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ORDER "V" DVD's
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NEW
- 7/14/2011
Yay! Order Season 2 HERE!
What a cool
cover!!
CLICK THE LINKS BELOW TO PURCHASE! |
USA Regular DVDs |
USA Blu-Ray |
UK DVDs |
NEW
- 11/16/2011 -
KOOL TV REVIEW: V - THE COMPLETE SEASON TWO BOX
SET (BLU-RAY) by Scott Weller
NEW -
04/14/10 - Order ABC's "V" Season 1 now on DVD and Blu-Ray!
Click on the links below! Let's get those order numbers up!
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NEW -
04/14/04
- "V:The
Series"
comes to DVD! July 27, 2004 is the day you can get
your DVD
package of V: The Complete Series, featuring all
19-episodes of the original television series V for the
first time ever in a 3-disc DVD collector's set. The list price is
$39.98. See details HERE.
(Thanks Chris!)
NEW -
07/24/04
- Warner
Brothers' "V" DVD Site is now LIVE! (Thanks,
Ben!)
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Artwork
for Warner's 2-disc V: The Final Battle
DVD which streets August 6, 2002! (thanks for the
artwork headsup, theJDman!)
NEW
- 07/29/02 - Ilana has advanced copy of V:TFB DVD! Sorry to say, no
special items included. Read G. Noel Gross' review (Review God) HERE.
Read another review here
(thanks Shane!). Read our viewers' reviews here.
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On July 3,
2001, the "V: The Original" DVD was released on Region 1
coding. Let's hear YOUR reviews! Please email them to me at lizard.lady@mindpulse.com
to be posted!
Read the WARNER HOME VIDEO chat on Home
Theater Forum Click HERE
to read it! Dated 10/16/01
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This ad
appeared in may SciFi magazines, including Starlog.
Click image to
enlarge. |
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NEW -
4/05/2011
Sticker on the bottom left says:
"Season 2 Coming this Fall"
YAY!!! (Thanks Brady!) |
07/17/08 - Brian
has been kind enough to create "V" Covers / Inserts for
the "V" DVD's in case you want to minimize your space!
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What follows is a
brief tutorial instructing you on how to print this DVD cover set
and make the best possible presentation with it.
HERE IS WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
1.) 1 legal size sheet of photo paper for the cover (letter size
is too small, and the edges will be cut off). Legal size photo
paper is surprisingly difficult to find, but if you have a
specialty paper store near you, you can buy it buy the sheet.
Otherwise, they are sold at Office Depot and other such stores by
the pack.
2.) 1 letter size sheet of photo paper for the insert, any brand,
easy enough to find at any store. 3.) 1 sheet of sticky back
paper, preferably the kind where the entire sheet is one big
sticker. Again, these are harder to find unless you hit up a
specialty paper store. 4.) 1 7 disc case seen here:
http://inetdvd.com/store/cases.asp
labeled as "Alpha Black Septuple DVD Case." I am not
trying to advertise for this site, just using this as a visual
example. This is where I buy cases. If you can find one somewhere
else, then by all means go ahead. The reason I do not use a 6 disc
case (even though the V collection is a total of 6 discs) is
because the 6 disc cases have no place for an insert. The picture
shown on the site for the Sextuple set is actually a Septuple set,
and they have never fixed this error. 5.) A decent inkjet or
laserjet printer.
For best results, print the cover using a program designed for
printing photographs, such as Photoshop. This is the only way to
get sharp, realistic detail and make the cover look as authentic
as possible.
TO PRINT THE COVER:
In your printing options, set your printer to the highest quality,
and select the photo paper option if there is one. Make sure your
paper size is set to LEGAL, and also set to LANDSCAPE rather than
PORTRAIT. This will print the cover in the proper direction on the
legal size sheet. Once printed, allow several hours for the ink to
dry (I usually allow 24 hours, but I'm paranoid), and then cut it
down to size. You should be able to slip it beneath the clear
plastic that covers your septuple DVD case. Line up the spine
until the writing and the picture of the flying saucer are even,
and you're done!
TO PRINT THE INSERT:
Change the printing options from LANDSCAPE back to PORTRAIT, and
from LEGAL to LETTER. Leave the settings on highest quality and
set to print on photo paper. Insert your regular size sheet of
photo paper and print it. Again, allow several hours for it to
dry, or your fingerprints will leave marks all over it.
TO PRINT THE LABELS:
Leave all settings the same as above, and insert your sticky back
piece of paper. Print the labels, and allow about an hour to dry.
Then you can cut them out and peel the paper off the back, and
stick them inside the case, either above or below the discs.
Since the discs are double sided and have no labels, your labels
will make the discs easily identifiable.
And that's it! I think I've covered everything, but if there are
any questions, feel free to post them here and I will try to
answer them.
RusserSlick
| 8/13/06 -
My name is Matt. I've been a "V" fan for over twenty years
(I was 11 when the original miniseries first aired back in
1983). Of course, now that I'm 34, I'm somewhat more
critical of TV shows than I was as a preteen. Having
purchased the entire "V" saga on DVD, and having watched it
extensively, I can honestly say (with regret) that certain
aspects of it have not held up over the years. The first
miniseries was then, and still is, absolutely ingenious and
thought-provoking. The Final Battle, while not without a few
minor plot holes, was still a great sequel. But the weekly
series that immediately followed lacked the grandeur and
imagination of its predecessors. For one thing, the
horrifying depiction of a Nazi-like regime occupying
contemporary America, which Kenneth Johnson brilliantly
manifested in the first miniseries, was replaced by a
childish soap opera-like plot structure. Instead of Diana
being the sick, twisted, Joseph-Mengele-like sadist that
she’d been when we'd first encountered her, she was now seen
as a catty Joan Collins type who spent the majority of her
time bickering with Lydia over who was going to take Charles
to the senior prom. And instead of the terrifying sight of
merciless helmeted Visitor shock troopers herding innocent
civilians into squad vehicles to be taken off to God knows
where, we were left with bumbling Keystone cop-like Visitors
chasing Donovan and Tyler, firing them with their laser
rifles, and always missing their mark. And what about the
characters that seemed to vanish into thin air? I realize
there were budgetary restrictions, but why was there never
even any mention of key characters like Sancho, Caleb
Taylor, Maggie Blodget, Stanley and Lynn Bernstein, Katie
and Polly Maxwell, etc. And what happened to the Visitors’
reverberating voices?! In the first miniseries Donovan is
almost killed when a Visitor shock trooper asks him a
question, and Donovan is unable to reply due to his
inability to emulate the Visitors’ reverberating voices.
Yet, in “V: The Series,” Kyle Bates is seen strolling up and
down corridors of the Mothership, talking with Visitors who
are apparently oblivious to his human identity simply
because he wears their uniform. Don’t get me wrong, I like
the Casablanca style atmosphere, in which L.A. is declared
an open city, where Visitors and Resistance fighters are
forced to battle “under the table,” so to speak. That
definitely gave evolution to the storyline, but if Kenneth
Johnson had worked on it, it would have turned out much
better. The problem is, Kenneth Johnson, while a truly
gifted writer, seems to lack the patience to finish his
projects. Take “The Incredible Hulk,” for example. Johnson
takes us on this four year journey observing the plight of
two men: The first, a hapless scientist with a unique
medical problem, who wanders from town to town in search of
a cure, while encountering different people along the way
and helping to solve their dilemmas. The second, a pesky
newspaper reporter who starts off wanting to cover a big
story, but who later becomes obsessed in learning the
identity of the man who becomes the creature. Johnson
deliberately keeps us intrigued by these two men and their
quests, and then, what happens? The show is cancelled. Not
Johnson’s fault, I realize, but ten years later, when NBC
decides to run three made-for-TV films of “The Incredible
Hulk,” does Johnson pick up where he left off and finally
give us that closure which we had all wanted? No, he’s too
busy doing his In-Heat-of-the-Night-like Sci-Fi series,
“Alien Nation.” So, silly comic book writers seize the
project and give us ridiculous nonsense like Thor and
Daredevil and a Mr. McGee who apparently has no memory of
all that he had learned about the man that becomes the
creature. But now, it seems, that after twenty-three years,
Kenneth Johnson is determined to finish the “V” saga with
“V: The Second Generation.” Super! The only problem is,
Johnson is planning to pick up where the original miniseries
left off. I mean, if he wants to disregard the events of “V:
The Series,” I can’t say I blame him, but most people agree
that “V: The Final Battle” was a pretty decent sequel. So,
by picking up where the original miniseries left off, does
that mean that characters that were killed, such as Robert
Maxwell, Daniel Bernstein, Christine Walsh, Ruby, John,
Steven, Brian, Eleanor Dupres, etc. are still going to be
alive in this new film? Does that mean that one of the
coolest characters in “V,” Ham Tyler, never existed? Does
that mean that Julie was never put through the conversion
process, or that the red dust never existed? Does that mean
that Robin never gave birth to a human/Visitor hybrid? How
can Kenneth Johnson ignore the events of “V: The Final
Battle”? That would be like someone making a sequel to “Star
Wars” and totally disregarding the events of “the Empire
Strikes back,” including the revelation that Darth Vader is
Luke’s father. - Matt |
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10/6/04 - hey
i just got the entire complete set of
v on DVD.. i
been looking around locally for other V stuff..if
you run across any one having the laser gun let me know..I
have just got a 3d image from a friend of the mothership..
but it requires a 600$ program to read
it .. I will try to get conversions. For top, side
, bottom views in Jpg. I
am trying to set up a v website its at
http://v.mwbhc.com
please let me
know what you thank. Any ideas please let me know on the site..
thanks again.. Matt
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9/16/04 - First I want
to say it is about time V The Series was
released on DVD. The V The Series DVD is so cool despite a bonus
DVD having both Final Battle extras and V The Series extras like
promos,etc and sound like the first V DVD. Overall a great V dvd
set. highly recommend it. V Rocks. - Joseph Berziga
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8/23/04 - I
bought V
the series on DVD at Wal-Mart the other day $34.00. It's
been ten years since I seen the show and I enjoyed it this time as
much as the first time. - Matt
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8/23/04 - I did
purchase the 3 DVD "V"
complete series on July 27, 2004. I was at first
disappointed, because I thought the "complete" series
included the original miniseries and V: The Final Battle.
It does not. Thus, I purchased "V" The
Miniseries off of Amazon.com, and found a DVD copy of V:
The Final Battle at a SUNCOAST store here i
Richmond, Virginia. So began a (week) long journey into
watching the entire V series from beginning to end. I
remember when V came out in 1983, then again from 1984-1985.
I was between 9-11 years old. Not being a science fiction
fan, this is the only sci-fi movie I became attached to and
enjoyed. I am so glad to have every episode of V in my movie
library. - Kristen Marcel
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8/15/04 - It is Adam
letting you know about V the TV series on DVD. My personal
thoughts on it Ilana was that it is a great picture and sound
dealing with a transfer from VHS to DVD but I was extremely
disappointed with absolutely no features on the DVD collection.
I thought they would at least have a behind the scenes or cast
info but nothing at all. Very disappointed, but at least
glad to see it in great picture. Well, just wanted to give
you my take on it, hope all is well. Sincerely, Adam
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8/15/04 - Just to let you know that the V the
series quality is awful my videos are better quality than the DVDs.
The Hero is one prime example when Ham
is trying to get Willie to help them after Ellis is killed . when
the shot goes over to Elisabeth a vertical line appears along with
white specks as if were watching a movie from the fifties. Surely
Warner Brothers could have
cleaned them up. or why not just copy from the videos at least the
quality is good. I have the feeling we have been ripped off .
If they had extras like outtakes, gag reels etc . it would have
been worth the coinage. I know
some of you may not have the videos and glad this is out on DVD
but for those who have the video tapes you will probably agree the
quality is much better on them than the DVDs. It
be interesting to to hear what others think. - Dj
Rosy Red UK
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8/15/04 - It is finally great to see
that Warner Bros. took the time to release "V: The
Series" on DVD. These will fit nicely into a die hard
"V" fans collection. The packaging was nicely
done, except for the episode descriptions, a little too campy and
poorly punctuated and grammatically incorrect. Well who
could complain much, the series is a little campy too.
Really a shame that there are absolutely no extras on this
release. The quality of the videos themselves are awful.
They obviously did not color correct or try to eliminate any of
the scratches and dust on the prints themselves. The
Columbia House tapes are actually better transfers. The
blacks are oversaturated and the overall picture seems a little
too dark. The resolution of the video is just slightly
better than VHS quality, not nearly the full lines of resolution
that the DVD is capable of producing. Oh, I tested the
picture quality on a HDTV set and it really shows the flaws.
The audio is anything but stellar. The Columbia House tapes
are in stereo, why are the DVDs in mono? In addition, the
audio levels are too low. Warner Bros. also failed to
included the 30 second preview before each episode. Those of
you that saw "V" originally when it aired on NBC will
remember these. The menus are pretty basic and Warner Bros.
did include a chapter stop after the opening sequence, at
each commercial break, and one before the closing credits.
Overall, I give this release about a 4 out of 10. The 4 is
basically for Warners even releasing "V: The Series" at
all on DVD, in which case, I guess we should all be happy.
Chris Caudle
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7/27/04 - Yes I
bought [V:TS on DVD]it tonight at 7:30pm and I have been glued to
the screen of my TV. I have been soooooooooooo waiting way too
long for this. I remember the two movies all too well but
the 19 episodes -- it's like watching it all over for the first
time . I love this so much and to the people at the (WB)? -- you
guys are CRAZY FOR NOT WANTING TO BROADCAST V THE SECOND GEN. Plz
, plz bring it back! It will be worth the wait and if you don't
decide to change your mind, like DIANA said to Pamela in The Final
Battle: "YOU RELY ON CUNNING INTRIGUE, I PREFER THE DIRECT
APPROACH. DON'T WORRY DEAR PAMELA. I'LL DO MY
SCIENTIFIC BEST TO COMMAND YOUR FLEET, AND TOMORROW I'LL DESTROY
THE REBELS. CONSIDER THIS AN EARLY RETIREMENT." WE AS V
FANS WANTED IT TO COME BACK ON IN THE 80'S V IT SELF WAS A HUGE
RISK BUT IT HAD THE SUCCESS NO ONE EXPECTED. DON'T YOU THINK YOU
SHOULD GIVE IT A CHANCE, BUT ANYWAY, I BOUGHT V THE SERIES TODAY
AND I WILL BE UP ALL NIGHT WATCHING IT. FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T GOTTEN
IT YET , GO BUY IT ITS WORTH IT. - Andrew Mercer
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7/27/04 - I just
recently bought the two "V" miniseries. I was 11
and 12 at the time of their airings, and now watching them both 20
years later, I find I still enjoy watching them, and in fact see
them in a different light now as a mature adult. I pick up
on things I didn't at the time I first watched them. However, I
thought the TV series was awful! I don't know that I'll buy
that DVD.
I hope Kenneth
Johnson is successful in producing another miniseries the way HE
wants to do it. I don't see why people today wouldn't enjoy
it. A well-produced movie with great acting is a timeless
work of art. I can see the differences between V: the
original miniseries and V: The Final Battle. I definitely
liked the first one (the Kenny Johnson commentary was very special
and helped to explain his vision for the show); the second
one I also enjoyed, but I think they crammed too much into a
6-hour miniseries (I think the actual DVD running time is 4 hrs 45
min - and no commentary???? I was disappointed!), and there was
much that should have been more detailed, like the Brian/Robin
situation. The good thing about the 2nd one is that the majority
of the bad guys got their asses kicked - and there was lots of
action and humor, too. It was still fun to watch. The
ending where Elizabeth magically stops the self-destruct sequence
was too far-fetched and out of place. Could have been done
differently. Oh, well. Still fun and enjoyable to watch.
Thanks- Mariann McDaniel
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This is possibly my
most prized DVD possession. I love every minute of the series
(Final Battle Part One being my favourite episode).
One thing I must point out, though, is that this DVD is NOT in
true wide-screen format. I suspected as much, so I pulled out my
store-bought VHS copy of The Final Battle and compared the scene
where Mike and Shawn Donavan are running away from the Vistor
guards (the dream sequence). Sure enough, the DVD CUTS OFF the top
and bottom of the picture, making the VHS 'full-frame' the TRUE
aspect ratio.
If Johnson really did 'compose the film in wide-screen', then he
did a poor job of it--he cut off people's head's and feet
throughout the series! I think what happened was they shot it in
4:3, and just added the bars. I hope they release a better version
with the Full Frame. - Mike
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When Kenneth Johnson
first pitched V to NBC and Warner Bros, he was greeted by yawns
from the various execs because his pitch had more to do with the
Nazis of WW2 and the French Resistance fighters than anything
else, but then he dropped a bombshell:
"The difference is that these Nazis are from outer
space."
With these words, V: The Original Miniseries was born. An epic
tale of an alien race who supposedly came in peace, but who then
proceeded to enslave the planet, V is more of a story about the
human condition, about our own weaknesses, than a flashy sci-fi
tale. Even though most of the Visitors believe in their Great
Leader's plans to steal the water from Earth and use humans for
cannon fodder and food, there is a small contingent of Visitor
officers such as Martin and Barbara who are firmly convinced that
what their superiors are doing is wrong and proceed to help the
Human Resistance movement in any way they can. There are also
Visitors like Brian, who serves as sort of a recruiting officer
for the Visitors Friends, an organization of young humans who are
dedicated to helping the Visitors to maintain order after several
alleged attacks on Visitor refineries and processing plants (Brian
is also the officer approached by Diana to participate in a
medical experiment that leads to the impregnation of Robin
Maxwell, the daughter of one of the Resistance fighters, Robert
Maxwell).
I have to say that getting V: The Original Miniseries on DVD at
last proved to be quite a plus for me, because I had worn out
various VHS copies thanks to multiple viewings. The story is that
good! I was also glad to get to see the Making Of documentary,
which contains comments from various cast and crew including
Kenneth Johnson, Marc Singer, and Faye Grant (wife of 7th Heaven's
Stephen Collins). This miniseries is definitely a keeper.
Here's the one for V--The Final Battle:
The "Nazis from outer space" are back, and badder than
ever in this continuation of the war between the Visitors and the
Human Resistance movement. Marc Singer is back as the intrepid
Donovan, who now has a personal score to settle with the Visitors
because he has been informed by Fifth Columnist Martin (played
with steely charm by Frank Ashmore) that his son is aboard the
ship in a sort of suspended animation. Faye Grant is also back as
Julie, the Resistance Leader whose own grudge against the Visitors
is made even more personal when Diana (Jane Badler) attempts to
"convert" her following a botched raid by the Resistance
at the Los Angeles Medical Center, where Supreme Commander John
(Richard Herd) is giving a speech. Robert Englund also returns as
the sweetly clueless Willie, who ends up helping the Resistance
after he is captured by them and exposed to the realities of what
they are doing to the humans, and Michael Ironside makes his first
appearance as Ham Tyler, who is part of a worldwide Resistance
network and who also loooooooooves to blow stuff up, especially
when there's Visitors inside.
Of all the actors, both in the Original Miniseries and The Final
Battle, I have to save my highest praise for Blair Tefkin, who was
suddenly thrust into the role of Robin Maxwell when her
predecessor, Dominique Dunne, was strangled to death by an
ex-boyfriend outside the home of David Packer (Daniel Bernstein)
only a short time after filming had commenced. Ms. Tefkin played
the part of Robin very well, going from a teenager whose only
concerns were boys and school to a young woman who finds herself
in the midst of a battle for the very survival of the human race.
Not only that, Robin also learns to her initial horror that she is
with child, the result of a crossbreeding experiment authorized by
Diana and carried out by Brian, the young Visitor she developed a
crush on when he first came down from the LA Mothership (and who
also ends up being the target of her revenge).
While I was disappointed that the DVDs had no extras apart from
cast and crew listings, and I wasn't too happy with the treatment
of Robin's half-human, half-Visitor daughter, Elizabeth, in the
script, I gave this DVD a high rating because the story has been
one of my favorites since high school. Along with its predecessor
V: The Original Miniseries, I feel that this one is definitely a
keeper. - Steph
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I bought this DVD in
the UK from Blackstar (excellent service as usual by Blackstar by
the way!). Watched the DVD over the weekend and relieved all
of those great moments!
Shame about the actual DVD though. The presentation is great
in the nice glossy snap pack (better than the mini series DVD
box), however was anyone else a bit disappointed with the DVD
itself? The conversion (not one of Diana's conversions
though!) of the film to DVD was excellent and the sound is great.
However the lack of any special features was very disappointing,
and the DVD menus were a bit boring - some nice animated menus
would have gone down well seeing as there were no special
features. Shame really.....
Still at least I can now watch the whole mini series/final battle
whenever the mood takes me now :-) - Matt Stevenson
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I got my V: The Final
Battle dvd, but have only had time to watch part one. I have to
admit I was severly bummed by the lack of *any* kind of bonus
materials whatsoever. Especially since the second disc has
one side that is not simply *blank* but also has the gall to say,
in teeny tiny letters, "No programming on this side. Flip
disc." The nerve! But still, I'm
thrilled to own it. Dan
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I bought "V: The
Final Battle" on DVD this past Sunday. I've only had a
chance to watch the first disc. It's great! Debbie
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I am a huge V fan and
loved the first DVD, Kenneth Johnson on the commentary made it
brand new (great job), but on the Final Battle I was disappointed
to see that this DVD had no special features or a commentary. The
format and the way they cleaned it up were great but it missed
that final touch! WB should have got some of the actors together
to do the commentary (m. ironside, m. singer, f. grant, m. wright)
would have been my choice. I am glad to see V on DVD and keep the
legacy alive! V come back? Why not? The fan base is there. -
Sean, West Coast Resistance
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Congrats to Amazon.com
for sending this out so quick but shame on Warner Bros. for their
lame attempt at bringing V:TFB to DVD. Yes the picture
transfer and colors are amazing. V:TFB has never looked so
good, but why not give V the treatment it deserves. It would
not have killed anyone to have added on the narrative trailers
onto each episode, or use the stereo audio tracks from the
Laserdisc copy from 1998? Some behind the scene material
does exist but this was not included either. All in all,
this is a very cheap, poor and rushed result, a little bit like
TFB itself. Let's not forget that "V" was the
greatest sci-fi tv event mankind had ever witnessed. This
DVD release promised so much - but in the end delivered just the
bare minimum. What a pity. - John Dolan
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I bought the new dvd today. Even though it doesn't have
stereo surround & some behind the scenes stuff, I love it. I guess just
because it's "V". I love the "Cast & Crew" backgrounds. They're cool.
I think the packaging is very nice. I like it more than VTO packaging.
All in all I'm very pleased with my purchase today. Take care, Ross
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JEERS to Warner Bros'
feable attempt to put V: The Final Battle on DVD. About the
only good thing one could say is the picture transfer was some
what decent. The sound is horrible, who would have thought
mono was the way to go. The laserdisc was released in stereo
as was the VHS edition. It was not shot in an anamorphic
widescreen lense, so why release it that way? It was
obviously forced into that format and you can tell by watching the
DVD. The biggest disappointment was the fact that there are
no extras whatsoever. They could have at least included the
trailers before and after each segment. The
first mini-series was a far better release than this mockery to
the show. Chris Caudle
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V DVD - one word only
- "stunning". Superb and words fail me re the
sound quality. Shame they didnt touch up some of the visual
effects - but I ain't complaining (except for the fact we have to
wait 6 months longer than the US!) - Mark, UK
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The DVD is great!
The picture is almost too good and you can see some cracks in the
special effects. I thought the remastered soundtrack was the
best. The only real disappointment is on part two there is
about a 3 minute narrated preview that aired with the original
broadcast. They left it out. Those of you who have
purchased the Collector's Edition from Columbia House will see it
on Volume 2. I am greatly anticipating the release of The
Final Battle. Again, before each segment there are narrated
recaps about 4 minutes long that recapture everything that has
happened up to that point. Warner has left these out of all
other releases of V. Hopefully, they will include it in the
DVD release as well as the 30 second narrated preview at the end
letting you know what is in the next segment. - Chris Caudle
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A glorious "What
Could Have Been"
As one of the most fanatical "V" fans to be found in the
early 80's, I couldn't quite give this DVD release the 5 stars
that I so desperately wanted to. As an allegorical "it
certainly CAN happen here" tale, V is unparalleled. As
a science-fiction tale it's merely okay --and as for the cheesy
comic book-level TV series it spawned, well, the less said about
that the better.
Probably the best feature of the DVD is the commentary by Kenneth
Johnson, but for me, it only brought home the tragedy of what this
truly excellent pilot degenerated into. The original
"V" isn't so much about an alien invasion as much as it
is about us as a civilization and how human beings react to
dramatic changes in the norm. Once the shock of
extraterrestrial contact (in the form of "Independence
Day"-style ships over the world's major cities) wears off,
it's astonishing how quickly the Visitors are welcomed into almost
every facet of human culture, and how difficult it is for so many
members of the cast to accept "the truth" as
inadvertently discovered by Marc Singer's character.
There must be at least 30 principal characters to keep track of,
but for me that's what brings this series down to earth --it's the
best way to showcase how world events affect "the ordinary
guy." Visuals are impressive by 1983 standards --again,
mainly because of how ordinary they're made to look (for example,
alien shuttlecraft take off and land at a manufacturing refinery
and rate about as much notice by passerby as, say, a tractor
trailer). <pause> Okay, to be fair, there's some truly
scary makeup effects and a great edge-of-your-seat spaceship chase
sequence at the end.
All told, whether you're a devotee of the TV series, a Jane Badler
fan (hubba hubba), or a student of the Nazi "phenomenon"
of the 1930's, this chapter is worth spending your money on, but
ONLY this one. Skip "The Final Battle" sequel and
certainly avoid that demeaning "L.A. is the Center of the
Universe" TV series. - Peter Vinton, Jr. from New England,
USA
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The French language
track maintains all the original sound effects from the 1983
broadcast. As we all know the English track features the new
audio effects which, apparently, drew mixed reviews from a number
of fans. Somewhat of a curiosity. So, for the purists,
enjoy the French track. Brian Olson
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|
The DVD of the first series is outstanding. It looks fresh and hasn't
dated as much as I thought. The Widescreen picture is superb. I look
forward to The Final Battle, maybe Warner could give us 5.1 audio for
that one! - Jonathan Bolton
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I bought V DVD region
1 (because I live in the U.S.) about a week ago...and it's totally
awsome! I loved to watch V when I was a kid, now I'm glad to
own the episodes. I enjoy the episodes so much that
yesterday I ended up bought V on VHS which not only included
"V the Mini Series" but also included the 3 parts of
"V - the Final Battles" for the continuation. All
V fans should buy this VHS pack because the dvd didn't have the
Final Battle episodes. I just wish they have the Final
Battles for dvd...because without that, V has no ending. For those
of you who experience why your V dvd play the FULL Screen Format
and NOT Wide Screen Format like the disc suggested, then it's
Normal. I just found it out when I was forced to read the
back of the V dvd jacket then I realized...it
said..."MATTED" widescreen. What this mean is that
only new T.V that has enhanced widescreen built within the TV can
watch V dvd in widescreen format. T.V that doesn't have this
special technology will see in Full screen format. Anyhow, I
test my V dvd onto two of my televisions and I can see that my old
T.V is playing full frame while my new T.V. is playing
widescreen...very funny. - Rémy
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|
Finally got a DVD
player ($390), and watched 'V'- FAN-BLOODY-TASTIC! The picture was
sharp, and the sound (with a home theater system) was an
experience you wouldn't believe (or would).Watched 'V' without
commentary- FANTASTIC (as said), but watching it with commentary
was really interesting. The interviews with Marc and Faye were
really interesting, I've watched it three times, because I've
never heard an interview with them ever about their roles in V. I
was a very small bit dissapointed that it did not have anything on
the ads that they done on TV for it, as I remember seeing a TV
show which had bloopers from TV spots, and an ad for the V series
was amongst it, showing Donovan and Julie running thru the
mothership, stopping only to tell fans to "tune in to V
tonight!" I must say, the widescreen presentation was
definitely a worthy addition. At first I thought, 'Oh, crap. It's
in widescreen', but after watching it, it put a whole new
perspective on some scenes, it was like watching it for the first
time. The scene in which Donovan and his crew go into the
mothership and Diana shows them around (especially the scene in
which the cargo ship enters the mothership in a night sky) is
brilliant! The unmasking scene is also great to see in widescreen! -
Carsten
Scholtz
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|
Just a quick note that
the V: mini series was released on DVD here in Australia yesterday
and of course I raced straight out and bought it. I watched it
with Kens commentary - well done I must say. Also it is great to
see it in widescreen and stereo sound. It's ace. - Shane,
10/2/01
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Just bought the V DVD
tonight for fifteen bucks. Stereo tracks and clean picture
are great. Best part of the DVD, the director commentary.
- John Pemble
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We may not have the
British region 2 version yet (It's about time region coding was
done away with), but where there's a will, there's a way, and my
friend finally got one imported. I've only so far seen the first
film and documentary, but was very impressed. As for the new sound
of the shuttles, it wasn't a bad as some people seemed to think it
was. But the sound effects, music and picture compared to my
original VHS tapes, well, what can you except WOW! - Jason
Spurgeon (UK)
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|
The DVD version of V
The Original Mini-Series is a dream come true. With the addition
of stereo sound and wide screen format, V has never looked better.
It is really special to hear our hero, V's creator, Ken Johnson's
commentary on his masterpiece. He share's so much information on
how the film was done, working with the actors, cost, special fx,
YOU NAME IT! He even gives out his personal e-mail address. And
believe me, he is a GREAT guy! Finally, my most favorite part of
this DVD is the "behind the scenes feature" in which I
get to hear my favorite stars, Marc Singer and Faye Grant share
their insight on Mike Donovan and Julie Parrish... Its really
funny, all those articles we read about Marc Singer being a very
energetic guy are true, just watch and listen as he talks about
Donovan, then plays around on the set. - Tamie Kwist
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The mini series is
great! I love the extra footage and the commentary is great, good
job buy all involved! We need a new V series to hit the air
(I think it would do well) - Buddy
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The
V DVD is great! It looks great and I learned a lot I did not
know about the show from the great commentary by Ken Johnson. Two
big thumbs up and can't wait for "the final battle" (with
my fave V moment when Ham breaks the bottle over Brian's head) Ya!!!
Warner keep them coming! - Sean Daniel Budynski
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Fantastic. I have been
waiting for this for a long time. The commentary and
documentary are especially interesting. I can't wait until
V-The Final Battle is out on DVD. - Steven King
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|
I started watching
"V" when I was 9 years old, during SciFi Channel
reruns on July 4th Weekend of '96. I was really "into"
V for about 2-3 years, but then I kind of phased out of it. But,
on July 4th, 2001, I was in BestBuy picking up a new VCR when I
saw that the "V" DVD had been released -- and it was
only $15. So I picked it up, got home, popped it into my DVD
player on my PC and boy was I amazed! I didn't watch the normal
movie first thing, I watched Kenneth Johnson's commentary. It is
so revealing as to how every part of the film was planned,
edited and created. Just listening to it made me notice a lot of
things about the film I'd never noticed before. The sound has
been completely remastered and re-done in steroe, and it sounds
AWESOME!!! So much louder and better than the original. I even
think then ew take-off and landing soundtrack for the
skyfighters and shuttles sounds better than the original. The
picture quality is bright, crisp and clear -- it looks 10 times
better than the newest VHS copies. And too think that it's
finally in widescreen! Heck, I didn't even KNOW it was filmed in
widescreen to begin with. The special features weren't too
great, though -- except the commentary part. The "Cast
& Crew" section was really cheap, it just said who
played who and who directed the movie, basically. There is no
gag reel or trailer included on the disc either. Finally, the
behind-the-scenes feature is badly edited, has no
"plot" or narration, it's just a bunch of footage from
the making of the movie edited together. Still,
this DVD was excellent. Since buying it I have picked up
VHS copy of the Final Battle for myself and subscribed to the
ColumbiaHouse series, anticipating the arrival of volume 6
(Since I basically have volumes 1-5 now). I'm glad I bought the
DVD -- or I might have forgotten "V" altogether. When
I was 9, I didn't get them essage and understand ho deep it was
-- I just loved the lizards and skyfighters. But now that I'm
older I can understand how it mirrors Nazism and the whole idea
behind it. Thank you for making this movie, Kenneth Johnson!
Kilroy Cressy, in the U.S.A
|
| I
originally taped the mini-series (as well as The Final Battle and
all 19 eps of the series) from the Sci-Fi Channel, but sadly the
tapes got ruined and I was only able to salvage two eps of the
series (and the quality isn't exactly the best). So, suffice
it to say, I was quite happy that, at least, the original
mini-series was released on DVD. I read the other reviews
here prior to viewing it, so that I would know what I was getting
myself into. The film DID look fantastic, and the audio is
pretty darn good. Since I no longer have the original "tv"
version, I couldn't compare the letterboxing or sounds effects to
the original. The picture didn't appear to be missing
anything, and it didn't look crowded or claustrophobic to me.
As for the sound effects, I occasionally compared it to the
effects on the mono French audio track. I think the French
track might contain the original effects because I did notice some
differences. Two great examples occur on side B of the DVD:
(1) At 03.19, during the explosion of the shuttlecraft, the French
track doesn't contain the sound of breaking glass; (2) At 09.32,
the French track doesn't contain the jet airplane "whir"
as the shuttlecraft lands. I have a feeling that the French
mono track contains all of the original sound elements. This
track was probably recorded back in 1983/84 for international
distribution of the film, and Warner just simply put it in the DVD
"as is" - though they might have cleaned it up a bit in
the transfer to digital. It would have been nice if Warner
gave us the original mono English track, in addition to the
remastered stereo track. There have been several DVDs put
out that include the original soundtrack as well as a remastered
one. Too bad this isn't one of them. As for the lack
of proposed extras, think of it this way: if Warner never
mentioned that there would be trailers and a gag reel, would you
really be disappointed that they're not there? We got a
commentary track and a behind-the-scenes reel - and that's more
extras than most DVDs contain. I hope that eventually Warner
will release The Final Battle and all episodes of the series on
DVD - though that's probably hoping for too much. -- Paul Rudoff |
| Review
by G. Noel Gross at Cineschlock |
Well
it was finally worth the wait! Like many other Europeans, I
had to order the US Region 1 copy from Amazon.com
before it took an eternity to find its way over to this side of
the Atlantic. As everyone has already noted, the picture
quality is amazing, and the audio too. This is especially
apparent in the opening El Salvador sequence, where we hear the
helicopter flying all around the room, and bullets coming from
everywhere. An excellent reproduction! Kenneth
Johnson's commentary, again, has been hardly bettered on any DVD
release to date.
The main complaints I have (we shouldn't be doing this, but for
those who have not bought the DVD - you should know something to
avoid possible disappointment) are as follows: 1. As previously
noted, I do not like the new take-off/ landing sound from the
shuttle craft. It DOES sound like a harrier jet. 2.
Apparently the mini series was originally shot in widescreen, but
for the DVD, all they seem to have done is put black bars at the
top and bottom of the screen to give it a WIDESCREEN effect.
When you compare it to the VHS/ TV version, we are missing picture
on the DVD from the top and bottom of the screen. 3. There is no
Gag Reel or Theatrical/ TV trailer as stated in a lot of previous
advertisements. 4. Finally, the Behind the scenes featurette is
extremely disappointing. This has been thrown on just for
the sake of it. The picture quality is very poor.
While we get some feel for the detail that Johnson was looking for
when he shot the miniseries, there is no narrative to this
featurette, and it is just a series of clips glued together.
It would have been much better if there were more interviews with
Jane Badler, Michael Durrell and perhaps Richard Herd, as well a a
better story to the Behind the Scenes piece. Then, I think
that would have satisfied the appetites of most hardened V fans. -
John Dolan (Biggest "V" fan from Ireland)
|
| Here's
an opinion from the U.K! I ordered my copy form the internet
and it arrived last week. My player can play US discs, which
is just as well because we won't get the DVD release in England
until Christmas, and I couldn't wait until then! The thing I love
about DVD is it brings old films back to life - both picture and
sound really impressed me and it was brilliant seeing one of my
favourite TV shows looking and sounding this good. I also
preferred the final battle but this will keep me happy until then.
- Neil Ridley |
I
remember watching it in 1983, of course I was only 11 at the time.
When seeing the special edition at my video store, I did not
hesitate to buy it. I had taped it from a sci-fi airing
about 2 years ago.
There are some interesting points to "V" and the DVD
release.
1a. The DVD, featured as it is, lacks the original trailer.
Oops!
1b. The video transfer/restoration is marvellous.
Colors are crisp and vivid, contrasts are bright and visible.
No complaints here whatsoever.
1c. The sound, which was originally monaural, certainly
suffices in a stereo-ized effect. The audio is as crisp and
clear, perhaps better, than it was in 1983. But the
miniseries was made in mono, so I am partially disappointed they
decided to tamper with it to create a false stereo feel.
Worse, Warner pulled a "Superman" and replaced existing
effects for this remastered version. Whereas in
"Superman" half the effects came from a Windows 98 PC
(like the door-opening hydraulics of Lex's lair for example), at
least "V"'s new audio effects were somewhat more
lifelike when compared to cheap tinny noises. The
shuttlecraft landing/lifting sounds more like conventional jets.
The original hum noise left an air of mystery as to its propulsion
method. It was genuinely alien. The new jet noise
leaves a new mystery: Where's the tailpipe, nosecone,
gasoline engine, and wings?! Besides, the movie was made a
certain way. People who go back to tinker with their movies
like George Lucas and Robert Wise for their Star Wars and Star
Trek movies are generally doing what they are to get people to see
something which never had good plot nor character in the first
place - revamping the eye-candy and charging money for it.
(Sequels to both Star Wars and Star Trek did learn that character
and plot mean infinitely more than snazzy effects, thank
goodness.)
2. This point is more of a story-related problem than DVD:
Robin disappears after the "medical experiment" she had
with Bryan. Later, she appears out of nowhere with Donovan
and Sancho, getting to a shuttlecraft to escape the mothership.
In Ken's commentary, they were already 15 minutes over in length
and the sci-fi channel for the most part did a great job in
removing 20-some minutes of footage to cram in more commercials.
Surely it would have been better to have a proper reintroduction
to Robin versus a protracted shuttlecraft chase or gunfight or
two?
3a. Again, this is more of a story issue than DVD issue:
If bright lights affect the visitors, why is their ship so
brightly lit?
3b. Water is actually abundant. Pluto is purportedly
made of ice. Water was on Mars for a length of time as well.
Hydrogen is an abundant element. Oxygen is. And water
is necessary for all life. There is an instant fix: If
the lizard population issue were to have been addressed (were the
lizards a tad too busy and had to search outside their solar
system for life and ultimately found us as something succulent and
delicious?), this point would be a non-issue. But the
environmental theme of water is still there.
4. Letterboxing: I had taped "V" on the
sci-fi channel. I then watched my taped version. Maybe
it's just me, but I'm not convinced that the movie was originally
made in 1.85/1 ratio, then reduced to 1.33/1 ratio for standard tv
screens. (After all, it was a miniseries meant for the TV in
the first place.) I re-watched my original taping and I
couldn't notice much of a difference with the extra area. It
if was indeed filmed at 1.85/1 ratio, nobody had taken full
advantage of using that extra horizontal space to the full
potential 1.85/1 offers. But this probably is recursion;
though they wanted it in 1.85 they kept everything essential
within the 1.33 frame for the sake of TV audiences. It's
just weird to see it in a "movielike" format.
5. Ken Johnson, barring the reason for Robin's disappearance
(see pt. 2) the mistake of a brightly lit ship (pt. 3a), and
avoiding the letterboxing issue (pt. 1b), was VERY detailed with
his commentary. Even going as far as to say how it impacted
other countries, his inclusion of the people who have since died,
Greg Jein's involvement with the model making, the hand-crafted
action figures, et cetera. Tons of useful way-cool
production ideals he had mentioned alone is well worth the price
of the disc despite a mere three oversights (in my opinion).
I've heard commentaries on other movie releases which gloss over
lots of potential information. Besides, it's impossible to
cover every single thing in a commentary, and Ken's commentary is
by far the best I've ever been fortunate enough to listen to.
It transcends boundaries. People who aren't familiar will figure
out his ideas and people who know the field won't be put off
either.
6. The documentary on side 2 of the disc: It looks and
sounds very grainy, showing they did not "re-master" it.
That was disappointing, but on the other hand it also shows us
effectively how "V" would have looked if they did not
remaster it! So this point is just a matter of perspective.
Of course, if they had the original TV trailer, that could have
been un-remastered and have that contrast against the miniseries
instead of the entire documentary!
7. The documentary included had no "direction" to
it whatsoever. Things just happened, it seemed as if nobody
cared when they pieced it together. People appeared and
answered questions which nobody seemed to ask, then all of a
sudden the main stars appear (one by one) telling us what their
characters are about and the meaning of the story. Unlike
the miniseries, the behind-the-scenes story has no spark of life
to it. Add in the fact they never restored the doco, and
ultimately we have an "extra" which just shouldn't have
been included at all. :-(
8. To jump back, I think "V" is the one entity
which has taken the use of matte photographs as model ships to an
extreme and it oddly WORKS! Now "Blake's 7" seemed
to do that also at times, but "V" was far more
ambitious.
So, that's my two cents. The DVD is definitely worth the
purchase.- David P. Cole
|
REVIEW
BY SCIFI JOURNALIST - Melissa J. Perenson
http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue219/screen3.html
|
Fantastic. I have been waiting for this for a long time. The
commentary and documentary are especially interesting. I
can't wait until V-The Final Battle is out on DVD. - Steven King |
I've seen part of the V DVD and it's amazing. After I watch V I'm going to watch the "director's
Commentary" Ken gives on the DVD as well.
The rez is amazing and the sound and visual FX, awesome. - Lisa
Cuoco |
The
Original Miniseries DVD is well worth the price. I loved the
commentary by Kenneth
Johnson. It was so educational and it got me out of my year
and a half writers block. Thanks Kenneth! Warner
Brothers: Listen to the public and pay for the actors for their
work in the Gag Reel and put it on the Final Battle DVD!
This DVD lacked the spice that the reel would have provided. -
Grace
|
| DVD
ramblings & thoughts:
http://www.dvdfile.com/interactive/forum/ubb/Forum5/HTML/003775.html |
First
thing Tuesday morning I ran to Suncoast Motion Picture Store and
bought my copy of V on dvd. I watched every bit of it when I
got home and could not believe the sound & picture quality.
FANTASTIC!!! I was a little disappointed in the behind the
scenes part. I love the dvd & I hope The Final Battle
will be out on dvd soon. Thank you Kenneth for making this
dvd a reality. - Ross
|
When I watched the "V" DVD, it almost felt like I was
watching a brand new movie. The sound and picture were so
vivid, so heightened in clarity, that this film could indeed be
rebroadcast today. This can all be taken for granted, of
course, until you watch the behind the scenes documentary.
You really get to see the amount of painstaking detail that went
into the lighting, composing and acting in every shot. It
was wonderful to see and here what unseen artists like Charles
Davis thought of the film. And Kenny Johnson's commentary
was so thoroughly researched and prepared, he sounded like he just
left the movie set. Many thanks to all of them for making
this project everything it could be! PS- I'm still hoping to
find an Easter egg somewhere on the disk. :) - Jamin Fite
|
I was a V fan as a child, but had not seen V since then. When I
heard it was coming out on DVD, I rushed out to get it the day it
was released. The picture and sound quality are just awesome. I
watched the whole thing all the way through. The behind the scenes
are also really cool. I hope the Final battle and the rest of the
series make it to DVD soon. - Dugpa
|
Well,
it's totally cool, the commentary is excellent, more information
than any other commentary I've ever listened to and I've listened
to lots and lots. - Mike
|
I've
watched the 'V' DVD tonight and I must say , the quality is
FANTASTIC!!! It's nice to see it in widescreen and with a Dolby
soundtrack on it . I also loved the behind the scenes segment ...
Too bad the gag reel wasn't on it , but hey that's just a minor
thing ! I hope that Mr. Kenneth Johnson gets the go ahead for
releasing 'The Final Battle' on to DVD ! I can't wait to see it
... Let's hope the sales of the original series DVD goes well! -
Eric
|
I was
very impressed with the DVD. The widescreen version allowed
me to see more of the scene than I ever had before. I also
thought the color and sound were better. My favorite part,
however, was the director's commentary. I really felt like
Ken Johnson himself was sitting in my living room and explaining his vision for V. It was awesome! The Final Battle has
always been my favorite, though it lacks the themes and symbolism
of Johnson's V. Now, I can truly understand not only the
Nazi allegory but the water theme, reptilian clues, Sean's
baseball hat and key themes as well as love and heroism as themes.
The behind-the-scenes documentary was entertaining as well. I
give it two thumbs up! - Jaime Boler
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|
First
thing to say about the DVD is that V has never looked or sounded
so good before. It is much more of a cinematic experience to
see it letterboxed to show the full 1.85:1 aspect ratio which Ken
and his D.P. composed V in. It is sad to see that the gag
reel is not included, however, the awesome behind-the-scenes reel
that Ken also showed at the convention is included. And to
be honest, if I had to pick between the behind-the-scenes or the
gag reel, I'd choose the behind-the-scenes for sure. First
of all, there are many funny moments in it as well, but also it
gives much more insight into what atmosphere was like on the set,
and how all of the story elements came together. It also
showcases many of the talented people who helped bring Johnson's
vision to life. I think it's cool to see the production
designer and the director of photography; they are largely
responsible for what V became.
The only thing that
I have a slight problem with (and it is a minor one) is that I
noticed that they totally changed the sound effects for all of the
squad vehicles--whether they are landing or ascending. They
no longer have that unusual and familiar "pulsating
hum", but now have this semi high pitched jet turbine sound
mixed with a low rumble. I personally prefer the original
sound effect of the squad vehicles merely because their
reverberating hum sounded more foreign, more alien to me.
They now sound a bit more like a Harrier jet. The change in
the squad vehicles' sound effects was likely due to one of two
things: either it was an aesthetic choice--maybe Ken said
"let's change it, I never liked it" or it could be
because the original effect cues were lost or damaged for one
reason or another. Back then they didn't have a digital
reverb generator, and had to manufacture them organically.
It may not have been as simple to re-manufacture the sounds as
mixing a few specific cues off of a Yamaha board. They may
have had to re-record the effect on a stage and may not have had
references to how it was originally made. But like I said,
the change in sound effect may have been an aesthetic choice.
But I'm not complaining at all!!!! The sound effect thing is a
minor detail that I wanted to point out. But V has never
looked or sounded this incredibly awesome. It's beautiful.
I will never watch it on VHS again!! It's all about the DVD.
I do wish that WB had put it in a plastic keep case, not the
cardboard snap case. V deserves a great case with a booklet
as many DVD's have. But It is so cool to see it this way.
I'm thankful to WB for producing and distributing it and I'm
thankful to Ken for adding a commentary track, making sure the
original shooting aspect ratio was preserved, for overseeing the
awesome stereo mix of the original mono mix, for giving us the
behind-the-scenes, and for trying to bring us the gag reel.
I know a place in
Burbank that makes surround sound mixes from older mono-mixed
films and TV shows. It's a difficult process. And it
was a real rush to hear sounds from V now coming out of my
surround sound speakers. Richard is sad that Universal
didn't re-mix Battlestar Galactica for its DVD release. It's
true, you pop the DVD into my system and all of the sound comes
out of the front center speaker only. The surrounds don't
get used at all because they released the DVD in mono. - Brian
Westfall
|
Hi
there all. Just wanted to let you know that the
"V" DVD was spotted in DC yesterday at a Georgetown
comic book store... since I already ordered mine from Amazon I
didn't buy it but I was tempted! How ironic it was released near
"independence" day... Happy "V" day... Brian,
Jane Badler Society
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d |
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