M-Squad Coming 9/23/08 (1 Viewer)

[Bert Greene]

I'm really looking forward to this "M Squad" release. I've only seen a few episodes over the years. It always seemed surprising that the series didn't get revived attention in syndication following Marvin's later success in films. I noticed that one of the missing episodes, "Diamond Hard," was one of the one or two episodes that TV-Land happened to air (during one of their oddball special schedules, as they were prone to do in their early years). I'm generally a completist in these matters, but when it comes to a series as rare as "M Squad," I'm thrilled enough with the prospect of 100 episodes.

Anyway, I hope Timeless discovers the wonders of slim-packs by the time they release this. If not, I have no idea where I'll be able to store the resulting shoebox-size monstrosity. As it is, I'm rapidly having a whole shelf in my antique bookcase fill up with their bulky releases. But in truth, I can't remotely complain, as it's been great, just being able to finally see some of these rare shows.

 

[Flashgear]

Was this show filmed entirely in Chicago and area? I only have vague memories of seeing it way back when...early '60s in syndication (?)...I treasure the old shows like "Route 66", "Naked City", "Brenner" etc. for showing me the way the good old USA looked like the first time I saw her...of course the innate quality of these shows is just as important as the fascinating streetscapes...I can't wait to rediscover Lee Marvin as a Chicago tough police good guy, after nearly a decade playing memorably menacing villains. I really appreciate what Timeless is doing for vintage TV fans!

 

[Gary OS]

I've been told by my source at Timeless that the new, pushed back release date for a 15 dvd set of M SQUAD is now November 11th. Sounds like good news in regards to finding more episodes! It was previously only a 14 dvd set.

Gary "glad to hear this and wanted to pass it along" O.

 

[docdoowop]

I've been told by my source at Timeless that the new, pushed back release date for a 15 dvd set of M SQUAD is now November 11th. Sounds like good news in regards to finding more episodes! It was previously only a 14 dvd set.
Gary "glad to hear this and wanted to pass it along" O.

Still coming out in time for a certain sale!

 

[Gary OS]

Still coming out in time for a certain sale!

I'd be lying if I didn't say I thought the exact same thing the moment I got the news.
Gary "with my discretionary income slimming down I have to think about sales more than ever when it comes to my dvd purchases" O.

 

[Bob Hug]

I've been told by my source at Timeless that the new, pushed back release date for a 15 dvd set of M SQUAD is now November 11th. Sounds like good news in regards to finding more episodes! It was previously only a 14 dvd set.
Gary "glad to hear this and wanted to pass it along" O.

This is great news and certainly appears as if Timeless was able to secure additional episodes, though whether they will have the entire run is still debatable. The originally scheduled release showed an average of 7 episodes per disc (with two, 8 episode discs). If they keep this average, then we're looking at 107 or 108 episodes. On the other hand, if they have secured all 117 episodes, it's possible that they could have redistributed all of the episodes across 15 discs, with most discs averaging 8 episodes . . . . that's a reasonable number of half hour episodes to include on a single sided disc without getting into much in the way of compression issues.

 

[Brian:C]

Great News, Timeless Announced the release of all 117 Episodes on their website today. Release date of 11/11/2008! SRP $119. It's a jump of $20 but well worth a complete series, with no missing episodes.
Brian

 

[Gary OS]

Great News, Timeless Announced the release of all 117 Episodes on their website today. Release date of 11/11/2008! SRP $119. It's a jump of $20 but well worth a complete series, with no missing episodes.
Brian

Excellent news! Thanks Brian. And the great thing is that the release date will fall just in time for a certain 20% Off Sale.
Gary "sounds like a great set" O.

 

[Bob Hug]

Also nice to see that they are retaining the soundtrack CD; this makes for a fairly unique release. And Gary is correct; it's right around the timeframe for the BIG SALE (assuming that occurs). However, I'll shop around on this one given the MSRP as DVDPacific has had some good pricing on Timeless Media releases in the recent past.

 

[Stephen Bowie]

Interesting. I had heard that they secured a copy of all 117 episodes, but that some of them were in the "public domain quality range," and I wasn't sure if they'd release them in that state. I hope they indicate on the packaging or the menus that the picture quality might not be so hot on a few episodes, in order to manage consumers' expectations.

Incidentally, I'm also told that we have the absent "Hank Dearborn," winner of the HTF's "Most Popular Member Award" for several years running, to thank for supplying some of the missing episodes.

 

[jdee28]

It's nice to see Timeless go the complete series route with M Squad, but didn't they go the same route with some other series, namely Checkmate and Arrest and Trial? The amount of episodes are low, and 16 mm prints are out there, especially of Checkmate.

 

[Bob Hug]

Interesting. I had heard that they secured a copy of all 117 episodes, but that some of them were in the "public domain quality range," and I wasn't sure if they'd release them in that state. I hope they indicate on the packaging or the menus that the picture quality might not be so hot on a few episodes, in order to manage consumers' expectations.
Incidentally, I'm also told that we have the absent "Hank Dearborn," winner of the HTF's "Most Popular Member Award" for several years running, to thank for supplying some of the missing episodes.

Though Timeless doesn't typically put a disclaimer on their outer packaging for their vintage TV-on-DVD releases, they usually include a disclaimer about the age of the prints and corresponding a/v quality when each disc initially loads. I'd be really surprised if they didn't include it on this release, as I can't remember them not including it on the various Timeless Media releases that I own.
I'm not surprised at all that Hank Dearborn supplied some of the missing prints, given the extent of his personal collection as well as his network of collector friends.

 

[Bob Hug]

Amazon now has "M Squad" up for pre-order, but at the full MSRP. Undoubtedly, there will be some price reductions between now and the release date in November.
Amazon.com: M Squad - The Complete Series starring Lee Marvin: Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, Charles Bronson, Janice Rule, Leonard Nimoy, Ed Nelson, DeForest Kelley, H. M. Wynant, Burt Reynolds, n/a: Movies & TV

 

[DeWilson]

I'm not surprised at all that Hank Dearborn supplied some of the missing prints, given the extent of his personal collection as well as his network of collector friends.

I've not seen Hank post here in awhile - what happened to him?

 

[Gary OS]

Guys, CD Universe now has the M SQUAD set available for pre-order. And get their price: $64.50!!! By my calculations, that will beat even the DD 20% Off Sale in November (assuming they have one, it's never a sure thing until it happens). I'd say this is the best price we are going to see on this set.
Gary "I about fell out of my seat when I saw that price" O.

 

[michael_ks]

Damn that's a good price! $67.49 shipped price--nice going there, Gary!

I've not seen Hank post here in awhile - what happened to him?

He sent me a PM months ago, deciding to call it quits. The policy of not even breathing the word 'bootleg' is what pushed him over the edge. I wish he'd come back.

 

[Gary OS]

Damn that's a good price! $67.49 shipped price--nice going there, Gary!

Oops, I forgot to add shipping. But there's no tax with them (at least not for me here in Florida) so it's a fantastic deal. When I saw that price I had to pull the trigger. Just too good to pass up.
Gary "these sales and great pre-order prices are killing my wallet" O.

 

[Bob Hug]

That is a good price, Gary, and a whopping $40 less than Amazon, but I'm going to hold out and wait and see what price DVDPacific and DeepDiscount offer "M-Squad" at. DVDPacific, in particular, has been the price leader on Timeless releases as of late, so I'm keen to see what the pricing on this set will be from them (as well as "Wagon Train" megaset and "The Texan."

 

[Gary OS]

That is a good price, Gary, and a whopping $40 less than Amazon, but I'm going to hold out and wait and see what price DVDPacific and DeepDiscount offer "M-Squad" at. DVDPacific, in particular, has been the price leader on Timeless releases as of late, so I'm keen to see what the pricing on this set will be from them (as well as "Wagon Train" megaset and "The Texan."

DeepDiscount already has their pre-order price up for M SQUAD. It's $91.20, so even with a 20% discount you are looking at $73. And I agree with you that DVDPacific does offer great pricing for Timeless, but I'll be surprised if they can beat $67 total. They aren't as attractive to me as some of the other sites are because I live in Florida and get hit with taxes every time I order from them. Their new free shipping policy helps, but the darned taxes really take some of the air out for me. Still, I will keep an eye out on their pricing for the November Timeless releases, and if they actually beat the CD Universe prices then I can always cancel my order and go with DVDPacific.
Gary "take care" O.

 

[Stephen Bowie]

I've not seen Hank post here in awhile - what happened to him?

One of those "quitting before they can fire me" situations, I think (or the other way around). But then "Hank Dearborn" went by other names here before he became "Hank," so who knows when or where he might resurface?