I am a happy boy!

My Heroes DVD set just came from Amazon! Woo hoo!!!

Heroes - Season One

What am I going to be doing for the next several night? Watching all the epsiodes back to back!

 

Reasons why there is DVD Piracy, First in a Series

So, I am a big fan of Twin Peaks. I have every episode on tape. I loved it.

I bought the first season on DVD either at the same time, or just after, I bought my first DVD player. It is legendary for being missing the pilot episode, arguably the best episode  Yes, I was chagrined, but I figured that they would release the pilot on a separate DVD or something.

Earlier this year brought us the second season of Twin Peaks on DVD. Still no pilot episode. But I still naively thought that the pilot would come out on a separate DVD or something.

They went with "Or Something".And that "or something" is

 

Twin Peaks - The Definitive Gold Box Edition (Seasons 1 & 2, Pilot)

Yes, they have come out with a definitive edition. A definitive GOLD BOX edition to be exact. As you can see, it has both seasons and the pilot.

This is just wonderful. Now, if I want to get my grubby paws on the pilot. I have to pay a MSRP of $99.99, twice what I paid for BOTH of the previous season sets COMBINED,.

And people wonder why there is DVD piracy?

Let's not parce words here, stealing is stealing. But can you see where DVD Pirates are feeling justified in what they do? Isn't what Paramount Home Video doing a form of thievery? Making hardcore fans shell out another $100 just to get the pilot (well, two versions of the pilot, the domestic and the foreign versions) and a few more bells and whistles? 

Will I get this? Yeah, probably. But not right when it comes out. I'll put it on my birthday/christmas list in the hopes that my wife will pick it up. And if she doesn't then I'll wait until the price drops or it goes on sale.

QotD: Luxury Wish List

If money were no object, which five luxury items would you rush right out and buy? 
Submitted by lorilyn.

I am going to cheat here a little bit. I hope that's okay.

1. I would buy land here and in Nepa and build mansions in both locations. Lots of guest rooms for my out of town friends to sleep over. And comic vaults.
2. I would hit Best Buy on New Release Tuesday's and load up on all the new CD's and DVD's that came out. And then I'd do the same at Barnes & Nobles for books.
3. I would buy every comic I needed to complete all the sets I currently am collecting.
4. I would hit up Amazon.com for all the CD''s, DVD's and Books I always wanted but never could afford.
5. I'd buy some more land and build the Bracken Theater Company of Wilkes-Barre a state-of-the-art theater to call their home. And I would force them to do at least one of my plays a year.

 

Things that annoy me, Vol 1: When companies try to get me to pay twice for something.

Hi,

Did I lose you guys with the two consecutive weeks of American Idol posts? I promise that won't happen again. Let me try to get you back with ranting about something that irks me.

I don't like it when people try to get me to pay twice for the same thing. Here are some examples:

Deluxe CD's: Beyonce has just released a "Deluxe" version of her B'Day CD which i believe features videos and a new duet with Shakira. Now, if you've been holding off on buying the CD, this is good for you. However, if you are a rabid Beyonce fan, you probably already bought the CD and now you you have to buy it again just to get this song. Because you will have to have that song.

So far, I think this is only the second time this has happened (I believe Usher did it a year or two back) but it's got to stop. But it's not as bad as when...

Bands put out more than one "Greatest Hits" CD: Now, I'm not talking about Elton John, Red Hot Chili Peppers or Billy Joel. If your career is vast enough that you can fill up two or more Greatest Hits collections with COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SONGS ON EACH ONE, then more power to you.

But take,for instance, Van Halen. In 1996 they came out with "The Best of Van Halen, Volume 1". Only 17 songs. No Janie's Crying, no Hot for Teacher. But, at the time, I thought that might be coming in a volume 2. It wasn't. Instead, in 2004, we get a two disc set that includes all of the hits from the first disc (minus the originals they did with David Lee Roth for that compilation) plus all the other songs that should have been included the first time around. So, again, fans who bought the first Greatest Hits had to but this double disc to get all the songs they missed.

And VH isn't the only one. Rick Springfield has about 5 greatest hits CD's. Bruce Springsteen has a Greatest hits and a three disc "Essential" set, even my beloved R.E.M. got the act, with a compilation last year that covered a lot of the same ground that their 1987 album Eponymus. Each time this happens the new CD has one or two different songs to make rabid fans pick up the disc.

Special Deluxe Edition Anniversary DVD's: This is how it happens. They release the DVD of a movie. Then, a year later, a version with bells and whistles. Then, some time later, another edition with even more bells and whistles. Then several years later, they come out with an anniversary edition with even more bells and whistles. Why don't they put all the bells and whistles on the first DVD? Because then people wouldn't buy five copies of the same movie on DVD.

Magazines with "special collectors edition covers": Variant covers used to be just a problem with comic books. Now magazines (and sometimes books) feature them as well. I think they do this for two reasons. For people who have to collect every issue of the magazine and to fool the not-so-observant into buying the same magazine twice. It's not so bad when it's like the most recent Entertainment Weekly where they had the three stars of the Harry Potter films on the variant covers. If you told someone to pick up the EW with the Harry Potter star on it, you'd most likely get only one issue. However, the most recent Comics Buyers Guide has two covers, one with "300" on it, one with Spider-Man. Luckily, I get mine through subscription, so I know I got this month's issue. But that could fool people who buy it on the newsstand, say, if they bought the 300 one and several weeks later came in and bought the Spider-Man one thinking it was next months issue.

 

Why do companies do this? To make as much money as they can. Why am I so annoyed by this? Because  I am the sucker who falls for this over and over. I have both VH CD's, both R.E.M. CD's and three different versions of Reservoir Dogs on DVD. I can't help myself. I am a completeist.  

What does everyone else think?

Bill