Freaks and Geeks - The Complete Series

[echouphere]

The local release of Freaks and Geeks on blu ray from Via Vision only seems to feature one aspect ratio, unlike the US set which had both the original 1:33:1 and a 1:78:1 ratio. The blu-ray.com page and the JB Hi Fi website state that the local release has the original 1:33:1 ratio, but I had a look at a copy when I was in JB and the back of the slipcase lists the ratio as being 1:78:1. Via Vision's website says nothing about it at all.

Has anyone purchased it that can confirm the correct aspect ratio?

[micpp]

I was curious too so I emailed Via Vision via their website and got this response

Thanks for your e-mail.

I can confirm that our recent release of Freaks and Geeks: The Complete Series is presented in aspect ratio 16:9.

So yeah, I guess we don't get it in the correct aspect ratio. That's unfortunate.

[StrayButler91]

Considering the current $70 pricetag, including both of the aspect ratios would double that price. And if they included only the fullscreen version, they'd get complaints from the plebs who want their screens filled. So I can't say that I'm surprised.

[DawnShadow]

The Widescreen is opened up anyway, it's not cropped except for the pilot. Call me a pleb all you want but I don't even watch the 4x3 discs that were included in my purchase.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by DawnShadow

The Widescreen is opened up anyway, it's not cropped except for the pilot. Call me a pleb all you want but I don't even watch the 4x3 discs that were included in my purchase.

Which is a shame, since it was composed and shot for OAR 1.33 and looks way better without all that dead space on the sides just :filling the screen" with nothing. So, ok, pleb, sorry you don't respect the original art or intent since you want to "fill your screen." But it's funny that you are okay with the pilot being severely cropped just to make it "widescreen," which kinda means you don't care about artistic intent.

[kevin87]

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

Which is a shame, since it was composed and shot for OAR 1.33 and looks way better without all that dead space on the sides just :filling the screen" with nothing. So, ok, pleb, sorry you don't respect the original art or intent since you want to "fill your screen." But it's funny that you are okay with the pilot being severely cropped just to make it "widescreen," which kinda means you don't care about artistic intent.

It's not totally dead space, it's slightly out of the frame's main focus and offers more of the image, not like it's like devoid of actors and sets, as long as it's not production equipment then who cares? The show aired in 2000 so it was probably not in HD and probably only intended for 4:3 because that was still what most networks were doing at the time because that's the kind of TV set people owned, even networks offering HD didn't have everything produced in HD or widescreen and NBC was still doing pillarbox until 2006.

Though I never understood why they cropped the pilot, they could have just kept it in 4:3 even on the 16:9 sets. Apparently that's what streaming does... I watched the 4:3 pilot then switched to the 16:9 set for the rest.

[DawnShadow]

Originally Posted by kevin87

Though I never understood why they cropped the pilot, they could have just kept it in 4:3 even on the 16:9 sets. Apparently that's what streaming does... I watched the 4:3 pilot then switched to the 16:9 set for the rest.

It’s actually hardly cropped at all, the episode is still opened up like the others, it just has a bit of cropping whereas the others have none.

[StrayButler91]

There's no point arguing with Batesy. Bless him, he's so inflexible in his opinions and he's so entertainingly predictable