Highlander: Season One
04-07-03, 12:17 PM
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Highlander: Season One
I suppose you would have to be a fan of the series to buy this to begin with, which I am. But I want to find out the overall impression of this set, for people that bought it.
At $55, I've got to be able to justify it, other than I liked the series. Transfer? Picture? Sound? Extras? Etc?
Thanks!
At $55, I've got to be able to justify it, other than I liked the series. Transfer? Picture? Sound? Extras? Etc?
Thanks!
04-07-03, 08:05 PM
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Well, here's my experience with it.
It originally came out last November, IIRC. I was gonna have my sister get it for me for Christmas thru Amazon for $80, she even ordered it, but I had her cancel the order at the last moment because I wasn't sure I wanted to start collecting yet another TV series and I wasn't sure how frequent Anchor Bay would release subsequent seasons. Well, once I found out that Season 2 is coming out in July, I decided to order it myself through DDD for $54 back in mid-February.
OK, now about my personal experience with the set and the series itself. First of all I was never a faithful follower of the show during its broadcast run. (Hell, I don't hardly follow any show faithfully) However for the few episodes I caught from time to time, I thought that they were pretty good and interesting.
But now with every show under the sun seemingly to come out on DVD now, I am getting into buying these sets. However I don't buy every TV show to ever come out. I buy only a select few that fall under the sci-fi/fantasy genres. And Highlander kinda falls under a little bit of both of those categories.
Well, once I got the set a few days after ordering, I must say that the set is wonderful. The packaging is nice. It comes in a half-slip case where three inner 3-disc fold-outs slip into the outer case.
The video transfer is about as you would expect for a TV show of its age. Meaning that for the most part, the transfer is a bit soft as you'd expect, but still not bad. Some darker scenes are a bit grainy, but that's to be expected yet again. I'd give the overall transfer a B.
But where the set shines is the DD 5.1. AWESOME! The sound is rich, in both sound effects and music. Imagine all those Queen songs in 5.1.
The extras? Those are great also. Each episode has "special" chapter stops for the "Quickenings", when applicable. Also for each episode you get a shot interview with Bill Panzer on some tidbit on that particular episode whether it be the environmental setting, Immortal villian, or some production issue. Then you get the "Watcher Chronicles" for every episode. These are scrollable text extras that explain the episodes' characters, like their swords, their history in being Immortals, etc. I personally didn't take the time to read all of these, but if you're a die-hard fan or just interested in who such and such is, then they're a good resource.
Oh, I almost forgot, on the 8th disc, which just contains the final episode, it also contains a actually lengthy bloopers reel. Then there's a behind-the-scene featurette that details the first season.
So overall, Anchor Bay has done an excellent job with the Highlander box set. I'm looking forward for season 2 and now the Xena and Hercules sets. Both Panzer-Davis productions as well.
I definately reccomend the set, especially if you're a fan, and for just $55 it's a great buy.
It originally came out last November, IIRC. I was gonna have my sister get it for me for Christmas thru Amazon for $80, she even ordered it, but I had her cancel the order at the last moment because I wasn't sure I wanted to start collecting yet another TV series and I wasn't sure how frequent Anchor Bay would release subsequent seasons. Well, once I found out that Season 2 is coming out in July, I decided to order it myself through DDD for $54 back in mid-February.
OK, now about my personal experience with the set and the series itself. First of all I was never a faithful follower of the show during its broadcast run. (Hell, I don't hardly follow any show faithfully) However for the few episodes I caught from time to time, I thought that they were pretty good and interesting.
But now with every show under the sun seemingly to come out on DVD now, I am getting into buying these sets. However I don't buy every TV show to ever come out. I buy only a select few that fall under the sci-fi/fantasy genres. And Highlander kinda falls under a little bit of both of those categories.
Well, once I got the set a few days after ordering, I must say that the set is wonderful. The packaging is nice. It comes in a half-slip case where three inner 3-disc fold-outs slip into the outer case.
The video transfer is about as you would expect for a TV show of its age. Meaning that for the most part, the transfer is a bit soft as you'd expect, but still not bad. Some darker scenes are a bit grainy, but that's to be expected yet again. I'd give the overall transfer a B.
But where the set shines is the DD 5.1. AWESOME! The sound is rich, in both sound effects and music. Imagine all those Queen songs in 5.1.
The extras? Those are great also. Each episode has "special" chapter stops for the "Quickenings", when applicable. Also for each episode you get a shot interview with Bill Panzer on some tidbit on that particular episode whether it be the environmental setting, Immortal villian, or some production issue. Then you get the "Watcher Chronicles" for every episode. These are scrollable text extras that explain the episodes' characters, like their swords, their history in being Immortals, etc. I personally didn't take the time to read all of these, but if you're a die-hard fan or just interested in who such and such is, then they're a good resource.
Oh, I almost forgot, on the 8th disc, which just contains the final episode, it also contains a actually lengthy bloopers reel. Then there's a behind-the-scene featurette that details the first season.
So overall, Anchor Bay has done an excellent job with the Highlander box set. I'm looking forward for season 2 and now the Xena and Hercules sets. Both Panzer-Davis productions as well.
I definately reccomend the set, especially if you're a fan, and for just $55 it's a great buy.
Last edited by Imhotep; 04-07-03 at 08:07 PM.
04-07-03, 10:53 PM
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A warning, however.....
If you aren't a fan of the series, and are watching them in order - DON'T read the Watcher Chronicles, as they give away a lot of upcoming details on the characters!
I agree with the above post. Image quality is as expected, sound quality is very good, and the packaging and extras are nicely done.
I'm looking forward to upcoming seasons, and will definitely be purchasing them, as long as the price stays in the same range as for the first season (although I'd happily buy it for less!).
If you aren't a fan of the series, and are watching them in order - DON'T read the Watcher Chronicles, as they give away a lot of upcoming details on the characters!
I agree with the above post. Image quality is as expected, sound quality is very good, and the packaging and extras are nicely done.
I'm looking forward to upcoming seasons, and will definitely be purchasing them, as long as the price stays in the same range as for the first season (although I'd happily buy it for less!).
