awful quality
The "official" DVD releases are such bad quality...surely the quality was better on TV..The dvds look like they were trapped from the Tv and not from the matter copies
shareThe reason the show looks the way it does is because of the era. Many shows in the '80s were shot on film and then edited on videotape, which gives it that fuzzy look. I have many '80s shows on dvd and they all have that same quality. It's a lot easier to restore film than video. It's unfortunate, but that's just the way it is.
Rejection is the greatest aphrodisiac.
I agree, the quality is barely sub-par on the dvd releases of the 3 seasons. In fact some episodes have lines running through them as if they are dubbed off a vhs tape, and the sound quality is literally 'all over the place'. It needs a proper restoration/release. It would be so worth it for this fantastic little series. On a side note, there used to be a 'gag reel' on you tube; that appeared to have been made by members of the crew for the cast to watch at a farewell, or something to that effect. Complete with a Chris Wiggins narration. The 2 things I noticed about the 'gag reel', (which is not on any of the dvd season releases as a bonus sadly) were 2 things: It appeared to be higher quality shot on film, not transferred to video, and in widescreen format. So, somewhere out there is the complete series on true film and in widescreen, just waiting to be restored and released properly.
shareSadly, it's a numbers game. There's just not enough of us fans and enough money for them to feel as if it would be worth spending their money to make better quality copies.
Still, I've long since lost my tapes of the episodes. Some of them were already showing the wear of time so, for me, it's at least a step up. :)
I would love some high quality blu ray release but unless the show has a resurgence or a remake or a re something to rekindle interest (another re word) it just won't happen.
What might have really gotten it going again would've been if one of the regulars hit it big after the series ended or showed up on a major series that hit it big. Then they probably would've done something big with the episodes to cash in on them. :)