The Twilight Zone - Season 1 (1985 - 1986)

Rating:
Summary: Great nostalgic revisit -- poorly mastered dvd
Review: A lot of the defense about the visual quality states that it was because they are from 1" video masters -- the only format remaining from that time period. That's not the biggest problem (though you will notice the odd video drop-out and such)

No, the biggest problem is the dvd mastering. Lots of artifacting, especially in dark areas and still moments.

But if, like me, you've waited 20 years to revisit these stories, it's worth suffering through. Some great stories and the a good number of weak ones. Overall a pleasurable viewing experience.

ADDED NOTE: One later reviewer wrote "But what I do not understand is that All in the Family was shot on video and although it doesn't look great, it looks and sounds much better than this show."

The reason is that the dvd mastering was done at a low bitrate (people who makes their own dvds will understand). On a large-screen tv you will see lots of blockiness. This is a tellatle sign of high compression or poor mastering. The quality is comparable to vcds at some points.

Rating:
Summary: " The Twilight Zone: 1980's Style."
Review: Although the picture quality and some areas of audio are not the clearest that would be preferred, the fact that this show has finally come to dvd is a great thing in itself. Many of the shows are simply amazing in their ingenuity and presentation. The acting, photography and conveyed mood are consistantly great.This show is a great companion piece to the original Twilight Zone and fans as well as new viewers will be very capably entertained. Please bring on seasons 2 and 3! Enjoy this great anthology style series of 20 years ago with gusto.

Rating:
Summary: Some Thoughts About This Set...
Review: As a long-time fan of the Twilight Zone, I have over the years recorded all three versions of the television show (not to mention owning the Laser Disc of the movie). With the recent release of the UPN version and the rather haphazard previous Image release of the original - this is the one version I never expected to be released on DVD. I am happy to say that it ROCKS!

As Alan Brennart (one of original producer/writers of the series) mentions, these DVDs are derived from the original CBS broadcast master tapes. I must admit, after pulling out my tapes, these DVDs look better today than when I recorded them in 1985-86. The DVD quality is consistent with comparable shows of the era. A few reviewers have mentioned that some episodes are mono and some in stereo. Well, if you look back at the time period, this was one of the first CBS shows broadcast in stereo at all. In fact, after scanning through the opening credits of my VHS tapes, it seems that CBS didn't even start running TZ in stereo until episode 20. That's when the superimposing of "Broadcast In STEREO - Where Available" over the opening credits began. It is entirely possible that the broadcast masters, from which this set is taken, wasn't completely in stereo to begin with. Those last five episodes on the set (and on my tapes) are in stereo so this makes logical sense.

In a time when we've all become accustomed to tv sound being primarily in stereo we sometimes forget that broadcasting stereo sound began in the mid-1980s.

Let's not quibble over the perceived lack of quality in the disc mastering (which is most probably due to the factors that have been mentioned). We should just enjoy this rather superior incarnation of one of our favorite television shows. For my money, just having the writer/director/producer commentaries makes this set worth owning!

Now, if they could just get "Twilight Zone - The Movie" out of it's limbo...

Rating:
Summary: GREAT Follow-up to the Classic "Zone"!
Review: First--thanks to Alan Brennert for clarifying the technical limitations involved with bringing the series to DVD.

I found the sound & picture quality frustrating, as did some other reviewers. Hence, the 4 stars from me. But the show itself definitely merits top credentials as a 5-star collection.

Mr. Brennert sets the record straight, as we must remember it's been an incomprehensible 20 YEARS AGO when the series was filmed...that's pretty hard to swallow, considering I remember the first Friday night I saw my first episode. That night featured "Shatterday" with another piece, wrapped up with "Nightcrawlers". I was (and still am) astonished!

The stories throughout the set are compelling, the scripts are solid (mostly), the messages carry weight and they will impact your thoughts. Most of these espisodes are very provocative.

We have become spoiled with the clarity of today's films on DVD blowing us out of our living rooms with thunderous digital sound. So, we have to "gear-down" somewhat for an older presentation--but that's all right!

Enjoy the series at night with the lights out and see if you're not "Zoned-out" over this great compilation. And thank you, Alan Brennert for helping to craft such a stirring, intriquing, suspenseful continuation of Mr. Serling's masterpiece.

John McCommon


Rating:
Summary: a great disappointment
Review: I bought this being a big TZ fan. I was less than impress with the image quality. I bought the "collections" last summer. Beautiful sharp quality. No sound drop off. I expected much better I am hoping this is a defective set and am returning it to amazon. No book of episodes came with it. The image is grainy like a videotape on esp setting. Don't waste your time.

Rating:
Summary: Good to go back to the zone
Review: I remember watching this show when I was about 14 years old. I loved it then, and I still do. I know other members have complained about the picture quality, but it seems fine to me. The stories are so original and fun to watch. Highlights include,but are not limited to:Shatterday,look Bruce Willis with hair!,Nightcrawlers,based on the story by Robert R. Mcammon,Gramma,based on Stephen KIng's short story and very scary,Need to Know, with CSI's William Petersen,A Little Peace and Quiet,Wordplay,Wong's Lost and Found Emporium,and many more.Watching this series has been a truly enjoyable experience and well worth the money. Simply put, it's awesome.

Rating:
Summary: I Understand Mr. Brennert, But...
Review: It's a bit much to ask that buyers of this box set be "grateful" for image quality that is below even the lowest standard most people would accept for VHS on a brand new DVD at $50.00+ a pop. Especially with NO indication from Image Entertainment of any of the transfer difficulties you mentioned, or anything else that would lead one to believe they were purchasing something other than the best this format offers, or at the very least, the level of quality considered commonplace on 99.9% of all DVDs. (Which includes a HUGE number of sitcoms that were recorded on video from the start.)

Given your explanation, I have no doubt the transfer is the best that could be achieved under the circumstances. But I also have no doubt Image did not release this set out of the "goodness of their heart" but rather, to turn a profit. Had these shortcomings been acknowledged from the start and reflected in the price, perhaps people would be less complaining and more appreciative. But it's a little out of line to demand the audience regard this box set as some sort of "gift" rather than the consumer product it is. As I said, I don't question the effort that went into salvaging the video. But I work hard for my money, too. I don't think Image would be willing to accept $25 in real dollars and $25 in good intentions. Value is subjective, and can only be determined when people are given the facts up front in order to make an informed decision.

I love this particular TZ incarnation, quite possibly on a level equal to yours Mr. Brennert, and couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I was prepared to give it a 5-star rating even before it was released because the content - stories, talent (above and below the line), and unequivocal genius of many episodes - is the very definition of superior storytelling. It still receives my highest rating on that score. Hell, "Paladin of the Lost Hour" is worth the price of the box set alone. But I simply cannot ignore the sub-standard technical aspects in picture quality, uneven, often unintelligible sound, and the peculiar method of show arrangement and navigation. It's one thing to treat each episode as standalone if the full beginning and end credits are attached. But it's pretty annoying to finish watching one episode, fade to black, return to the main menu, and then have to watch another episode just to see the credits of the first one. Even watching each episode in order, it's still confusing as to what each weekly one-hour show contained.

What makes this TZ version superior (not only to other TZ incarnations but "Outer Limits" and similar anthology remakes/updates) is the real sense of "tribute" to the source. This was no rip-off; this was true striving to live up to, and in many cases surpass, the original. You never got the sense that a single person was doing a "Love Boat." That it was considered a privilege and honor to be associated with this project, and something to point to on a resume with pride.

Maybe we expected too much, but only because "TZ 1985" deserved it. The technical shortcomings could have been compensated by more extras such as one-on-one interviews from the tremendous talent pool, scripts, advertisements, production stills, etc. It wasn't as if this was being rushed to market. No matter how many incarnations come in the future, this era will always be special. It was pre-formula (i.e., new "Outer Limits" and "TZ 2002") where everything ends the same regardless of how it starts out. A time when people were still allowed to experiment (even though Alan Smithee does make an appearance!) and what "Twilight Zone" meant in the Rod Serling definition of the term, rather than the Spielberg "Amazing Stories" definition.

My hope is that when Season Two of this series is released later this year (which contains the magnificent "A Saucer of Loneliness") I will be able to return here and give it the full 5-star rating I wish I could have given this one.

My advice: Rent first and then decide if it meets your standard for purchase.

Rating:
Summary: Any way you slice it, crap is crap
Review: It's a shame the studios filmed this show on the cheapest film they could find. The reviewer masquerading as Alan Brenner (TZ writer/producer) said that "the 1985-87 Twilight Zone was shot on film, but edited on video. In other words, the raw footage was 35mm film, which was then transferred to videotape. Editing, dubbing, special effects--everything was done on video. (We were in fact the first drama series on television to do this.)"

Well Mr. Brennert that's all well and good but as the title of MY far more apt review says, who cares, crap is crap. That film-to-video excuse you're feeding us like candy sounds great and all, but if you ask me the truth of the matter is that all that really happened back then was that a bunch of cheap people wanted to save a few bucks on high quality film/video sources which were clearly available at the time. I mean Star Wars pre-dates this series by many years and it's loaded with special effects. So there's no real excuse for this rubbish outside of being produced by a bunch of money-grubbing cheapskates.

Rating:
Summary: 2 for quality, 5 for show.
Review: This is a terrific show definitely worth of release on DVD. But as many have said, the video quality is very bad. I think it is the worst that I have seen on any TV show on DVD. However, another post on here explains the reason behind the bad quality. I know that video doesn't hold up well (look at the original TZ episodes shot in video). But what I do not understand is that All in the Family was shot on video and although it doesn't look great, it looks and sounds much better than this show. Just curious about why that is. I can take the grain and the fuzz in the video, but the biggest problem I have is that there are these "flashes" that happen after some scene changes (noticed it in the 2nd story of the the first episode). It usually happens right after a scene change. I have no idea if this is on all of them, just my set, or if it is my DVD player.

The audio is also pretty bad. I can scarcely make out what is being said.

However, I am not whining about these problems. I would rather have this set and all of its problems than to not have it at all. I also appreciate the commentary tracks that are on here. So many TV shows are being released with no extras at all (like MacGyver).

Rating:
Summary: Still Great To Watch
Review: Unlike what others have said, I didn't have a real problem with the image quality of the DVDs. Yes, I'm a little spoiled by today's digital quality availability but I wouldn't let that stop me from viewing a truly good series and this DVD set fits that description. I watched these shows when I was in high school and it was so wonderful to experience them again, particularly my favorites "Her Pilgrim Soul" and "A Message From Charity". The added bonus of having the audio commentary for most of the episodes was especially fun. I learned not only of production "gossip" but also the stress of having to manage audience vs. network expectations. The viewing quality is still good; if you're a fan, don't deny yourself the enjoyment of this series!