Doctor Who-The Krotons DVD Review

The Krotons, the final full story of the Patrick Troughton era to be put to DVD is now available through BBC Warner Home Video.  The story starts when the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe land on a unnamed planet of a society that are called the Gonds which ever so often are given the chance to be a “companion” of the Krotons, a robotic society that were in essence, pulling out all the smart Gonds and leaving the rest to become slaves of the Krotons!  A weak story to start the writing career of the Great Who writer, Robert Holmes but is far better than the previous story from the beginning of the season “The Dominators”.   This disc has the usual extras, which the Who extras are the best!  There is an audio commentary with the late Phillip Madoc (Eelek), Richard Ireson (Axus), and Gilbert Wynne (Thara), a making of documentary, a doc on Patrick Troughton and a photo gallery and a Coming Soon trailer.  All & all, a fair story. 

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  The performance was VidFired for the original video look.  The total story is approx. 88 minutes long.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  It is also Mono on this set.

Disc 1-  1.  “The Krotons”-with Patrick Troughton, Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury (121 mins)

                    Episode One (23:00)

                    Episode Two (23:06)

                    Episode Three (24:13)

                    Episode Four (24:00)      

                   

Extras

Disc 1: Audio Commentary by Phillip Madoc (Eelek), Richard Ireson (Axus) and Gilbert Wynne (Thara)
            Second Time Around-Documentary about Patrick Troughton (52:21)
            Doctor Who Stories-Frazer Hines Pt 1 (17:27)
            The Doctor’s Strange Love (07:17)
            Photo Gallery (05:26)
            Radio Times Listing on DVD Rom
            Production text notes
            Coming Soon-(01:03)-The Greatest Show In The Galaxy

Carry On Double Feature Volume 3

The Carry On-Double Feature Collection-Volume 3 is now available through VCI!   The third volume are two films “Carry On Camping” and “Carry On Again Doctor” starring Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Joan Sims, Jim Dale, Bernard Bresslaw and Peter Butterworth to name a few!  Both films are from 1969.  They are also the 17^th and 18^th films in the series!  The first movie is about Sid James and Bernard Bresslaw decide to take their girlfriends on a camping trip thinking that they were going to a nudist camp instead they headed right into one of the weirdest camps on Earth!  The other film is a sequel to the first Carry On Doctor film where there is a discovery of a instant slimming potion that a doctor (Jim Dale) has found that the other Doctors will stop at nothing to get the potion!   The extras on this set are a Photo Gallery and a promo for the Carry On films. 

VIDEO

The video quality is very good!  Film quality is quite good considering the age of the films.   

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Also here in mono but very clear!

Disc 1-  1.  “Carry On-Camping”-(1969)-84 mins

              2.  “Carry On-Again Doctor” – (1969)--85 mins

Extras

Disc 1: Photo Gallery (05:02)
            Carry On Promo (02:59)

           

 

Inspector Morse's Oxford DVD Review

Inspector Morse’s Oxford is an in depth look into the character of Morse and the writer behind it all, Colin Dexter and the locations that were used in the series of films! It also shows what a beautiful and interesting city Oxford really is!  The DVD is presented by Dr. Antony Richards who is an expert on all things Morse who also interviews the creator himself, Colin Dexter and actor Kevin Whately (Inspector Lewis) and producer Ted Childs.  This DVD is for the Morse fan indeed which will make a great bookend to the series itself.  The only extras on this disc are extended interviews with Kevin Wately, Colin Dexter and Ted Childs.   A well done documentary!

VIDEO

The quality excellent!

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Audio quality is in Mono.

Disc 1-  1.    “Inspector Morse’s Oxford”-with Anthony Richards (83 mins)

Extras

Disc 1:  Interview with Kevin Whately-(06:19)
             Interview with Colin Dexter-(02:57)
             Interview with Ted Childs-(06:22)

           

The Lieutenant-Complete Series Part 2 DVD Review

Warner Archive has released the remaining 13 episodes from this ground breaking series in “The Lieutenant-The Complete Series” Part 2.  Other series regulars include Richard Anderson (Six Million Dollar Man, Bionic Woman) as Lt Colonel Steve Hiland and Linda Evans (The Big Valley, Dynasty) as his daughter Nan.  Before the series premièred, Lockwood wanted to concentrate on Movies and ditch the series but was advised not to.  Robert Vaughn had an Oscar nomination under his belt and though he should have been paid more but was put in a series after this one that proved to the world that his popularity would soar with “The Man From UNCLE”!  Guest stars in this set include Pat Crowley (Please Don’t Eat the Daises), Nita Talbot (Night Shift), Jan Merlin (Tom Corbett, Space Cadet), Dennis Hopper (Blue Velvet), Don Marshall (Land of the Giants), Ted Knight (Caddyshack, Too Close for Comfort), Bobby “Boris” Pickett (Monster Mash), Chad Everett (Medical Center), Kevin Hagen (Little House on the Prairie), Joseph Campanella (Mannix), Robert Duvall,  Leslie Parrish (Lil’ Abner), Lloyd Bochner (Dynasty) and Denver Pyle (Dukes of Hazzard).  There were four actors that were used in Roddenberry’s next series Star Trek on this set.  There were three series regulars Leonard Nimoy, Walter Koenig and Majal Barrett and the other was none other than Ricardo Montalban (Space Seed, Star Trek II and Fantasy Island).   Two neat things about this set are the unaired episode “To Set It Right” that was never aired due to the subject matter with Star Trek’s Nichelle Nichols and the theatrical film that was made from the last episode of the series called “To Kill A Man” that has not been seen that often since its original release in 1964 called also “To Kill A Man” as an extra on this set!

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  The series was done on film and no restoration has been done, yet the quality is great considering the age of the prints!   Each episode runs approx 50 mins.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  It is also Mono on this set.

Disc 5-  1.  “Between Music And Laughter”-with Pat Crowley

2.      “Interlude”

3.      “Capp’s Lady”-with Nita Talbot

4.      “Green Water, Green Flag”-with Jan Merlin

Disc 6-  5.   “To Set It Right”-with Dennis Hopper, Don Marshall and Nichelle Nichols

              6.   “In The Highest Tradition”-with Leonard Nimoy and Majel Barrett

              7.   “Tour Of Duty”-with Richardo Montalban, Ted Knight and Bobby “Boris Pickett

              8.   “Lament For A Dead Goldbrick”-with Chad Everett and Kevin Hagen

Disc 7-  9.    “Man With An Edge”-with Joseph Campanella and Robert Duvall

            10.    “Operation-Actress”-with Leslie Parrish

            11.    “Mother Enemy”-with Walter Koenig

            12.    “The War Called Peace”-with Lloyd Bochner and Denver Pyle

Disc 8- 13.    “To Kill A Man”

                              

Extras

Disc 1:  None

           

Disc 2:  None

           

Disc 3:  None

Disc 4:  Movie-“To Kill A Man” (86 mins)

          

           

The Lieutenant-Complete Series Part 1 DVD Review

Warner Archive has finally put out one of the most sought after series that has rarely been seen since its original airing “The Lieutenant” starring Gary Lockwood.  The series was created and produced by Gene Roddenberry made more famous after this series ended and went on to create the forever popular “Star Trek”!  Part one consists of the first 16 episodes of the hour long series with Lockwood as William Tiberius (Yes you read it right!) Rice, a second lieutenant in the Marine corp, stationed at Camp Pendleton as an instructor and his commanding officer, Captain Raymond Rambridge is played by none other than Robert Vaughn (The Man From UNCLE, Hustle).  Episodes during the series often reflected what Roddenberry would use in Trek such as Race Relations, equality, and the escalating Vietnam War to get his point across.  Guest stars on this first set include Bill Bixby (Incredible Hulk), Jack Albertson (Chico & the Man), Norman Fell (Three’s Company), Chris Connolly (Peyton Place), Greg Morris (Mission: Impossible), Rip Torn (Easy Rider), Neville Brand (Stalag 17), James Gregory (Barney Miller), Pat Priest (The Munsters), Barbara Bain (Mission: Impossible, Space:1999), Harold Gould (The Sting), David White (Bewitched), Kenneth Tobey (It Came From Beneath The Sea), Ed Asner (Lou Grant), Katherine Ross (Butch Cassidy & Sundance Kid), Ted Bessell (That Girl!), Sharon Farrell (Hawaii Five-O), John Hart (The Lone Ranger) and Eddie Albert (Green Acres).  There were three actors that were used in Roddenberry’s next series Star Trek on this set.  There were Michael Strong and Sherry Jackson (What Are Little Girls Made Of?) and Madlyn Rhue (Space Seed). 

There are no extras on this set.

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  The series was done on film and no restoration has been done, yet the quality is great considering the age of the prints!   Each episode runs approx 50 mins.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  It is also Mono on this set.

Disc 1-  1.  “A Million Miles From Glory”-with Bill Bixby

2.      “Cool of the Evening”-with Jack Albertson, Norman Fell and Michael Strong

3.      “The Proud & The Angry”-with Greg Morris and Rip Torn

4.      “The Two Star Giant”

Disc 2-  5.   “A Very Private Affair”-with James Gregory

              6.   “To Take Up Serpents”-with Pat Priest

              7.   “A Touching of Hands”-with Barbara Bain and David White

              8.   “Captain Thomson”-with Kenneth Tobey

Disc 3-  9.    “Instant Wedding”

            10.    “A Troubled Image”-with Ed Asner

            11.    “Fall From A White Horse”-with Katherine Ross

            12.    “Alert”-with Ted Bessell and Sharon Farrell

Disc 4- 13.    “The Art of Discipline”

             14.    “The Alien”-with John Hart and Madlyn Rhue

             15.   “O’Rourke”-with Eddie Albert

             16.   “Gone the Sun”-with John Anderson and Sherry Jackson

                              

Extras

Disc 1:  None

           

Disc 2:  None

           

Disc 3:  None

Disc 4:  None

          

           

THE NAKED TRUTH DVD REVIEW

VCI has brought out the very funny and British classic “The Naked Truth” about a scandal rag publisher that blackmailed well known people.  The well known people came together and are going to take care of the blackmailer!  One of Peter Sellers’ first performances!    The movie stars Peter Sellers (Pink Panther Flims), Terry Thomas (Munsters Go Home) and Peggy Mount (Bless This House).  Great acting performances all around!  The film was produced in 1957, six years before Sellers would be forever known as Inspector Clouseau in the “Pink Panther” franchise!  There is a photo gallery as an extra on this disc.

VIDEO

The quality is quite good considering the age of the print.       

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Audio quality is also in 5.1!

Disc 1-  1.    “The Naked Truth”-with Peter Sellers, Terry Thomas and Peggy Mount- 88 mins

Extras

Disc 1:  Photo Gallery (00:54)

           

Never Let Go DVD Review

VCI has brought out on DVD one of only a few films that show a darker side of Peter Sellers in a drama entitled “Never Let Go!” where he plays a ruthless crime boss!  The film actually stars Richard Todd (The Dambreakers) as John Cummings, a salesman that loses everything but before all that, buys a car he can’t pay for it which then the car is stolen and tries to get it back!  Elizabeth Sellars (The Barefoot Contessa) plays his wife.    Interesting to see Sellers in a sadistic role!  The film was produced in 1960.  There is a photo gallery and an original trailer.

VIDEO

The quality is quite good considering the age of the print.        

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Audio is also in 5.1!

Disc 1-  1.    “Never Let Go”-with Peter Sellers, Richard Todd and Elizabeth Sellars-87 mins

Extras

Disc 1:  Photo Gallery (02:00)
             Original Trailer (02:31)

           

 

The Red Hand Gang-Complete Series DVD Review

The Red Hand Gang was a Canadian children’s series that was on the NBC Saturday morning line and was very popular in the UK as well!  The series starred three up and coming stars in their own right.  They are kid crime solvers and their trademark was to leave a red hand print when the mystery was solved!  Matthew Laborteaux (Little House on the Prairie) as Frankie, James Bond III (School Daze) as Doc, Jolie Newman as Joanne, the late Johnny Brogna as Lil’ Bill and J. R. Miller (Amityville Horror) as J. R.  The series ran for 1 season for a total of 13 episodes from 1977 to 1978.  Guest stars on the series were Anthony Zerbe (Papillion), Van Williams (The Green Hornet), Sorrell Booke (The Dukes of Hazzard), Walter Burke (Jack the Giant Killer) and James Hampton (Hawmps).  Also included in the set are Series and Episode Synopsis, photo gallery and the original American commercial break card.

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  Each episode is approx. 24 mins each.  It is presented in Widescreen.  There is a Play All feature. 

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Is also in Mono but very clear!

Disc 1-  1.  “The Face at the Window”          Story  1- “The Kidnappers

2.      “The Spooky Hideout”

3.      “The Search”

4.      “Beware of the Red Hand Gang”

5.      “The Mystery Boat”

Disc 2-  1.   “The Man in the Mask”             Story  2- “The Jewel Heist”

2.        “The Missing Jewels”

3.        “Search & Rescue”

4.        “Doc’s Big Idea”

5.        “The Photo Clue”                     Story 3-  “The Museum Robbery

6.        “Monkey Business”

7.        “Devil’s Canyon”

Extras

Disc 1: Series Synopsis- (Text Only)

            Episode Synopsis-(Text Only)

            Photo Gallery (16 pictures)

            Original American Commercial Break Card (00:03)

Disc 2:   None

Sherlock-Season 2 DVD Review

Sherlock-Season 2 is now available through BBC Warner Home Video.  A contemporary take on the Sherlock Holmes legend with a new man in the head role with a perfectly Victorian name of Benedict Cumberbatch!  What a name!  The second season is a darker, face paced adventure romp set in present day London.  The series is co created by the present producer of Doctor Who Steven Moffatt and the other co creator is a writer and actor of Doctor Who and the League of Gentlemen, Mark Gatiss.  The series also stars Martin Freeman (The Office UK, Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy-The Movie) as Holmes’ trusted friend, Dr.John Watson.  There are 3 stories that are retold here with a twist that are “A Scandal in Belgravia”, “Hounds of the Baskerville” and “The Reichenbach Fall”.  This 2-disc set comprises the 3 episodes along with extras such as Audio Commentary on all three episodes, an a behind the scenes of the season.

There is supposed to be a third season in the spring of 2012.  Please visit www.bbcamericashop.com for more information.

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  The total 3 episode run is 270 minutes long.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  It is also available in 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound.

Disc 1-  .  “A Scandal in Belgravia”- (88 mins)

                “Hounds of Baskerville”-with Russell Tovey and Clive Mantle (88 Mins)

 Disc 2-    “The Reichenbach Fall”- (89 mins)

Extras

Disc 1: Audio Commentary by the cast & crew on both episodes

Disc 2:  Sherlock Uncovered-Behind the Scenes (19:03)

           

Sarah Jane Adventures-The Fifth Season DVD Review

Sarah Jane Adventures-The Complete Fifth and Final Season is now available for the first time on DVD from BBC Warner Home Video. This season is the last season of the series for the untimely and sudden death of its star, Elizabeth Sladen! There are 3 two part adventures before Sladen was taken too ill to the finish out the season.  The three stories were “Sky” about an alien child that was given to Sarah to take care of and then “The Curse of Clyde Langer about a curse from an ancient God that brings aliens again to Earth and finally “The Man Who Never Was” about a man who has invented himself as a hologram which is actually run by aliens known as the Skullions that want to take over the Earth! Guest stars on this season are from the story "The Man Who Never Was" with Peter Bowles (To The Manor Born) and James Dreyfus (The Thin Blue Line).   The only extra on this set is a short tribute to Elizabeth Sladen called “Goodbye Bannerman Road”.  She will be missed.  I had the pleasure to meet Elizabeth Sladen at a Who convention back in 1983.

VIDEO

The video quality is wonderful!  Digitally remastered and restored for the first time on DVD.  Each episode runs approx 23 mins each.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Is also in Mono but very clear!

Disc 1-  1.  “Sky Pt 1”

2.      “Sky Pt 2”

3.      “The Curse of Clyde Langer Pt 1”

4.      “The Curse of Clyde Langer Pt 2”

5.      “The Man Who Never Was  Pt 1”-with Peter Bowles

6.      “The Man Who Never Was  Pt 2”-with James Dreyfus

Extras

Disc 1: “Goodbye Bannerman Road-Remembering Elizabeth Sladen”-Short Tribute (18:57)

           

Doctor Who-The Seeds of Death DVD Review

The Seeds of Death-Special Edition, the fifth story of the sixth season of Patrick Troughton as the Doctor is now available through BBC Warner Home Video.  The story starts in the future where everything, food, people and supplies are transported by T-Mat, a Star Trek-type transporter device, but it breaks down and the Earth is crippled by shortages as the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe land on a relay station on the Earth’s Moon where they soon find out the in their second appearance, The Ice Warriors take over the T-Mat and plans to use it to invade the Earth!   This story is also the fourth complete story of the Patrick Troughton Doctor to survive the purging from the BBC in the 1970’s.  This 2-disc set has as usual, a plethora of extras!   There is a audio commentary with Frazer Hines, Wendy Padbury and Director Michael Ferguson, a making of documentary and a few featurettes, a photo gallery and a coming soon trailer.  Only extra that is not on this special edition is the New Zealand Censored Clips.  One of the better iconic Doctor Who stories.

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  The performance was VidFired for the original video look.  The total story is approx. 146 minutes long.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  It is also Mono on this set.

Disc 1-  1.  “The Seeds of Death”-with Patrick Troughton, Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury (146 mins)

                    Episode One (23:12)

                    Episode Two (24:22)

                    Episode Three (24:48)

                    Episode Four (24:56)

                    Episode Five (24:51)

                    Episode Six (24:32)      

               

Extras

Disc 1: Audio Commentary by Wendy Padbury (Zoe), Frazer Hines (Jamie) and Director Michael Ferguson
            Coming Soon-(01:36)-Death to the Daleks

Disc 2: Lords of the Red Planet-Making of (28:30)
            Sssowing the Ssseedsss (24:04)
            Monster Masterclass (03:44)
            Monsters Who Came Back For More! (16:26)
            Photo Gallery (04:29)
            Tardis Cam # 6 (00:58)
            PDF Materials
            Subtitles

French Fields-The Complete Series DVD Review

French Fields-The Complete Series is now available for the first time on Region 1 DVD through Acorn Video. The show stars Julia McKenzie as Hester Fields and Anton Rodgers as her husband William. Hester is a housewife while William works. This series which was one of the last to be filmed by Thames Television before they closed in 1992.  This series has William going to France for his work and Hester learning to integrate into the French culture.  The series lasted for 3 “seasons” of 19 episodes. Guest stars in the final two seasons are Pamela Salem (Doctor Who) and Nicholas Courtney (Brigadier, Doctor Who).  There are no extras on this set.  Not as funny as the first series but there are some gems to make you laugh!  Recommended.

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  Each episode is approx. 24 mins each.  It is presented in Widescreen.  There is a Play All feature. 

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Is also in Mono but very clear!

Disc 1-  1.   “Chunnel Vision”-with Pamela Salem          Series 1

2.      “William The Conquered”

3.      “A Moving Experience”

4.      “Ou Est La Plummer De Ma Tante?”

5.      “Who’s Been Eating My Porridge”

6.      “Le Week-End”

Disc 2-  1.   “Long Legged Beasties and Things That Go Bump In The Night”           

2.        “Inside Story”                                                Series 2

3.        “Sheep May Safely Graze”

4.        “Home & Away”

5.        “Sale or Return”-with Nicholas Courtney

6.        “Double or Quit”

7.        “Noel Noel”

Disc 3-  1.   “French With Tears”                                      Series 3

2.        “The Merry, Merry Pipes”

3.        “Make For The Hills”

4.        “Surprise, Surprise”

5.        “Darling Daughters”

6.        “Hail & Farewell”

Extras

Disc 1: None

Disc 2: None

 

Disc 3: None

Carry On Double Feature Volume 2

The Carry On-Double Feature Collection-Volume 2 is now available through VCI!   The second volume are two films “Carry On Up The Khyber” and Carry On Doctor” starring Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Joan Sims, Jim Dale, Bernard Bresslaw and Peter Butterworth to name a few!  Both films are from 1968.  The first movie is about the British and securing the Khyber Pass with hilarious results and the other film takes place in a Hospital with new Doctors learning all sorts of ways to take care of the nurses…I mean patients!  The extras on this set are a Photo Gallery and a promo for the Carry On films.  There is a third set coming out soon!

VIDEO

The video quality is very good!  Film quality is quite good considering the age of the films.   

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Also here in mono but very clear!

Disc 1-  1.  “Carry On-Up The Khyber”-(1968)-with Jim Dale-85 mins

              2.  “Carry On-Doctor” –(1968)-with Frankie Howerd-90 mins

Extras

Disc 1: Photo Gallery (03:28)
            Carry On Promo (02:58)

           

 

The Diamond Queen DVD Review

The Diamond Queen is available for the first time through BBC Home Video.  To honor the 60 years the Queen has ruled the United Kingdom is a fascinating look at her years on the throne narrarated by Andrew Marr.  From the beginning of her reign to present, the BBC traveled with the Queen for a year and a half starting in mid 2010.  For 86 years of age, there is no sign of the Queen slowing down.  This 3 part documentary shows just how much she does in a course of a day and how much the British public loves her now for some 20 years ago, she was not well liked and there was talk of seeing just how important the monarchy really was!  Interviews with the Royal family and historians, this was a fast 3 hours that flew by!  Great stuff!  The extra on this disc is an official video montage of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.  Highly recommended for any Anglophile!

VIDEO

The video quality is great!  Episodes run approx 30 minutes each.

Audio

Was originally recorded in Mono.  Is also in Mono but very clear!

Disc 1-  1.  “Episode 1” (58:59)

              2.  “Episode 2” (58:59)

              3.  “Episode 3” (58:54)

Extras

Disc 1: Commemorative Archive Montage (06:00)

           

           

           

I'm Back!!!!!!!

Four years, 3 months, 1 week and 2 days later, I am back here!  I have run my own website since and will now run reviews on both website and blog again!  Good to be back!  Will post my first review in awhile on here sometime today or tomorrow.

David