Texasgingersnap

I read Don Houston's DVD review of Trading Spaces - Creative Home Decor with Designer Doug Wilson at http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=16047 and... I read the review on the WPT's Bad Boys of Poker and I'm frankly amused that either of these DVDs have any real purchase power except maybe for the folks featured in the Home Decor show and the moms and wives, etc. of the Bad Boys. IMHO both types of shows can only be viewed once and then it should be "live" or as soon as possible after the actual event and then move on, who except my exceptions would want to watch them over and over again? And all this from *me* who'll practically buy anything!....

Houstondon

I can't really say about the poker DVD since I'm not a fan of the game and haven't seen the DVD in question but the plethora of home improvement shows tell me that people really like the concept, if not the practice, of fixing up their homes. Trading Spaces is a show that I really like (even more so now that I own a home) as it gives ideas and even shows people that fixing up their house is a lot easier than most contractors would lead you to believe. Seeing them without commercials is worth a rental alone.

In any case, the DVD for the show was dirt cheap and designer Doug Wilson is one of the funniest guys on the show (referred to as the "bad boy" of the show) so while I'd be a fan of TLC releasing full season sets, these best of volumes have some value too. Oh, and if it helps you understand the reason why people would consider these to have replay value, go to any of the home improvement shows at your local convention centers (in Houston, there's the George R. Brown center that hosts one every month or two; in the Woodlands, they also manage to have them regularly) because the biggest draws of the show (outside of the give aways) are the seminars that the Trading Spaces give. Talk about mobs...

Holly E. Ordway

On the flip side... I haven't seen the Trading Spaces DVDs, but I've been very pleasantly surprised with how much fun the poker DVDs have been. I honestly expected them to be just OK, but they've been lots of fun to watch. I always enjoy nice surprises like that.

Texasgingersnap

Don, I've got no quarrel with home improvement shows and realize how popular THAT one is and I think probably I didn't make my point clear enough.... in that I'm laughing at the notion that someone would want to watch either DVD more than once. I suppose a RENTAL is middle ground, seeing as how many folks don't have the luxury of TiVo (like moi), but why would anyone feel compelled to BUY a copy of either? Styles change rapidly in home decorating and even if that's not the reason to watch the DVD, then how many times do you have to see it to grasp the concepts?

As for the poker, I'm guessing that Ms. Holly has never seen it on TV and that's why the DVD surprised her. Who needs a DVD when you've got live action? If one feels compelled to watch it over and over, it's on cable at least once a day somewhere. The Travel Channel rulez when it comes to poker. I consider the WPT and one of two of the other poker shows as the ultimate in realitity TV. I've never watched most of the shows such as Suvivor, etc. and only gagging snippets of the bug eating one, but wouldn't miss the excitement of watching Gus Hansen, cool as a cucumber, push half a million bucks across the felt while holding a 2 and a 9.....not even the same suit! Now that's a guy that could eat a bucket of bugs and then ask for a beer....

RENT 'em if you need to, but anyone buying them must be kinfolk, that's my point and I'm stickin' to it.....

Holly E. Ordway

You're right - I don't watch poker on TV (I don't watch TV at all, except on DVD.) Still, the appeal of having a particular program without commercials, to watch whenever you want, with an interesting commentary, does make for a decently buy-worthy DVD if you're interested in the game. Just because you can catch random poker on TV at random times, doesn't make it a good substitute for actually having what you want on DVD when you want it.

I've actually been pleasantly surprised by the rewatchability factor for sports/event type DVDs. For instance, I'm a huge bicycle racing fan, but I would have originally thought that seeing a race once would be plenty. As it happens, though, racing programs on DVD are *highly* rewatchable. Good editing helps a lot - a well done DVD can be a lot more exciting than watching it live, as I've found.

It's not like I'm insisting that people should go out and buy DVDs . But I have found that quite a few programs are a lot more entertaining (and rewatchable) than you might expect, just from the topic.

Houstondon

I suppose your argument is a microcosm of those that would never own anything on DVD; after all, how much replay value do most thrillers have once you know the plot twists, how funny are jokes the second time, how exciting is a porno after you've seen it once (perhaps a bad example since nudity has GREAT replay value for guys), etc.

Home Improvement shows like Trading Spaces probably have more replay value for those owning a house that they want to fix up (although apt dwellers make changes too) than those that have given up on fixing things (in general) up. If the price per episode were right, I'd love to own season sets of the show because even if a design or two fell out of favor with the foo foo crowd that tries to regulate what looks "in style" to them, many of the older episodes show rooms I'd love to have (and at the right price if you have a carpenter and some seriously talented help). The fact remains that you can learn about "the process" of fixing up a home by rewatching the shows even if you dislike the styles they arrive at.

As far as temporary solutions like Tivo, they have limits to what you can store, yes? But if you haven't seen the show, or just don't "get it" (usually the very young and very old fall into that category), so be it. I think that fans of the show would rather watch it without commercials when they want to (as Holly said) than rely on reruns or devices like Tivo. Otherwise, the sets being released now are of less interest to me solely because they skip around so much and I'm holding out for season sets. TLC has already made their money off their lead sponsor for the show and the various airings so such sets would be gravy for them.

So live and let live. I'd suggest again that replay value will vary according to how much someone likes a show (of any genre). I was forced to watch some cable poker last week and truth be told, I'd rather jump under a bus or open a vein than watch it in any form (unless it involved hot looking gals playing strip poker) but I routinely watch old episodes of anime series or other shows on DVD (and my memory is said to be pretty good), knowing the outcome and yet I still have fun watching them.

Texasgingersnap

"It's not like I'm insisting that people should go out and buy DVDs ."

Well giving it a RECOMMEND over a RENTAL sure leans that-a-way....


"I was forced to watch some cable poker last week and truth be told, I'd rather jump under a bus or open a vein than watch it in any form...."


Different strokes. Pardon me while I go and feed my dead horse now.... there's still enough daylight to ride him later....

Houstondon

"Different strokes" is exactly the point. Some people would find replay value in each type of show mentioned and some wouldn't find any of them entertaining. Holly tends to be very discriminating on what she'll recommend so for people that like poker, I'll willing to be there's some solid replay value to the show she watched (although those biking shows bore me to tears and obviously need a special breed to like). The reason I suggested the DVD on my end of the discussion as a rent it had more to do with the lack of extras and that it wasn't part of a season set (television on DVD is a huge chunk of the market these days and I'm willing to bet there's a show or two you'd like on DVD that "went out of style" by someone's criteria).

Otherwise, if you're going to , you might want to be fashionable and use a (otherwise, you run the risk of people thinking you fail to "grasp the concept"...lol). Thanks for reading the reviews though. Come back and read more of them!