Saturday, May 11, 2013

Digital Digest: Family Ties Season 7 Coming Soon; The Roman Holidays - The Complete Series DVD Review

Welcome to Digital Digest! Today, we've got all of your regular features, as well as a review of the Hanna-Barbera series about an animated family living in ancient Rome in The Roman Holidays - The Complete Series. Let's get started!


DIGITAL NEWS

CBS has had a trend of wrapping up series that once seemed abandoned on DVD, and this week, a listing showed up on amazon.com that suggests that we'll be seeing the last season of a popular sitcom on DVD very soon. No release date is given just yet, but Family Ties - The Seventh Season is now available to order before it is released. Of course, we'll have more on this release once we have more information.

Fox is serving up some more burgers with this week's surprise release of Bob's Burgers - The Complete 2nd Season on DVD. But don't look for this release in stores. Fox has decided to go the manufacture on demand route with this one, and it is available exclusively as a CreateSpace title on the website for the time being.

Several months ago, we mentioned that Shout! Factory had obtained the rights to the series Fridays, and would be releasing it on DVD. At the time, though, there was no word on exact plans... but now there is a confirmed release for the series! On August 6, Shout! will release The Best of Fridays, a five disc collection that will include 16 episodes of the series.


UPCOMING WEEK PREVIEW

Tuesday (May 14) is a big day for releases, but they're all re-releases (although a bit better than the original releases), and all come from the same studio: Mill Creek. First up, Roseanne is completed (again) with Roseanne - The Complete Ninth Season and Roseanne - The Complete Series. That '70s Show gets another complete series release with That '70s Show - The Complete Series. And finally, 3rd Rock from the Sun gets the complete series treatment with 3rd Rock from the Sun - The Complete Series. That completes the run for all of the Carsey-Werner sitcoms that Mill Creek had the rights to release! If you're interested in something other than sitcoms, though, Mill Creek starts another series, with their release of Highway to Heaven - The Complete First Season, which will feature unedited episodes (previous releases of the series from another studio included edited episodes).


BLOG FEATURE REVIEW


Blog DVD Review: The Roman Holidays - The Complete Series (Warner Archive, $24.95)
by skees53

Somewhere between the pre-hysterical Stone Age of The Flintstones and the fantastic future of The Jetsons lie The Roman Holidays. In the early '70s, the animation team of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera dominated the TV cartoon industry, and while they had many hits, some of them didn't quite work out. One of those ones that didn't work out was the NBC Saturday morning series The Roman Holidays, a series about a "typical family" living life in 63 A.D. It was a premise similar to that of The Flintstones, but at a much later time. Father Gus Holiday (Dave Willock) and mom Laurie (Shirley Mitchell) are the heads of the Holiday family, keeping an eye on teenage son Happius (Stanley Livingston) and daughter Precocia (Pamelyn Ferdin). Living at the Venus de Milo Arm, they face constant threats from landlord Mr. Evictus (Dom DeLuise) and trouble from Gus' boss Mr. Tycoonius (Hal Smith). And of course, like all animated families, they have a pet... and this one is a lion named Brutus (Daws Butler).

The series begins with "Double Date," where Gus heads to the prom (in disguise of a teenager). Somebody in the house is being a bit of a mooch in "The Lion's Share." The family goes to a concert in "Star for a Day," but what they see on stage may not be quite what they expected. Gus and Laurie are forced to do a bit of cross-dressing to save Gus' job in "Switch is Which?" The family takes a little vacation in "Hectic Holiday." In "The Big Split-Up," Hap faces an upset in his romantic life when she thinks that he is dating a beautiful lion (except she doesn't know it is a lion). Gus has to decide whether to go to a bowling tournament or attend his daughter's drum recital on the same night in "Double Dilemma," but his ultimate plan is the set up for the typical disaster in these situations. The family could be losing their freeloading laugh lion in "That's Show Biz." In "Father of the Year," there is a lot at stake when Gus and Mr. Evictus compete against each other for a coveted award. The series ends with a take on the classic Cyrano de Bergerac tale (even though he didn't live until about 1600 years later...) in "Cyrano de Happius."

Disc 1:
1. "Double Date" (22:18)
2. "The Lion's Share" (22:18)
3. "Star for a Day" (22:13)
4. "Hero-Sandwiched" (22:14)
5. "Switch is Which?" (22:12)
6. "Hectic Holiday" (22:07)
7. "The Big Split-Up" (22:08)
8. "Buried Treasure" (22:09)
9. "Double Dilemma" (22:10)

Disc 2:
10. "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Chariot Wash" (22:02)
11. "That's Show Biz" (22:11)
12. "Father of the Year" (22:15)
13. "Cyrano de Happius" (22:10)

The packaging for this set is in a standard Amaray case, with an extra tray inside to hold the extra disc. On the cover, there is a picture of the entire family in a Chariot (being driven by Brutus), and on the back, there is a photo of the family at the zoo. Inside, the two discs have the same photo of the family as seen on the cover. Also, it is important to note that these are true MOD (DVD-R) discs, and not pressed DVDs.

The menus on the set are very basic, but at least they look nice. Each menu has the picture of the family at the zoo, with Brutus playing the guitar. All of the episodes are listed, along with a Play All option. Once you select an episode, it plays immediately. Chapters are placed throughout each episode.

The video and audio quality of the series on DVD is actually pretty decent. I was expecting the worst, since this is one of the more "rare" cartoons in the Hanna-Barbera library, but everything looks and sound pretty clear (aside from the choppy animation, which is almost like an artistic trademark of any Hanna-Barbera cartoon). Unfortunately, there are no subtitles or closed-captioning.

Like most Warner Archive releases, there are no special features.

This really is a fun series, and I enjoyed watching it. However, I can understand why it didn't go over too well. The Flintstones took place in the very distant past and The Jetsons took place in the very distant future, and everything on those series made plenty of sense to people... one had to improvise everything, and the other had all of the technology that they needed. This series, however, takes place somewhere around the middle of those, in the days of the ancient Romans, and it almost requires a bit of history knowledge to really understand that. On top of that, this series was targeted towards kids. But it is important to reiterate that this actually is a good show, and it is just another example of the great work of Hanna-Barbera. As for the DVD set itself, Warner Archive did a fine job with everything, and there are no real complaints. I'm just glad that the program exists, because we probably would have never seen this series otherwise.

(4/5 stars)

To purchase this DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Warner Archive

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com DVD Reviews Page
The Roman Holidays on Wikipedia


FOLLOW ME 


Who to Follow: Fran Drescher (Twitter), "Fran Drescher's official Twitter page."
Claim to Fame: Drescher started out with very humble beginnings in acting, with a few movie roles and guest starring roles in series, but she became best known in 1993 when her hit sitcom (co-created by then husband Peter Marc Jacobson) The Nanny premiered on CBS. Once that series left the air in 1999, she went on to a few more movie and guest star roles, until finally landing in the TV Land sitcom Happily Divorced, a sitcom that was co-created with now ex-husband Peter Marc Jacobson (and based upon real life).
Why You Should Follow Her: Not everybody is a fan of Fran Drescher's voice, but regardless of what one thinks of her voice, she is a great actress and a great person... and she is somebody that you'll want to follow on Twitter. She keeps up with what her fans want, and she is very good at keeping her fans informed about everything that she is doing, which includes some things that are part of her acting career and some things that are part of her cancer advocacy work, an issue that she cares about deeply. And, if you do like her voice, you can almost hear it in reading her Tweets, which actually makes reading them very fun.
Pick of the Tweets: "This is so gr8! "In order to see the preciousness of all things, we must bring our full attention to life" Gud mornin! Overcast n rainy 2day" (March 3, 2013)

That's all for this week. Until next time, keep it digital!


Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Friday, September 29

The Villains of Valley View - "The Haunted Jukebox" (Disney Channel, 9:00PM ET/PT)
When a haunted jukebox sends Amy and Hartley to an alternate dimension of Valley View, they must figure out how to get home before they are trapped in Monster Town forever.

Bunk'd: Learning the Ropes - "The Glitching Hour" (Disney Channel, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Noah and Megan watch a strange VHS tape that leads them to believe Jake isn't really who he seems; Lou thinks her life is a television show, and Bill and Winnie are just actors.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 25)

Friday, September 29

  • Amy Poehler (Duncanville/Parks and Recreation) - Watch Amy on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Lea Michele (The Mayor) - Lea is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Nathan Lane (Only Murders in the Building/Modern Family/Charlie Lawrence/Encore! Encore!/One of the Boys) - Nathan appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Margaret Cho (All-American Girl) and Maria Bamford (Lady Dynamite) - Margaret and Maria are guests on repeats of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen on CBS between 12:37-1:37am.
  • Patton Oswalt (A.P. Bio/The Goldbergs/The King of Queens) - Patton will be on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.


New on DVD/Blu-ray (June-October)

Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series Family Matters - The Complete Series Step by Step - The Complete Series ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition)

06/13 - Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series
06/13 - Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series
07/18 - South Park - Seasons 21-25 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
07/25 - The Neighborhood - Season Five
07/25 - Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin - Season One
07/25 - Superstore - The Complete Series
08/22 - Back to Life - Season 1 / Season 2
08/29 - Smiling Friends - Season 1 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/05 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Sixth Season
09/12 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Second Season
09/12 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-6 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/26 - Family Matters - The Complete Series
09/26 - Step by Step - The Complete Series
10/10 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Thirteen / The Complete Season Fourteen
10/17 - ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) (Shout! Factory Special Offers)
10/17 - Night Court (2023) - The Complete First Season
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

09/28 - New Season of Wolf Like Me on Peacock; Max Original Animated Series Debuts October 19
09/27 - Moonlighting Coming to Hulu; Showtime Announces Date for The Curse
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09/25 - Laff Fall 2023 Schedule with Last Man Standing and Man with a Plan; Upload Returns October 20
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09/22 - The Santa Clauses Season 2 Launches November 8; CBS Alters Fall Schedule
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09/19 - The Simpsons Season 34 Streams October 11 on Disney+; Good Burger 2 Set for Holiday Season
09/18 - Hulu's Huluween and Disney+'s Hallowstream Line-Up; Shining Vale Returns October 13 on STARZ
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09/16 - SitcomsOnline Digest: ABC Cancels Wonder Years Reboot; Byron Allen Makes $10 Billion Offer to Buy ABC
09/15 - Antenna TV's Bewitched Halloween Marathon; Rewind TV's Sabrina the Teenage Witch-O-Ween Marathon
09/14 - Dancing with the Stars Season 32 Cast; BUZZR Celebrates 40 Years of Press Your Luck
09/13 - TBS Acquires Modern Family; The Frasier Awards on COZI TV
09/12 - Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen Gets CBS Late Night Run; Unsolved Mysteries: Behind the Legacy Special
09/11 - Matt Rife Gets Netflix Special; Star Trek Day and Kid Cudi Join Forces
09/10 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 11, 2023)
09/09 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Warner Bros. Television Suspends Deals with Top Creators; Fran Drescher Re-Elected President of SAG-AFTRA
09/08 - CBS Announces Hosts of Game Show; New Goosebumps Premieres Friday the 13th This October on Disney+ and Hulu
09/07 - MeTV Presents Svengoolie's Halloween BOOnanza!; The CW Moving Fall Comedies to Thursdays
09/06 - CBS to Air NCIS: Sydney This Fall; Fox Makes Fall Change
09/05 - TBS and TNT September Stunts Include Big Bang Theory Batman Day Marathon; Netflix UK Produced Series Updates
09/04 - TV Marathons on Labor Day 2023 Include Three's Company
09/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 4, 2023)
09/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: No Third Season for How I Met Your Father; Spectrum Dispute with Disney Could Spell End of Cable
09/01 - September Is Anniversary Month on Hulu; Freeform's 31 Nights of Halloween Returns for Its 25th Anniversary
08/31 - Max's Original Comedy Series Starstruck Season 3 and Our Flag Means Death Season 2 Premiere Dates; AXS TV Announces Fall Programming Lineup
08/30 - The Partridge Family Coming to AXS TV Starting Oct. 2; CBS to Air A Tribute to Bob Barker Special Aug. 31, Marathon of Match Game Episodes to Air Sept. 2 on Game Show Network
08/29 - Once Upon a Time Coming to Hulu; Young Love Launches on Max in September
08/28 - Remembering TV Legend Bob Barker; Wolf Like Me Returns in October on Peacock