Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1 Viewer)

[GuruAskew]

Universal lists the price as $29.99 on their site, although it's probably just because they would be stupid to charge full SRP at their own studio store. The site also lists the running times for each disc, and it would seem tht discs 1 & 2 have 8 episodes each, four on each side, whereas disc 3 would contain the final 4. The first 2 discs have a running time of 6 hours 53 minutes, which works out to about 51:38 per episode. The third disc is 3 hours 22 minutes so the episodes would be 50:30, on average. There's a slight discrepency there but I'd be more inclined to believe that the episodes just ran a bit shorter, I don't suspect cuts because the shorter running times on disc 3 are still considerably longer than you would see if cut for reruns. I don't own any Universal TV-on-DVD, so I don't know if they'll split up the third disc to 2 episodes per-side or if the it will be single-sided with disc art.

 

[David_Blackwell]

I have had no problems with the double sided discs except on the DVD-ROM in my computer only a few times (a freeze up at certain spots on a disc or two on the SLIDERS set). However they play fine on the VCR/DVD Recorder combo unit.

 

[GuruAskew]

I've had problems on double-sided discs but I've also had problems on single-sided discs so I'm not too worried in this case.

 

[Paul_Scott]

there won't be any disc art on this.
assuming they only use five sides, the last side will just be blank.
i've noticed that on certain dbl sided discs lately Universal hasn't even bothered to have a 'ring' identifier on one side.

Gord has a larger scan of the cover art up on his site.
Coloring looks a bit better than the small one, but i'm still not crazy about bathed in red lighting. looks like they are using the succubus from "Demon In Lace" (one of the long unsyndicated episodes) as the ghostly creature on the front of the jacket.

it was so cool when columbia House started to put this series out. i only bought two of the tapes, but i was able to see 3 episodes i hadn't seen in their original format since 1975. that was a real treat.
and those four eps on VHS cost the same as this 20 ep sets msrp, and takes up twice as much shelf space- gotta love the DVD format

 

[Brian Himes]

I'm really looking forward to this. This show scared the hell out of me when I was a kid. I had nightmares each and every week because of this show.

I hope that I don't have the same problems with Universal double sided discs. My Battlestar Galacitca and Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew sets all played fine, but Buck Rogers was a nightmare. I had the same problem with V: The Complete Series from Warner Brothers. I guess my machine just doesn't like double sided discs.

 

[Dave Mack]

I too had problems with "A&C Volume one", but didn't find out til' after 2 weeks and I couldn't return it to the B&M store, (Tower Video in NYC) I too am gonna wait to hear how these play...

d

 

[GuruAskew]

There are a couple of reviews on Amazon's page from people that actually have the set and both of them are negative:


Have any reputable reviewers gotten their hands on this yet? Is it possible that these reviewers just aren't being realistic in regards to this 31-year-old show's age?

 

[TravisR]

Yeah, it's quite possible some people think a cult TV show is going to get a full restoration. Did anyone actually think that the episodes were going to look that good? It'd be great if they did but I don't think it was realistic to think that Universal was doing anything beyond transfer the episodes from their masters onto a disc.

That being said, I think it's a safe assumption that the episodes are going to look better than anyone's ever seen them. Granted, they'll still look like crap but they'll beat my VHS copies from the Sci-Fi Channel or a bootleg I could buy.

To me, the more important question is are the episodes complete? They probably are since Universal has a pretty good track record with not having edited episodes.

 

[Pete Battista]

I am considering this one as a blind buy... never seen a single episode.... but it is the type of show I love!

being I will be new to the series I have a Question though...

When I get this set... will I still need to add...

- Night Stalker/Night Strangler

to my collection? is the above release like feature movies... or just a couple episodes from the series?

 

[Dave Scarpa]

You should add the Movies and I'd watch them prior to picking up the series. The series is good mainly for Darren Mcgavin as Kolchak. They definately ran out of ideas toward the end of the series. Don't forget the New Series Premiere's tommorrow night. I expect it won't hold a candle to the original. I hope they use the series unique Original theme as a Homage, but I bet they won't

 

[Jeff#]

What I can't understand is why Frank Spotnitz didn't make this Carl Kolchak's son? Is Darren McGavin too old to act? Frank should have gone the Bret Maverick route used in the Mel Gibson movie, since the ending made it clear that James Garner was really Bret, Sr. (Mel's Pappy) and not the Sheriff he was pretending to be.

Aside from that minor issue, maybe we should judge the new Night Stalker series on its own merits. ABC can't do any worse with this than they did with
Commander in Chief. I always liked Geena Davis and the possibility of a woman President of the U.S. is not unreasonable, but that show is BORING, poorly acted by the entire cast, and as the pilot episode which first aired last night clearly demonstrates, ineptly edited (events happen in a too-rushed manner).

 

[Dave Scarpa]

Mcgavin is in a Nursing home I believe and is in quite Poor Health so He would'nt have been in the series. Kolchak's Son interesting but all he ever dated was stripers !

 

[Pete Battista]

Thanks Dave.. Looking forward to it... and I am also looking forward to the new series that starts tomorrow night.. already have my cable box set to record it.

 

[george fr]

Hi.What channel is the new Night Stalker show on.I live in Las Vegas.Hope the new DVD is great.Watched the two films and will buy the box set.

 

[Rakesh.S]

tv.yahoo.com

 

[streeter]

It's on ABC. Up against CSI.

 

[Ken Wilson]

A famous line:

Paramafait is gonna' gitcha!!!!

 

[Robert Saccone]

I read that McGavin makes a special "digital" appearance.

 

[Jeff#]

The new series is so awful, I gave up after the first 15 minutes. Stewart Townsend is too serious and good looking to pass for Carl Kolchak. The lady cop is also a bore, and so is this show. I expected more from former X-Files producer / writer Frank Spotnitz and as a consulting producer -- the original Kolchak series creator Dan Curtis.

 

[MichaelScott]

Ditto on what Jeff said...terrible, just terrible..It's amazing what passes for TV now. Why call it Night Stalker, this could have been any piece of crap. They bascially took what was a very entertaining character and sucked all the life out of him. There is no humor, no fun charcters, no life what so ever..In fact I was hoping the creature would get them all and be done with this mess. What a brooding, downbeat bunch of garbage.