DVD Talk review of 'The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series'
12-16-08, 01:40 PM
#1
Cool New Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Biloxi, Mississippi
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
DVD Talk review of 'The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series'
RE: John Sinnott's DVD review of The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series at http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=35667 and...
This review was fun to read, and it seems like Sinnott enjoyed the show as much as I did. He offered up for examples of how creative the show was some of my own favorite episodes. In the original run, I watched only the first season and part of the second. That's no reflection on the series. I was twelve when it premiered and within a couple of years, my interests wandered elsewhere. Regardless, I count myself among the original fans, and I bought all four seasons as they were released. My initial viewing of Season 1 was a bit of a disappointment. I thought it looked too much like a studio backlot. The ceilings were too high, there wasn't enough ambient noise. The production values revealed a slapdash quality, and though this was typical of the period, my nostalgic affection rendered it in my memory better than it was. Mostly I was disappointed that they weren't taking it with the same level of seriousness I did. And that's where our opinions diverge. I think it was all done with a wink, and as a teen-aged boy, I was too impressed with how cool James West looked -- and, man, he was better than I remember him; no wonder I wanted to be like him -- to notice.
But after making allowances for the period, I've fallen for the series all over again. In fact, I'm on my second go-round in watching them. It's more amusing to me now to spot the same actor playing different henchmen in one episode after the other; or seeing how they manage to make the same set look different -- a lamp here, a desk there -- which we didn't notice in the original run because the episodes aired a week apart. For those wanting to take this fun nostalgic trip -- and for some very entertaining writing -- all of these episodes are in fact in great condition, sharp and free of specks. The lighting in Season 1 is clearly more atmospheric than the subsequent seasons, and perhaps the brighter lighting was a requirement for the color film. But all of the seasons have their moments. "The Night of the Flying Pie Plate" is both dark and colorful.
For anyone old enough to remember the series from the original run, it's fun to revisit it. I don't plan on buying this newly repackaged set, despite the addition of the two made-for-TV return movies. Those two artifacts weren't part of the original experience to me. If they were sold separately, I'd buy them just to complete the collection, but it's not enough incentive for me to buy this new complete set. And there's something I find appealing about the individual season-per-box sets.
Not only that, I'd read on Amazon the same thing John said, that the new packaging will lead to scratches.
This review was fun to read, and it seems like Sinnott enjoyed the show as much as I did. He offered up for examples of how creative the show was some of my own favorite episodes. In the original run, I watched only the first season and part of the second. That's no reflection on the series. I was twelve when it premiered and within a couple of years, my interests wandered elsewhere. Regardless, I count myself among the original fans, and I bought all four seasons as they were released. My initial viewing of Season 1 was a bit of a disappointment. I thought it looked too much like a studio backlot. The ceilings were too high, there wasn't enough ambient noise. The production values revealed a slapdash quality, and though this was typical of the period, my nostalgic affection rendered it in my memory better than it was. Mostly I was disappointed that they weren't taking it with the same level of seriousness I did. And that's where our opinions diverge. I think it was all done with a wink, and as a teen-aged boy, I was too impressed with how cool James West looked -- and, man, he was better than I remember him; no wonder I wanted to be like him -- to notice.
But after making allowances for the period, I've fallen for the series all over again. In fact, I'm on my second go-round in watching them. It's more amusing to me now to spot the same actor playing different henchmen in one episode after the other; or seeing how they manage to make the same set look different -- a lamp here, a desk there -- which we didn't notice in the original run because the episodes aired a week apart. For those wanting to take this fun nostalgic trip -- and for some very entertaining writing -- all of these episodes are in fact in great condition, sharp and free of specks. The lighting in Season 1 is clearly more atmospheric than the subsequent seasons, and perhaps the brighter lighting was a requirement for the color film. But all of the seasons have their moments. "The Night of the Flying Pie Plate" is both dark and colorful.
For anyone old enough to remember the series from the original run, it's fun to revisit it. I don't plan on buying this newly repackaged set, despite the addition of the two made-for-TV return movies. Those two artifacts weren't part of the original experience to me. If they were sold separately, I'd buy them just to complete the collection, but it's not enough incentive for me to buy this new complete set. And there's something I find appealing about the individual season-per-box sets.
Not only that, I'd read on Amazon the same thing John said, that the new packaging will lead to scratches.
Last edited by alric1212192; 12-16-08 at 01:48 PM.
