Stargate SG-1 now available
 

The SG-1 season sets are finally available. I gave up on CH ever carrying them, but there they are.

Yes, this has been mentioned in several other threads but it is good to highlight it in a named thread.

For those unfamiliar with it, Stargate SG-1 is a sci-fi TV series that takes the theme of the movie of the same name and rums with it. The special effects, especially in later seasons, are exceptional for a TV show. There is some humor, mostly supplied by Richard Dean Anderson, that keeps the series from taking itself too seriously.

Like Babylon 5 and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine the series carries themes and storylines forward through the years; it is not unusual for a show to reference something that happened several years earlier. But it is not a thematic whole like B5 (which is a novel for TV). With Stargate SG-1 the writers were very much making it up as they went along. The DVDs are in widescreen anamorphic format with decent, but not outstanding, DD5.1 sound.

For those interested, there are a number of threads on the show in the TV forum. I'd suggest "Stargate series ... a good blind buy ?" since the people who don't like the show weighed in and there was a good back and forth debate. The consensus seemed to be that the show hit its stride is season 2. (But one of my favorite episodes was Ep. 19, There But for the Grace of God, from season 1; by then I cared about the characters and that one was very intense for me. And Ep. 12, The Nox was also fun in Season 1.)

Given that CH is selling the season sets at a price that should count for two fulfillments, the relative cost of each set, even without the recently departed free shipping, is about $30. It would be cheaper with a 40% off box set sale or with free shipping.

I consider this a fun series but it isn't art and it doesn't take itself too seriously.

My 2¢. Your view might vary.

I don't see season 8 up for preorder.

I can't recall exactly when Season 7 became available but Columbia House often doesn't get sets until after a release date. Depends on their contract with the studio.

D-Ball would know, but MGM might be one of the studios that appears on release day. I can never remember which ones are and aren't available before release day. I do recall that Paramount Star Trek sets are available a month or two after release.

I'd be surprised if CH doesn't carry Season 8 eventually.

When does S8 come out?

Hmm...I'm sure I saw the Stargate Atlantis pilot up for preorder before its release day, and I thought the same with season 7, that's why I was wondering about 8 (10/4/05).

Now that you mention it, my records show that I ordered Season 7 on 9-2-04 and the release date was 10-19-04. But that may have been when Columbia House started carrying the Stargate SG-1 sets.

Perhaps Season 8 will show up in a few weeks at Columbia House.

Stargate SG-1: Season 8 is now available from Columbia House.

4297602 Stargate SG-1: Season 8, Special Price $41.96

Since this price is good for two fulfillment credits, the relative cost of the set is $16.80.

That strikes me as a good price for the set!


The numbers:
Regular LMTD type membership:
Enrollment: $12.89 (7 DVDs)
Fulfillment: $19.95 + $19.95 + $4.98 (shipping) - $5 (web discount) = $39.88 (2 DVDs)
Total membership cost: $12.89 + $39.88 = $52.77 (9 DVDs)
Average DVD cost = $52.77/9 = $5.86333

LMTD membership with Stargate SG-1: Season 8 as fulfillment:
Enrollment: $12.89 (7 DVDs)
Fulfillment: $41.96 + $7.99 (shipping) - $5 (web discount) = $44.95 (1 set)
Total membership cost: $12.89 + $44.95 = $57.84 (7 regular DVDs plus 1 set)
Relative cost of set = $57.84 - (7 x $5.86333) = $57.84 - $41.04 = $16.80

According to another thread now, all SG-1 except season 1 and 2 have been deleted from the list of available titles. Anyone know what's up with that?

Yup. Seasons 3-7 (and 8, of course) are no longer available as enrollments in the "TV Edition" of the DVD Club. While this is disappointing to anyone who wants them but doesn't have them, they have been available for so long now that I presume that most people who want them already DO have them.

The sets remain available from the regular DVD Club and from the TV Edition as fulfillment purchases.

I was hoping to get Season 8 and Atlantis Season 1 as enrollments from CH, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen now. Maybe I'll try to order them by phone after Atlantis has been out for a few months.

Are you sure it's good for two fulfillments? I thought sets had to be priced at over $50 to count for two.

It counted as two fulfillments when I ordered it a couple of weeks ago. I also thought $50 was the two fulfillment point, but it looks like it's $40.

^The fulfillment credit schedule was changed by Columbia House more than a year ago (the FAQ is out of date on this topic). See your membership catalog for the current committment credit levels (usually located inside the back cover).

The fact that the new range for two credits starts at $39.95 makes for an interesting quirk: a set is cheaper as a fulfillment if it is priced just above $40 than if it is priced in the $35 range (counts for only one). Sometimes sale prices end up making a set "too cheap" to use for fulfillment!

Thanks Brilk and Lizard...I checked CH's faq and you're right, it's out of date. I just received my enrollment package today :) and SG-1 does count as two. Pretty cool. Now I have to decide if I want to do that of get three cheaper titles for free shipping or...

^What you can do is buy the Stargate set plus two $14.95 DVDs, probably sale priced at $7.48 each, to qualify for free shipping. This is why it is best to save some desirable $14.95 DVDs for use as "thirds" to qualify for free shipping. With 2000 to choose from, there are a number of good $14.95 titles in the Columbia House catalog.

Also, be sure to remember to use the "$5 off first time web orders" website (columbiahouse.com/webdvd) for placing that order.

Edit to add:
The current Columbia House fulfillment credit schedule:
Selections purchased at $19.95 to $39.94 count for one
Selections purchased at $39.95 to $59.94 count for two
Selections purchased at $59.95 to $79.94 count for three
Selections purchased at $79.95 to $99.94 count for four
Selections purchased at $99.95 and higher count for five

Thanks Lizard, that's exactly what I did when I placed my order Friday night. (After playing around with different combinations for an hour :) )

I'm one of the unfortnate ones. I did get one stargate season back in july 05 as enrollment (together with babylon S2,S3) as enrollment. Now they've taken the sets off, damn.

Sorry you missed out on being able to order then as enrollments in the TV Edition club. If you have S1 you can still get S2 as an enrollment and then get another season as a fulfillment for that club membership.

If you can wait until the sets are priced just at or above $39.95 (two fulfillment credits) you can still get them at a terrific price because those two credits are "worth" about $28, so you are getting it for $28 less than the posted price (plus $7.99 shipping, if free shipping is not in effect, as it currently is).

The problem is that most of the sets are currently priced at $37.46 and therefore only count for one fulfillment credit, worth about $14. That brings down the relative cost to ~$23.46. Decent, but not as good a deal as when they were priced higher.

It has been reported to work to call up CH and ask to have the price increased slightly to $39.95 to count for two fulfillment credits. But that would also mean that one wouldn't be able to use the "$5 off first time web orders" discount.

With patience and some work, you can get the other Stargate seasons inexpensively, but it is no longer easy.

I have never joined the TV club so I am a little fuzzy on some of the details. I went to the site and looked for SG S1 and S2 to use as my enrollment. I found S1 but there does not seem to be a listing S2. What am I missing?

Oops! Never mind. I found it. Sorry.

DeepdiscountDVD is now offering the SG1 sets buy one get one for like $31 each. That comes out to about $15/set. Not as good as CH, but if you missed out on the later seasons as enrollments you might want to take a look:

http://www.deepdiscountdvd.com/promo...romocode=01443

^That sale price is so close to an optimized Columbia House price I would recommend that anyone who wants the Stargate SG-1 sets get them from DDD. A bargain price of $16 each and much less hassle than ordering them from CH as fulfillments.