Last week I bought The Cosby SHow: "Complete First Season". I played 2 episodes and they were only 22 minutes long each. These were the syndicated versions edited in the mid 1990's (they were edited in different places prior to 1995) and NOT the original 25 minute episodes (down to 24 minutes by 1988 an s 23 minutes by 1992 I hear). After reading other reviews the same conclusion has been made by others. I also hear Roseanne wills be released with the 1998 syndicated edited version and not originals.
The advantage to buying a DVD (and a VHS tape for that matter) were that movies and TV shows were the originals NOT edited versions. Why spend 30 or 40 or even 60 dollars for something you can record from your TV set and DVD recorder for almost nothing? Or even illegally download for almost nothing and actually get originals?
I returned the DVD to Best Buy due to disatisfaction of content. They told me I am about the 50th person to return this title. They stated the title has done pretty poorly when word got ount on content issues.
By the way other distributers have experimented with including one or two edited versions of a show mixed into originals. The Flintstones Third Season for example included all unedited versions with one exception. "The Big Move" from the Spring of 1963 is the edited syndicated version with no opening teaser (preview of show used in first 3 seasons...and half the time in the last 3...the other half of the time the opening scene occured before the opening). It ran only 22 and a half minutes rather than 26. The third season of Andy Griffith has replaced 2 original episodes with 2 edited ones...Except that most of the third season is Public Domain as are one of the 2 edited episodes. As a result one of the edited episodes is still available on a Public domain issue of the show undedited.
So do not buy an edited DVD like Cosby. If you do it will become common practice for edited versions on these sets.
As for Flintstones...I have the unedited taping from its days in syndication way back when. While one episode is bads enough its a situation I can live with.
By the way Malcom In The Middle & That 70's Show also clock in at barely 22 minutes...The reason though is that the originals were that short. By the mid 90's prime time shows were only 22 and 23 minutes long because stations and networks run more commercials in those hours than they did in the past. At one time a station could only run 4 minutes of ads..today its like 8 minutes an hour.
The advantage to buying a DVD (and a VHS tape for that matter) were that movies and TV shows were the originals NOT edited versions. Why spend 30 or 40 or even 60 dollars for something you can record from your TV set and DVD recorder for almost nothing? Or even illegally download for almost nothing and actually get originals?
I returned the DVD to Best Buy due to disatisfaction of content. They told me I am about the 50th person to return this title. They stated the title has done pretty poorly when word got ount on content issues.
By the way other distributers have experimented with including one or two edited versions of a show mixed into originals. The Flintstones Third Season for example included all unedited versions with one exception. "The Big Move" from the Spring of 1963 is the edited syndicated version with no opening teaser (preview of show used in first 3 seasons...and half the time in the last 3...the other half of the time the opening scene occured before the opening). It ran only 22 and a half minutes rather than 26. The third season of Andy Griffith has replaced 2 original episodes with 2 edited ones...Except that most of the third season is Public Domain as are one of the 2 edited episodes. As a result one of the edited episodes is still available on a Public domain issue of the show undedited.
So do not buy an edited DVD like Cosby. If you do it will become common practice for edited versions on these sets.
As for Flintstones...I have the unedited taping from its days in syndication way back when. While one episode is bads enough its a situation I can live with.
By the way Malcom In The Middle & That 70's Show also clock in at barely 22 minutes...The reason though is that the originals were that short. By the mid 90's prime time shows were only 22 and 23 minutes long because stations and networks run more commercials in those hours than they did in the past. At one time a station could only run 4 minutes of ads..today its like 8 minutes an hour.