What's the Time Period?
Woo! Exactly a month ago today since the Region 2 Series III DVD release. To celebrate, Ian's written some footnotes to our Series III DVD Review correcting things and adding additional information - and a short addition to our Future Extras article about the release. Not much of a celebration we know, but never mind - we'll have a IV Preview for you very soon, along with a substantial new Future Extras article detailing our hopes for the last four releases. Finally for now on the DVD front, there is this review of the release at Sci-Fi-London - good review, but pity about the misquote at the end. Unlike the first two releases, there seems to be a dearth of (independent) reviews on the net - let us know if you spot any.
A few other bits and pieces whilst I'm here. Stuck on the Red Dwarf adventure game we uploaded last month? Here is a badly-written solution to it. It's a walk-through with no descriptions, just a list of commands you need - if you don't want things ruined, I suggest you wait until I've written up a nice hints page. The game will eventually form part of a new Games section of G&T - as neither of us has a FUCKING DECENT PHONE, does anyone fancy reviewing Simulants' Revenge? We also note that the Online Arcade hasn't launched yet - we're still looking forward to it...
Finally, this week Project Wildfire will be launched - the promised revamp of the site that we've been meaning to do for ages, a section at a time. Once done, the second stage will get underway - another complete revamp of the look of the site to, you know, actually make it look nice and be vaguely accessible. So if you've got any suggestions, now it the time to make them.
Comments
http://www.directpublications.co.uk/reviews/dvd/03-11-03_RedDwarf3.htm
What review of Red Dwarf would be complete without a pointless crack at the hardcore fans (which doesn't even make any sense)? And whilst he's entitled to his opinion, having no mention of documentary is ridiculous - as is having no mention of the raw effects footage. (The same goes, to a slightly lesser extent, about the Isolated Music Cues, Smeg Ups, and the Photo Gallery.) I'm sure we could all slag off the extras to the release if we ignored two of the most important ones.
And his Food featurette criticisms (where I can see his point, but I think he goes way over the top) would have more weight if he acknowledged that it is just a continuation of an idea from the first two releases; he may well know this, but the absence of any acknowledgement seems odd, and detracts from his argument.
And hey, to me the episodes don't feel dated at all - stylistically, they feel far, far nicer than VIII...
Posted by John Hoare at December 17, 2003 11:02 AM
I don't know who wrote it, but frankly I've read
better reviews on the TOS webboard..Like you say, it falls very short of reviewing the release overall....
Posted by Cpt-D at December 17, 2003 01:36 PM
Hm, RDSUK has a new Red Dwarf IV image. With a silver foil, the new 2-disc logo, and "3 hours of special features" written on the front. It looks like the real thing. And, it includes the images of Ace and Dave "Space Mumps" Lister.
Posted by Austin Ross at December 17, 2003 04:02 PM
Hmmm - RDSUK is still showing the old image for me; and it's not my cache. NTL has been known to be a bit dodgy though; I'll see if it filters through.
Posted by John Hoare at December 17, 2003 05:34 PM
http://www.reddwarfshop.co.uk/images/Series%204.jpg
Yum.
Posted by Darrell Jones at December 17, 2003 05:46 PM
Ah-ha - after the cunting FOURTH refresh...
Nice, although I'm still not particuarly keen on the piccies - I think they look messy. I think all the pictures on all the releases could have gone, to be honest (the background and logo are lovely enough; I don't think the piccies are needed), but particuarly in this case. No wonder I hate the American covers.
Posted by John Hoare at December 17, 2003 05:51 PM
I agree with the Picture comments but the rest looks splendid, Maybe a single pic would look better or perhaps one of the ships but then again
as long as the spines look good together I'm more interested in the contents....All the covers so far have been eye catching which I suppose is their purpose, And the characters to 'Non Hardened' fans may stand out more than the Logo, so all angles are covered..
Posted by Cpt-D at December 17, 2003 11:28 PM
True enough, Cpt-D; I suppose the characters had to be on there really. I hadn't thought of it like that.
IV DVD Preview coming on Saturday, incidentally.
Posted by John Hoare at December 18, 2003 07:55 AM
That cover is ace! Snazzy new BBC DVD logo too!
Posted by Ian Symes at December 18, 2003 01:38 PM
Gah. I'm the only person to have reservations at all, then?
I'm sure I'll love it when I hold it in my hand, though. And the DVD cover!!!!!!1
Posted by John Hoare at December 18, 2003 02:35 PM
IV DVD preview, John ?
Posted by Cpt-D at December 18, 2003 06:31 PM
Here's another Red Dwarf Series III review: http://www.dvdanswers.com/index.php?r=0&s=2&p=r&c=921. It's an all right review, despite this quote: "the two disc DVD boxset is presented in a fairly unattractive green case."
And, of course, "Christ Barrie" has to be the best typo ever.
Posted by Austin Ross at December 18, 2003 06:53 PM
That review is dreadful - whoever wrote it knows sod-all about anything. "Ubiqitous canned laughter"? Fuck off!
And if I hear one more person moaning on about the spine I will hunt them down, grind them down and melt them down.
Posted by Darrell Jones at December 18, 2003 07:11 PM
Cpt-D: Similar to the III DVD previews I did - see the DVD section.
As for reviews, nearly every one I read of Red Dwarf is awful in some respect; "passable" is the best I've found so far. I've got a half-finished article here reviewing the Series I reviews; but it's so sneery and pathetic that I'm not sure whether to inflict it on everyone.
Posted by John Hoare at December 19, 2003 08:22 AM
Talking of Reviews, Nice to get a mention on the mother board in todays updates with G&T getting the last word :-)
Posted by Cpt-D at December 19, 2003 12:11 PM
"And his Food featurette criticisms (where I can see his point, but I think he goes way over the top) would have more weight if he acknowledged that it is just a continuation of an idea from the first two releases."
If whoever is in charge of the DVDs knows that the idea was crap, why continue it beyond its welcome on all the remaining DVDs to come? Continuity isn't a good reason. Why not just admit the mistake of those fricking featurettes, not make any more, and then rerelease series I and II in the future without them (with better stuff in their place)? "Hey, sorry, I realise purple is a shit colour to have painted your landing, but what the hell, it's done now, so I'll just keep going with the stairwell, hallway, and the remaining rooms. I'm sure we'll be able to justify the living room having bright purple walls if we just say we wanted it to match the landing."
Posted by John at December 19, 2003 01:57 PM
http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck01/dvd_covered_again_191203.html
Posted by Peter at December 19, 2003 02:18 PM
John (not Hoare) - nobody involved in the DVD production thinks that the featurettes are 'crap'. See young Ellard's G&T interview, in which he defends them:
https://www.ganymede-titan.info/articles/ellardinterview.php
Posted by Ian Symes at December 19, 2003 07:54 PM
Indeed. I'm personally not hugely keen; but the people producing the DVDs like them, and more importantly a large section of the fanbase like them (hunt the net for various reviews). I don't think we can really complain; what with the deleted scenes, isolated music cues, documentaries, etc there is plenty of stuff that I like; it's only fair that other people get stuff they like too.
My point in criticising the review for not mentioning I and II is that it sounded like the idea was completely new, or something - it just didn't read that well to me, and felt slightly ignorant of the release. A pretty pathetic criticism perhaps; my main problem with the review is really the way it misses out commenting on a load of the great extras, and then goes on to criticise the extras for being rubbish. This is just plain silly.
Posted by John Hoare at December 19, 2003 09:03 PM
Go to "http://www.dvd.net.au"
Click on "Reviews"
Click on "View all reviews"
Click on the letter "R"
Scroll down and you will get to a review for the "Red Dwarf I" DVD, a review for the "Red Dwarf II" DVD and a review for the "Red Dwarf III" DVD.
The website address never changes in this website.
Posted by Jessica Malcolm at December 24, 2003 01:07 PM
The address does change; but the STUPID website design means that the address bar never changes. Direct links (got from reading the Properties of the pages):
http://www.dvd.net.au/review.cgi?review_id=2180
http://www.dvd.net.au/review.cgi?review_id=2480
http://www.dvd.net.au/news.cgi?id=3967
I'd read the first two before, but the Series III one is new. Quite a good review, really; although I would have thought the extras are more interesting to the non-fan than he seems to think (the deleted scenes and Smeg Ups, especially). And why does nobody appreciate the music cues? They're great! Although I wish the proper version of the Series III ending music had been used...
Posted by John Hoare at December 24, 2003 03:50 PM
"Anorak convention."
He couldn't bloody resist.
Posted by Darrell Jones at December 24, 2003 04:06 PM
I saw that, but didn't want people to think I was being over-sensitive. Silly really; you're right, it's bloody stupid and irritating.
Posted by John Hoare at December 24, 2003 04:10 PM
Post a comment
<trackback>
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://admin.ofla.info/movabletype/mt-tb.cgi/98
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference 'What's the Time Period?' from Ganymede and Titan.