The Martian Chronicles Finally Coming to Blu-ray in 2018

[do.wayne.ClassicFilm]

Originally Posted by SpaceMind

I've looked on all the services I am a part of, does anyone know if this is available to watch online anywhere? I remember when this aired when I was a kid but I don't remember anything about it really. Not sure I want to blind buy it. I would like to watch it first.

Like you and a few others who expressed similar concerns, I wasn't sure about doing a 'blind' buy so I simply made a YouTube search and I was able to catch enough of this mini series in order to 'whet my appetite'.

I liked it! I'm looking forward to adding this title to my stable of classic television series blu-rays.

I heard about —The Martian Chronicles— mini television series back when I was in my early teens, but I never had an opportunity to watch it. The special effects are a little horrendous though, even when viewing in 'low definition' on YouTube, but I still like it anyway.
Preview it on YouTube... it's free!

[kevin87]

Never heard of this, and it would be nearly another 8 years until I was born when this was broadcast lol I'll check it out though.

Slightly OT, tvshowsondvd.com has been offline for 3 or 4 days... must be loads of maintenance to be done.

[Fnord Prefect]

Originally Posted by whotony

I still have the old dvd.

When I first saw this on tv so long ago I was disappointed because I read the book and it was so good.

Felt like the tv version was a bit dull and didn't have the same umph or impact as the book.

That said I'll by the bluray.

Exactly how I feel. Loved this when I was a kid but watching the DVD set when it came out a decade or so ago I was very underwhelmed, even more so than other childhood sci-fi TV faves such as V (which has some great segments), the original pretty horrendous on nearly every level Battlestar Galactica or even the BBC rabies pandemic serial The Mad Death.

It was on the whole dull and much of it looked cheap meaning I had time to notice the irritating liberties taken with the technology and science.

EDIT: Someone earlier on this thread wonders if World War 3 will get a blu-ray release. I'd definitely be up for that.

[Thomas Veil]

For younger viewers this is a tough sell because of the effects and 70's budget etc..but if you can get past that the story itself is I think played out really well. I always felt bad about the character of Spender and seeing what we are doing to our own planet makes his story even more timely. If your all about the whiz bang then this isn't for you but if you can look past that it does hit home.

[do.wayne.ClassicFilm]

Originally Posted by Thomas Veil

For younger viewers this is a tough sell because of the effects and 70's budget etc..but if you can get past that the story itself is I think played out really well. I always felt bad about the character of Spender and seeing what we are doing to our own planet makes his story even more timely. If your all about the whiz bang then this isn't for you but if you can look past that it does hit home.

I totally agree. The special effects are pretty bad, (even for the time period and television budget) but— 'I saw past that' and really started to enjoy the storyline. I haven't seen the entire series yet, just enough to know that I really enjoyed the story. This was why I had recommended others who had concerns about a 'blind buy' to either preview or watch the entire series on YouTube.

Special effects aside... I'm really going to enjoy taking in the entire 'Martian Chronicles' storyline on blu-ray. I'm worse than a little boy, I can't wait until it gets released.

[Pat Gleeson]

Originally Posted by YenRug

Does anyone know what the situation is regarding region locking with Kino Lorber?

I've emailed them directly and asked on their Facebook page but they've outright ignored me, both times.

I've had the exact same experience. I doesn't bode well if Kino don't even bother to reply to a simple question.

[saltysam]

Kino routinely lock everything as far as i know. Certainly the many discs i've had from them have all been Region A.

[do.wayne.ClassicFilm]

Deep Discount DVD is running another one of those 15% off sales.

The Martian Chronicles — blu-ray
https://www.deepdiscount.com/the-mar...s/738329224387

$21.99 — currently
-$3.30 — 15% off discount code: SPF15
$1.99 — shipping/ free if you order $25 or more
$20.68 — total 'with shipping'

It's on backorder right now.
I'll post a review on how it looks and sounds once I get a chance to view it.

[Jon_Acord]

I got mine today from Amazon. It looks and sounds great! Waay better than the DVD version. I'm happy.

[Si Parallel Universe]

I had no idea this had been upgraded to Blu Ray been hoping for an upgrade ever since the advent of blu ray.

[mar3o]

Got my copy today. Won't watch it until the weekend but I'll say the slipcase looks fantastic. Great artwork.

[glennstl]

I also got mine today from Amazon. I decided to watch each of the 3 episodes\ chapters over the next 3 nights. I watched episode 1 tonight and loved it. The story is terrific, especially what happens to the various astronauts. I also really like the slip case and reversible art work for the case.

Overall, glad I bought this and I look forward to the remaining two parts!

[glennstl]

Watched part 2 tonight. While I enjoyed it, I didn’t think it was quite as good and exciting as part 1. I still thought there are a lot of great scenes and plot development. The picture quality also seems very good to me.

Part 3, the final part, is tomorrow night !

[mar3o]

Very much looking forward to this one this weekend. I haven't seen this since it originally ran!. Well, I watched part 1 on DVD a few years ago and really enjoyed it, but got sidetracked and never got to parts 2 and 3.

[Automaton-X]

For those who've watched the new BD, feel free to chime in with a review. I missed this series when it originally aired so I'm trying to decide if I should blind-buy.

By the way, "special effects" on a tv budget don't bother me. I find most older stuff (50s, 60s, 70s) "charming" and not annoying. On the other hand, crappy CGI is much more "annoying", in my opinion, but I never get tired of monsters in rubber suits.

[mar3o]

Originally Posted by Automaton-X

For those who've watched the new BD, feel free to chime in with a review. I missed this series when it originally aired so I'm trying to decide if I should blind-buy.

By the way, "special effects" on a tv budget don't bother me. I find most older stuff (50s, 60s, 70s) "charming" and not annoying. On the other hand, crappy CGI is much more "annoying", in my opinion, but I never get tired of monsters in rubber suits.

If it's just a review you need of the show itself, not the disc, there's probably lots of reviews online for the old DVDs and just basic sci-fi blogs that do reviews.

[CarlosMeat]

I just got this and I will start but certainly not finish it this weekend. I love Atmos and 4K but also good stories . It's nice when they occur at the same timer but....

[Al_The_Strange]

Received this set earlier in the week and have been watching it for the past couple of days. Saw it once before and I probably shoved my DVD copy in a binder somewhere. Read the book once. I remember enjoying the book quite a bit, and I believe the series carries over the stories quite faithfully. That makes it a must for sci-fi aficionados, imo.

I do have my quibbles though. Cheap SFX aside, I do think the pacing of the series is very herky-jerky. Some parts are awesome. Other parts drag. Some parts have a kind of cheesy pulpy charm. Other parts are stiff and dry. Can't say the whole thing is memorable, but there are probably more good parts than there are bland parts.

Very happy with the quality of the discs. Picture looks sharp. Grain fields look natural. Colors and clarity won't blow anybody away, but for something of this vintage it's to be expected. No complaints about the sound. I'd say very much on the same level as the Outer Limits Blu-Rays.

I also love the slipcover that came with this.

[Allen Voice]

The blu ray is an improvement over the 2004 dvd release in every way but one; there are a couple of scenes that end abruptly and go to black for a second (originally for a commercial break). Those scene transitions are smoother on the old dvd. The new blu ray is a definite upgrade otherwise.

[mar3o]

Watched part 1 tonight. It looked excellent for the most part. The contrast and black levels were kind of all over the place, but I think that is due to how it was filmed. Detail was excellent. Colors were very nice.

I really enjoyed it. It was slow by today's standards, but I was really into it. One segment in particular felt very much like a good episode of The Twilight Zone.

A bit of trivia: as a fan of the 70's British sci-fi series Space:1999, it was immediately obvious that some of the sound effects

[Show spoiler](mainly the martian weapon sounds)

were straight from that show.

Yes, some of the effects are very dated. Others looked pretty cool. I liked the set design and the music.

Looking forward to the rest of the series. I remember very little from parts 2 and 3.

Also, disc 1 had 3 small circular scratches further out closer to the outer portion of the disc. Not cool. Disc 2 was fine. My 3D import of Coco the other week from the UK had scuffs on 2 out of the 3 discs. My blu-rays and UHD discs of Stranger Things are all scratched up out of the case, and the replacement was just as bad (though that case is real screwy so it's not surprise). What are these companies doing to scratch blu-ray discs that have scratch-resistant coating? They're circular scratches on disc 1, so that tells me it's possible the storage tray did it, as if pressure was put on the disc in the hub as it spun.