| ||||||||||||||||||||||
MALL.ShopperFavorites.com
Best Prices
Shopper Favorites Web Search |
DVD : Sliders - Third Season |
- An Excellent Series, and a Decent PackageI've had a fondness for this series for sometime and have been waiting for this set to be released since I first heard it was in planning. And while I haven't reseen the whole season yet, overall I'd say that it was worth the wait.
I have a few minor complaints: the casing is a little fragile, for one. After it arrived from Amazon, one of the rings to hold the discs had come out, so that my disc 4 won't stay in place properly, meaning that I'll probably have to repackage the set in my own cases. Seeing as they're already opting to use the easily-damaged doubled-sided discs, I would have preferred a sturdier package. I also didn't care for the previews of other shows stuck at the beginning, but they're easily skipped.
Other than that, the discs themselves are great: the image and video quality live up to the show. Furthermore, some nice bonuses are included in the set--it's definitely not just a slip-shod job put together in an afternoon to squeeze a bit more profit from the series.
I won't rave too much about the show itself since I'm sure that most of you reading this probably already know what it is. However, I will say that this season is definitely worth purchasing. It's true that, overall, the first two seasons are probably the best, but the third season is well worth owning as well. Despite a cast member leaving midway through, the show stays true to its original premise and still has plenty of creative, new ideas and intriguing episode ideas. In my opinion, this season also has a few of the shows best episodes (SEASON'S GREETINGS and the two-parter THE EXODUS).
If you're new to the show, rest assured that you'll probably like it. If you know the show, rest assured that you'll be getting it in a high-quality format that should live up to your expectations.
Rating:
- REVIEW THIS GREAT SERIES IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE REVIEWING!Regarding the dolt who gave the set a one star ('Four Geeks in a cheap Time Travel show'). Why review if you don't obviously watch or know what the show is? It never was time travel. You probably tried the show when it started, and failed to understand that it was about parallel earths (or you just couldnt grasp the concept of 'same planet, different dimension'). As for the 'poor CGI' - for God's sake, this was back in the mid 90s when CGI for TV was just starting, and heck - the vortex fx DOES look good, even now. You are unjustifiably bitter, friend. Go back to series that you understand, without 'geek' (that is, intelligent) characters, which won't tax your poor old brain too much.
Rating:
- Season three = A Mixed BagAt one time, Sliders was one of my favorite shows. The premise of traveling to parallel worlds made for an extremely interesting concept and the original cast of Jerry O Connel, John Rhys Davies, Sabrina Lloyd, and Cleavant Derricks all worked so well together. The first two seasons of the show were simply outstanding and rank up there with Quantum Leap with being some of the best science fiction I have ever seen on television.
Unfortunately, the momentum that the show had going for it, did not carry over into its third season. There are a few really enjoyable episodes in season three that will remind you of how great the show used to be like "The Guardian" in which the Sliders arrive on a world that is 12 years slower than normal, and Quinn takes it upon himself to become a guardian to his young double to change an upcoming event in his life. But overall, the enjoyable episodes were few and far between in this lackluster season.
There were a few reasons for the show's decline in my opinion. The biggest reason first and foremost was the decision to breakup the original group of cast members. Professor Arturo was the best character on the show in my opinion, and once the character was taken off the show, it signaled a turn for the worst. The dynamic that the original characters shared was now gone. There were also changes to the layout of the show, in which the settings expanded outside of San Francisco and opened up to the entire state of California. Not to mention the fact that some episodes would open with the Sliders already in the new world, without showing them slide in, a lot more people knowing about the technology of sliding in other worlds, etc.. It just felt like a different show. There was also a big change in Quinn's character as well. In the first two seasons, Quinn would use his mind to get out of tough situations. But in season three, his character was changed into more of a tough guy character that would rely more on his fists than his wits.
I was also really dissapointed with the extras that were offered for this set as well. There were no behind the scenes interviews or commentaries whatsoever. If you are a hardcore fan of the show, this set is worth owning just to complete the collection of owning the entire show on DVD. But with the acception of a few great episodes, this season does not even come close to the greatness that the first two seasons brought fans of the show.
3/5
Rating:
- Good, not greatThere are a lot of cool episodes in season 3, but I've noticed that there are several episodes that deviate from science and compelling hypothetical worlds into cheesy worlds of witchcraft, magic, special powers and such. Overall, I think the set is good, but not great.
Rating:
- Don't jump the sharkSLIDERS was unpretentious SF entertainment that combined both cerebral and cockamamie aspects while retaining the quality of the episodes throughout the first 3 seasons. Jerry O'Connell has never bettered his role as Quinn Mallory, the parallel dimension jumping amateur scientist exploring dissimilar earths. As a long time fan of the show, it's great too see such a debonair presentation of season 3 on digital. Understandably cut short after it's 5th season, Sliders found its legs and maintained a high-quality standard until physics professor Arturo (John Rhys-Davies) was killed off. A specific point perhaps, but for me, that was when the show `jumped the shark' and tried to imitate certain aspects of Star Trek and Stargate SG: 1. Regardless, this is the best season, showcasing all the various worlds, and Robert K. Weiss' narrative reached its peak. True, several episodes like `Exodus, part one' and `The Other Slide Of Darkness' slide too close to the overly-dramatic confusion corner, but for the most part, the writers kept it real, not relying fully on ostentatious SFX for plaudits. The special effects, were for the most part impressive, but there are some inconsistant sections. Unfortunately with some TV on digital, you get inconsistencies with the eminence, so to be a completist means buying a collection that ranges from exceptional to excremental. Take my advice, only pay money for the first 3 seasons and leave it at that. On the technical side, Dennis McCarthy's imaginative musical score highlights the most action-packed episodes while Ron Spang's `Ferrari flash' editing was spectacular. This is a must-have for SF fans, and great TV entertainment.
MALL.ShopperFavorites.com
|