DVD Release Date: August 24, 2004 (Warner Bros. Home Video)
Color/1397 min.
MSRP: $49.98
Number of discs: 5 (two sided)
Number of episodes: 29
Languages and Subtitles: English; English, French &
Spanish Subtitles; Closed Captioned.
Special Features: Commentary on episodes by David
Jacobs, Larry Hagman & Charlene Tilton and SOAPtalk
Dallas Reunion.
Introduction:
Power, wealth, sex, extravagance! This 5-disc set
includes all 29 of the shows first and second season
episodes. This popular 1980s primetime soap stars
Larry Hagman as the power-hungry and manipulative J.R.
Ewing, who is often stirring up trouble for his
alcoholic wife Sue Ellen (Linda Gray), his brother
Bobby (Patrick Duffy) and Bobby's tortured wife Pamela
(Victoria Principal). J.R. was the man everyone loved
to hate -- and they still do!
Memorable Episodes / Notable Guest Stars:
There are several memorable episodes to start off
with, including "Royal Marriage" in which J.R.
arranges a marriage for Lucy (Charlene Tilton) with a
closeted homosexual. Tilton herself has said this was
one of her favorite episodes of the series. The Season
two finale is also the first of many memorable season
finales. "John Ewing III" Parts 1 & 2 feature the
impending birth of J.R. and Sue Ellen's baby and Sue
Ellen hitting rock bottom, forcing J.R. to lock his
pregnant wife in a sanatorium. Sue Ellen not only pays
an orderly to bring her booze, she escapes, only to
crash the car and go into premature labor! The other
two memorable episodes are "Reunion" Parts 1 and 2
where we are introduced to Gary Ewing and his
estranged wife Valene (Joan Van Ark).
One of the most memorable guest stars is Tina Louise
of "Gilligan's Island" fame. Louise pulls off an
intriguing portrayal of J.R.'s double-crossing
secretary Julie Grey. From Julie's initial affair to
her subsequent death, Louise is excellent. The second
season premiere brings us the arrival of Gary Ewing
and his estranged wife Valene, which introduces us to
Joan Van Ark, but Gary is played by David Ackroyd, not
Ted Shackelford.
Packaging:
The packaging itself is quite nice. The cover features
the first season cast of Dallas in a promotional shoot
in front of the Ewing mansion -- with the Dallas logo
present. It's simple but effective. The overall color
of the set is a nice navy blue with white text. It's a
slip sleeve much like the Here's Lucy set (see our
review on that set). The inside case folds open to
reveal episode descriptions as well as the discs
included with the set. No individual disc cases. It's
all together (which I find to be very handy myself).
There are five discs, which are two-sided and an
overall 29 episodes are covered, as well as a bonus
feature. Disc One/Side A (Episodes 1-3); Disc One/Side
B (Episodes 4-6). Disc Two/Side A contains episodes
7-9; Disc Two/Side B contains Episodes 10-12. Disc
3/Side A contains episodes 13-15 while Side B contains
episodes 16-18. Disc 4/Side A holds episodes 19-21 and
Side B holds episodes 22-24. Disc 5/Side A contains
episodes 25-27 while Side B holds episodes 28-29 and
the SOAPtalk "Dallas Reunion."
The discs are plain. The have no photos. Only small
text around the hole telling you what side the disc
is.--very unattractive, but that is expected since the
discs are double sided.
Menu Design and Navigation:
The menus are very easy to
navigate. There is a "Play All" feature on the main
menu. The main menu is the only menu that has the
Dallas theme-song looping in the background. There is
an episode selection menu. If the episode has
commentary, you will be able to select that as well.
There is also a setup section to choose subtitles,
etc. It's quite easy on the eyes and a nice menu
screen.
Video and Audio Quality:
The video quality is really nice and clear, decent
colors, but there is an evident scratching on the
episodes. It's just white scratches that pop up every
so often. Other than that, the video quality is
excellent. The audio is fairly easy to hear unlike
older sets that have been released, but it's still
somewhat low. There is closed captioning available.
Special Features:
There is one special feature (besides commentary) and
that is the entire SOAPtalk episode titled "Dallas
Reunion" that reunites Patrick Duffy, Linda Gray,
Larry Hagman and Charlene Tilton. They discuss the
series, their favorite episodes and reminisce about
the cast and tell behind the scenes stories. It's a
good addition to the set because not everyone has
SOAPnet. That special runs about 42 minutes. The
commentary is great as well. Episodes 1, 6 & 7 feature
commentary from David Jacobs (Creator), Larry Hagman
and Charlene Tilton.
Final Comments:
In closing, this set was wonderful. The commentary is
a fantastic part of the set and I hope they continue
with it, but include some more cast members. I wasn't
very happy by the two-sided discs, but to each his own
I suppose. I would like to see in future releases
maybe some bloopers, as well as original CBS promos.
Other than that, I look forward to future releases!
Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):
Video Quality: 4/5
Audio Quality: 4/5
Special Features: 2/5
Menu Design/Navigation: 5/5
Overall: 4/5
-- Reviewed by TVJunkie101 (Shawn Eaton) on 08/28/04
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