Saturday, April 27, 2013
Digital Digest: New Dick Van Dyke Blu-rays; The Roman Holidays on DVD; Dr. Kildare - The Complete First Season DVD Review
DIGITAL NEWS
Image has long ago released The Dick Van Dyke Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray), but for those wanting the series in smaller chunks, another season is on the way on July 2 as they release The Dick Van Dyke Show - Season Four (Blu-ray). We anticipate that this release will be identical to the fourth season as seen on the release of the complete series, of course.
UPCOMING WEEK PREVIEW
BLOG FEATURE REVIEW
The series begins with "Twenty-Four Hours," where Dr. Kildare is determined to do the best work possible to get a residency under Dr. Gillespie. Kildare has to prevent a smallpox epidemic in "Immunity." The family of a taxicab driver threatens to sue for malpractice in "Admitting Service." In "The Lonely Ones," Kildare is upset over the death of a homeless person in the E.R. Kildare goes from doctor to patient after a little accident in the hospital in "The Patient." A patient is in a coma in "For the Living," and there appears to be little chance that he'll come back... but his wife isn't going to hear it.
A modern day Scrooge hits the hospital in "Season to be Jolly." In "Johnny Temple," Kildare and Gillespie struggle with trying to figure out what to do with a mentally disturbed teenager. A hospital administrator fires a city appointee in "The Administrator." In "Oh My Daughter," Gillespie tries to figure out why his daughter reacts the way that she does to the news of her pregnancy. There is a food poisoning outbreak in "The Search," and it is a race against time. In "The Bronc Buster," Kildare has to help his rowdy cousin adjust to urban life. A critically ill patient will only continue to suffer if she doesn't get the proper care in "The Witch Doctor."
Kildare is on duty in obstetrics in "Solomon's Choice." A nun can't stay out of the affairs of other patients when she is admitted for gallstones in "A Very Present Help." In "The Horn of Plenty," Kildare refuses to give preferential treatment to a wealthy patient... even while under pressure to do so from others. There is a race to find a cure for a rare blood disease in "Something of Importance." In "The Road to the Heart," a deaf boy's mother isn't too interested in hearing about something that may restore her son's hearing. The set ends with "The Eleventh Hour," which is an episode that actually never aired as part of the series originally even though it was intended to, and instead aired as a pilot on its own the following season.
The episodes are invariably around 50:15. Exact runtimes are as follows:
Disc 1:
1. "Twenty-Four Hours" (50:16)
2. "Immunity" (50:11)
3. "Shining Image" (50:15)
4. "Winter Harvest" (50:15)
Disc 2:
5. "A Million Dollar Property" (50:13)
6. "Admitting Service" (50:12)
7. "The Lonely Ones" (50:13)
8. "Holiday Weekend" (50:10)
Disc 3:
9. "The Patient" (50:16)
10. "For the Living" (50:15)
11. "Second Chance" (50:14)
12. "Hit and Run" (50:15)
Disc 4:
13. "Season to be Jolly" (50:14)
14. "Johnny Temple" (50:13)
15. "My Brother, the Doctor" (50:15)
16. "The Administrator" (50:14)
Disc 5:
17. "Oh, My Daughter" (50:15)
19. "The Glory Hunter" (50:15)
20. "The Dragon" (50:13)
Disc 6:
21. "The Stepping Stone" (50:13)
22. "The Bronc-Buster" (50:14)
23. "The Witch Doctor" (50:14)
24. "The Roaring Boy-O" (50:14)
Disc 7:
25. "Solomon's Choice" (50:11)
26. "A Very Present Help" (50:12)
27. "One for the Road" (50:12)
28. "The Horn of Plenty" (50:17)
Disc 8:
29. "The Chemistry of Anger" (50:13)
30. "Something of Importance" (50:12)
31. "A Distant Thunder" (50:15)
32. "The Road to the Heart" (50:06)
Disc 9:
33. "Operation: Lazarus" (50:14)
34. "The Eleventh Hour" (50:44)
The set comes packaged in two Viva cases, with the first one containing the first five discs (Part One) and the second containing the remaining four discs (Part Two). The artwork is exactly the same on both cases, with a large photo of Dr. Kildare on the cover and the series title along the left-hand side of the case. There are some episode snapshots on the back, along with a description of the entire season. Inside, the only thing you'll find are the discs, all of which have the same artwork that is seen on the cover.
The menus on the set are (not surprisingly) designed exactly like the cover art... but at least it looks professional, unlike what some other studios have a tendency to do on DVDs lately. From the main menu, options include Play All and a list of episodes. Once an episode is selected, it plays immediately. Chapters are placed throughout each episode.
I wasn't sure what to expect for the video and audio quality on this set, but what we actually get in terms of video and audio quality is simply amazing... this is one of the best looking series I've seen on DVD, which says a lot for a series that is 41 years old. The video is mostly crystal clear, with only minimal grain and debris, and the audio is plenty loud and clear. Unfortunately, though, the episodes are neither closed-captioned not subtitled.
There are no special features on this set, unless one counts the episode "The Eleventh Hour" (which was later retooled to serve as a pilot for that series) as a special feature. Technically, the episode never actually aired in this form, but it was intended to air in the first season.
It is important for us to note that this is a release from Warner Archive, and that it cannot be purchased in stores. Furthermore, while the set will eventually be a manufacture-on-demand product, Warner Archive is currently selling "pressed" versions of the set to meet consumer demand, so we'd suggest that fans get in on this before it moves to a DVD-R version! In any event, this is an excellent release of an excellent series, and there is nothing to complain about here at all. Although I didn't have an opportunity to watch many episodes of the series prior to this review (there are so many, and they're so long), I was very impressed with what I did see, and I can't wait to get through the rest of this set. This was my first time watching the series, but it truly did meet my expectations, and has actually made me more curious than ever about other early medical dramas. It certainly is no Grey's Anatomy (which may be a good or bad thing depending upon your perspective), but it is solid classic TV at its best.
(4/5 stars)
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That's all for this week. Until next time, keep it digital!
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Thursday, November 21
Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "The 6:10 to Lubbock" (CBS, 10:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Georgie and Mandy get fed up staying with her parents and reconsider their living situation after a fight with Mandy’s mom, Audrey.
Ghosts - "Man of Your Dreams" (CBS, 10:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Sam learns that one of the ghosts’ powers is to enter the dreams of the livings and influence their decisions. Also, two of the ghosts think they’ve learned the secret to moving on.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 18)
Thursday, November 21
- Jim Gaffigan (The Jim Gaffigan Show/My Boys/The Ellen Show/Welcome to New York) - Catch Jim on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Rita Moreno (One Day at a Time/Happily Divorced/9 to 5) - Rita appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Justine Lupe (Nobody Wants This/Cristela), Jackie Tohn (Nobody Wants This/GLOW) and Timothy Simons (HouseBroken/Veep) - Justine, Jackie and Timothy are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Kristin Chenoweth (Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin appears on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 10pm on Bravo.
- Maura Tierney (NewsRadio/The Van Dyke Show) - Maura is in the studio to discuss the neww season of Law and Order on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your listings.
- Paul Reiser (Mad About You/Red Oaks/Married/My Two Dads) - Paul is telling Drew about his huge return to comedy after thirty years with his standup special, Life, Death and Rice Pudding, and his new movie The Gutter on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- John O'Hurley (Seinfeld/Over the Top/The Mullets) - John will be on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
09/10 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-7
09/10 - The Ropers - The Complete Series (VEI)
09/10 - Ted - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/17 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - Video Scrapbook
09/17 - Top Cat - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
09/24 - Friends - The Complete Series (4K UHD)
09/24 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Seventh Season (DVD) / The Complete Series (DVD) (Blu-ray)
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)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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