Rating: 
Summary: Loved it. Worth the long wait.
Review: If you believe that WWII was truly a war between good and evil you will be stirred by the pictures and the music. I never cease to marvel at what America did during those four short years. Heroism on an epic scale. Good history lessons. Great job in putting these on DVDs. Great gift if you know someone who was in WWII. I'm very happy with the set.
Rating:
Summary: The best history of WW II
Review: If you want to learn something about WW II in order to provoke you to learn more; or if you wish to introduce your children or grandchildren to this horrible period in our history...there is no better place than "Victory at Sea". Simply none.
If you can watch this and not be encouraged to learn more, or if you can watch this and not cry, or if you can watch this and not acquire an appreciation for music other than rock or hip or rap...then you are truly devoid of human emotion.
This is, quite simply, the best television produced in the "early years" of television. In fact, it will hold its own against much of Ken Burn's work in recent history. This is quite simply, history at its best.
Buy it now.
Rating:
Summary: Definitive TV
Review: In modern television programming, there's always the OFF button on the TV and I recommend its frequent usage! Thank goodness for moments like this one, when TV reaches and exceeds its potential as a communication medium. Victory At Sea is compelling story-tellling by any measure. Couple it with a viewing of The World At War, and WWII is yours to learn from. Pity some of our modern leaders don't seem to have had the same experience.
Rating: 
Summary: Video=5 Audio = -5
Review: Just wanted to add another opinion to these regarding the poor audio quality. I saw Victory At Sea when it was rebroadcast on Sundays here in Boston, several years after the original release. I'd always wanted to own this series as an adult but hadn't seen it again until recently. I agree the audio is amazingly poor, especially so considering its importance as a documentary on life & times of that era. I just don't understand why the music wasn't remastered for this presentation. Although the narration is acceptable (barely), the high and low tones are missing and it sounds 'flat' There has to be an idiot loose and making unsupervised decisions somewhere inside the History Channel production studios.
Rating:
Summary: Revisiting an old friend
Review: Like so many others, I grew up as a kid with this series, having first seen it in 1952. The themes, like "Hymn of Victory" ran through my head daily. Other kids chased each other around the playground; I did carrier takeoffs and landings - with the occasional waveoff! Over the years, I have purchased (and worn out) multiple copies of all 3 volumes of the score on LP, wore out an 8 track, and am gradually wearing out my CD's. I desperately bought the pirated 2 VHS cheap-o version years ago - bad move; later found the 6 VHS version to be a big improvement. This DVD version is the best. It plays ok on my Dolby system; I have no issues with the sound quality. The more I play the music, or view the programs, the more I appreciate it for what it is: a seminal example of TV documentary at its best. I recall talking with my Dad years ago about the genius of Richard Rogers' score and the poetic majesty of the narration (which also repeats admirably in the book). And yes, it still draws a tear here and there after all these years. I feel no one can watch this without coming away with a heartfelt appreciation for those who saved this world from a very real and horrible evil. As for the layout of the videos, I actually appreciate the arrangement as I am planning to use selected episodes from this for my Middle School History class. The kids are in for an unforgettable experience.
Rating:
Summary: Revisiting an old friend
Review: Like so many others, I grew up as a kid with this series, having first seen it in 1952. The themes, like "Hymn of Victory" ran through my head daily. Other kids chased each other around the playground; I did carrier takeoffs and landings - with the occasional waveoff! Over the years, I have purchased (and worn out) multiple copies of all 3 volumes of the score on LP, wore out an 8 track, and am gradually wearing out my CD's. I desperately bought the pirated 2 VHS cheap-o version years ago - bad move; later found the 6 VHS version to be a big improvement. This DVD version is the best. It plays ok on my Dolby system; I have no issues with the sound quality. The more I play the music, or view the programs, the more I appreciate it for what it is: a seminal example of TV documentary at its best. I recall talking with my Dad years ago about the genius of Richard Rogers' score and the poetic majesty of the narration (which also repeats admirably in the book). And yes, it still draws a tear here and there after all these years. I feel no one can watch this without coming away with a heartfelt appreciation for those who saved this world from a very real and horrible evil. As for the layout of the videos, I actually appreciate the arrangement as I am planning to use selected episodes from this for my Middle School History class. The kids are in for an unforgettable experience.
Rating:
Summary: The greatest generation wins the Victory at Sea.
Review: Many reviewers on Amazon.com have commented on the poor quality of sound on Victory at Sea. I did not experience this difficulty with my Bose surround sound system and Onkyo receiver. Both voice and music were clear throughout the lengthy program. Even so, it seems clear that the producers of this important series need to heed the reviews of the many dissastisfied viewers who have complained about the poor quality of the audio when played through standard sound systems. With these reservations noted, it also seems clear that Victory at Sea, when seen as intended by the makers of the series, is one of the greatest documentaries ever made about World War II as played out on the oceans and seas of the world. First, the war in the Pacific. The vastness of this largest of the world's oceans plays a major role in the unfolding story. The Japanese stretched their limited resources to the breaking point. Pearl Harbor needed to be a "knockout" blow to the United States and wasn't. In fact, it was the goad America needed to commit to the war. Once committed, the vast resources of this country were mobilized with astonishing speed and the fighting men and women of the United States were more than equal to the task of defeating what had been an invincible Japanese army and navy. The strength of Victory at Sea is that it shows us the "up close and personal" lives of the soldiers and sailors who sailed the ships, flew the planes, and assaulted the beaches of the dozens of South Pacific Islands the Japanese had conquered. The bravery of "the greatest generation" is undeniable and Victory at Sea shows us the men and women of America at their courageous best. The war in the Atlantic was dominated, at first, by the skilled German U-Boat submariners. For those who want to see what the war looked like from the German point of view, I highly recommend the great German film, Das Boot. Without the backing of the American fleet, England may well have lost the war, so effective were the Germans at destroying allied shipping. Dunkirk should have been a German victory which seriously damaged England's ability to continue fighting effectively. Instead, the English put every boat that could sail into the water to rescue their fighting men stranded across the English Channel. With this unexpected miracle and the incredible valor of the English airforce in the Battle of Britain, England bought time as America entered the war. Everything about this lengthy program is outstanding. Every bit of appropriate film has been reviewed and the most compelling sequences have been carefully spliced together to tell the story of Victory at Sea. Richard Rodgers' score is wonderful from beginning to end and always appropriately matched to the pictures we are watching. The narration makes clear the strategy and battle plans as the war is fought from the great naval victory at Midway in the Pacific to the spectacular landing at Normandy on the coast of France. If viewers can solve the audio problems mentioned by many reviewers, they will surely experience one of the greatest documentaries ever made and learn the importance of Victory at Sea to ending the Second World War.
Rating: 
Summary: Poor sound makes for bad DVDs
Review: My disappointment with this DVD set stems from my expectations. I thought that time and effort would have been taken to enhance the video in the this digital format since Victory at Sea series
is a classic. In comparison with my VHS version of the series the video is no better or worse. Where the DVD is truly lacking is the audio which of its self is a great part of the cache of
the series. The audio was so poorly done as to be upsetting. I had to turn up the volume control of my system by three time the setting I used with the VHS tapes which I used for a comparsion. The voice of the announcer was not melded in with the sound level of the music as was the case with the VHS tapes. Consequently,I was fidgeting with the volume control frequently. Cannonade from artillery or of the large guns
of ships would boom the volume of the audio off scale requiring another audio adjustment.
My advice to anyone interested in this series-truly a classic-would be to buy the VHS tapes.
Rating:
Summary: A Disservice to Millions
Review: OK, I'll keep this brief. I knew that V AT Sea was the best documentary made, many years before it was released on DVD. The score is superb in its own right, as well. None of that has changed. I pre-ordered it. The point of this review is that the makers have done a disservice to a great many people by releasing this product such that the narration is at one volume level and the score is at another, much higher level. No one can tell me that this is a carryover from the analog days. It isn't. It's sloppy workmanship and I own no other title that is so poorly re-recorded. Frankly it's to the point where I hesitate to watch it. Wait 'til they re-release it.
Rating:
Summary: Its About Time
Review: One can loose their patience continuously checking back every week to see if they finally brought Victory at Sea out on DVD. I would have bought this years ago, but I refused to buy a product with a limited number of passes before you have to chuck it. Thank god it's finally here. If you know nothing of the series, too bad. Take a little time and find out what the U.S. could do if 99.5% of its capacity went into winning a war. You will be in awe of the sacrifice of so many. You may even take the time to find out what the War Resources Board was and how it made it all possible. You think gas is expensive; try not having any at all since it went to the war effort. The music is incredible. I first heard it when I was 7 or 8 years old and I learned right away that there was something besides rock 'n roll. My only regret would be that, given the proximity in time between the actual release of the series and WWII itself, they could not show the actual human carnage that ocurred after the battles, win or loose. Probably a mistake; had people seen it, there would likely not have been a Vietnam. At the time of this writing, its still not released but I have preordered it. Believe me its worth it, if for no other reason than the music score.
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