What did you watch this week in classic TV on DVD(or Blu)? (10 Viewers)

[ScottRE]

In honor of the recently passed David Hedison, I’ve watched four episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, choosing one from each season which gave him a chance to shine.

The Enemies – fabulous late first season story where Nelson and Crane are subjected to an experiment by scientists of “the People’s Republic.” Crane is made to hate Nelson enough to kill him. Hedison gets downright scary by the end. The only cringe worthy aspect is casting Malachi Throne as an Asian scientist, complete with “Asian” makeup and broken English. Yikes.

The Return of the Phantom – superior sequel to the earlier The Phantom Strikes where Crane is taken over by the ghost of a WWI submarine captain. Very spooky episode where Hedison takes on the accent and mannerisms of guest star Alfred Ryder. One of Hedison’s favorite episodes.

Day of Evil – Crane sacrifices his life to shut down the Seaview’s nuclear reactor and takes a lethal dose of radiation. Nelson makes a deal with an alien to save Crane’s life. While this is primarily a showcase for Basehart, who plays a dual role as the alien, Heldison gets a lot of emoting as he succumbs to radiation poisoning. He also plays the alien in his form at the end.

Man-Beast – solid monster episode where Crane is transformed into a strange “man-beast” by a visiting scientist. He deals with the horror of transformation and the mistaken belief that he killed a crewman. Another Hedison favorite.

Now I wanna go back and watch them all.

 

[morasp]

I only stated a wish: "As soon as CBS/Paramount release the first season of The Wild Wild West on Blu-ray (let's hope it will happen)".

It would definitely be a show worthy of a Blu ray release.

 

[BobO'Link]

To me it's like Good Times only not as in your face depressing. The Sweathogs are the attraction of the show for me and were a pretty talented group of young actors for a seventies sitcom. Season four was a little light but still watchable. How was the picture quality of the set you purchased?

Quite acceptable. It's been months (and months?) since I watched it so really don't remember exactly but nothing looked "off." Considering it was a "live on tape" program I thought it looked true to its roots. Not great but not bad.

Kotter seemed to devolve into a catchphrase type show - somewhat like Fonzie in Happy Days. As soon as one was uttered the audience would go crazy, which always annoyed me. When it originally aired I felt like Travolta made a mistake leaving, and his early films were not that good, but he tuned into a very good actor. Surprisingly the show seemed to do better with him gone as others got more screen time. Kaplan was what killed it most for me with his absolutely horrible timing.

I never liked Good Times (but it's from Norman Lear - the only show if his I like is Sanford & Son). In all fairness there aren't a lot of 70s sticoms I like. I'm a 60s kid and spent the 70s wishing for the return of "good" TV.

 

[JohnHopper]

In honor of the recently passed David Hedison, I’ve watched four episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, choosing one from each season which gave him a chance to shine.

The Enemies – fabulous late first season story where Nelson and Crane are subjected to an experiment by scientists of “the People’s Republic.” Crane is made to hate Nelson enough to kill him. Hedison gets downright scary by the end. The only cringe worthy aspect is casting Malachi Throne as an Asian scientist, complete with “Asian” makeup and broken English. Yikes.

The Return of the Phantom – superior sequel to the earlier The Phantom Strikes where Crane is taken over by the ghost of a WWI submarine captain. Very spooky episode where Hedison takes on the accent and mannerisms of guest star Alfred Ryder. One of Hedison’s favorite episodes.

Day of Evil – Crane sacrifices his life to shut down the Seaview’s nuclear reactor and takes a lethal dose of radiation. Nelson makes a deal with an alien to save Crane’s life. While this is primarily a showcase for Basehart, who plays a dual role as the alien, Heldison gets a lot of emoting as he succumbs to radiation poisoning. He also plays the alien in his form at the end.

Man-Beast – solid monster episode where Crane is transformed into a strange “man-beast” by a visiting scientist. He deals with the horror of transformation and the mistaken belief that he killed a crewman. Another Hedison favorite.

Now I wanna go back and watch them all.

Actor David Hedison first shined during the first season:

"The Ultimate Computer" in which Crane is alone aboard the Seaview and faces a mysterious enemy!
"The Saboteur" in which Crane is brainwashed by the People's Republic to sabotage a missile.
"The Enemies" in which Crane is brainwashed to kill Nelson.​

 

[morasp]

Quite acceptable. It's been months (and months?) since I watched it so really don't remember exactly but nothing looked "off." Considering it was a "live on tape" program I thought it looked true to its roots. Not great but not bad.

Kotter seemed to devolve into a catchphrase type show - somewhat like Fonzie in Happy Days. As soon as one was uttered the audience would go crazy, which always annoyed me. When it originally aired I felt like Travolta made a mistake leaving, and his early films were not that good, but he tuned into a very good actor. Surprisingly the show seemed to do better with him gone as others got more screen time. Kaplan was what killed it most for me with his absolutely horrible timing.

I never liked Good Times (but it's from Norman Lear - the only show if his I like is Sanford & Son). In all fairness there aren't a lot of 70s sticoms I like. I'm a 60s kid and spent the 70s wishing for the return of "good" TV.

Thanks, gives me something to ponder. A quick check on Amazon has a new copy of season one at $38.47 with cheaper used copies that would probably play. A new copy of season two is $17.49. Walmart has the entire 95 episodes for around $43.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

In honor of the recently passed David Hedison, I’ve watched four episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, choosing one from each season which gave him a chance to shine.

Nice capsule reviews, Scott! I always liked David Hedison and was very sorry to hear of his passing. He was a likable and energetic performer and is, for my money, the best thing about Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (along with the cool sub hardware).

 

[ScottRE]

Actor David Hedison first shined during the first season:

"The Ultimate Computer" in which Crane is alone aboard the Seaview and faces a mysterious enemy!
"The Saboteur" in which Crane is brainwashed by the People's Republic to sabotage a missile.
"The Enemies" in which Crane is brainwashed to kill Nelson.​

It was a tough choice, certainly, but I wanted to stick with one episode per season. So out of all the episodes where Hedison had outstanding moments that year, I went with my favorite.

The second season was similar, choice wise, so I went with his favorite.

The third season got harder with legit moments of acting for him. There are plenty of "Crane centric" episodes, but they don't give him much opportunity to really emote. Day of Evil has some standout scenes for him.

The final year was easier as I went for his favorite again.

Nice capsule reviews, Scott! I always liked David Hedison and was very sorry to hear of his passing. He was a likable and energetic performer and is, for my money, the best thing about Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (along with the cool sub hardware).

Thanks, Jeff! Yeah, not only was he the only actor to be in every episode, he never gave a lazy performance. Even in the thinnest scripts, he really put in full effort. He and Basehart made the series as great at it was for me.

 

[BobO'Link]

Thanks, gives me something to ponder. A quick check on Amazon has a new copy of season one at $38.47 with cheaper used copies that would probably play. A new copy of season two is $17.49. Walmart has the entire 95 episodes for around $43.

Those prices for S1 are insane! FWIW, one of those used copies is from Decluttr. That one's also on their website for less than from them via Amazon

Spoiler

https://www.decluttr.com/us/store/p...mplete-first-season-standard-4-discs-slipcase

but more than I paid for a new copy a couple of years ago (I got mine from Hastings as they were going out of business so got it for ~$5 - a steal). I order direct from them fairly regularly. Free shipping on everything (they add sales tax but who doesn't these days) and stuff is shipped fairly quickly.

If I were purchasing it today I'd absolutely go for that ~$43 WM copy before I'd pay the prices being asked for S1 new on the secondary market. I'd probably question paying the ~$10 (after tax) for a used copy of S1 as that's what it'd be new in that WM set. In spite of not liking it all that much it makes me want to see if the WM here has it for that price and snag a copy "just because."

 

[morasp]

Those prices for S1 are insane! FWIW, one of those used copies is from Decluttr. That one's also on their website for less than from them via Amazon

Spoiler

https://www.decluttr.com/us/store/p...mplete-first-season-standard-4-discs-slipcase

but more than I paid for a new copy a couple of years ago (I got mine from Hastings as they were going out of business so got it for ~$5 - a steal). I order direct from them fairly regularly. Free shipping on everything (they add sales tax but who doesn't these days) and stuff is shipped fairly quickly.

If I were purchasing it today I'd absolutely go for that ~$43 WM copy before I'd pay the prices being asked for S1 new on the secondary market. I'd probably question paying the ~$10 (after tax) for a used copy of S1 as that's what it'd be new in that WM set. In spite of not liking it all that much it makes me want to see if the WM here has it for that price and snag a copy "just because."

Great find from Hastings, wish they were still around. How has your experience with Decluttr been lately? I used to buy form them all the time and got a used Very Good condition set that wouldn't play. They immediately credited the purchase when I requested a return but it's made me shy away from them lately.

 

[JohnHopper]

It was a tough choice, certainly, but I wanted to stick with one episode per season. So out of all the episodes where Hedison had outstanding moments that year, I went with my favorite.

The second season was similar, choice wise, so I went with his favorite.

The third season got harder with legit moments of acting for him. There are plenty of "Crane centric" episodes, but they don't give him much opportunity to really emote. Day of Evil has some standout scenes for him.

The final year was easier as I went for his favorite again.



Thanks, Jeff! Yeah, not only was he the only actor to be in every episode, he never gave a lazy performance. Even in the thinnest scripts, he really put in full effort. He and Basehart made the series as great at it was for me.

I also like the season 3 rework of the season 1 “The Ultimate Computer” entitled "The Death Watch"
in which Nelson is alone in the Seaview and faces a mad Crane willing to kill him.

 

[JohnHopper]

Music clips from the season 4 episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea entitled:
"Sealed Orders" (1967) and "The Death Clock" (1968).

https://rutube.ru/video/98ee16c2dde85d5aefdcdc6a5146da13/

 

[Flashgear]

How has your experience with Decluttr been lately?

Not to answer for Howie, but I thought I'd chime in on Decluttr store via Amazon...they're one of my favorite third party dealers, I've gotten many out of print DVD TV sets used from them for great prices...and much to my surprise, choice Twilight Time Blu-ray movies as well! Never had a problem with playability. I'm very happy with them!

 

[ScottRE]

I also like the season 3 rework of the season 1 “The Ultimate Computer” entitled "The Death Watch"
in which Nelson is alone in the Seaview and faces a mad Crane willing to kill him.

Every season had an "alone but not alone" style episode. The Human Computer, The Death Ship, The Death Watch and Nightmare.

A couple of episodes in year 3 were "skeleton crew" episodes to save some bucks. Like Shadowman and Deadly Cloud.

The back half of season 3 was really threadbare. I love it, but man, I can see why some fans jumped ship. No Escape From Death is probably one of the worst offenders, with almost half of the episode made up of stock footage. I admire the skill in creating a whole new episode, rather than making a clip show, but wow. I remember when I first saw that one. Jaw dropping.

 

[BobO'Link]

Great find from Hastings, wish they were still around. How has your experience with Decluttr been lately? I used to buy form them all the time and got a used Very Good condition set that wouldn't play. They immediately credited the purchase when I requested a return but it's made me shy away from them lately.

What Randall said. I've had great luck with them - both via Amazon and direct. My biggest annoyance with them is they'll offer something I want via Amazon so I go look it up directly to find it's not listed at all on their site (or is listed in a way that makes it impossible to find). I prefer dealing with them directly as it usually saves a couple of $$ per title but don't hesitate to go through Amazon. I think I've gotten one title that had an issue and they fixed it immediately (a refund).

 

[JohnHopper]

A couple of episodes in year 3 were "skeleton crew" episodes to save some bucks. Like Shadowman and Deadly Cloud.

True, so true. It's the cheap season. Funny how some sixties series had a low season 3 (The Man from UNCLE, The Wild Wild West).

Anyway and for the record, they invited Wild Wild West actor Michael Dunn on a season 3 entitled "The Wax Men" that featured a replaced Seaview crew.

 

[morasp]

What Randall said. I've had great luck with them - both via Amazon and direct. My biggest annoyance with them is they'll offer something I want via Amazon so I go look it up directly to find it's not listed at all on their site (or is listed in a way that makes it impossible to find). I prefer dealing with them directly as it usually saves a couple of $$ per title but don't hesitate to go through Amazon. I think I've gotten one title that had an issue and they fixed it immediately (a refund).

Thanks, great tip. I just went to the site and found an OOP set I've been looking for and it was a few $ cheaper than they had it on Amazon. Unfortunately by the time I created an account it had gone away.

 

[Dan McW]

I saw the late, great David Hedison in an episode of Bronk last night, where he played a shady lawyer in a nice performance.

Bronk had some big names going for it: executive producer Bruce Geller, theme-song writer Lalo Schifrin, and series creator Carroll O'Connor.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

True, so true. It's the cheap season. Funny how some sixties series had a low season 3 (The Man from UNCLE, The Wild Wild West).

Well, John, I'll have to disagree with you regarding Season 3 of The Wild Wild West. I think it's a terrific season overall, with many stand-out episodes, including "The Night of the Firebrand," "TNO Montezuma's Hordes," "TNO the Falcon," "TNO the Underground Terror," "TNO the Undead," and "TNO the Simian Terror." While the villains in the third season don't quite reach the outre heights of the magnificent Season 2, they're still a uniformly strong bunch of guest starring bad guy talent.

I'd say it's highly unfair to lump this season in with the utter campfest that is S3 of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. That's one of the reasons why The Wild Wild West is one of my favorite shows...it's quality is, IMO, remarkably consistent.

 

[BobO'Link]

Well, John, I'll have to disagree with you regarding Season 3 of The Wild Wild West. I think it's a terrific season overall, with many stand-out episodes, including "The Night of the Firebrand," "TNO Montezuma's Hordes," "TNO the Falcon," "TNO the Underground Terror," "TNO the Undead," and "TNO the Simian Terror." While the villains in the third season don't quite reach the outre heights of the magnificent Season 2, they're still a uniformly strong bunch of guest starring bad guy talent.

I'd say it's highly unfair to lump this season in with the utter campfest that is S3 of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. That's one of the reasons why The Wild Wild West is one of my favorite shows...it's quality is, IMO, remarkably consistent.

Well said. The Wild Wild West is one of those rare shows that was mostly excellent from the first episode to the last.

 

[JohnHopper]

Well, John, I'll have to disagree with you regarding Season 3 of The Wild Wild West. I think it's a terrific season overall, with many stand-out episodes, including "The Night of the Firebrand," "TNO Montezuma's Hordes," "TNO the Falcon," "TNO the Underground Terror," "TNO the Undead," and "TNO the Simian Terror." While the villains in the third season don't quite reach the outre heights of the magnificent Season 2, they're still a uniformly strong bunch of guest starring bad guy talent.

I'd say it's highly unfair to lump this season in with the utter campfest that is S3 of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. That's one of the reasons why The Wild Wild West is one of my favorite shows...it's quality is, IMO, remarkably consistent.

I agree with you all the way and I have my best list for that season too.
My point was to say that compared to the level of imagination and fantasy of the previous season,
season 3 looked like a traditional and realistic western series because series creator-producer Michael Garrison was dead.
During the same season 3, James West had a new costume and looked like a drover, there was only one minor Dr. Loveless entry
and rare was the bigger-than-life and gothic episodes ("Undead", "Simian Terror") with mad scientists, magicians, megalomaniacs:
the series' trade marks.
The series turned into a political one with subversives ("Firebrand", "Death-Maker"), revengists ("Underground Terror", "Death Masks"), power crazy and corrupted official figures (see "Bubbling Death", "Legion of Death", "Arrow", "Vipers").

Find my best list for season 3 (in broadcast order)
"TNot Bubbling Death"
"TNot Firebrand"
"TNot Jack O’Diamonds"
"TNot Samurai"
"TNot Hangman"
"TNot Circus of Death"
"TNot Legion of Death"
"TNot Turncoat"
"TNot Arrow"
"TNot Vipers"
"TNot Underground Terror"
"TNot Death Masks"
"TNot Amnesiac"
"TNot Simian Terror"