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Crowded Shelves for Premium Packaging this Fall
Almost every studio's got some sort of super-duper TV-show-on-DVD collection that they want to sell you this Fall, "just in time for Christmas" (or thereabouts). Some come in quite normal packaging, others come in a premium package meant to appeal to DVD collectors in general, as much as to fans of the particular show featured in the box.
From "a faux alligator-skin box" for Miami Vice to a "mausoleum" package for Masters of Horror, and from a "messenger bag" for Northern Exposure to an "IPS truck" for The King of Queens, these are sure to stand out on retailer shelves. The O.C. gets a book-style release, while Family Guy gives you all the existing sets so far, along with a ping pong set, a deck of cards and poker chips...each customized with character pictures from the show! Time Life's online-order-only release of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. is perfected suited for a special briefcase packaging format, while we've got 2 homes on the market with Everybody Loves Raymond and (naturally) Full House.
I'll have more on the latter below, as I go over a few of these releases, some of (but not all of) the most-wanted of these sets. Can't see the tiny picture on the top right? Be sure to check it out in a premium-sized fashion at the TVShowsOnDVD News story mentioning this DVD Guy blog entry. You'll be able to see every title, and get a complete list of what's pictured and links to buying them all. Here, though, we have some of the highlights:
• Stargate SG-1 - The Complete Series: After 10 years of intergalactic operations, the SG-1 missions starring Richard Dean Anderson have wound down. But MGM has put every stellar adventure together onto a massive 54-DVD set, that includes tons of bonus material for the troops. You'll unlock every classified secret from behind the scenes, and even get to scout out the upcoming reunion TV movies "Ark of Truth" (which wraps up the story left hanging at the end of the tenth season) and "Continuum," both due next year. The Stargate opened on October 9th, and is available now.
• MacGyver - The Complete Series: More classic television with Richard Dean Anderson, in his pre-Stargate role as super-spy (and super-smart) MacGyver. Not only will you get all 139 episodes from the six-year run of the series, but Paramount is tossing in - exclusive to this set! - the two 1994 TV movies, "Lost Treasure of Atlantis" and "Trail to Doomsday" as well. After a delay from the original plans to release this package last Spring, it finally got divulged today, October 16th.
• I Love Lucy - The Complete Series: This is "the whole McGillicuddy," according to the text on the back of the special "heart"-packaged box for this massive collection of 194 episodes, covering nine years of America's favorite redhead (and their favorite Cuban bandleader and landlords, too!). Gregg Oppenheimer, son of series producer Jess Oppenheimer, has lovingly paid special attention to the bonus material on the separate season-set releases of this legendary show, and every one of those extras is included on the discs in this big package. But there's more! New digital restorations have been performed on the first season episodes, including The Lost Pilot, so these will look better than they do on any DVDs you may currently own. Plus there's new footage, including Lucy and Desi's first joint TV appearance in 1949 (three years prior to the debut of their show), and the long-lost 1953 theatrical film I Love Lucy: The Movie, rediscovered in 2001 and with a new restoration led by Gregg Oppenheimer. Expect to love this package on October 23rd. If you own any old Lucy DVDs, give them to a friend or family member who doesn't love Lucy as much as you do, and treat yourself to this definitive set!
• Twin Peaks - Definitive Gold Box Edition: Speaking of "definitive", that describes another CBS/Paramount release coming soon. Twin Peaks DVD rights were originally held by Artisan (now part of Lionsgate), who released the first season of the show way back in 2001. It wasn't really "complete", though, because their rights did not include the pilot episode...which had to be explained in text so that we knew why Laura Palmer's killer was being sought. The release was gorgeous, though, and fans wanted the second (and final) season, but had to wait until this past April when CBS/Paramount brought it out, after the show's home video rights moved to them. Now the studio is going back on October 30th and bringing out the Definitive Gold Box Edition. The "gold" part is gimmicky, since the precious metal had precious little (well, nothing that I can think of) to do with the series. But fans finally get the Pilot episode, the 1st Season, and the 2nd Season all in one set! And what's more, then get great extras: the International version of the Pilot episode (which ended differently), Deleted Scenes, Music Video, TV Spots, a couple of Saturday Night Live segments with star Kyle MacLachlan (now on Desperate Housewives), an interview with creator David Lynch, a ton of featurettes, and more. Now THAT'S a damn fine box of DVDs!
• Full House - The Complete Series Collection: Years before Bob Saget took on "the mob" in 1 vs. 100, or John Stamos became a doctor on ER, or Mary-Kate Olsen got hooked on Weeds, they all lived together with lots of other people in a very Full House. The Tanners, along with Jesse and Joey, were a big part of American TV for 8 seasons starting in 1987, and now Warner Home Video brings you every one of those seasons in one big 32-DVD package that looks exactly like the Tanner house, as seen on TV. Now what fan of the show doesn't want something THAT cool? The Complete Full House comes home on November 6th.
• The X-Files - The Complete Collector's Edition: Another massive set, this one stocked with 61 DVDs that cover all 9 seasons of the show, PLUS the theatrical film Fight The Future, and includes all the extras from the previous DVDs (even the featurettes from the separate limited-episode "Mytholody Arc" DVD run). What's more it's packaged in an exclusive limited edition box that contains not only the discs, but collectible items such as a "Season 1" Comic Book, art cards, an X-Files: Fight The Future Box Office Poster, and more! The truth is in there, on November 6th.
• Seinfeld - The Complete Series: DVD sales of "the show about nothing" sure have been...something! Sony wraps it up in a few weeks with the 9th and final season set release, but at the same time they're releasing a complete Series package. Not only does it contain every episode (and every extra) from the separate season set, but it's got something super-special in it, that you won't find anywhere else. They've put together a 226-page Coffee-Table Book, but instead of pictures of coffee tables (fans of the show will get that joke), it's got "photos, quotes, trivia and personal reflections from star Jerry Seinfeld". And it's got a unique Bonus DVD in the coffee-table book, featuring a reunion of Jerry Seinfeld and fellow cast members Julia Louis-Dreyfus (The New Adventures of Old Christine), Jason Alexander and Michael Richards, plus show creator Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm). The hour-long discussion took place on the 9th Anniversary of the show's conclusion, so it should be quite a talk! This is the ultimate set for the ultimate Seinfeld fan. But you'll have to wait until November 6th to get it. Not that there's anything wrong with that.
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Oct 16, 2007 10:16 PM
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Hi! Just had to say that I was VERY angry when I found out awhile back that they were issuing a complete series DVD package for I Love Lucy with MORE BONUS stuff and NEW extras and now BETTER REMASTERING of Season 1 and not also offering this new stuff on a separate volume for those who have purchased all the earlier volumes. I've been faithfully buying each individual season as they came out this time after many years ago buying most of the Columbia House volumes that were released. I'm VERY sorry, but I will NOT be shelling out any more money for Lucy, no matter how much I love this show!!!
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Oct 16, 2007 10:46 PM
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Studios need to realize that it's often the rabid fans who are the first to buy season DVDs the day they come out and find a way to reward them instead of double-dipping them. This should be of particular concern to them considering they likely make much more money off of single-season DVD sets as opposed to complete-series sets, which often cost much less than buying each season separately. One idea: how about letting people submit proofs-of-purchase for each individual season and receive in return the bonus disc that comes with the complete series set?
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Oct 16, 2007 11:01 PM
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Personally, my biggest problem with some of these complete series sets is the packaging, as it's hard to find a way to fit it in with the rest of my DVDs. Packaging like the van-shaped "King of Queens" set, the "Northern Exposure" satchel, the "Full House" house, etc... all look to be so awkwardly shaped that they won't fit properly on the shelf. I was rather annoyed with the shape of the Star Trek TOS season set packages, but those don't pose nearly the compatibility problems some of these packages look like they may pose. For those buying them, something I will not be doing as I'm not a fan of those shows, I hope they are nothing more than special packaging inside of which regular storage packaging is included.
As for the inclusion of special features not included on the regular season sets, that doesn't bother me much. I don't usually watch most of those features more than once, if that often, so I don't feel I'm missing much by not getting them. I buy the DVD for the shows themselves, nothing more. The only thing that would bother me is if a series I liked did something like the "I Love Lucy" set is doing, and released an improved restoration of a season that I already had and could get outside of the series set.
It occurs to me, though, that is people reward the studios by purchasing these redundancies, the studios might stop trying to rip-off their customers. Probably not, but it seems like it might be worth a try.
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Oct 16, 2007 11:32 PM
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I have a hate relationship with TV DVD box sets.
I always buy TV seasons on DVD the day they come out. I'm a huge TV on DVD collector. So I always have all the DVD series before the show comes out with the box sets.
Examples? Six Feet Under, Gilmore Girls, Angel, Buffy, Sex & the City, etc.
I love the packaging some of the shows come in, though. Like Six Feet Under, Alias and the Family Guy & O.C DVDS about to be released.
I don't, however, think it's very fair to do this to loyal series fans. I like to buy my shows on time so I can watch them before the new seasons begin on TV. To wait for a pretty box and 1 or 2 extras seems like a waste. The box sets would also not look right on my shelves, seeing as how they're all different shapes & sizes.
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Oct 17, 2007 1:56 AM
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I am extremely upset by the Sargate SG1 complete series set. I have been a huge fan of the show since it premiered. I have purchased every set almost the day they came out. How does MGM reward my loyalty? They release a set at half the cost of what I've spent with new special features. MGM has basically ruined it for me. Paramount has done the same thing with Star Trek TNG. At this point I don't think I'll be collecting any new shows on DVD if this is how I will be treated. I'm just going to wait. I won't be buying Heroes, Star Trek Voyager, Millennium, or any other show that I start watching because of this.
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Oct 17, 2007 4:19 AM
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I never bought Lucy so I may be getting this but I think those who supported all of these years deserve the chance to at least buy what they do not have. I went through this with Andy Griffith and did not double dip. I never bought the Brady Bunch until the Complete set. Fans of that with previous releases should be able to get the bonus and those that bought the box should get replacement packaging and discs for the horribly designed damaging box. I like the outer box for its novelty but the idiot that designed this box put all of the discs in this slick 60's flower icon paper folder with parts of the disc exposed. The glue that holds this flower folder together is not so good and is better at sticking the discs to the paper and leaving marks on the discs. Whoever designed this and whoever allowed it to go out to stores and consumers needs to be fired. I have a great fear that the Lucy boxset will be in a similarly poorly designed case. Please tell me this is not so.
To those saying bonus discs don't matter so much, in some cases it is actually extensions of the show. I Love Lucy has a movie, Andy Griffith has a TV movie, Brady Bunch has two TV movies plus two episodes of the cartoon series (Why didn't they release the whole cartoon series, The Brady Brides and even though it was a Krofft production, the whole Variety Hour series , I have the Rhino volume. I imagine another repacking in the future)
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Oct 17, 2007 6:37 AM
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I'm not buying any of them. Most of them are just repacks of what we already have with and they're so expensive, it's cheaper to buy the single seasons (Wonder Woman). In other cases, I as a consumer just feel cheated by the studios and I'm tired of it.
They state if you don't buy the single seasons when they first come out, sales are not met and subsequent releases are cancelled but now they are showing consumers that if a person does wait and buys the entire series, they'll get bonus features not included in the individual sets (I Love Lucy).
As a consumer, there are way too many shows we're still waiting for that they have yet to release because they say single season sales were not met such as Knots Landing (they charged an arm and a leg for 13 episodes scattered across 5 disks) yet when Warner had their chat, all people kept asking about was Knots.
Warner Brothers didn't seem to care about the Knots fans even though on the fan site, 11,000 + people have been posting on the dvd request thread. That's 11,000 people waiting to buy and if they didn't buy the first season, there must have been a very good reason like the shabby way they released it.
Perhaps if they released the whole show complete at a reasonable price, sales figures would be met but it seems like you can't win with these greedy studios who don't care about consumers. If you don't buy the single seasons, no more come out and if you do buy them, you're screwed when they release the full show.
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Oct 17, 2007 10:16 AM
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I would also like to add how much I love this blog and tvshowsondvd.com in general.
But to reiterate, Studios need to get their act together. They're sending mixed messages to consumers: If you don't buy the individual seasons when they come out, we don't release any more seasons. BUT, if you wait, you'll be rewarded with features not included in the standard individual releases.
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Oct 17, 2007 10:43 AM
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Yeah, I'm not a fan. I like to buy DVDs as soon as they come out. So why would I buy something I already have? I'd love to get some of the extra special features, but it's just not worth it.
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Oct 17, 2007 11:32 AM
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re: "They're sending mixed messages to consumers: If you don't buy the individual seasons when they come out, we don't release any more seasons. BUT, if you wait, you'll be rewarded with features not included in the standard individual releases."
Very well said, Brett, and may I suggest that the next online chat that Warner has with the Home Theater Forum, you bring that up and state it exactly that way. It might be interesting to see what they say.
Having said that, the big packages obviously have sold pretty good in the past, or the studios wouldn't be bringing so many of them out at once this year. Everyone who's commented so far says they don't like it. But someone out there is buying these. How do you account for that?
Thanks for the compliments, we appreciate it!
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Oct 17, 2007 11:46 AM
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Great posts here. This issue is a real dilemma for some of us TV/DVD collectors. The "Knots Landing" S1 set is an excellent example of the seemingly mixed-signal mystery that we deal with as collectors. A little "OT" here, but there's a lot of us over at the HTF TV bd that look at a studio's release history and wonder..."what's up" with so many "One & Done" shows, as well as the 1/2-season release trend. As we all know, the bottom line is it's a business and requires the sales #'s to continue a certain series releases. For me, it's the not-knowing the status of a particular series that's the toughest as a collector. For example, if we as customers had a site to visit where the studios posted status updates of their product lines, I think this would help the potential buyers out there to make their purchase decisions. Status update examples might be:
Series "X"
- Present status: Season x currently in production.
- Will not be continued due to sales #'s of previous seasons below expectations.
- Unable to release pending ongoing rights/clearance issues.
- Plans are to continue season releases as production line priorities dictate.
I guess, in a perfect world we'd have access to this information.
Back to the blog topic: I purchased the "Get Smart" complete set from Time/Life and am happy with the purchase. However, with the UNCLE set, I'm almost certain that I'll wait for individual season releases due to the price range of the complete set and that I'm primarily interested in specific seasons of this series.
I haven't had to cross the decision bridge regarding the unusual packaging for some of the series listed in Dave's post. It would depend upon the series, as I'd guess that it would with a lot of collectors. One example for me would be the complete "Combat!"
series from Image Studios. I bought the individual season sets for the entire series before the complete-set pkg was released. If that set had contained a substantial # of additional "extras", I most likely would have done the double-dip for it. However, if the consideration on purchasing the complete set was contingent on the pkg size and/or shape, I'd have bought that set regardless of the pkg. That said, there are some series that I would pass on the purchase if the pkging was of an unusual size/shape.
Another example of a complete-series set is the recent "Land Of the Giants" set. For a diehard fan of that series, I think that Fox did an outstanding job of this series release. On the other hand, for a more casual fan of the show, the price was outside of my range for the set.
The UNCLE set from T/L is a top-notch pkging & release for the diehard fans of that series.
Bottom line is that I am happy to see a trend for complete series releases develop for the sake of the collectors. The best scenario is what T/L offered when the Get Smart set was released, giving customers a choice of purchasing individual seasons or the complete series.
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Oct 17, 2007 12:31 PM
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Sets I'll definitely buy eventually are:
Degrassi
Angel (even though I bought all 5 seasons separately on amazon less than a year ago-I have to have it to match the buffy chosen collection-which i have 2 of)
King of Queens
X-Files
Northern Exposure
The OC
Sets I might get most of these shows I've never seen, but will probably like
Star Trek
Stargate SG-1
Everybody Loves Raymond
My So-Called Life (I've already ordered this for a friend's b-day, but not for myself)
Twin Peaks
Tonight Show
Full House
Addams Family (not on your list)
Complete sets don't bother me. Sure, I wait to purchase some sets because I know a complete set will probably come later. The best example of that is Battlestar Galactica. I'm guessing that they'll have a pretty cool complete series set since they already know when the show will end. And since the individual seasons are SO expensive, I'm gonna wait.
I really like all the creativity the studios are putting into these complete series releases. I love the Buffy and Angel Collectors boxes. I loved the friends one and six feet under. I love the king of queens and northern exposure packages. In fact, I've never even seen NE, but I'm gonna buy it because the packaging is pretty cool. (plus, pretty much everyone I've talked to has said that it's my kind of show)
And I will probably be mad if the studios would come out with complete series of shows I own all the seasons already (the pretender, Lois & Clark, Veronica Mars, heroes, etc) but, I don't know. I like collecting things and maybe I'm too easy, but oh well. Nothing we say or do is gonna get the studios to do anything differently so I'm just gonna enjoy what I have.
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Oct 17, 2007 1:57 PM
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High sales of complete series' sets may account for many casual consumer sales as opposed to the dvd collectors, who support the series throughout their single season releases.
More and more consumers are bridging into this casual buying group. These are the consumers who stopped supporting single season releases if only because studios release them so infrequently, people don't know when they're coming out.
Thus, it just becomes easier to purchase the whole show in one shot rather than wait months or years just to get the next season.
Many studios release subsequent seasons so irregularly, sometimes it can take a year or more before they release another season and the attention span of the average consumer is far less than that of the collector, who will wait but the studios are trying even their patience.
On a show like Knots Landing, which ran for 14 seasons, people don't want to wait 14 years to get the whole show on dvd. And when a studio like Warner burns their consumers by putting 13 episodes on 5 single sided disks then charges 40.00 for them, well, that's a bit much. 11,000 people signed a petition to get the show on dvd and if most of them didn't buy to meet expectations, that should send a message to the studio stating they did something wrong in the release to turn all those potential sales away.
Studios also need to realize that this new trend of offering up series sets is nice in the moment but its going to burn them in the big picture.
Rewarding people who waited with features and extras not found on individual seasons just may prompt more and more collectors to adopt a wait and purchase attitude as well.
Then what happens is the studios will have abandoned the collectors who supported them throughout individual releases, making the full series sets possible to begin with. But without the collector supporting individual releases, there will be no subsequent releases and thus, no full series sets... unless they just release the whole series in one shot for everyone, ala Get Smart... which just may prove rewarding for collectors and casual browsers alike.
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Oct 17, 2007 2:24 PM
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I don't like complete season sets that deviate from standard size dvd packaging. If the outer packaging is larger to include a book or some other material, that is fine, but I want standard snap cases to put the dvds on my shelf. As far as the bonuses go, I thought Fox did the right thing with their MASH set, releasing the bonus features separately as well, although we were double dipped on the final episode. Also, I think studios should follow what was done with Xena:Warrior Princess or the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, having a mail away offer for the collector's box for those loyal fans who already purchased the previous entries. I'm livid about the Seinfeld book & disc, and the King of Queens bonus disc, but I won't upgrade because I prefer the single season packaging. I think the studios should make the bonus materials available separately.
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Oct 17, 2007 2:32 PM
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