Highway To Heaven coming to Blu-ray, March 13, 2023 from VEI. (1 Viewer)

[Tony Bensley]

Why did she ix-nay Highway to Heaven?

No idea. I asked the Mrs if she would be interested in having the HWTH series if we couldn't get her the complete MURDER, SHE WROTE, and she said no. I saw no point in inquiring any further.

CHEERS!

 

[jimmyjet]

That appears to be for the new DVD release, not the blu-ray release.

i see. are they releasing 2 different versions at the same time ? that seems odd

 

[smithbrad]

i see. are they releasing 2 different versions at the same time ? that seems odd

Not that unusual to release a DVD and blu-ray version at the same time. Especially, for VEI that has done it before. They licensed the product, they might as well get as many to purchase as possible, whether one prefers DVD or blu-ray.

 

[jimmyjet]

all 3 of his shows are in my highest echelon of liking. at vei, they are currently selling for 50 and 30. in terms of percentage, there is quite a difference. but in terms of dollars, not much. i would be surprised if the overwhelming percentage of purchases were not blu-ray

 

[smithbrad]

all 3 of his shows are in my highest echelon of liking. at vei, they are currently selling for 50 and 30. in terms of percentage, there is quite a difference. but in terms of dollars, not much. i would be surprised if the overwhelming percentage of purchases were not blu-ray

That may be true in a forum such as this, but in general DVD's still outsell blu-ray by quite a margin amongst the general public, so why not capitalize on it. Especially, given that theses will likely be better quality than prior DVD releases, except for not being the original aspect ratio, which again the general public doesn't appear to mind and even many times prefers for their screen to be completely filled.

Also, remember they did the same thing with titles like Wiseguy, Baywatch, and Stargate, so they would seem to know their market and what types of returns they will get.

 

[jimmyjet]

there may not be a lot of extra work to make a copy of dvd, once you already have a completed copy in blu-ray ? i would have to see both copies to see if i can tell much of a difference. i appreciate video quality, so at this price i would always get the best. no reason for me, not to. but i also consider dvd to be pretty good quality. certainly when i take into account the quality that i originally saw most tv shows in, back in the 60s. i have viewed some of the shows in the video quality that was originally presented on tv. dvd quality is so much better, that it is hardly viewable for me, any more. it just goes to show what happens when you get used to something better.
in terms of aspect ratio, i am not that fussy. probably would not even notice it that much. i am thrilled at being able to view yesterday's shows with today's quality. i am told that there are some shows that no one has any content on. so i guess those are lost, forever. but i am thankful that we have most of them.

 

[jimmyjet]

just received an email that they are adding a show called twice in a lifetime with the dvd of hth, for the same price of $30. all 4 seasons. it is supposed to be another "heavenly" show. 44 episodes.

 

[bmasters9]

just received an email that they are adding a show called twice in a lifetime with the dvd of hth, for the same price of $30. all 4 seasons. it is supposed to be another "heavenly" show. 44 episodes.

Just looked that up on Wikipedia, and that Twice In A Lifetime is only two seasons.

Twice in a Lifetime (TV series) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[jimmyjet]

that was probably my mistake, not the email that i got. 44 episodes sounds a lot more like 2 seasons.

 

[bmasters9]

that was probably my mistake, not the email that i got. 44 episodes sounds a lot more like 2 seasons.

Still, it looks like you'll be getting a value in that other show, in addition to the Highway to Heaven release (not sure if you purchased that release or not).

 

[classictvfan40]

I still haven't picked this up but its on my bucket list.

 

[bmasters9]

I still haven't picked this up but its on my bucket list.

Have you seen it before?

 

[classictvfan40]

Have you seen it before?

Yes..the HD version on Peacock. I wasn't a regular viewer back in the day but for a price of less than $50 dollars I'm game.

 

[HonkyTonkMan]

Highway to Heaven is my favorite television series of the 1980's.

I have the A&E DVD release of Season 2.

I have the Mill Creek Entertainment DVD releases of the
first, third, fourth and fifth seasons.

Unfortunately, all of the episodes of Season 2
from the A&E and Mill Creek Entertainment DVD sets
were exclusively presented in the
heavily edited syndicated versions.

Does VEI's Blu-Ray release of
Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series
feature Season 2 entirely uncut?

Unfortunately, the A&E and Mill Creek Entertainment
DVD releases of Season 3 both present a
heavily edited syndicated version of the Robert Culp episode "Parents' Day".

Is "Parents' Day" finally presented in uncut form on this
VEI Blu-Ray box set?

Mill Creek Entertainment's DVD release of the fourth season
featured the heavily edited syndicated version of "Aloha".

Is "Aloha" finally presented in uncut form on this
VEI Blu-Ray box set?

I would surely purchase VEI's Highway to Heaven box set
if every episode is presented on it in uncut form.

 

[LeoA]

I don't yet have this set but hope to buy a copy soon. A look at the widescreen episodes streaming on Tubi appears very promising though. The several season 2 episodes that I checked as well as Parents' Day and Aloha all have ran past the 49 minute mark.

That obviously isn't confirmation that past problems are fixed with the Blu-Ray set, but at least it's anecdotal evidence that suggests they quite possibly have been rectified. Hopefully someone with access to the set can chime in and actually confirm one way or another, but I'm personally hopeful based off what I've seen that's streaming.

 

[HonkyTonkMan]

I compared the old DVD sets which are heavily cut for syndication, to the BD set which is not. That alone is worth the purchase.

So, its seems like you're saying that all 111 episodes of
Highway to Heaven are presented in their original full-length
uncut broadcast versions on the VEI 21-disc
"Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series" Blu-Ray box set.

If that's the case,
wouldn't all 111 episodes have a running time of 47 minutes or higher?

The vast majority of those episodes should at least have a
running time of 48 minutes or higher.

If any of the episodes have a running time of less than 47 minutes,
then those particular episodes might not be presented
in their original uncut broadcast form.

Did you keep track of the Blu-Ray running times of the
episodes from Season 2?

Hopefully, all of the episodes from Season 2 each have
running times of over 47 1/2 minutes on this
VEI 21-disc Blu-Ray box set.

I doubt that any uncut episodes from Season 2
had a original broadcast running time of fewer than
47 1/2 minutes with the opening teasers added to the episodes.

Season 2 of Highway to Heaven originally aired on NBC from
September 18, 1985 until May 7, 1986.

If I remember correctly,
A&E and Mill Creek Entertainment failed to present
any episodes from Season 2 in uncut form
on their old DVD releases of Season 2.

On Peacock, here are the running times of these Season 2 episodes.

"The Smile in the Third Row" 46:14 - no opening teaser included
"Change of Life" 46:47 - no opening teaser included
"Heaven on Earth" 46:21 - no opening teaser included
"Sail Away" 46:17 - no opening teaser included

So, it appears that the syndicated versions of those
four episodes might be the versions of those particular episodes
that Peacock uploaded onto their official website.

On Peacock,
11 episodes from Season 2 have a running time of
49:02 or higher even though Peacock didn't include the
opening teasers in any of the episodes.

Did you also keep track of the VEI Blu-Ray running times of the
Season 3 episodes "Love and Marriage Part 1",
"Love and Marriage Part 2" and "Parents' Day"
which were all presented in butchered syndicated versions
on the old A&E and Mill Creek Entertainment DVD releases?

On the Season 4 DVD release by Mill Creek Entertainment,
the episode "Aloha" had a running time of just 45:19
which of course is the chopped up syndicated version.

I wouldn't be shocked if the syndicated version of "Aloha"
was mistakenly added to the VEI Blu-Ray box set release
even though the original full-length uncut version of "Aloha"
is currently available to watch on Peacock.

Are the Season 4 episodes "I Was a Middle-Aged Werewolf",
"Amazing Man" and "Playing for Keeps"
still under 47 minutes each on Blu-Ray like they were on DVD?

I've never been convinced that "I Was a Middle-Aged Werewolf", "Amazing Man" and "Playing for Keeps"
were ever issued on DVD in their original uncut broadcast form.

I also wouldn't be shocked if the Season 5 episode "The Source"
is still missing the office scene that was omitted from
Mill Creek Entertainment's DVD release of Season 5.

That approximately 43-seconds in length omitted scene
features Michael Landon's character Jonathan Smith
speaking in his Santa Luiza High School office to the
two corrupt Santa Luiza High School newspaper journalists
immediately before the next scene
(which was included on DVD by Mill Creek Entertainment)
that begins with one of those two newspaper journalists saying
"Boy, that Smith ticks me off. Who does he think he is?"

That 43-seconds in length omitted office scene is included in the
version of "The Source" that Peacock uploaded onto their website.

On Peacock,
the opening "teasers" for each of the
Highway to Heaven episodes aren't included.

Since it's been confirmed that you own a copy of this
VEI 21-disc Blu-Ray box set,
I figured that you were the right person to ask
these questions to on this forum.

Not a single individual that has reviewed this VEI Blu-Ray box set
on Amazon or anywhere else has mentioned anything about the
approximate running times of the 111 episodes featured on the
VEI "Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series" Blu-Ray box set.

I wish that every single classic American television series
from the 20th Century that has been released on
DVD or Blu-Ray here in North America had actually been
lucky enough to get issued on DVD or Blu-Ray entirely
uncut and unedited.

Unfortunately, lots of the classic American television shows
from the 20th Century have been presented on DVD or Blu-Ray
with numerous butchered or chopped up episodes included
instead of the original full-length uncut broadcast versions
of those particular episodes.

 

[HonkyTonkMan]

Regarding the Season 3 episode "Parents' Day"
starring Robert Culp,
the episode's running time was just 44:19 on the old
Mill Creek Entertainment DVD release.

On Peacock, "Parents' Day" has a running time of 49:40
without the episode's opening teaser even included.

So hopefully, the uncut version of "Parents' Day"
has finally made its debut on a factory pressed disc
on this 21-disc VEI Blu-Ray release.

Unfortunately, Peacock has the syndicated versions of both
"Love and Marriage Part 1" and Love and Marriage Part 2"
from Season Three.

So, the original uncut versions of those two episodes
are probably lost.

So, my assumption is that the syndicated versions of
several different Season Two episodes
were presented on Blu-Ray by VEI
and that the syndicated versions of a two-part episode
from Season Three were presented on Blu-Ray by VEI too.

Season Four might not be fully uncut on Blu-Ray either.

So, my dream of owning a fully uncut copy of all 111 episodes
of Highway to Heaven likely won't ever come true.

But, it does seem like the VEI
"Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series"
21-disc Blu-Ray box set would likely have a far larger
amount of uncut episodes of Highway to Heaven than
Mill Creek Entertainment's
"Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series" DVD box set did.

There's never been a perfect "Complete Series" DVD or Blu-Ray
release of this amazing, heartwarming, unique, uplifting and emotion television series.

Even if VEI had issued all 111 episodes uncut,
they still would have refused to use appropriate packaging
for the Blu-Ray release.

I absolutely hate the type of packaging that VEI has chosen
to use for such a large amount of their
classic TV on DVD and Blu-Ray releases,
including the packaging that VEI had chosen to use for the
"Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series"
21-disc Blu-Ray box set.

I don't yet have a copy of this VEI 21-disc Blu-Ray box set,
but, I'll probably be buying a copy of it sometime later this year.

 

[jcroy]

just received an email that they are adding a show called twice in a lifetime with the dvd of hth, for the same price of $30. all 4 seasons. it is supposed to be another "heavenly" show. 44 episodes.

Just looked that up on Wikipedia, and that Twice In A Lifetime is only two seasons.

Twice in a Lifetime (TV series) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

(On a tangent).

I watched "Twice In A Lifetime" when it was in reruns on a basic cable channel which features quasi-religious programming. Though I don't usually watch "heavenly" or even quasi-religious type tv shows/movies.

Though with that being said, I first came across "Twice In A Lifetime" while channel surfing, and came across an episode with a familiar face and voice of Patrick Duffy (who previously played Bobby Ewing on Dallas). So I recorded the next several episodes, where the next episode I watched featured another familiar face and voice of Donna Mills (who previously played Abby Cunningham on Knots Landing). This was when I realized "Twice In a Lifetime" was an episodic anthology type of show.

When I heard about this show being finally released on dvd over a year ago, I ordered it on amazon. In spite of my past misgivings about the physical quality control of VEI's dvd discs, I decided it was worth the trouble of going through the possible headaches of going through eight discs.

Much to my surprise, the quality control of the actual physical dvd discs is somewhat more consistent in this eight discs "Twice In a Lifetime" set, than previous VEI released sets I purchased in the past. (Prior to this, the last VEI released dvd set I purchased was a disc-reduced variant of the Cannon complete series, which I found at Wallyworld for around $26 around 5+ years ago).


Conjecturing about this possible slightly better disc quality control (however fleeting) at VEI, I gradually ordered the Stephen J Cannell re-re-released shows VEI was doing last year, such as Hunter, Commish, etc ...and eventually Silk Stalkings. It turns out the physical disc quality control was actually ok for these re-re-released Cannell shows over the past year or so.

(I didn't buy many of these Cannell complete series dvd sets back when they were released by Mill Creek, except 21 Jump Street and Greatest American Hero. I only had some of the older Anchor Bay single-dvd "best of" Cannell releases such as Silk Stalkings and Commish, and a Mill Creek 2-discs season 1 volume one dvd of Renegade that I found in the $1 bin at a dollar store).

 

[HonkyTonkMan]

I received the VEI 21-disc Blu-Ray box set release of
"Highway to Heaven: The Complete Series" on Monday, December 4th
via delivery by the United States Postal Service.

I ordered this 21-disc Blu-Ray box set directly from VEI's official website.

The packaging that VEI used for this 21-disc Blu-Ray box set was absolutely dreadful.
All 21 of the Blu-Ray discs were shamefully stored in individual sleeves by VEI.

I took all 21 of those discs out of the sleeves very quickly after I had received the package
and then put Season One in a 5-disc capacity plastic DVD case,
Season Two in a 4-disc capacity plastic DVD case,
Season Three in a 5-disc capacity plastic DVD case,
Season Four in a 4-disc capacity plastic DVD case,
and Season Five in a 3-disc capacity plastic DVD case.

The picture quality of the episodes on the VEI Blu-Ray release
is such a major improvement over the picture quality of the episodes
on those old Mill Creek Entertainment DVD releases.

Here are the exact "Highway to Heaven" Season One episode running times
from the VEI Blu-Ray set and the out-of-print Mill Creek Entertainment DVD release.

I don't know if there are any scenes from Season One that are missing from the VEI release
due to the possibility that some of the episodes might not be running at the correct speed on the discs.

"Highway to Heaven (Part 1)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:01), VEI (48:58)

"Highway to Heaven (Part 2)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (50:22), VEI (50:27)

"To Touch the Moon" - Mill Creek Entertainment (50:00), VEI (47:53)

"Return of the Masked Rider" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:56), VEI (47:56)

"Song of the Wild West" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:58), VEI (47:56)

"One Fresh Batch of Lemonade (Part 1)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:13), VEI (47:13)

"One Fresh Batch of Lemonade (Part 2)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (47:43), VEI (45:46)

"A Divine Madness" - Mill Creek Entertainment (48:45), VEI (48:32)

"Catch a Falling Star" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:02), VEI (47:04)

"Help Wanted: Angel" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:38), VEI (49:43)

"Dust Child" - Mill Creek Entertainment (50:11), VEI (48:03)

"Hotel of Dreams" - Mill Creek Entertainment (51:34), VEI (49:34)

"Another Song for Christmas" - Mill Creek Entertainment (48:23), VEI (46:27)

"Plane Death" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:53), VEI (46:18)

"One Winged Angels" - Mill Creek Entertainment (48:19), VEI (46:23)

"Going Home, Going Home" - Mill Creek Entertainment (50:15), VEI (48:22)

"As Difficult as ABC" - Mill Creek Entertainment (51:12), VEI (49:15)

"A Child of God" - Mill Creek Entertainment (51:24), VEI (49:19)

"A Match Made in Heaven" - Mill Creek Entertainment (48:20), VEI (46:28)

"The Banker and the Bum" - Mill Creek Entertainment (47:49), VEI (47:51)

"The Brightest Star" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:12), VEI (47:20)

"An Investment in Caring" - Mill Creek Entertainment (48:23), VEI (46:30)

"The Right Thing" - Mill Creek Entertainment (49:41), VEI (49:45)

"Thoroughbreds (Part 1)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (50:14), VEI (48:21)

"Thoroughbreds (Part 2)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (46:34), VEI (49:03)

So, on the VEI release, the episodes "Highway to Heaven (Part 2)", "Help Wanted: Angel",
"The Banker and the Bum", "The Right Thing" and "Thoroughbreds (Part 2)"
each have a longer running time than what those episodes do
on that old Mill Creek Entertainment DVD release of Season One.

 

[HonkyTonkMan]

Here are the exact episode running times from the second season of "Highway to Heaven"
on the VEI 21-disc Blu_Ray box set and the out-of-print Mill Creek Entertainment DVD release.

I'm not convinced that the episodes "The Smile in the Third Row",
"Change of Life", "Heaven on Earth" and "Sail Away"
are presented in uncut form on this VEI 21-disc Blu-Ray box set.

On the VEI release,
"Alone" is the only episode that doesn't feature the iconic opening sequence
which has the iconic "Highway to Heaven" instrumental theme playing
and Michael Landon walking down a highway,
and Michael Landon getting into Victor French's iconic gray car.

"Alone" starts with the sequence which features the title of the episode,
and the list of the actors and the actresses that appeared in the episode
and the list of the crew members that worked on the episode.

"A Song for Jason (Part 1)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:17), VEI (49:40)

"A Song for Jason (Part 2)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (48:19), VEI (49:05)

"Bless the Boys in Blue" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:03), VEI (47:19)

"Cindy" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:07), VEI (47:09)

"The Devil and Jonathan Smith" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:11), VEI (49:22)

"Birds of a Feather" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:09), VEI (48:43)

"Popcorn, Peanuts and Cracker Jacks" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:14), VEI (49:36)

"The Smile in the Third Row" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:03), VEI (46:12)

"The Secret" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:23), VEI (47:29)

"The Monster (Part 1)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:17), VEI (49:07)

"The Monster (Part 2)" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:18), VEI (50:09)

"The Good Doctor" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:17), VEI (48:55)

"Alone" - Mill Creek Entertainment (44:53), VEI (48:01)

"Close Encounters of the Heavenly Kind" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:06), VEI (48:56)

"Change of Life" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:12), VEI (46:41)

"Keep Smiling" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:13), VEI (48:12)

"The Last Assignment" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:15), VEI (49:36)

"To Bind the Wounds" - Mill Creek Entertainment (44:59), VEI (48:30)

"Heaven on Earth" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:07), VEI (46:19)

"Summit" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:13), VEI (48:35)

"The Torch" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:15), VEI (49:31)

"Sail Away" - Mill Creek Entertainment (45:13), VEI (46:16)

"Children's Children" - Mill Creek Entertainment (44:16), VEI (49:32)

"Friends" - Mill Creek Entertainment (44:13), VEI (49:29)