Saturday, June 30, 2007

Mini-DVD Review: The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (June 26); Solomon's Weekly Rant: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Welcome to another edition of mini-DVD reviews. This week we take a look at Shout! Factory's The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3. The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 is the short-lived 1990 animated series that was based on the very popular video game! See my mini-DVD review of The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3:

The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (Shout!, $29.99) brings all 13 half-hours from the short-lived animated series based on the popular video game!
In this series, after sending King Koopa into the banishment zone, Mario & Luigi finally made it home to Brooklyn! But just when the Mushroom People thought they were safe, Koopa escaped and brought with him seven of the most vile creatures the world had ever known: the Koopa Kids. Can Mario and the gang get rid of them? Each episode runs approx. between 23-24 minutes. The lowest one is 22:52, which is the first episode. The highest one is 24:12. There are 5 chapter stops, which is always handy. There are 13 episodes, but actually it is 26, since each half-hour has two mini-episodes. The video is decent, I think a bit better than The Super Mario Bros. Super Show, but that was a bit older. This series doesn't have any live action segments, like the other series. The closing logo is the DiC out the window logo, if you know what I mean. The audio is decent, nothing too bad about it. Packaging has a nice yellow outer box with Mario flying it seems on the front cover...the back cover has information on the series and set and a picture of King Koopa and the Koopa Kids. Inside the box is three slim cases. Each disc has its own slim case. The first two discs cover all the episodes, while the third disc is the extras.
The menu screen has Play All and Episodes for discs one and two. The main menu is video game style, with great sound effects. Disc one features Mario in the video game and disc two is Luigi.
Moving on to the extras. The extras are found on disc three. The menu is a notebook, with a list of items we can select. It is titled Writer's Bible. Then it says Table of Contents, then we get a list of items: The Back Story, The Series, The Characters (Heroes - Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool, and Toad; Villains - King Koopa and the seven Koopa Kids), The Worlds (21 section of photos!), The Music (10 cool songs, like a soundtrack). Besides the latter two categories, each category has a short video describing the item, usually 1-3 minutes.
I highly do recommend any fan of Super Mario to pick up this set, especially if you have started to pick-up The Super Mario Bros. Super Show. Can Super Mario and Luigi and the gang get rid of the Mushroom Kingdom of Koopa and his deviant minions? Find out yourself!
-- Reviewed by Pavan
(4/5 stars)

To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 TV.com Page


Solomon's Weekly Rant
Saturday, June 30, 2007
"Sony Picture Home Entertainment Needs To Show Some Class to Classic TV"
By Solomon Davis

If a DVD company wants TV fans to enjoy the TV shows they release on DVD, why do they have such a lazy and uncreative way of distributing the DVD to TV fans? I thought the purpose of releasing DVD's was to entertain fans not just make a profit. Why does Sony seem uninterested in putting together a nice DVD set for us to purchase? The season set releases by Sony are always slow with no bonus features included on the DVD. We should at least get to see some sort of nice extras that goes well with the season on the DVD, look at Anchor Bay's Three's Company sets, they were well made. But it appears Sony doesn't care about bonus features just making money after making us wait 12 months for the next season of certain shows.
You would think if Sony would put out powerful DVD sets since the wait is so long but it's just the same old lazy sets with Bonus Previews included. And since when did bonus previews become an attractive feature on a DVD set? I'm sure 97% of TV fans who purchase DVD's released by Sony did not watch one second of Bonus Previews because it falls no where near the category of ENTERTAINMENT...and plus they are OUTDATED! I also hear that poor sales is the reason for some of the slow releases by Sony and if that's the case then why are the seasons still released if Sony feels it won't make any money? Sony can at least release two seasons of a certain show a year instead of making us wait almost a year so we can see CRAP. If Sony is going to release crappy DVD sets, then we should get it a lot faster. Why should Sony wait to release seasons 7 to 11 of The Jeffersons? Just give us our crappy DVD season sets so we can have a compete crappy TV collection of our favorite shows. And can you believe that it has taken Sony almost 6 years to release just six seasons of The Jeffersons? The first season was released in 2002 and now in 2007 fans of The Jeffersons can only buy up to season 6 on DVD. That is what you call the true definition of LAZY and it really confuses me why Sony can't be more like studios like Shout! Factory when releasing shows on DVD. It makes no sense that 2008 is 6 months away and there is still no word on when season 7 of The Jeffersons will be out on DVD. And since it's very likely Sony will give us more crappy DVD sets, the future releases of Sony TV shows should be included in a box of cereal as a BONUS for buying the cereal. That way we wouldn't care about bonus features, just the episodes and good quality.
Sony needs to take DVD release lessons from other studios like Warner Bros. or Shout! since their TV shows has very nice bonus features like the "Gag Reel" on the season 3 DVD of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and "the never before seen unaired pilot episode" of Full House on the season 1 DVD of Full House. Sony did try to top those features by including a small booklet of pointless TV fun facts with the season 3 DVD release of Sanford and Son. Sony has no clue at all on how to give TV fans their money's worth. Then Sony tries to really be creative and make a profit off the recent CBS One Day at Time Reunion with the season 1 DVD release of One Day at a Time. A reunion that was seen by everyone on CBS in February of 2005 was given to us as a BONUS? That should have been on the last season, not the first season. The Sanford and Son booklet looks kind of attractive compared to that poor feature. So basically out of 31 seasons of Sony DVD's I have purchased, I only saw two bonus features. No cast commentary or bloopers just some cereal box giveaway like a 3 page Sanford and Son booklet. We are actually paying money for SEEN BEFORE FOOTAGE on a DVD which gives off this message, "just put anything together so we can make money off of TV fans." Should we be annoyed with Sony for their crappy bonus features and untimely releases or with ourselves for discovering our favorite shows in syndication? Though at least Sony is releasing a lot of their sitcoms (much more than other companies), it's just that they are bare-boned and sometimes edited.

Agree or disagree with Solomon? Discuss it here.

DISCLAIMER: Remember, Solomon is not the voice of SitcomsOnline. He is just stating his opinions and does not reflect what SitcomsOnline says or thinks. It is just his 'View' but it is always quite entertaining.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, February 23

Family Guy - "Live, Laugh, Love" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Peter realizes Joe has never found him funny, he is determined to make Joe laugh; Lois chaperones Chris and Meg's school trip, where she strives to reunite the principal with his long-lost love.

Grimsburg - "Molly" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Flute forgets to buy Stan a gift for his birthday, he steals an AI doll from the evidence locker; Wynona is forced to confront her ex-boyfriend.

The Great North - "Bots on the Side Adventure" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Ham starts performing at Yet-E-Cheddar's and develops a strange relationship with an animatronic Freddie the Yeti, that puts his relationship with Crispin in jeopardy; the new Tobin boat turns out to have a cursed name.

Krapopolis - "Stavros Live and in Concert" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Tyrannis' favorite singer Stavros is in town, but he also happens to be the favorite singer of Athena and her radical followers; Deliria goes on a little getaway.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 17)

Friday, February 21

  • Anthony Mackie (Twisted Metal) - Watch Anthony on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Lizzy Caplan (Party Down/The Class/The Pitts) - Lizzy appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Tina Fey (Only Murders in the Building/30 Rock) and Amy Poehler (Duncanville/Parks and Recreation) - Tina and Amy are guests on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Jane Fonda (Grace and Frankie) - NBC's Today catches up with Jane sometime between 7-9am.
  • Alan Ritchson (Blue Mountain State) - Alan talks about Reacher on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
  • Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/CafĂ© Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie appears on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray) The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series

10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
10/22 - Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/12 - The King of Queens - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (2024 Release)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
11/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 4 (Blu-ray)
12/03 - Angel (1960-1961) - The Complete Series, Volume 1
12/17 - Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (4K UHD)
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

02/23 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of February 24, 2025)
02/22 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Jury Duty Returning for New Season on Prime Video; New Spinoff of 9-1-1 in the Works
02/21 - CBS Renews 9 Additional Series for 2025-26; Hulu Picks Up Paradise for Season 2
02/20 - 31st Annual SAG Awards Pre-Show Hosts; Hulu's Ellen Pompeo Series Trailer Released
02/19 - Hulu's Am I Being Unreasonable? Returns for Season 2; Apple TV+ New CG Animated Comedy Series
02/18 - Cartoon Network's Iyanu Debuts April 5; Chelsea Handler: The Feeling Premieres March 25 on Netflix
02/17 - Netflix Renews XO, Kitty for Season 3; The Pitt to Return on Max
02/16 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of February 17, 2025)
02/15 - SitcomsOnline Digest: CBS Sets Cast for Potential Backdoor Spinoff of The Neighborhood; Martha Stewart to Co-Host New NBC Cooking Competition
02/14 - FX's Dying for Sex Premieres in April on Hulu; BET+ Announces Lil Kev, Adult Animated Comedy
02/13 - Antenna TV and Rewind TV Celebrate Valentine's Day; The Handmaid's Tale Returns for Final Season
02/12 - Official Trailer for Hulu's Deli Boys; Doctor Odyssey Returns with a 2-Part Event
02/11 - Trailer for Shoresy Season 4; More Stars for SNL50: The Anniversary Special
02/10 - First Ever SNL Episode This Saturday on NBC; FX Renews English Teacher for Season 2
02/09 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of February 10, 2025)
02/08 - SitcomsOnline Digest: English Teacher Renewed at FX; MeTV Toons to Launch House of Hanna-Barbera Programming Block
02/07 - SNL50's Star-Studded Lineup; Adult Swim Presents Oh My God... Yes! A Series of Extremely Relatable Circumstances
02/06 - Prime Video Iliza Shlesinger Special; Kate Hudson Stars in Netflix Comedy
02/05 - Fox Midseason Tuesday Change; 2025 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game Rosters
02/04 - NBC Summer Staples Return in Summer 2025; Gronk Guests on Animal Control
02/03 - The Conners Final Season Premieres March 26; Tyler Perry Gets 2nd Comedy Series for Netflix
02/02 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of February 3, 2025)
02/01 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Little House on the Prairie Reboot Headed to Netflix; George Sr. Set to Return on Georgie and Mandy's First Marriage
01/31 - Final Season of The Righteous Gemstones; Kenya Barris and Malcolm Gladwell's Audible Original
01/30 - Netflix's New Little House on the Prairie Series Coming Soon; Sabrina Brier Gets Awesomeness TV Series
01/29 - MGM+ Orders Comedy Series; Peacock's Amanda Seyfried Series Premieres March 13
01/28 - Ellen Pompeo's Hulu Series Gets Premiere Date; The White Lotus Season 3 Launches February 16
01/27 - Hulu's Deli Boys Adds Tan France; Joel McHale Taking Over The 1% Club
01/26 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of January 27, 2025)
01/25 - SitcomsOnline Digest: The Righteous Gemstones to End After Upcoming Season; Mid-Century Modern to Pay Tribute to Linda Lavin
01/24 - Prime Video George Lopez Special; Netflix Renews The Lincoln Lawyer for Season 4
01/23 - Tubi's New Comedy The Z-Suite Launches February 6; The White Lotus Renewed for Season 4