It’s really been bothering me that Christmas is less than two weeks away and our weather forecast reads, “high’s in the sixties and lows in the mid-forties.” I’m sure some people are accumstomed to such weather in late December but southeast Missouri isn’t usually like this.
I’m ready for some cold weather. I’m ready for some snow.
Well, I finally purchased a TiVo. They finally offer a dual-tuner card so you can record two shows at once or watch live TV and record another show at the same time. The new sets are also broadband ready and no telephone line is required for setup. Two features that have been sorely absent since TiVo’s inception.
Anyway, I’m very pleased with the quality of the interface. It’s very easy to use and extrememly efficient. In just about 20 mintues I was able to set up all of my normal shows for recording. I also added a few that I could never watch before because they were on at the same time as a show I already watched.
I’m also really liking the TiVo Suggestions feature. Basically, you can rate the shows you like with one, two or three Thumbs Up/Down. TiVo extrapolates on this information and records similar shows automatically. I didn’t think I would be too keen on this but it actually seems to be recording shows that I might want to watch. Which works out really well since I work nights and daytime TV stinks.
So, if you’ve been thinking about getting one, I highly recommend it.
This is by far the best new show on TV. Each week the episodes get better. If you’re not already watching this show you need to start.
The Empire Strikes Back
Most of the sound problems were fixed or just not noticeable in Empire. The picture also looked much better than ANH. I’m sure most of this is because Lucas had more money for Empire so the quality is naturally better.
My only real complaint about Empire is the Hoth battle. During this sequence some of the visual effects are just terrible. Whenever you are in the cockpit view of a snowspeeder you can see the background right through the ship or person you are suppose to be looking at. Most of this probably isn’t noticeable unless you are looking for it, which I was. However, there was one shot were I could hardly see Luke’s face because of the thing that was behind him. I’m not even sure what it was because it flashed by so quickly. Other than that it was a good transfer.
Return of the Jedi
Once again there were really no major sound issues that I noticed. However, the picture quality wasn’t great. It was very grainy whenever there was a lot of black on the screen or the scene was very dark.
The subtitle’s for Jabba, Bib Fortuna and Boushh are missing just like the Greedo scene from ANH. While it is interesting that it didn’t play with subtitles in the theater I’m not that upset over them missing. After all, I’ve seen Jedi enough that I can fill in all those lines anyway.
Summary
Over all there are a few down sides to this set but I believe it is worth having. At least until we get the remastered version from the late 90’s that fixed all the sound & visual effects. But since that may never happen I’m glad I picked this up.
I broke down yesterday and picked up the new Limited Edition releases of the original Star Wars Triliogy. Best Buy had them on sale for $16.99 so I thought what the heck. I watched episode IV last night and it was nice to see it the way I watched it growing up.
Only three tiny nitpicks:
1. The picture & sound quality wasn’t what you normally expect on DVD. It was like I was watching a VHS tape. Really though I don’t mind that because it won’t degrade any further like a VHS tape will. Also it’s what I’m use to seeing anyway.
2. Greedo’s dialog with Han wasn’t subtitled. I guess when it first came out in theaters you had to guess what he was saying based on Han’s responses.
3. There was a distinct sound of breaking glass during the detention cell fire fight anytime they shot out the camera’s and such on the walls. The only reason I even mention this is because they shoot so many of them the sound becomes very apparent and sounds fake.
Even with all three of these nitpicks it is still worth having the version I grew up with on DVD.
Now, if George comes out next year with a 30th Anniversary Special Ultimate Platinum Super Collector’s Edition with all six movies and the THX re-mastered editions of the original trilogy release in the late 90’s, then I’ll be a little upset. I’m sure I’ll still buy it but I won’t be happy about it. :)
Stay tuned for my reviews of episode V and VI.