Dark Shadows: The Complete Original Series (Deluxe Edition)

A FAN'S LOGSCARE DATE 120322: I have just received this ENORMOUS set. It will be like crossing a very VAST Desert, metaphorically speaking, until I come to that oasis, that cool mountain glade represented by the advents of Barnabas, Quentin, and Julia, but the initial plot lines, story arcs, and characters should give a background as to how a superhero vampire will fit in, of how he came to fight certain evils, to protect and save his kinsmen, his kinswomen, a VAST saga indeed. Almost nine months of the series, before Barnabas shakes 'em all on down. I do very much like the fact that thus far, these are fairly immaculate VIDEO TAPE transfers, rather than kinescopes. Stay tuned, folks, for updates.SCARE DATE 120622: Until Barnabas, Julia, and Quentin come along, Burke and Victoria are pretty much the anchors of the show. I'm surprised that Mitchell Ryan didn't get more Leading Man roles in his career. Burke may have been a swashbuckling buccaneer rogue, but I found him very likeable, and it was a shame that he and Barnabas didn't really get along, later on. They really could have helped each other out. Sigh, oh well. I very much liked Mitch as Bob Mitchum's sidekick in "Thunder Road", and as Dirty Harry's doomed 'Cycle cop buddy Charlie McCoy, in "Magnum Force". Burke pretty much does it all, amongst the early characters, and how he became David's big buddy, which was never easy to achieve, with this very testy lad, plus I tripped on Burke's very stylish wardrobe. The quality of these videotape transfers is amazing; it's simply like the show was taped just yesterday. Fingers crossed, I don't really see yet, what MPI has to apologize for.SCARE DATE 120922: I found it interesting, that in some of the Interviews included as Bonus Materials, there sere serious objections raised towards the late Anne Rice, and her "Vampire Chronicles". Perhaps Bram Stoker might have raised objections towards "Dark Shadows" (Plagiarism?)! Sigh, oh well. Along with Barnabas, Lestat was a very fun vampire to hang out with, and I could identify with him as much as I identified with Barnabas. Barnabas did not really enjoy being a vampire, though he learned to use his super powers to their best advantage; Lestat, after an adjustment period, learned to enjoy his vampirism to its fullest extent, and wouldn't have it any other way, and I loved how Ms. Rice matured her #1 character.Dan Curtis hired some very striking beauties to play in the series. I don't think that I was the only lad back then, to have developed a HARD CRUSH on "Sandy" (Alexandra Moltke), "Kathy" (Kathryn Leigh Scott), Nancy, Terry, Lara, and Kate (Jackson)!!And, had the TV Revival of the early '90's prospered in the Ratings, it's possible that Dan Curtis could have hired Hart Bochner--"Byron Henry" from Dan Curtis' "War and Remembrance"--to play Quentin, opposite Ben Cross.SCARE DATE 121422: With these earlier shows, somehow the Second Unit work gives a better depiction of the Old House. For the Eighteenth Century, the more Northerly and Easterly one went, the less commonly the Greco-Roman Federal architectural style occurred. In fact the Old House seems more like the style of the Antebellum Plantation Deep South, what with a broad and wide wrap-around verandah, somewhat diminishing the main shell of the building. I feel like I might as well be in Tara or Twelve Oaks. But, I won't quibble all that greatly, because the ways in which it was photographed, it still serves the purpose in which it was intended.SCARE DATE 12272022: I wished that I hadn't discovered this, but the majority of this series was in jeopardy of being lost, destroyed. I'll explain: In the earlier Syndication Cycles from the '70's to the mid-'80's, starting with Maggie Evans' astonishing reappearance in the Blue Whale tavern, EVERY episode was as it was originally broadcast, IN COLOR, crisp, well-defined, vivid color. Then, there was a gap in recycling the Syndications, until about the earlier part of this century, when the SyFy Service picked it up for re-broadcast. Admittedly, I didn't watch that Re-Syndication cycle, so that I couldn't properly evaluate any potential deterioration of the original media. But, in this DVD set, thus far, from that Landmark Episode mentioned, almost half of the episodes are done in grainy and jerky Black & White Kinescope, when I recall from the earlier Syndication runs, were IN COLOR, as if they were recorded, shot, just yesterday. I believe now that the Masters were stored under highly substandard conditions, where a number WERE LOST, and they had to fall back on the Kinescopic backups. There had to have been some Legal/Copyright Issues, back then, that could as likely as not, would have permanently prevented ANY POSSIBLE REBROADCAST, or recording for general public consumption (Beta, Laserdisc, VCR, DVD, and-or Blu-ray). What a TERRIBLE loss it would have been, to lose "DARK SHADOWS", in its entirety, permanently!

Good quality, and hours of entertainment. Also fast shipping.

I have just started disc 4. There are many discs to see in this collection. So far, I am well pleased with this purchase.

With hundreds of reviews, what can I add?I'd been watching the entire series on rip-off copies from China for four years. I didn't know they were "bootleg" copies until they arrived. About 15% of the discs did not work so I was always going to youtube to see the issues I couldn't see from my collection.When originally aired, I watched it after school in 5th and 6th grade. Running home to see it was a must.Besides the great casting, the great set designs, and storylines, I firmly believe that the music written for this show was very important in its success. I think the first year before Barnabas arrives is fantastic, though I understand at the time before Barnabas emerged in the storyline that the show was on shaky ratings. Maybe the music helped it get it through the first year? The music is excellent. I also have the five CD collection of all the soundtrack music from the series. (It's actually an 8 cd collection as pointed out by a comment to this post.)If you were to start watching this series on the wrong episode you could get the idea that it's cheesy and cheap. But being a live show, day after day and at the hazards of cast changes and tight budgets there are bound to be lulls in the story lines as they develop, mature, and then shift to the next storyline. The entirety of the series has a remarkable relevance to many basic plots and many details which intertwine and remain relevant to storylines way down the timeline. This is what makes the entire series so enjoyable to watch, the global relationship between all the storylines and changes.Despite the occasional times of flatness in story, the overall development of each time period or storyline successfully builds to an exciting and complicated intersection of plots before being thrust into a new time setting. What is really remarkable is the excellent acting carried on day after day, the excellent cast of theatrical personnel (as opposed to TV actors), the superbly excellent set designs and the remarkable special effects that they carried off on such a limited day to day schedule. The entire show is an important period piece because it is both genius and a beautiful example of the technology of the time. Both the black and white and the in-color shows at times look like moving paintings; this appears to be because of the very dramatic and creative lighting and camera shots along with the limited quality of television transmission at the time.I am not vampire fan, vampirism is not why I love this show. I love the show because it is high drama between the innocent - the afflicted - , and the enforcers of evil; classic good against evil at times much like a comic strip; but there is a strong dramatic identification with the human frailties of all the characters. The gothic setting is very appealing to me.I could make a long list of the excellent actors on this show and a short list of those whom had less finesse. The actors play many roles which plays into the plot(s) nicely and endears the viewer to the family that this troupe really is. The overall acting, frank and in presence as if on a stage, but with no re-do's nor long rehearsals like a continuing nightly two hour stage musical makes the performances and the entire series remarkable.Can you tell I'm a fan.......

Product is great thank you

I saw this show live when it came out and never saw all the episodes. The item is very cool, you open it up on its hinges that open on the long side. The inside looks like the inside of a coffin with the videos of a picture of Barnabas laid out inside. This was on a major sale, and it is worth every penny. It is more of a showpiece. Whoever designed the container was a genius. I am enjoying the show again. This is the only way to get all the episodes. Thank you, Amazon for making this available for purchase. This is definitely worth any price you can buy it for.

I first saw Dark Shadows when on vacation in the US back in the 1960s. I was about 13, and it made a powerful impression on me, probably because I'm one of those people who is addicted to atmosphere, having always loved gothic novels and stories. When my family returned to Toronto, I searched in vain for this remarkable soap opera, but couldn't find it on any station.Fast forward to about 2020, when I saw Dark Shadows listed on one of the streaming platforms, but it was only there for awhile, and didn't have all the episodes. It was great to sink into the strangeness again; the crashing waves on the Maine coast, the dark house and the Blue Whale pub in Collinsport.Then the episodes ran out, and it was a real drag, as I'd grown to love my visit to Collinwood before bed, which had led to some fascinating dreams.Then yesterday, I discovered that the ENTIRE series of over 1,000 episodes was available on DVD in an amazing coffin. I justified buying it, even though it was fairly pricey, but not when you consider there's enough here to watch for a few years. My 71st birthday is approaching in less than two weeks, so I splurged and bought if for myself.Amazingly, Amazon put it in my hands in less than 24 hours. I had grown concerned when I'd read about knock-offs that were poor quality, but fortunately my set of Dark Shadows DVDs passed all the tests for being the real deal.All that to say, I'm back!Tonight I'll be back in Collinwood with the well-loved characters I remember, and many I haven't yet met. If you're toying with the idea of getting this amazingly high-quality set of discs, just do it. I cannot wait for when the chill nights are over the Maine coast as the rain pours, the thunder crashes, and the fog rolls in again, just like it did when I was a boy.

SUPER !!!!!!! Ottimo acquisto!!!! Pienamente soddisfatta!!!!!

Fantastic release, contains all 1445 episodes of this classic series, over 400 hours of episodes. Includes loads of special features which include interviews with the cast, behind the scenes, and reunions and fans of the series

My wife has been a fan since day one and this was always a dream. Well dreams come true. The way this is presented, the video quality etc is simply beautiful. Well worth the price when you discover just what is in this set.

まだ内容は見ていませんが これだけの連作を１つにまとめたのが凄い。またこれを350円の送料で届けたImportcdcが凄い。