And my Amazon preorder shipped yesterday... But they do have the regular one up now, yet it's an astounding $44.99, almost twenty bucks more than the head one at $29.99.
Disgusting, Fox.
Rusty Nail
10-07-08, 12:39 AM
Someone from Nohomers.net has posted some pics of the standard box.
The disks are stored in cardboard sleeves :down::down:
This, plus the special packaging is basically the regular version with a 3-D Krusty plate over it, if that makes sense.
I would have rather stuck with the digipacks, myself.
mcfly
10-07-08, 02:07 AM
Cardboard sleeves?? WTF??
Not even thinpaks?? Come on, Fox!
How inconsistent!
shyguy1083
10-07-08, 02:28 AM
ugh. why not just stick with the same type of set-up as previous seasons? it was working fine, imo at least. just seems odd to me. do they save a significant amount of money using the cardboard sleeves versus the digipak?
riotinmyskull
10-07-08, 02:58 AM
good thing i told myself i'd stop buying these once they released season 10. paper sleeves = no sale...ever.
Seantn
10-07-08, 04:23 AM
It's probably Fox's way of differentiating between where the good series stopped and the crappy series began!
I kid, I kid (since I believe it died a bit before season 10, *cough*)
Abe.
10-07-08, 06:40 AM
The Krusty-head packaging is horrible.
smashthesymbols
10-07-08, 07:02 AM
That packaging looks atrocious. I guess shouldn't be surprised though. As a series The Simpsons has probably the worst packaging of any TV show. They're all mismatched, and they all pretty much suck.
jmj713
10-07-08, 10:20 AM
This, plus the special packaging is basically the regular version with a 3-D Krusty plate over it, if that makes sense.
I would have rather stuck with the digipacks, myself.
Are you saying the "regular" "non-head" packaging are the same? What's the point, I thought the regular box was like the 10 previous regular editions.
dx23
10-07-08, 10:24 AM
I saw this at Target for the same price as the Krusty Head.
kstublen
10-07-08, 10:49 AM
I got the Krusty Head today and the package itself is kinda neat. As long as they do the next four seasons this way, then I can deal with it; in a way, the inconsistency will be consistent.
However, the discs are contained in paper sleeves and is by and far the worst disc-holders I own. It is going to be so hard to get these out without scratching them.
KLZ
10-07-08, 12:21 PM
wow this new packaging sucks ass imo.. I hate sleeves like that, I know discs can handle it but it takes twice as long for me to get the discs out and I feel like I am scratching them up every time I pull them out or put them in. They really could have thought of better packaging than that.
jmj713
10-07-08, 12:34 PM
Anyone got hold of the regular non-head packaging? Is it also with sleeves or with disc-holders as before?
bevilacq12
10-07-08, 12:40 PM
I could not find the "regular" packaging - Newbury Comics and Best Buy only had the Krusty Head style, and while Amazon reports there are two versions, only the Krusty Head is shipping now. The other says 1-3 week wait, which seems odd. Not that that matters much, since the Krusty Head packaging is just the silly Krusty head on top of the standard packaging, so you can remove it and it's just like you bought the standard packaging separately.
The paper sleeves, however, are ATROCIOUS. I've already emailed Fox Home Entertainment, and will be writing a formal letter of complaint as well. Now I have the fun job tonight of custom-making something to keep the discs safe - no way in hell am I letting them get scratched up in those stupid sleeves.
edit: And I don't think that a stand-alone standard package set would have different disc holders, since the UK standard package (no Krusty Head) has the same stupid sleeves.
panchor
10-07-08, 12:47 PM
So, can I buy the Krusty head package, remove it and get the regular box?
I want the standard package and I was planning to go to Best Buy and buy it with certificates, but apparently they only have the special Krusty head box.
mcfly
10-07-08, 01:00 PM
So, can I buy the Krusty head package, remove it and get the regular box?
I want the standard package and I was planning to go to Best Buy and buy it with certificates, but apparently they only have the special Krusty head box.That's what it sounds like.
Anyone think some custom thinpaks will fit in to this standard packaging? I'd try and make my own since I refuse to keep these in paper sleeves..
bevilacq12
10-07-08, 01:07 PM
That's what it sounds like.
Anyone think some custom thinpaks will fit in to this standard packaging? I'd try and make my own since I refuse to keep these in paper sleeves..
I don't know - the outer cardboard shell is really thin now, since the inner piece is just a cardboard sheet folded up with 4 disc pockets. I think two thinpacks would be just a little too big width-wise, and I'm not even sure if they'd fit height-wise.
I plan on just putting the discs immediately into individual white paper sleeves - yes, still sleeves, but those are things I can get a disc out of scratch-free every time. The problem with the cardboard sleeves in this set (and other sets) is that
1) the sleeve is too stiff, so you can't properly flex it to pull the disc out without scraping along the entire surface,
and 2) the sleeve is connected to so much other material that the disc isn't even in the clear once it's out of the sleeve - it must scrape along the rest of the material the sleeve is connected to as well until the entire disc is out. This extra material also makes it more difficult to get your hand into the pouch, and contributes to the inflexibility.
I'll give some thought to a more elaborate (and nicer-looking fix), but individual paper sleeves will at least protect the discs and let me use them in the meantime.
tofferman
10-07-08, 01:16 PM
The layout of this set sounds as bad as the M.A.S.H. Martini's & Medicine box set, if not worse. Is that a fair assessment? Sounds like this was Fox's chosen method to save even more money in the manufacturing process. So much for consistency.
mcfly
10-07-08, 01:16 PM
Thanks for the heads up. I'll have to get all the dimensions.. I need to do something, I'm not shelling out $30 for these just to scratch up.
bunkaroo
10-07-08, 01:59 PM
Anyone got hold of the regular non-head packaging? Is it also with sleeves or with disc-holders as before?
The non-head has the sleeves as well. I have it.
bunkaroo
10-07-08, 02:01 PM
Just by "eye-balling" the box, I'd say you'd be lucky to get 3 thinpaks in there, so 2 double-disc thinpacks plus the booklet is probably the best bet.
KLZ
10-07-08, 02:04 PM
So, can I buy the Krusty head package, remove it and get the regular box?
I want the standard package and I was planning to go to Best Buy and buy it with certificates, but apparently they only have the special Krusty head box.
Yes, the krusty head plastic piece comes off pretty easily so you can convert it to the regular box and still have the special head to do with what you want.. ill probably hang mine up. I think this new idea is pretty cool so you can still get the box easily to sit on a dvd shelf and still have the special head.. too bad they had to go and switch to the sleeves for holding dvds.
Also while at bestbuy I saw both versions for sale if you had no need for the head.
Rusty Nail
10-07-08, 02:16 PM
I just picked up the Krusty Head dvd and it's just the regular box with the plastic Krusty head glued on the front cover (which can be removed if your careful).
The booklet lists the extra "And Then There Were Menus" being on disk four but unless its an easter egg I coudn't find it, and yes the cardboard sleeves are a fucking nightmare.
Cactus Jack
10-07-08, 02:28 PM
By the way, this is the UK standard packaging.
jmj713
10-07-08, 02:46 PM
Wonder if enough people complain Fox will do a replacement program like with the Homer head.
NO SLEEVES!
bevilacq12
10-07-08, 03:00 PM
Wonder if enough people complain Fox will do a replacement program like with the Homer head.
NO SLEEVES!
Let's hope!
Everyone submit an online complaint form at the Fox Home Entertainment site (Google it, then click Contact Us on the FHE main page)
AND / OR write or call to their headquarters:
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, Inc.
2121 Avenue of the Stars
25th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90067
United States
Phone:
310-369-3900
Real letters, like on paper, mailed to their address will carry much more weight than the online forms.
Bluelitespecial
10-07-08, 03:32 PM
I got it at traget this morning, the design of the packaging is really cool, but damn these discs are a bitch to get out of the sleeves.
howwon
10-07-08, 03:34 PM
Let's hope!
Everyone submit an online complaint form at the Fox Home Entertainment site (Google it, then click Contact Us on the FHE main page)
AND / OR write or call to their headquarters:
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, Inc.
2121 Avenue of the Stars
25th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90067
United States
Phone:
310-369-3900
Real letters, like on paper, mailed to their address will carry much more weight than the online forms.
Thanks for posting the address. I wonder if Canada has the same issue. I won't know until I get off work.
tofferman
10-07-08, 04:07 PM
I saw this set at Best Buy this afternoon and it may be one of the cheapest quality packages for a boxset I've seen in 10 years of buying dvd's. Not sure if I'll buy it now.
scottp120
10-07-08, 05:09 PM
I usually jump the second a new season of The Simpsons comes out and I'm glad I didn't. I'll wait until new packaging comes out and buy it then
mzupeman2
10-07-08, 05:24 PM
Ugh, this packaging with the sleeves IS a nightmare. I wasn't privy to this before I bought the set today, and the sad thing is, I would have bought it anyway. Not really any other way for me to watch season 11 on DVD! At least not in this quality. For the love of...
GizmoDVD
10-07-08, 05:54 PM
Woah..thats really, really bad.
bevilacq12
10-07-08, 06:15 PM
Anyone have any luck getting the discs out without ruining them? I acted with surgical precision, and 3 out of 4 of the discs are still completely scratched - and the 4th still has plenty of light scratches over its entirety as well.
Though looking at the weird patterns of scratches, I'd say most of them weren't caused by my removal - probably from something in the factory or the initial insertion. If Fox had been half as careful as I was removing them, there'd probably be only light scratching instead of the deeper ones.
mzupeman2
10-07-08, 06:33 PM
I'm returning mine. Store credit. I, I can't believe I have to do this. I would willingly purchase The Simpsons until the current season, despite how it got stale. I have my receipt, so they better not give me a hard time. I too removed it with surgical precision, but I think the process of getting them in these things and just being housed in there in general, is what's got them scuffed and scraped. Fox really, really, really let me down. I don't think I ever turned away a DVD due to packaging, EVER. Not even the Futurama releases that had crap-tacular packaging. This has got to go though. Really. Seriously. Screw you FOX.
geicos27
10-07-08, 06:38 PM
I saw both the "head" and "regular" packaging at my Best Buy. i bought the "head" one though.
mzupeman2
10-07-08, 06:40 PM
Well I think this is inherent with any kind of Simpsons set, not just the head one. Or were you not speaking about the packaging issue? Anyways, this is what I wrote to FOX:
"The cardboard sleeve packaging is a disaster, and I'm absolutely broken hearted. I have NEVER attempted to return a DVD for my money back, based on packaging. However, this packaging has left the discs in two seperate sets I exchanged for, scuffed and scraped. Thirty dollars is too much money to throw down for a set that has an inherent issue in design that causes my discs to be scratched. Even if they weren't scratched due to this, they would eventually get scratched. If you have a replacement set I can buy that includes NO scratched discs, please get back in contact with me. In fact, I would appreciate an email on this issue anyway. I want to own EVERY season of The simpsons, but now cannot, unless FOX does something about the TERRIBLE packaging."
jmj713
10-07-08, 06:57 PM
I saw both the "head" and "regular" packaging at my Best Buy. i bought the "head" one though.
Just got mine from Amazon, with the head. Carefully unglued the head off the box and promptly threw it away. It's hideous. The cover underneath is much better. The accordion sleeve case is another matter. Also, the back side of the slipcase does not close. Really, really disappointed. Why couldn't they just save their breath and keep the designs consistent from Season One on? Or is that too easy?
mcfly
10-07-08, 07:15 PM
Just got mine from Amazon, with the head. Carefully unglued the head off the box and promptly threw it away. It's hideous. The cover underneath is much better. The accordion sleeve case is another matter. Also, the back side of the slipcase does not close. Really, really disappointed. Why couldn't they just save their breath and keep the designs consistent from Season One on? Or is that too easy?Too easy.
If you have some blank thinpaks or amarays that can house 4 discs there's some excellent cover art out there for Seasons 1 - 10. I'm sure Season 11 is imminent.
I can't take all of this funky packaging. My shelf is hating me.
jmj713
10-07-08, 07:27 PM
I would love to put two thinpaks into the case. Problem is, I love the wall to wall original artwork on the accordion sleeve. I just wish there were standard plastic disc holders on that also.
Rusty Nail
10-07-08, 07:29 PM
I just picked up the Krusty Head dvd and it's just the regular box with the plastic Krusty head glued on the front cover (which can be removed if your careful).
The booklet lists the extra "And Then There Were Menus" being on disk four but unless its an easter egg I coudn't find it, and yes the cardboard sleeves are a fucking nightmare.
Nevermind I found it, its in the Art and Animation bonus menu.
Easter Egg
Press up on the main menu of disc 4 you will highlight a question mark in the orange booth. Press enter and you get to watch a one minute preview of the Simpsons Ride.
fumanstan
10-07-08, 07:43 PM
Yeah, speedy's Target ad confirmed the standard release a couple weeks ago.
I saw both this morning at Target and wasn't that impressed, but i've been buying the heads. Hearing about the poor packaging makes me think i'll pass on this release as I was already on the fence to begin with on getting new Simpsons seasons.
shill66
10-07-08, 07:56 PM
Normally I just smile and laugh at the nitpicky little issues people have with packaging that shouldn't be a bother, but THIS debacle really does deserve every bad thing that can be said about it.
It's just incredibly hard to believe they didn't learn their lesson after the first Homer's head situation. And this is worse!
smashthesymbols
10-07-08, 09:33 PM
It's just incredibly hard to believe they didn't learn their lesson after the first Homer's head situation. And this is worse!
Much, much worse. The Homer head was just ugly and didn't fit. I complained like a lot of others, but it was purely superficial. If this new packaging is actually damaging DVDs this is simply unacceptable.
howwon
10-07-08, 09:45 PM
This is what I did when I got home.
I put the discs in DVD/CD sleeves and put them back into the folds of the accordion insert. I also put the back paper insert into the folds of the accordion, to keep from misplacing it. The head piece was shrink wrapped to the boxset, I didn't have to peel it off.
I love the accordion insert and I think the Krusty head piece is hilarious.
mzupeman2
10-07-08, 10:07 PM
The accordion insert is going to cause a majority of the discs in this set, in anyones set, to have scuffs and scrapes, because I'm sure the packaging process isn't gentle by any means. The accordion insert isn't a bad idea on paper, but when it's executed by jamming DVD's into cardboard sleeves that don't give you the easiest access to those DVD's, there's big, big problems.
Howwon, it's great that you had the foresight to grab sleeves and put them back into the folds. However, when something is thirty dollars, should you have to provide your own sleeves to make sure the discs stay safe? It's not as if this is season 1, and FOX is learning about some big mistake they made. This is season 11. And they still can't get with the program?
mcfly
10-07-08, 10:10 PM
I went with the head set just for completist purposes, but it was a pain in the ass to take the discs out. I have them housing in separate cases for now, but I plan on making my own cover art and housing them in something more practical.
Awful job on Fox's part.
Dean Kousoulas
10-07-08, 10:56 PM
I'm hardly one for bitching about petty shit, but man what a horrible job on this box set.
bevilacq12
10-07-08, 11:38 PM
This is what I did when I got home.
I put the discs in DVD/CD sleeves and put them back into the folds of the accordion insert. I also put the back paper insert into the folds of the accordion, to keep from misplacing it. The head piece was shrink wrapped to the boxset, I didn't have to peel it off.
I love the accordion insert and I think the Krusty head piece is hilarious.
Yup, that's exactly what I did as well. They don't seem to fit in the actual disc pockets (and I'm sure as hell not going to try to force them, things can still scratch even in the DVD sleeves), but I just rested them inside the folds created by the accordion. If you put the accordion back in the way that it came out (disc pockets facing into the case), then there is no danger of the CD sleeves falling out of the case.
Again, not what I like to have to do when I pay $30, but it'll hold up for now.
MTRodaba2468
10-08-08, 12:13 AM
Are you saying the "regular" "non-head" packaging are the same? What's the point, I thought the regular box was like the 10 previous regular editions.
I'm saying that the box for the special version of Season 11 is the same as the box for the regular version, only with a plastic Krusty plate you can remove (which makes the special version pointless as far as I'm concerned).
What's worse is that the packaging for this season, instead of a digipack, is housed in cardboard sleeves, making it more likely that the discs will get scratched (I had to fucking deal with this for There Will Be Blood!).
Darknite39
10-08-08, 01:46 AM
The apparent lack of a "regular" box for this set kept me from preordering (as I've done for just about every season from the get-go), but after this mess I'm glad I didn't bother.
Alan Smithee
10-08-08, 05:21 AM
Yep, this packaging is pretty bad. To make matters even worse, once again they shipped these to stores with NO shrinkwrap over the plastic slipcover. I went to Best Buy first today but didn't buy it there because they all had price tags on the slipcovers. Had to go to Target to get a clean one. Why the fuck do they keep doing this??? They did it with "Joy Ride 2" also, which I thought about picking up but didn't mostly because of the store putting their price tag on the cardboard slipcover.
basaro
10-08-08, 09:47 AM
I was gonna get this, but now I am not. Cardboard sleeves for disc storage - stupid assholes! Fox is getting hate mail from me. I was planning on getting all the future seasons, no matter how bad some of them get, but this changes everything. :wtf:
Adiras
10-08-08, 12:59 PM
I'm still going to pick this up, but it is odd how they keep changing the packaging for the Simpsons.
slop101
10-08-08, 09:02 PM
Ha! Soon as I opened the dvd I just knew the people here would absolutley hate the packaging.
The Krusty head is fun though superfluous (like his third nipple), but you can take it off easy enough. And the rest of the package is great - it's super compact, visually appealing and has a great booklet insert - so aside from the small hassle of removing the discs, I give this packaging a big thumbs up!
mzupeman2
10-08-08, 09:18 PM
Aside from the hassle of removing discs? How about the hassle of providing packaging that's going to get those things scuffed no matter how careful you are for years with this thing? They're bound to get scuffs and scrapes, no matter how nice you take care of them.
Dean Kousoulas
10-08-08, 09:26 PM
Yep, this packaging is pretty bad. To make matters even worse, once again they shipped these to stores with NO shrinkwrap over the plastic slipcover. I went to Best Buy first today but didn't buy it there because they all had price tags on the slipcovers. Had to go to Target to get a clean one. Why the fuck do they keep doing this??? They did it with "Joy Ride 2" also, which I thought about picking up but didn't mostly because of the store putting their price tag on the cardboard slipcover.
That's my biggest pet peeve of DVD collecting.
slop101
10-08-08, 09:45 PM
Aside from the hassle of removing discs? How about the hassle of providing packaging that's going to get those things scuffed no matter how careful you are for years with this thing? They're bound to get scuffs and scrapes, no matter how nice you take care of them.I've already taken the first disc in and out a few time and I have no scuffs or scrapes - and I'm not taking exceptional care removing them either - it's slick paper - it's not gonna scratch shit. Really? Are people scraping their discs as if the sleeves were sandpaper?
slop101
10-08-08, 09:48 PM
Yep, this packaging is pretty bad. To make matters even worse, once again they shipped these to stores with NO shrinkwrap over the plastic slipcover. I went to Best Buy first today but didn't buy it there because they all had price tags on the slipcovers. Had to go to Target to get a clean one. Why the fuck do they keep doing this???You're kidding right? I mean, I saw the plastic slipcover as being the same thing as a shrinkwrap - I tossed it. After you take off the Krusty face, what do you need the slipcover for? It's just there to protect the face during transit.
Alan Smithee
10-09-08, 05:12 AM
It has the title on the front- the ones for the previous 5 heads are needed more so because they have titles on the spines. This might not be such a big deal, but it REALLY pisses me off when they have stuff like lenticular slipcovers with no shrinkwrap so they usually put a big-ass price tag over part of it, or a few titles (like Freaked, IRobot and Napoleon Dynamite) where the keepcase art doesn't make much sense on its own.
I'm an obsessive collector so I save everything that comes with a DVD anyways, and I never buy anything used when it's still available new so putting out brand-new merchandise with no shrinkwrap over it and price tags stuck on kind of defeats that.
KingSmoth
10-09-08, 11:51 AM
Im in the minority, because I really like the packaging. The fold-out is quite nice. Unfortunately, I didn't get the version with tiny metal KrustyO's inside that gash every disc. :(
Now I have Seasons 6, 7 and 11 "head" packaging, and 8-10 regular(which were gifts). If I could trade my 8-10 for the head packaging that would be sweet.
PixarFan1988
10-09-08, 12:59 PM
I bought The Simpsons: Season 11 on Tuesday and I too hate the way they packaged the dvd. I put the discs in seperate CD cases so they won't get scratched.
SexualPudding
10-09-08, 06:41 PM
It has the title on the front- the ones for the previous 5 heads are needed more so because they have titles on the spines. This might not be such a big deal, but it REALLY pisses me off when they have stuff like lenticular slipcovers with no shrinkwrap so they usually put a big-ass price tag over part of it, or a few titles (like Freaked, IRobot and Napoleon Dynamite) where the keepcase art doesn't make much sense on its own.
I'm an obsessive collector so I save everything that comes with a DVD anyways, and I never buy anything used when it's still available new so putting out brand-new merchandise with no shrinkwrap over it and price tags stuck on kind of defeats that.
Can't you just put a little goo-gone or lighter fluid on the price sticker and easily remove it? Jesus. It really isn't that big of a deal.
mcfly
10-09-08, 06:50 PM
Meh, all of my stuff was fine with no price tags.
Buy it at Target, they don't put tags on their stuff.
Swahili
10-09-08, 10:40 PM
Yeah my buddy bought this the other day. Ridiculous cardboard sleeves to hold the discs, and his first disc was scratched so badly that it wouldn't even play in my DVD player.
erlong
10-22-08, 09:55 PM
The guys over at tvshowsondvd.com think the packaging is crap also: http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Simpsons-Season-11-Box-Art/10740
Upper pylon 3
10-23-08, 08:40 AM
I read the ^ article. I don't care for the "head" packaging and always order the regular. As I understand it, unlike the previous Simpsons releases, the Krusty head release is basically the regular release with a Krusty head attached and can be removed. Is that correct? Do I not have to worry about which version to order? Last time I checked dd.com does not have a listing for the regular packaging and I want to order it from them during the Nov. sale.
KLZ
10-23-08, 11:28 AM
I read the ^ article. I don't care for the "head" packaging and always order the regular. As I understand it, unlike the previous Simpsons releases, the Krusty head release is basically the regular release with a Krusty head attached and can be removed. Is that correct? Do I not have to worry about which version to order? Last time I checked dd.com does not have a listing for the regular packaging and I want to order it from them during the Nov. sale.
Yes.
Upper pylon 3
10-23-08, 11:45 AM
Cool. Thanks! :thumbsup:
dx23
10-23-08, 01:06 PM
FOX should offer a packaging replacement. The disc sooner or later are going to be damaged either by smudge or scratches, all because of the crappy packaging. Is the a customer service email where people who bought this set can voice their opinion about this issue?
Buy: