I've had it with Millcreek

[libertyeagle20]

I have to vent a little here. I have absolutely had it with Millcreek. While I appreciate they bring shows to Blu-Ray at a "Budget" cost, their packaging is absolutely awful.

-That 70's Show: Stacked discs and I have 3 or 4 discs with episodes that skip

Recently I picked up a few of the "Ultraman" steelbooks. In some of those they stacked 3 discs on top of each other on a single spindle!! As of now, I have spent 15 minutes and still haven't even been able to remove several of the discs from their cases.

I don't understand why companies are so cheap that they stack discs like this. Doesn't it cost them more in returns than the extra $1-2 a set to improve the packaging? I've bought plenty of other shows where each disc was on their own spindle (X-Files, Breaking Bad, etc) and every disc was flawless. Millcreek really needs to update their packaging, it's ridiculous.

[garyd97]

Originally Posted by libertyeagle20

I have to vent a little here. I have absolutely had it with Millcreek. While I appreciate they bring shows to Blu-Ray at a "Budget" cost, their packaging is absolutely awful.

-Parks And Rec: They stacked multiple discs on top of each other. I have 4 discs with huge scratches and several episodes that won't play.
-That 70's Show: Same exact deal, stacked discs and I have 3 or 4 discs with episodes that skip

Recently I picked up a few of the "Ultraman" steelbooks. In some of those they stacked 3 discs on top of each other on a single spindle!! As of now, I have spent 15 minutes and still haven't even been able to remove several of the discs from their cases.

I don't understand why companies are so cheap that they stack discs like this. Doesn't it cost them more in returns than the extra $1-2 a set to improve the packaging? I've bought plenty of other shows where each disc was on their own spindle (X-Files, Breaking Bad, etc) and every disc was flawless. Millcreek really needs to update their packaging, it's ridiculous.

I don't think Parks and Rec is MillCreek.
Their DVD packaging for Married with Children and Roseanne is a travesty though.

[starsteam]

Only the Steelbook editions of the Ultraman shows use stack discs. The standard versions are flipper trays*. To be honest, I'm not sure why they chose to do Steels for those since it requires stuffing six discs inside.

*but despite that, you can still get a scratched disc that skips. And not just from Mill Creek. Shout has been bad with scratched discs lately too.
At the very least, you can try to contact them to exchange discs, as long as you've tested that the skips are unfixable.

[filmgenius89]

Bad packaging i can deal with/ replace.

My issue is their awful compression... That's the far worse issue in my opinion.

[slimdude]

Mills Creek Blu-rays and DVD releases were always shabby since day one, so It shouldn't be a surprise to anybody.

[steve_dave]

Originally Posted by garyd97

I don't think Parks and Rec is MillCreek.
Their DVD packaging for Married with Children and Roseanne is a travesty though.

Parks and Recreation Blu-ray is from Universal themselves, not Mill Creek. And Warner Brothers stacks discs too, their repackage of the Daniel Craig 4K set has stacked discs. Disney does it too.

[libertyeagle20]

I don't mind if I have to take out the discs and put them in slim cases. The thing that bothers me is that I buy a brand new blu ray show and the discs are scratched out of the box. As everyone knows, Blu-Rays are scratch resistant but one single scratch can cause issues. I can't be the only person that runs into these issues. Do other people just live with skipping discs?

[erlinmeyer]

Originally Posted by libertyeagle20

I don't mind if I have to take out the discs and put them in slim cases. The thing that bothers me is that I buy a brand new blu ray show and the discs are scratched out of the box. As everyone knows, Blu-Rays are scratch resistant but one single scratch can cause issues. I can't be the only person that runs into these issues. Do other people just live with skipping discs?

Some of us are lucky and haven't had scratched discs that cause skipping even with over 4500 still in my collection.

[Jay H.]

This is the first time I've heard of issues with Mill Creek. Hopefully it's just a one-time thing.

[meremortal]

Usually the complaint with them is over their encoding as some of their releases are reportedly even inferior to digital streams and quality is generally all over the place from each release to the next.

[Luke Dodge748]

I really love Mill Creek honestly. Mostly their single movie blurays, and I love that they are putting out a lot of shows that I really love having in my collection. But their show sets are not even that cheap for the packaging they produce. Luckily all the TV sets I've purchased from them have come in individual sleeves, but they are too expensive usually.

I'm sure if you reached out to them they would have some sort of replacement program?

[50strat54]

Given the price I just got the Ultraman steels for I’m fine with some imperfections.

I read through some of the Ultraman thread and I just watched the first episode in each steelbook. Ultra Q looked really great as reported and was shot on 35mm. I didn’t have a problem with Ultraman. I thought it looked good but got low marks in the review and from some people on the forum. Ultraseven looked very good. I’m happy with the purchase.

Mill Creek went all out on the packaging too.

I knew about Ultraman but I could never find it on TV when I was growing upin the Bay Area. Speed Racer was on and sometimes Kimba. I knew about Ultraman from my cousin who lived in LA. I looked for it but could never find it. No internet back then!

[libertyeagle20]

Just to be clear, I am OK with the imperfections in the steelbook (bent, ding,etc). Hell, I am even ok with some scratches if it doesn't affect playback. I am just not ok with scratches that cause skips when I buy a brand new movie. I think it could be avoided if they would just stop stacking discs on top of each other.

[50strat54]

I just saw an unboxing of the standard edition and each disc is in its own tray in a big bluray case. Of course it costs double what I just paid for the steelbooks.

Regarding skips and freezes, I usually just grin and bear it in these TV boxes. On an individual movie I will check it out on another player I have. Most times the disc will play on a different player.

If I hear of a replacement program, I usually sign up like Dune 1984 from Arrow.

Edit: I just tried the put your fingers under the last disc and with my other finger on my left hand I put pressure on the hub and lifted all the discs at once and it worked. Check the unboxing video in the steelbooks thread Libertyeagle80

[eas8]

I stopped buying from them when I realized they shoved television series in a case in separate envelopes

[sonicyogurt]

Originally Posted by 50strat54

and lifted all the discs at once and it worked.

Lifting all the discs at once from the hub has been my go-to for the Mill Creek Ultra steelbooks, and I haven't had any problems.

[RillIris]

Originally Posted by sonicyogurt

Lifting all the discs at once from the hub has been my go-to for the Mill Creek Ultra steelbooks, and I haven't had any problems.

This generally helps for any case, not just SteelBooks, that use stacked disc. After taking them out 4 or 5 times it’s also usually much easier at that point to remove even a single disc. Brand new when disc have only gone onto that type of hub, and never been removed, just pull all the disc off at once, works so much better to start.

[50strat54]

Originally Posted by eas8

I stopped buying from them when I realized they shoved television series in a case in separate envelopes

When the price is low enough I don’t care how it’s packaged.

[infiniteCR]

Zero issues with mill creek here for me with all mine.

[kevin87]

Originally Posted by libertyeagle20

Just to be clear, I am OK with the imperfections in the steelbook (bent, ding,etc). Hell, I am even ok with some scratches if it doesn't affect playback. I am just not ok with scratches that cause skips when I buy a brand new movie. I think it could be avoided if they would just stop stacking discs on top of each other.

Stacking definitely contributes to scratches, but seems like anything 2020 and later will be scratched regardless of how many discs there are or if they have one tray or multiple. I haven't bought a ton from Mill Creek but I have yet to have a serious problem with them. I've had a worse time with the big studios with their stacked and non-stacked discs.

Originally Posted by eas8

I stopped buying from them when I realized they shoved television series in a case in separate envelopes

I haven't had anything come in envelopes, it's always been normal BD cases. Unless I'm misunderstanding your comment.