Buffy Season 4 cover art (1 Viewer)

[Adam_ME]

Is the better picture transfer of season 4 due to the widescreen format or can the R1 version with full frame also expect a much better quality?

It may be slightly better due the increased resolution an anamorphic WS transfer offers, but no one will know for sure til the R1 set is released. For what it's worth, all the featurettes on the R2 set shows clips from the episodes in 4:3, and the video quality is about the same as the 16:9 versions.

 

[Jeff Kleist]

I should say before someone corrects me- With the exception of Once More With Feeling, Buffy has never been aired widescreen, and has NEVER been aired in anamorphic widescreen

 

[Adam Tyner]

I'll correct you. Buffy has aired 16x9 since season 4. Just not in the U.S. You knew that, of course.

No, I'm not using that as any sort of excuse or justification.

 

[Nate Anderson]

This was a pretty decent season, at least for me. I always liked watching Buffy try to adjust to college at the same time I was. It was like we were going through it together, in a really weird sort of way.

"Oooh! Boyfriend! My on-campus boyfriend!"
"Ooops. I forgot to pick mine up. Oh well, the line's probably pretty long by now."
-Willow and Buffy.

For some reason, I always remember that quote. *shrugs shoulders* I dunno why...

 

[Jason Quillen]

This set caught me off guard. My roommate, a manager at Best Buy, said something to me today like "Guess I'll see ya in the store on June 10th, but I'm sure you already know" and then he told me about the set, which I hadn't heard about. I was expecting a little longer of a wait. Anyway, good for Fox. If Angel gets off this quick I'll be in heaven (even though I still haven't gotten Angel S1 - wallets too tight for this college student. I blew it all on Axiom speakers and an Outlaw 1050).

For me, S4 went from bad to good (only slightly good) recently. I saw Something Blue and Pangs on FX one time, just as I was flipping through - I liked the episodes well enough upon original airing, but, looking back at them now, they just...have aged well. I guess I'll leave it at that. Before anyone catches me, yes, Beer Bad is still bad for me.

I'm not sold on the cover art yet. Silver? The other sets are all dark, and now we've got this silver set with the Gentleman on it? I don't know. But I'll save that gripe for when I'm holding the set in my hands.

Everything else about the set looks great though. Nice extras (including the Wild at Heart commentary) - and features.

The only thing I could ask for is for Fox to do something about those damn floating discs. Damn devil digipacks.

So, I guess its about time to fire off some emails to ask that the "previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer" in front of episode 100 stays in place, huh?

JQ

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Love the cover, but does it strike anyone else that Willow throws off the composition of the cover? It just seems that it would look nicer if Buffy were featured alone in the center with The Gentleman behind her. Willow seems oddly out of place somehow, almost as if Alyson just happened to walk onto the photo shoot and behind Sarah at the moment the pic was snapped, kinda like John Cusack did at the beginning of 'Say Anything'.

I can't wait to own 'Hush' on dvd, one of my all time favorite eps! The Gentleman give me the creeps! :frowning: Plus, I love the way Buffy gestures with her hand during the brilliant silent overhead projector scene! Also, isn't this the season when Glory first appears? Clair Cramer's such a hottie...well, for an evil, spiteful, and bitchy God I mean.

 

[Adam_ME]

Also, isn't this the season when Glory first appears?

Glory doesn't appear til Season 5. And you may wanna cover that last line. It reveals a spoiler about Glory.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Thanks Adam, slight lapse in brain activity on my part their.

Speaking of brain activity breaking down, who is the big bad in season 4? Is it Adam
?

 

[James Reader]

Re: widescreen framing mistakes (Posted by Josh-da-man on DVDTalk - with a name like that could it be Jeff Kleist is disguise? )

I for one am glad this is being released in 4:3.

Even though it was shot in 16:9, it wasn't intended to be shown that way. In the widescreen episodes, several shots are ruined by visible equipment and other such errors.

Outdoor shots have a round sun visor visible around the edges of the screen.

In one scene, vines that are supposed to be moving by their own volition can be seen to be manipulated by hands.

I've also read a lot of indications that Joss Whedon prefers the 4:3 aspect ratio for the series (with the exception of WMWF, which is intended to be shown in widescreen.)

I find it odd that people are demanding Buffy S4 in widescreen, but will pitch a fit if a boom-mike dips into the frame of an open matte transfer of a movie.

I must say, I never noticed the hands moving the vines myself (I presume this is from 'Where The Wild Things Are'), perhaps time for another viewing.

I also remember noticing people hanging around in frame doing nothing seemingly waiting for their cue at least a couple of times (but I suppose this is subjective - but that's what it looked like to me).

 

[AlexSchwarz]

Thank you for all your efforts - as for myself, a decision is made

I will stick with the R1 sets, mainly because I don't want to pay twice as much for a comparatively bad box design (IMO), the wrong aspect ratio, PAL speedup and fewer extras, just to watch the episodes in widescreen with numerous errors and in a different way they are supposed to be seen - this is convincing.

Again, thanks for this thread! It helped me a lot.

 

[AlexSchwarz]

My decision was just shaken by a new thought.
...what if it was just the other way around? Maybe Buffy just aired in the U.S. in 4x3 because so many people have this kind of TV set and the widescreen release in Europe and Australia was no accident or something but well intended?

I mean, it's a possibilty. I am continously irritated why there are different versions of Buffy available and after some closer examination of the widescreen pictures I believe that it looks pretty good. Is it really that improbable that there are actually two OARs?

 

[Malcolm R]

Is it really that improbable that there are actually two OARs?

When the creator of the series, Joss Whedon, says that the intended OAR is 1.33, then yes, it is quite improbable.

Do people even read these threads? Joss's OAR preferences and intended compositions have been stated repeatedly.

 

[Dan Rudolph]

Alex, that would be a possibility except the shows were made in the U.S. for a primarily American audience. Also, as pointed out earlier, the creators have made statements as to the correct OAR.

 

[AlexSchwarz]

Well, right, they have.
And yes, I do read the whole thread.

4x3 is the OAR, I do not doubt that. What I was talking about was the possibility that 16x9 is another possible way to view it.
My problem is: I only own a 16x9 TV so to watch Buffy I have to zoom up the picture since I do not want black bars on the sides. So it may be better to buy the widescreen-editions anyway.

Then again, maybe not.
I wish I knew how much the picture QUALITY is affected...will the fullscreen-season 4 look as good as the widescreen one?

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Yes, it will look as good. Buffy does it's 4:3 extraction using common height, so there is just as much vertical resolution

 

[Aaron_Brez]

The 4:3 version should look as good, all else being equal, to the 16:9 version. Resolution is 720x480 in both cases. Technically, the 16:9 version will have lower resolution on the portion of the screen originally aired in the U.S..

However, according to you, all else is not equal-- you're planning on zooming in on the 4:3 image to fill your screen.

That will cut off image *and* reduce the effective resolution of the 4:3 version on your TV.

If you get the 16:9 version, this will not happen. Of course, you'll have bizarre things going on at the edge of the frame that should not ordinarily be seen, but since you're desperate to fill your screen regardless of OAR there's just not many options for you.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Those who want the 16x9 version just to fill their 16x9 screen need to seriously take a long hard look at themselves in the mirror.

You want your screens filled and be damned with the OAR...does this sound familiar to you? Nothing personal, but if you have this mentality your really no wiser than the Wal-Mart shopping Joe and Jane who are trying to destroy OAR forever.

 

[AlexSchwarz]

I'm going to buy the RC1-boxes....I made up my mind. Definitely this time.

Still, do you really watch a show with big black bars on the sides on your 16x9 TVs? Seriously? I think the zoom is not that bad....you still see all that you're supposed to see. Am I a bad person because I think so....?

 

[Aaron_Brez]

You are a bad, bad man.

Realistically, you're gonna miss the top and bottom of the show on every shot. If you can find enjoyment in that and don't mind the loss of resolution, be my guest. I'll make no value judgements on your acceptibility as a human being.

I just can't fathom *why*. I've been watching widescreen movies with "black bars" on my 4:3 TV for years now, and it doesn't really bother me that there will be black bars on the sides when I move up to a widescreen projector.

I want to see what the director/cinematographer wanted me to see in the theater or on my TV when the show was originally put together, and I won't compromise that just because my screen is shaped diferently. YMMV.

 

[PhilipG]

When the creator of the series, Joss Whedon, says that the intended OAR is 1.33, then yes, it is quite improbable.

I'd much rather have the opinions of the individual season 4 directors & cinematographers on their intended OAR.

Angel season 2 looked a lot better composed in widescreen (to my eyes, anyway), with the exception of one framing mistake.