 2002 they framed it for 16 x 9 as a way of future-proofing. Then a couple of seasons ago, right before Season 4 began shooting, there was a big discussion about it and after much discussion -- David, Nina, Joe Chappelle, the Producers, the DPs -- and we discussed what should be the style of the show. David made the decision that we would stay with 4x3. The DPs pretty much defined the look to be what it is now. And it's been consistent for the past two seasons."
I guess I had it backward -- they actually shot it 16x9 and protected for 4x3! But did that last throughout the series? Were seasons 4 and later shot that way, or did they just shoot 4x3 after deciding to air it that way?
 

TravisR

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Aaron Silverman said:
Were seasons 4 and later shot that way, or did they just shoot 4x3 after deciding to air it that way?
Based on the quote from Dave Insley, the last two seasons of the series were also framed for 4x3. He says how before S4 started shooting, they've decided to keep the 4x3 framing and have continued with it "for the past two seasons" (and that would be the fourth and fifth years of the series which were the last two seasons).
 

Aaron Silverman

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Right, what I was wondering was whether they shot a 16x9 frame with the image protected for 4x3 viewing (as they'd done previously), or whether they changed to shooting an actual 4x3 frame.
 

TravisR

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According to their Facebook page, the HD episodes of The Wire are coming to HBO Signature and HBO GO this month.

Nothing more than a guess but I'd say that the series will hit Blu-ray in time for next Christmas.
 

hotrodguy

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Aaron Silverman said:
That's lame, but if what they say is true about the framing being protected for 16x9, it's at least a better situation than the Simpsons marathon.

I got an email from XFinity yesterday about HBO and Cinemax being free "this weekend," but I'm not sure if it meant this coming weekend or if it was just late.
For AT&T Uverse, the free weekend was last weekend, over the Thanksgiving holiday, I enjoyed it while it lasted and recorded a few movies to watch at my leasure...
 

Adam Lenhardt

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What I don't understand is the assumption, seemingly taken for granted by both HBO and David Simon, that HD and 16x9 necessarily go hand in hand. He talks about how great the additional resolution is while bemoaning how some of the 16x9 compositions "are simply not as good" as the 4x3 original. I don't see any reason they couldn't take the Star Trek: The Next Generation route and remaster the show in high-definition, while pillarboxing the image to preserve the original framing. Well, one reason: HBO obviously thought all of that work and expense wouldn't be worth it if it didn't result in an image that fills people's screens.
 

ScottH

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I get not wanting a cropped image converted from 4:3 to 16:9, but if you have a source that was filmed in 16:9 and was simply framed out to 4:3 for broadcast, why wouldn't you want the 16:9 source?
 

TravisR

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Scott Hanson said:
I get not wanting a cropped image converted from 4:3 to 16:9, but if you have a source that was filmed in 16:9 and was simply framed out to 4:3 for broadcast, why wouldn't you want the 16:9 source?
Because the show was intended to be seen 4x3 so the extra information on the sides of the 16x9 frame is mostly just empty space that isn't meant to be seen. That being said, looking Simon's website, they've taken care to make sure that shot composition will still be good (or as good as it can be) and that equipment and crew members that would be seen on the edges of frames have been painted out.
 

Tina_H_V

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TravisR said:
According to their Facebook page, the HD episodes of The Wire are coming to HBO Signature and HBO GO this month.

Nothing more than a guess but I'd say that the series will hit Blu-ray in time for next Christmas.That is the plan, travis. h
That is the plan, Travis. An early announcement has this one due for release next Summer. Which, in turn, would make it a 2015 XMAS buy for me. Interestingly, I have the DVD version of this entire series going under the tree later this month. Until then, I shall look forward to enjoying this classic HBO Original Series on DVD for the next year before upgrading to Blu-ray Disc next holiday season. :)
 

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