1godzillafan
01-17-2012, 03:15 PM
Those who know me way back when may remember that I'm a Sliders fan. Today was a big day for me, as after 8 long grueling years (and 3 and a half years after the last set) Universal was finally kind enough to release the final season on DVD.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17130835.jpg
And behold, the lord reached down and touched 1GF upon the head blessed him with the entire series...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17131412.jpg
...
Wait...what the hell is this? Why are all the sets different? And why do most of them suck?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17131626.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17131643.jpg
Boo! How does that look good on a shelf?
Though, to be fair, the slip case theme was fairly consistent, and I adored the art on all the sets.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17132111.jpg
The disc holders, though? Seriously, pick one.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17132213.jpg
So, for the first two seasons, we have this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00005.jpg
It's a piece of foam rubber that makes the discs look like they're "floating," and while they looked good on display at first, it hasn't aged well. The glue holding it in has long since worn off and the foam is constantly falling out.
I guess a lot of people complained they were paying 60 bucks for a block of foam, so season 3 was this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00006.jpg
Never before or since has a DVD package made me so f***ing angry. And getting angry at a DVD package is pretty sad.
It wouldn't be so bad if it didn't have that blank flap making the discs hard to get to, unless you had three hands. I'm not an octopus, so the stacked discs are frustrating to get to. Unfortunately, this casing has aged well, and it's just as hard to open now as it was back then.
Season 4 was a turn for the better...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00007.jpg
They used the plastic book effect like they had been using for Paramount's more recent Star Trek sets. The floating disc effect is gone, but whatever.
Another nice touch was the episode listings on the outside of the case with synopsis. It's a pretty great case. Too bad it's on a lackluster season.
And finally, we have this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00009.jpg
A normal DVD case. With four slots. One can't say Universal didn't let me down. I had a gut feeling they'd do something different, and I had a gut feeling it would be something lazy. Good for them.
Disc art...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17132514.jpg
Or lack thereof. The only ones with actual art are the first two seasons and season 5. I really dig the look of the original discs, personally, as they have a quirky yet cool edge, like the series itself. 5's are fine, with episode listings on them since there's no booklet.
4 is just green letters. Nothing special. Season 3 has double sided discs, so they can fit 8 episodes per disc. Hilariously, one disc only has one episode on it, making one wonder what the point was of producing just a single disc for a single episode. I'd also like to note the encoding issues of the third season discs, which makes several episodes unplayable. I've been meaning to buy a replacement set, but haven't really cared enough to do it, since the episodes that I'm having trouble with weren't exactly favorites.
But at long last, victory is mine! It's a hallow victory, but one all the same. I know what I'm doing this weekend!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17130835.jpg
And behold, the lord reached down and touched 1GF upon the head blessed him with the entire series...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17131412.jpg
...
Wait...what the hell is this? Why are all the sets different? And why do most of them suck?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17131626.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17131643.jpg
Boo! How does that look good on a shelf?
Though, to be fair, the slip case theme was fairly consistent, and I adored the art on all the sets.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17132111.jpg
The disc holders, though? Seriously, pick one.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17132213.jpg
So, for the first two seasons, we have this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00005.jpg
It's a piece of foam rubber that makes the discs look like they're "floating," and while they looked good on display at first, it hasn't aged well. The glue holding it in has long since worn off and the foam is constantly falling out.
I guess a lot of people complained they were paying 60 bucks for a block of foam, so season 3 was this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00006.jpg
Never before or since has a DVD package made me so f***ing angry. And getting angry at a DVD package is pretty sad.
It wouldn't be so bad if it didn't have that blank flap making the discs hard to get to, unless you had three hands. I'm not an octopus, so the stacked discs are frustrating to get to. Unfortunately, this casing has aged well, and it's just as hard to open now as it was back then.
Season 4 was a turn for the better...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00007.jpg
They used the plastic book effect like they had been using for Paramount's more recent Star Trek sets. The floating disc effect is gone, but whatever.
Another nice touch was the episode listings on the outside of the case with synopsis. It's a pretty great case. Too bad it's on a lackluster season.
And finally, we have this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/TPhoto_00009.jpg
A normal DVD case. With four slots. One can't say Universal didn't let me down. I had a gut feeling they'd do something different, and I had a gut feeling it would be something lazy. Good for them.
Disc art...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/1godzillafan/2012-01-17132514.jpg
Or lack thereof. The only ones with actual art are the first two seasons and season 5. I really dig the look of the original discs, personally, as they have a quirky yet cool edge, like the series itself. 5's are fine, with episode listings on them since there's no booklet.
4 is just green letters. Nothing special. Season 3 has double sided discs, so they can fit 8 episodes per disc. Hilariously, one disc only has one episode on it, making one wonder what the point was of producing just a single disc for a single episode. I'd also like to note the encoding issues of the third season discs, which makes several episodes unplayable. I've been meaning to buy a replacement set, but haven't really cared enough to do it, since the episodes that I'm having trouble with weren't exactly favorites.
But at long last, victory is mine! It's a hallow victory, but one all the same. I know what I'm doing this weekend!