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DVD Shopping Bag: Twilight Zone Season 1 Blu-ray
A Dimension of Perfection! By
Robert T. Trate
September 07, 2010
The Twilight Zone Season 1 on Blu-ray Sept. 14, 2010
© Image Entertainment
It is September and the titles have returned to the DVD Shopping Bag. It was getting bleak there, week after week with nothing new in our favorite genres. That all changes right here right now because for the next few months the studios will be after us with all the summer, as well as, new Blu-rays of our favorite titles. I am going to jump ahead a week, because next week has something that all of you should either pre-order now or get the second it hits the shelves next Tuesday. The title is none other than the first season of The Twilight Zone on Blu-ray.
This is a show we all have seen and experienced. To simply be on the site says you have seen The Twilight Zone. The mere mention of the show breaks anyone into that conversation, did you ever see the one where… The show is a classic and what all genre television hopes to be. I know it has been on DVD and VHS in the past. I am sure many of you either have huge stacks of VHS tapes or collections of your favorite episodes on DVD. Image Entertainment and CBS Blu-ray have done the impossible by assembling every episode from season 1 in chronological order and supplied each episode with special features. Starting with commentaries, interviews and even isolated music scores (34 total). This is the definitive edition that fans of Rod Serling’s classic series have been waiting for.
Where does one begin with trying to dissect the entire first season of The Twilight Zone? I for one would stay up late and record them to VHS tapes as a kid. I loved watching Serling come into my darkened living room and educate me on just how powerful a story could be. In reading over the special features the feature that stood out above the rest “The Time Element”. This was the extremely rare, never-before-released unofficial pilot featuring William Bendix as Peter Jenson a man who believes he travels back in time every night he goes to sleep. His psychiatrist Dr. Gillespie (Martin Balsam) takes in his story and is our window into this man’s personal nightmare. It is a nightmare to Jenson because he goes back every night to Dec. 6th, 1941 in Hawaii. This is original pilot, that aired on Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse and was hosted by Desi Arnaz, and it contains that perfect Serling mix of the every day man stuck in this extraordinary circumstance. Amazingly enough this was an hour long episode and still contained its original commercial bumpers. I might as well mention Arnaz’s significant other turns up at the end as well. Not ever having seen this episode I thought I knew exactly how it would turn out. I was wrong. I consider myself a student of Serling’s having seen countless episodes over the years and 52 years later his original pilot still managed to be a huge surprise. I obviously won’t spoil it you’ll just have to wait to pick it up next week.
For picture quality I was willing to cut Image Entertainment some slack considering how old these episodes were and that they were on television. Image Entertainment might have miserably failed with their Time Bandits Blu-ray (see review) but The Twilight Zone is clear cut beautiful HD in 1080p. The quality of the picture is as if you are watching it for the first time in glorious black and white. I needed that first episode, outside of the unofficial pilot, to be something special. I picked the classic “Time Enough at Last”.
If you have never heard of this episode clearly you have never seen The Twilight Zone before. Henry Bemis (Burgess Meredith) is a mousey little man who wants nothing to do but read all day. His wife and his boss are his biggest enemies in the pursuit of his happiness but luckily for Mr. Bemis he has just entered into the Twilight Zone. The episode looked as if it was shot yesterday. I marveled at the fact how many times I had seen the episode yet felt as if each moment was as fresh as if I had never seen it before. Obviously, it is Burgess Meredith’s performance that keeps this a fan favorite. Image Entertainment placed a commentary by Marc Scott Zicree, a Twilight Zone Companion novelist, and an interview with Meredith that Zicree had conducted back in 1978. The interview only runs for 15 minutes over the episode but it is so clear that one can easily hear the ocean in the background. Meredith isn’t up on all his facts, due to his age and how long ago it was but Zicree keeps him talking long enough to make it worth it. Zicree’s commentary is quick, precise and to the point as he is squeezing something into every second of the episode. A great example of which is the number of episodes Meredith would do for the series as well as how many the director, John Brahm, would complete for Serling. Any fan of the series will be in awe with just how much extra information is here on these Blu-rays.
The complete details for The Twilight Zone season one on Blu-ray can be found on Amazon. You won’t find a better collection of special features for a series of this magnitude any time soon. Today TV series come pre-packaged with first looks and behind the scene specials and they feel stale. Image Entertainment must have known that they just couldn’t turn out a collection of episodes for The Twilight Zone. They knew it had to be something extra special worthy of taking us to that other dimension of both time and space. They successfully crossed us over into The Twilight Zone.
The Twilight Zone: Season 2 will be released on Blu-ray November 16th 2010.
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1. THX 1138 (The George Lucas Director's Cut) [Blu-ray]
3. The Player [Blu-ray]
5. Forbidden Planet [Blu-ray]
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8 Diagram Pole Fighter Starring Chia Hui Liu, Sheng Fu, Lily Li, and Kara Hui
The Black Dahlia [Blu-ray] Starring Josh Hartnett and Aaron Eckhart
By the Will of Genghis Khan Starring Eduard Ondar, Oleg Taktarov, and Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa
Catch a Fire Starring Derek Luke, Tim Robbins, Bonnie Henna, and Mncedisi Shabangu
Cause of Death Starring Patrick Bergin, Michael Ironside, and Joan Severance
Doc West (Widescreen) Starring Terence Hill and Paul Sorvino
For a Fistful of Diamonds Starring Abdel-Aziz Essayed, Fabrice Sopoglian, and Fabrice Vilder
In Cold Blood [Blu-ray] Starring Robert Blake, Scott Wilson, John Forsythe, and Paul Stewart
John Rabe Starring Steve Buscemi, Ulrich Tukur, Daniel Bruhl, and Anne Consigny
The List Starring Ryan O'Neal, Ben Gazzara, and Mädchen Amick
Phantom Starring Ryan Carnes, Isabella Rossellini, and Cameron Goodman
The Phantom [Blu-ray]
The Prophets Game Starring Dennis Hopper, Joe Penny, and Stephanie Zimbalist
Road Ends Starring Dennis Hopper, Peter Coyote, Chris Sarandon
The Skeleton Key [Blu-ray] Starring Kate Hudson and Peter Sarsgaard
Sleeping & Waking
When Justice Fails Starring Jeff Fahey and Marlee Matlin
ANIME
Blue Drop: Complete Collection
Coyote Ragtime Show: The Complete Box Set S.A.V.E. Starring Brittney Karbowski, Chrisine Auten, and John Swasey
Full Metal Panic! The Complete series [Blu-ray] Starring Chris Patton, Luci Christian, and Hilary Haag
Full Metal Panic! Season One Starring Luci Christian, Chris Patton, and Hilary Haag
My Bride Is a Mermaid: Season One, Part Two Starring Todd Haberkorn, Juli Erickson, and Christopher R. Sabat
TREP (Tactical Rescue Evacuation Police) Starring Patrick Davidson
CARTOONS
Bugs Bunny's Howl-Oween Starring Bugs Bunny
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown [Blu-ray] Starring Peter Robbins, Christopher Shea, Sally Dryer
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving [Blu-ray]
CLASSICS on BLU-RAY
The Player [Blu-ray] Starring Tim Robbins, Fred Ward, Peter Gallagher, and Brion James
Tommy, the Movie [Blu-ray] Starring Roger Daltrey, Ann-Margret, Oliver Reed, and Elton John
COMEDY AND LOVE Mania Style
Killers Starring Katherine Heigl and Ashton Kutcher
Killers [Blu-ray]
MacGruber Starring Will Forte and Ryan Phillippe
MacGruber (Unrated Edition) [Blu-ray]
HORROR
Absolution Starring Mario Lopez, Richard Grieco, and Jaime Pressly
Braincell Starring Raine Brown, Joseph Zaso, Eileen Daly, and Billy Garberina
Ghastly Grabs Vol. 1 - 3 DVD Set (Sick and the Dead, Raving Maniacs, Invitation) Starring Patrick Cohen, Bill Vincent, Michael Tejada
Ghastly Grabs Vol. 2 - 3 DVD Movies (Gorno, Drawing Blood, Inexchange) Starring Lucas Corcoran, Robert Z'Dar, Sean Blodgett
Ghastly Grabs Vol. 3 - 3 DVD Movies (Killer Story, Pony Trouble, Cope) Starring William Smith, Robert Allen Wagner, Pat Thomas
Ghosts Don't Exist Starring Phillip Roebuck, Devon Marie Burt, Joe Hansard
Growth Starring Richard Riehle, Christopher Shand, and Brian Krause
Hatchet [Blu-ray] Starring Kane Hodder, Joel Moore, and Deon Richmond
SCIENCE FICTION / FANTASY
A Scanner Darkly [Blu-ray] Starring Keanu Reeves, Woody Harrelson, Robert Jr. Downey
A Simple Wish Starring Martin Short, Mara Wilson, Robert Pastorelli, and Ruby Dee
Apocalypse Starring Frank Zagarino, Sandra Bernhard, and Laura San Giacomo
Convict 762 Starring Frank Zagarino and Shannon Sturges
Dark Planet Starring Paul Mercurio, Michael York, Harley Jane Kozak
Doctor Who: The Creature from the Pit (Story 106) Starring Tom Baker and Lalla Ward
Doctor Who: The King's Demons (Story 129) Starring Peter Davison
Doctor Who: Planet of Fire (Story 135) Starring Peter Davison, Mark Strickson, and Nicola Bryant
Forbidden Planet [Blu-ray] Starring Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, Leslie Nielsen
Hansel and Gretel DVD and Blu Ray Combo Starring Jang Nam-Kyoung, Shin Eun-gyeong, Park Heui-sun
K-Pax (Collector's Edition) Starring Kevin Spacey, Jeff Bridges, Mary McCormack
Lost in Space [Blu-ray] Starring William Hurt, Mimi Rogers, Heather Graham, and Lacey Chabert
Jurassic Park III (Widescreen Collector's Edition) Starring William H. Macy, Téa Leoni, Sam Neill, and Alessandro Nivola
Mars Attacks! [Blu-ray] Starring Jack Nicholson, Pierce Brosnan, Sarah Jessica Parker
Matrix Reloaded [Blu-ray] Starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, and Hugo Weaving
Stardust [Blu-ray] Starring Charlie Cox, Claire Danes, Sienna Miller, and Ian McKellen
THX 1138 (The George Lucas Director's Cut) [Blu-ray] Starring Robert Duvall, Donald Pleasence, Don Pedro Colley
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Boy Meets World: The Complete First Season Starring Ben Savage, Rider Strong, and Danielle Fishel
Boy Meets World: The Complete Second Season
Boy Meets World: The Complete Third Season
Chuck: The Complete Third Season Starring Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Adam Baldwin
Chuck: The Complete Third Season [Blu-ray]
Criminal Minds: Fifth Season Starring Shemar Moore, Matthew Gray Gubler, Thomas Gibson
Criminal Minds: Season One-Five Starring Thomas Gibson, Shemar Moore, and Matthew Gray Gubler
The Guardian: The Second Season Starring Simon Baker, Dabney Coleman, Alan Rosenberg
The Office: Season Six Starring Steve Carell and Rainn Wilson
The Office: Season Six [Blu-ray]
Prime Suspect: The Complete Collection Starring Helen Mirren, Frank Finlay, and Tom Bell
Smallville: The Complete Ninth Season Starring Tom Welling, Allison Mack, Erica Durance, and Justin Hartley
Smallville: The Complete Ninth Season [Blu-ray]
Supernatural: The Complete Fifth Season Starring Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles
thirtysomething: The Complete Fourth and Final Season (Amazon.com exclusive)
BOX SETS
6-Film Horror BluRay Collection: Salvage / Mortuary / The Final Patient / Salem Witch Trials / Haunting of Winchester House / I Am Omega [Blu-ray] Starring Lauren Currie Lewis, Chris Ferry, Dan Byrd
Oliver Stone Collection: 4 Film Favorites (Alexander Director's Cut / Any Given Sunday / Heaven and Earth / Natural Born Killers) Starring Colin Farrell, Anthony Hopkins, Rosario Dawson
Steve McQueen Collection: 4 Film Favorites (Papillon / Bullitt / The Getaway / The Cincinnati Kid) Starring Steve McQueen, Ann-Margret, Edward G. Robinson
TCM Greatest Classic Film Collection: Hammer Horror (Horror of Dracula / Dracula Has Risen from the Grave / The Curse of Frankenstein / Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed) Starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing
TCM Greatest Classic Film Collection: Gangsters - Prohibition Era (The Public Enemy / The Roaring Twenties / Little Caesar / Smart Money) Starring James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, and Edward G. Robinson
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: 4 Film Favorites (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III / TMNT) Starring Patrick Stewart, Mako, Chris Evans, and Elias Koteas
Robert Trate has written the DVD Shopping Bag for 3 years as of today. He also writes the Toy Maniac for Mania. Robert participates in a pod cast that reviews movies, comics and celebrates all things geek. Check it out at You’ve Got Geek on You.com.
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Dang it! There goes more money I can't afford to spend, but I WILL have Twilight Zone on Blu-Ray!