BIONIC WOMAN (original series) COMING TO DVD (Kenneth johnson announces) (1 Viewer)

[MattHR]

Joe, does the version of Bigfoot part II on the SM$M box set have the same issues as the Bionic Woman set?
I'm approaching that point in watching my box sets (i have both), and i'm going in chronological order, trying to watch them
as aired, can i avoid the audio problem on the bionic woman set with the other version?

The faulty audio track for "The Return of Bigfoot-Part II" (and "Kill Oscar-Part I") was first noticed in the SMDM set. Fans had hoped corrections would be made to the then-upcoming BW:S2 release, but the same masters were used for both releases.

 

[AndyMcKinney]

The Bionic shows are in the process of getting an R2 re-release based on the new masters. I'm given to understand that these will be NTSC sets: no PAL conversion.

Sorry, but I find that last bit extremely hard to believe. Where do you get that information from? I simply can't trust that last bit without some quotable sources.
Although the majority of R2 viewers have multi-system TVs and DVD players, I'm still pretty certain that releases are still pretty much universally PAL. I've heard of the rare NTSC release in Region 4/Australia, in cases where a U.S. master was used instead of a U.K. one ('Remembrance of the Daleks', for one, which fixed a missing effects shot on the R2 version, and the show Grace and Favour which used the US DVD master since the series hadn't been released in the UK).
Of course, anything's possible, and if they do turn out to be NTSC, let's hope it's not simply a "port over" of the US sets (like the R4 NTSC examples I mentioned above). They could do a fair amount of "export" sales if they fix some of the errors on the US sets. I might even re-buy Bionic Woman and buy their $6m Man sets instead of waiting for the T-L set to drop in price.

 

[Joseph Burns]

I'm afraid that I can't reveal my source on that Andrew. I had a similar response to you when I heard it. Considering the fact that PAL has higher resolution than NTSC I'm sure that some will be disappointed. The new masters were NTSC, and they are indeed to be ported over, barring the kind of fixes that we're hoping for. By all means hold off judgement until "all the facts are in." ;-)
The following is purely speculative, but it's my impression from looking at the R1 releases of these shows that The Bionic Woman received a new telecine, perhaps back in 04-05 when the promo came out that indicated that it was on it's way before the R1 legal issues became clear. Then it was put on the shelf until after the fire in '08, at which point the master situation had become much more limited. Six, on the other hand, seems to be working from old telecines, possibly excepting the '73 movies and S1 (which are nearly the same as the versions issued in Mexico a few years back), and the Six version of "Kill Oscar, Part II," which looks incredible- perhaps there was no tape of it, so a new telecine was necessary there. The Six Million Dollar Man is an interlaced release and shows signs of aggressive DNR and color correction (particularly in S2, sadly my favorite), while The Bionic Woman is progressive with richer colors and more subtle DNR, which is why it looks to me like a relatively modern telecine.

 

[Hank E]

Season 3 is 15.99 on Amazon today.

 

[cajunhillbilly]

That is a great price but I can't buy anything until I get paid on the 15th. Have to save my money for gas, etc

 

[derosa]

I have 1 episode left to watch - the last episode from season 3, and I'm done both Series. I've watched the episodes as they aired in the weekly order, alternating between the two shows. It's been a blast, and I think I'll wait a while to watch the reunion movies,Because I'm sure to have some withdrawal. Both six million dollar man and the bionic woman had many klunker episodes over their run, but I've enjoyed watching both shows. The scripts, for the Bionic Woman especially, contain a lot of stereotype ethnic characters, it's amazing how much that topic has changed since this show aired.I'm wondering what series to watch next. I really enjoyed pairing two shows, and looked forward to that format again. I'm thinking maybe Magnum PI and Simon & Simon, Or possibly the first two seasons of CHiPs with Quincy.

 

[Jeff Willis]

I haven't started viewing my BW S3 set yet but will work it into the viewing rotation soon.

Some episodes are indeed dated but as you said, it's great revisiting the 2 bionic shows.

My favorite BW season was S1. Many fan's favorite is S2 with the "trilogy" and the fembots, etc. It's a good one but I liked the more at-home "classroom" stuff in S1 for some reason.

 

[derosa]

I liked the more at-home "classroom" stuff in S1 for some reason.

I really liked the episodes with the kids, I was going to mention that too.
With the classroom on the base, it made a connection to Jaime's job
and could have been more interesting than the 'spy of the week' formula
that became of the later shows.