If this has already been discussed, forgive me. I don't have much time to read all the posts. Here goes:
I don't think that the Babylon 5 DVDs were advertised enough. For example, TV Guide never featured it on their DVD Releases page. Every week, TV Guide features a few TV series and movies released new on DVD. I read every issue of TV Guide and I've never seen it mentioned in that column. I've seen Buffy, Firefly, Angel, etc., but no B5. Why?? IMHO, B5 was way better than those shows, so it should have been mentioned. TV Guide did a cover feature story on the show back in 1997, so why have they forgotten it so quickly?
The only place I saw any of the DVDs mentioned was in their magazine-sized DVDs special (which sold seperately back in Nov.; not a regular issue). Only Season 3 was mentioned, and, even though it was given a good review, it was the ONLY show on the page that didn't feature a photo. (Sci Fi Magazine never features B5 photos along with their DVD reviews either.) A photo would make the article stand out more to the average reader.
My point is this: Even though the DVDs are selling well, they might have sold even better if more people knew about them through mass-market magazines (like TV Guide). It just seems odd to me that TV G. would feature almost every sci-fi show DVD in the last few years on their DVD page, but not feature the best one. (BTW, my local Wal-Mart offered several B5 Season One dvds for sale when it came out, but by season three, they were not offering it any more. I had to go to a nearby supercenter to buy the others. Same story with the Hercules dvds. I guess my town isn't very sci-fi/fantasy oriented, although there were several Xena and Matrix dvds still being offered. Jerks.)
My other gripe: Hate to bring this up again, but what is the deal with the "dust/static" on the DVDs. Yes, I'm aware that the masters or copies were not kept very well and WB won't remaster them because it costs too much money. I know all that. What I'm scratching my head over is the fact that the second season dvd was a little better than the first and season three was even better, then season four got a little worse, and now season 5 (at least the episodes I've watched) seems as bad as the season one eps, if not worse! Why did the quality get better and then degrade again toward the end? Shouldn't the film quality of the last season have been better than all the rest since it is not as old as the other seasons? Just wondering. (BTW, I noticed that season two of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys was completely re-mastered for the DVD. If Universal Studios can pony up the dough for re-mastering a TV series, why can't Warner Brothers? (Cheap bastards.)
Oh, well, at least I have them all. But that "dust" just takes you right out of the story, ya know?
I don't think that the Babylon 5 DVDs were advertised enough. For example, TV Guide never featured it on their DVD Releases page. Every week, TV Guide features a few TV series and movies released new on DVD. I read every issue of TV Guide and I've never seen it mentioned in that column. I've seen Buffy, Firefly, Angel, etc., but no B5. Why?? IMHO, B5 was way better than those shows, so it should have been mentioned. TV Guide did a cover feature story on the show back in 1997, so why have they forgotten it so quickly?
The only place I saw any of the DVDs mentioned was in their magazine-sized DVDs special (which sold seperately back in Nov.; not a regular issue). Only Season 3 was mentioned, and, even though it was given a good review, it was the ONLY show on the page that didn't feature a photo. (Sci Fi Magazine never features B5 photos along with their DVD reviews either.) A photo would make the article stand out more to the average reader.
My point is this: Even though the DVDs are selling well, they might have sold even better if more people knew about them through mass-market magazines (like TV Guide). It just seems odd to me that TV G. would feature almost every sci-fi show DVD in the last few years on their DVD page, but not feature the best one. (BTW, my local Wal-Mart offered several B5 Season One dvds for sale when it came out, but by season three, they were not offering it any more. I had to go to a nearby supercenter to buy the others. Same story with the Hercules dvds. I guess my town isn't very sci-fi/fantasy oriented, although there were several Xena and Matrix dvds still being offered. Jerks.)
My other gripe: Hate to bring this up again, but what is the deal with the "dust/static" on the DVDs. Yes, I'm aware that the masters or copies were not kept very well and WB won't remaster them because it costs too much money. I know all that. What I'm scratching my head over is the fact that the second season dvd was a little better than the first and season three was even better, then season four got a little worse, and now season 5 (at least the episodes I've watched) seems as bad as the season one eps, if not worse! Why did the quality get better and then degrade again toward the end? Shouldn't the film quality of the last season have been better than all the rest since it is not as old as the other seasons? Just wondering. (BTW, I noticed that season two of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys was completely re-mastered for the DVD. If Universal Studios can pony up the dough for re-mastering a TV series, why can't Warner Brothers? (Cheap bastards.)
Oh, well, at least I have them all. But that "dust" just takes you right out of the story, ya know?
