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

[Neil Brock]

From what I've been told, they are actually running the shows from off of the Timeless DVDs.

 

[DeWilson]

From what I've been told, they are actually running the shows from off of the Timeless DVDs.

You'd think they could get access to the masters that TIMELESS made from the 16mm.

 

[Neil Brock]

You'd think they could get access to the masters that TIMELESS made from the 16mm.

A great many of the episodes on the set didn't come directly from 16mm but instead came from VHS tape transfers that were made from 16mm. Its too bad as now that Universal actually has an inventory, they could have likely been able to put together a set of episodes for Timeless for the series.

 

[JoeDoakes]

AIts too bad as now that Universal actually has an inventory, they could have likely been able to put together a set of episodes for Timeless for the series.

What "inventory"? What are you talking about?

 

[Neil Brock]

What "inventory"? What are you talking about?

What part of the word "inventory" is troubling you? It means that after the fire they finally took the time and went through their various warehouses and determined what elements they actually had on what shows, be it film prints or tapes.

 

[oldtvshowbuff]

I bought the M-Squad set for $69 at Best Buy in 2009,. Just last week, I saw the same set runiing for just $12.99 at Mills' Fleet Farm in Oakdlae, MN ( east metro area of Minneapolis-St.Paul). I could have waited until now to buy that DVD set! That's all right!

 

[DeWilson]

A great many of the episodes on the set didn't come directly from 16mm but instead came from VHS tape transfers that were made from 16mm. Its too bad as now that Universal actually has an inventory, they could have likely been able to put together a set of episodes for Timeless for the series.

Yes, I know many of the episodes didn't come directly from 16mm prints - but the ones that did should have been made available for broadcast.

 

[Neil Brock]

A great many of the episodes on the set didn't come directly from 16mm but instead came from VHS tape transfers that were made from 16mm. Its too bad as now that Universal actually has an inventory, they could have likely been able to put together a set of episodes for Timeless for the series.

Yes, I know many of the episodes didn't come directly from 16mm prints - but the ones that did should have been made available for broadcast.

I don't know the full details of the sale but Timeless had to acquire the 16mm prints themselves from collectors. ME-TV didn't buy the rights to run the series from TImeless, they got it from Universal and since Universal had never put anything together on the series for a syndication sale, all ME had access to was the DVD set.

 

[DeWilson]

I don't know the full details of the sale but Timeless had to acquire the 16mm prints themselves from collectors. ME-TV didn't buy the rights to run the series from TImeless, they got it from Universal and since Universal had never put anything together on the series for a syndication sale, all ME had access to was the DVD set.

I know they got the rights from NBC-Universal.
What I meant was rather than broadcasting off of a set sourced from the DVDs (Good only knows how THAT must look with the the compression and stuff), why didn't they just go directly to timeless and arrange to make a set of masters from whatever quality (ha-ha) transfers from 16mm elements they had.

 

[Neil Brock]

I know they got the rights from NBC-Universal.
What I meant was rather than broadcasting off of a set sourced from the DVDs (Good only knows how THAT must look with the the compression and stuff), why didn't they just go directly to timeless and arrange to make a set of masters from whatever quality (ha-ha) transfers from 16mm elements they had.

No idea but I can tell you that when the show started running, it was as much of a surprise to Timeless as it was to everybody else.

 

[Roy Wall]

Timeless.....thank you so much.....yet again for this release....what a great set....over four years of enjoying it on occasion. What a fantastic set. I think I bought more gift sets of this set than any DVD release to date....for my family and friends.

 

[David_B_K]

I’ve had the Timeless set since around the time it came out. Got a good price on the set from Sam’s. I’d always wanted to see the show. When Lee Marvin became a huge star in the mid 60’s, my parents told me they used to watch him on M Squad. I was alive when it was broadcast, but would have been too young to remember it. I don’t ever remember seeing it as a TV rerun. The show is not quite what I expected. From the title, I expected something along the lines of The Detectives, with a recurring cast of squad members. However, Lee Marvin is pretty much the whole show (with an able assist from Paul Newlan). The show is grittier than I expected and almost humorless. It is amazing how much story they can get in with a 30-minute time slot. However, you can’t ever talk over the show unless you pause it. Something is either happening all the time or Marvin is filling in gaps via voice over. When I first got the set, I played about half of season 1, and then got sidetracked and sort of forgot about it. However, lately, my wife have been watching nothing but classic B/W TV shows, and have pretty much eschewed current network offerings. Now we watch Perry Mason, Mike Hammer, Peter Gunn, Maverick, Gunsmoke or M Squad, or some combination thereof. Now I am in the second season of M Squad. The show seems to pick up a lot with the second season. The opening credits with the Count Basie theme are a huge improvement, and the scoring of the show in general is better. Marvin looks even more badass with the crew cut in season two, and the show just seems to have a bit more zip to it. Too bad the video/quality quality of the shows is so poor. I’d say that they range from abysmal to mediocre. I was tempted to skip some of the obvious VCR EP recorded episodes, but some of those were too good to skip. Last night we were watching one with crappy muffled sound, and about halfway through, the sound suddenly cleared up. Hats off to Timeless for coming out with this set of a show I’ve long wanted to see. I’m not disappointed with the show’s content at all. It's unreal watching a gritty cop show with Lee Freakin' Marvin in the lead!

 

[Gary OS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by David_B_K
When I first got the set, I played about half of season 1, and then got sidetracked and sort of forgot about it. However, lately, my wife have been watching nothing but classic B/W TV shows, and have pretty much eschewed current network offerings. Now we watch Perry Mason, Mike Hammer, Peter Gunn, Maverick, Gunsmoke or M Squad, or some combination thereof.

You're the man, David. That's the same attitude I've taken almost across the board with current TV series. I just flat out reject them in favor of my classic TV on DVD collection. I wish you'd post this paragraph in the B/W TV on DVD thread. I think more folks would be encouraged to read what you've written.
Gary "what a huge difference between the shows of yesteryear and the ones being produced today (with just a small handful of exceptions)" O.

 

[Wvtvguy]

This show is well before my time but I'm getting into older shows like "Naked City". I'm really interested in this "M Squad"! I've seen part of an episode on YouTube & given the completeness of the set, this seems like a good purchase. I bought "Room 222" so I can overlook bad video. Mostly anyway!! I hear nothing but good things about this show! I assume this is the best quality image we can ever expect. I'm looking forward to this one!!

 

[Wvtvguy]

I've seen some decent prices for this occasionally & would like to get it. Question is, is this pretty much the only release of M Squad we'll get? Is there any possibility of a release with better quality video? I'm probably going to pull the trigger but had to ask that.

 

[John DeAngelis]

I've seen some decent prices for this occasionally & would like to get it. Question is, is this pretty much the only release of M Squad we'll get? Is there any possibility of a release with better quality video? I'm probably going to pull the trigger but had to ask that.

I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a blu-ray release of M Squad. I say either get the current set or save your money for the upcoming complete Naked City set.

 

[Wvtvguy]

I'd read on this thread that Universal may have the original prints & wondered if better DVDs might be available one day. I haven't been collecting classic shows long but have learned Universal isn't very collector friendly!! A dealer on amazon has it for $30 so I'm going to get it. I just bought a Naked City set but loved it so much I'm getting the series also! I'll double dip on that one.

 

[Roy Wall]

In the meantime...I'm keeping all Image DVDs for Naked City until I see something definite posted on the complete series.

 

[Roy Wall]

I highly recommend M Squad...a Lee Marvin fan like me was like a kid introduced to the candy room of a Mast General Store when I bought mine.

 

[Professor Echo]

Unfortunately, knowing the studios and the market like I do, and the fact that this set from Timeless has been selling at clearance prices for quite a few years now, there is zero chance of this ever coming out again. If you don't want to purchase this less than perfect set, I can only say to look to the future and streaming where presumably series like this may get another chance at being seen.

I bought this set and love it, but I can live with the inferior quality most of the time, some people can't.