Sick of Collecting

I'm sick of everything. I'm drowning in the vast quantities of stuff I've accumulated over the years. I feel like I need to purge myself of all my excess, like DVD's and video games. One of these days I would like to go through my entire collection of belongings and make a list of things I'd like to keep and things I'd like to sell.

I would first go through my DVD's. I have an enormous collection of DVD's and a lot of them I haven't even opened, much less seen. It would be difficult, because I like watching movies so much, that to give any up is heartbreaking. My ideal collection would consist of no more than 100 of my favorite movies and television shows (an entire series would count as one).

Video games are next. This would be a little easier because the NES would be the first to go. I never play it and all my 152 games are just sitting in my closet collecting dust. However, after the NES things would get a bit hairy because we move into hallowed territory with the SNES, considered by many the greatest gaming console of all time. I have most of the classics like Final Fantasy III (FFVI), Chrono Trigger, The Legend of Zelda a Link to the Past, and various others. I hope that many of these would be offered as downloads on Nintendo's Virtual Console, although I would hate to have to re-buy them all.

In my head, I look at my room and it is sparse. The only furniture is one desk with a computer, a bed, a dresser a book shelf and a phat 46-52" plasma/LCD TV adorning my wall hooked up to an awesome 7.1 surround sound system. That isn't too much to ask. Right?

The Ballad of Will Ferrell

We just finished watching Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby starring the incomparable Will Ferrell. Yes, it was funny, but not nearly as funny as I expected. I think as a whole, I was disappointed I didn't laugh until I cried. Something I tend to do.

First, let me talk about Will Ferrell. Will Ferrell has a spotty history of funniness with me. On Saturday Night Live, he was probably the funniest cast member of all time and then in 2002 he left to do films. To be frank, even while he was on SNL, his shenanigans on SNL movies were poor. Have you seen A Night at the Roxbury and Superstar? After leaving SNL in 2002, he started strong in Old School and Elf, two of the funniest movies I had ever seen. That's when things began going downhill.

Daily I come across people who think Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy is hysterical. I didn't, I barely laughed throughout the entire movie, and maybe I just didn't get the joke. At that moment, my faith in Will Ferrell as a comedic actor waned. Would he ever be funny to me again? Where did his magic go?

My hopes were set high when I bought Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby when I saw the many previews. I laughed hysterically when he named his children Walker and Texas Ranger. I laughed when he begged Tom Cruise to do his magic. I even laughed when his father made him drive with a cougar in the car. By the time I actually saw the movie, the jokes weren't funny anymore. To my surprise, those were the funniest moments in the movie, and they used all of them in the previews. This is not new for movies, they have to use their best material to attract viewers, but at least leave something to surprise us.

We began watching the movie and then paused it 38 minutes in. Mom and I both silently thought to ourselves that it was the longest 38 minutes of our lives. I thought that if the first 38 minutes of the movie was this slow, I couldn't imagine what the last 90 minutes would feel like. I almost dreaded it. To my surprise, the movie got better, and Ricky Bobby miraculously got smarter.

For someone I thought was as dumb as a box of rocks, his reasoning and common sense were sharp. There were some conversations he had with his friend Carl that had me wondering if this was the same character. Then in the next scene, he would be this bumbling idiot; I just didn't really know what to think. It frustrated me that they didn't stay true to the character throughout the movie.

This is where it gets sad. The moment I laughed hardest wasn't in the movie at all, but in the gag reel. It wasn't the gag that was funny but the line, "pale and paralyzed" that had me laughing so hard. Maybe if they kept that line in the movie, I would have walked away with a better feeling. Overall, it was a good movie. It definitely had its moments, and most importantly, I got the joke and was entertained. That's all I could really ask for.

Geeked Out

For a couple of weeks, I've been consumed with taking all my DVDs and ripping the disc image to a hard drive. To clarify, by ripping the disc image, I would be putting an exact replica of the DVD onto the hard drive. Naturally, this idea is just a piece of a much larger and complex puzzle, because there are many different factors that go into accomplishing this.

The idea goes far beyond just putting DVDs on a hard drive. Ultimately I want to access them or any of my data from anywhere in the world. When you look at it that way, you can see the logistical nightmare this could entail. That is a focus for another day and likely another generation of hardware. For now, I'm willing to settle for anywhere in the house.

To begin, I will require a new computer. The computer is the most essential part of the process; it acts as the foundation, and dictates future expansion possibilities. If I choose the wrong platform, I could be shutting myself down even before I begin. The question is Windows or OSX. The both have their strengths and they both have their weaknesses.

The major downside for Windows is I will have to buy a computer from a manufacturer who will fill it with a bunch of useless trial programs (AOL, Napster, etc.) that, in the end, screws up the entire system when you try to uninstall them. Also, Windows tends to have many cool features that never actually work as their intended, or at all. However, Microsoft has a clear vision that is in line with my own, so it seems only natural to go with them.

The trouble with Apple is I don't see their vision. It seems only recently that they are trying to enter into the living room with their AppleTV. A great concept, but certainly not on par with what Microsoft is doing with Vista and Media PC. In addition, Mac hardware is more expensive, Mac memory is outrageously expensive and their software is not up to the task. However, the stability of the OSX platform is outstanding, while it wouldn't be easy or cheap, there would be as sense of confidence that everything would work as it should.

Beyond the purchase of a computer, there is a small issue with hard drive space. I currently have 543 barcodes in my DVD collection. I say barcodes because there are collections of movies within a single barcode, like the seven Superman movies in the Ultimate Collectors Edition. Today, I went through my entire DVD collection updating how many discs each DVD had while filing DVDs that hadn't filed. After going through and counting all the individual DVDs, the total count came to 1,114 DVDs that would be ripped to a hard drive. This does not account for dual-sided DVDs, which would slightly raise that number.

Looking at the maximum capacity a DVD can hold (dual-layer: 8.5GB; single-layer: 4.7GB) and multiplying it by 1,114, I would need approximately 10TB of space. TB stands for terabyte, which is like a 1,000GB. This is assuming of course that every DVD I own is dual-layered and using all 8.5GB. I know this isn't true because the first disc of Superman Returns only uses 7.43GB and I'm positive I have single-layered DVDs in my collection.

The cost of one terabyte of storage is expensive, and then multiplying it by ten is ridiculously expensive. The least expensive solution is a $500 external hard drive from Western Digital, for one terabyte worth of space making the final total $5000. I get the distinct feeling that I'll have to wait 10 years before I can affordably accomplish this.

Other, cheaper solutions don't involve ripping anything to a hard drive. Sony makes a device that holds 200 DVDs and hooks up to a PC. I would only need six of these, and it's half the price at $400 a pop. The problem, it's not what I want, and it is not as versatile as having digital files. Until the next waves of computers come out with HD DVD and Blu-Ray drives in them, I won't know what I'm going to end up doing. It's all dependent on whether the hardware enables the software.

Superman Marathon

I spent the better part of yesterday and this morning watching five of the seven Superman movies. It's an interesting experience watching several movies in a series back to back, because you get some continuity that would otherwise be missing. Except in this case where there is a lack of continuity within the first four movies as a whole.

Superman and Superman II really make a true continuing storyline as they were both filmed simultaneously and Superman II is an extension of the first Superman. These were, by far, the best movies of the four. I do have a couple issues with the Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut, the first deals with continuity that doesn't make sense near at the end of the movie. In the Donner cut, Superman reverses everything by spinning the world backwards. After doing so, he goes back to the diner to confront the guy who beat him up after he got rid of his powers. Except, that guy shouldn't remember beating him up, and the diner own shouldn't have remembered that it cost him a fortune to fix the damage. Another issue was with Lex Luther, who was able to put too many pieces together about how to hurt Superman. Really, to go from an exploding Krypton to Kryptonite fragments being lethal? That's weak storytelling.

Then Superman III happened. There is just so much that's terrible about this movie, it's hard to get started. I suppose the first problem is casting Richard Pryor to play a computer genius. At the beginning of the movie, he can't keep a job at a fast food restaurant for a half hour, but by the end he develops a super-computer that could kill Superman! It's too far beyond ridiculous. Even more stupid is Superman going bad because of a synthetic Kryptonite Gus (Richard Pryor) develops with tar as an ingredient. Now it isn't fair of me to blame the stupidity of this movie solely on Richard Pryor, as the writing was terribly idiotic.

I originally thought that Superman III was the worse film in the series, and then I watched Superman IV: Quest for Peace. This one was practically unwatchable. I was so completely disappointed in this movie, that thinking about it almost brings tears to my eyes. How could something go this wrong! The entire concept of the movie is terrible as its primary story is preaching the importance of nuclear disarmament. As if the story wasn't bad enough, the special effects look more like special-ed effects. I can't remember a movie that looks substantially worse than the 9-year old original.

Finally, Superman Returns, thank goodness for this breath of fresh air. I think it's interesting after watching the previous four movies, which were all filmed in the better part of the 80's and then watching this movie, there is a difference. Superman Returns is a better movie than the others are. When it comes to Superman, I'm not a purist so I'm not going to align myself with the original just because it's the original. I think Superman Returns' storytelling and pacing is better than the others. This goes to show how far filmmaking has come since the late 70's and 80's.

If I were to list the movies in order of favorites, it would go as follows.

01. Superman Returns - I think it's more entertaining, pleasing to watch, polished and still has that timeless sensibility. It even makes homage to Superman: The Movie with various quotes including, "Well, I hope this experience hasn't put any of you off flying. Statistically speaking, it's still the safest way to travel."

02. Superman II - I've seen this a million and a half times and the battle between General Zod and his compatriots is still a favorite of mine.

03. Superman: The Movie - It's number three because they spend a little too much time on his youth.

04. Superman III - Not the worst, but certainly not the best. This is kind of like Batman Forever, It's a terrible movie, but it has its moments.

05. Superman IV: Quest for Peace - Quite possibly the worst movie ever made in the entire history of cinema. There is absolutely no redeeming value, not entertaining in the least, and doesn't effectively get its nuclear disarmament message across.

There you have it, my take on the Superman movies. I still need to watch again the original Superman II as well as the extended Superman: The Movie to get a clearer picture on which versions are actually better.

A Super Set

After a couple months of waiting, I finally picked up Superman Ultimate Collector's Edition. This 14-Disc collection includes these seven Superman movies:

01. Superman The Movie
02. Superman The Movie: 2000 Expanded Edition
03. Superman II
04. Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
05. Superman III
06. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
07. Superman Returns

I was going to get it the week it was released, but the Target I go to never seemed to have one that wasn't damaged. Ultimately, I requested a rain check in hopes they would get one that wasn't all bent out of shape. So I waited and looked them over as the received them in and they were all damaged. So, I waited some more until they stopped replenishing the set. This was a huge disappointment because my rain check was for $69.99 and nowhere else had it at such a great price.

Recently I checked Amazon.com and saw they had the set for only $70.99, a reasonable price for sure. I batted around the idea of just buying it on Amazon; the problem with buying over the Internet is you don't know what kind of shape it will be in when it arrives. Since there are no Amazon stores around, exchanging it would be a nightmare.

A few days ago, I received some Best Buy coupons in the mail giving me 10% off any regular priced movie, music or video game purchase. I took the coupon to my local Best Buy store and found they had it in stock. They were offering it for $79.99 and so I picked it up. With my coupon, it would bring the final price down to, $71.99, $2 more than Target and $1 more than Amazon. That's reasonable, considering I can't get it at Target and Amazon is kind of a crapshoot.

It's nice to know that I have all the Superman movies in one convenient package. Better still, by buying this Ultimate Collector's Edition I saved a minimum of $70 over buying each of these movies and documentaries individually. That makes the wait and price worth it, plus this aluminum case will take up far less space on my shelf than each DVD case would.

First TV Show to DVD

A couple of weeks ago I was entrenched in thought about which was going to win the format war, Sony and their Blu-Ray Disc or Toshiba's own HD DVD. Not that it really matters right now, as I will support neither until it is clear which provides me with a better viewing experience. However, the format war is not what this post is about, I still want to address television shows on DVD.

You may remember on January 4, I wrote a post about my DVD Dilemma, giving you some insight on my obsession with television shows on DVD. While I was thinking about the Blu-Ray and HD DVD format war, I was wondering which complete television season would make it onto those formats first. Upon thinking about that, I then began to wonder which television show made it to DVD first.

I spent some time looking around the Internet and found a message board post about the subject. To my dismay, most of the contributors misunderstood the topic and began rattling off the television shows they first bought on DVD. That of course did not help me. Some who understood the topic believed that it could have been the X-Files, but after some digging, I found that to be false.

Today, after a few clicks of my mouse, I may have found the answer. I came across an article by Greg Hernandez of the Los Angeles Daily News called, "TV shows old and new send DVD sales soaring". In this article he says, "It began a few years ago when HBO began selling entire seasons of its hit shows "The Sopranos" and "Sex in the City" in boxed DVD sets."

I checked with Amazon.com, which specifies the DVD release date on the product information page. The Sopranos was listed as being released on December 12, 2000 and Sex and the City on May 23, 2000. It looks like Sex and the City may have been the first television series to make it to DVD as I have yet to find any releases that predate it.

Now we have entered a new generation of media formats so we can easily figure out what the first series will be on Blu-Ray and HD DVD. Because I am such a nice guy, I will you spare you the suspense. For Blu-Ray, it is none other than The Sopranos Season 6, Part 1, which was released on December 19, 2006 a little over 6 years since season one was released to DVD. As for HD DVD, Smallville The Complete Fifth Season came out first on November 28, 2006 trumping the HD DVD release of The Sopranos Season 6, Part 1 on December 19, 2006.

I think this mystery is solved as it was bugging me for a while. Of course, if anyone knows of a TV to DVD release that comes before Sex and the City, I hope you let me know.

DVD Dilemma

I have a passion for entertainment, everything entertainment, television, movies, music and especially video games. Along with this passion for entertainment, I also have an illness; I am compelled to complete sets. I mean sets of anything and everything, if it comes in a series than I have to collect the entire series. The solution is for me not to buy or receive anything that comes in a series or set, hardly a realistic solution.

Naturally, DVD's are one of the biggest culprits that I suffer with on a daily basis; and it is daily, most notably television series that are released to DVD. As it stands I am currently collecting 41 television series on DVD. While many of them are completed because they where either canceled or ended their run, there still are several that are still going strong. Below is a list of all the television series I am collecting. The series in bold are completed, the italicized series are up-to-date with the current season purchased and the series in regular text means I am missing one or more seasons from the series.

01. 3rd Rock from the Sun
02. The 4400
03. Airline
04. Alias
05. The Amazing Race
06. Angel
07. Arrested Development
08. Battlestar Galactica
09. Bones
10. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
11. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
12. Curb Your Enthusiasm
13. Dead Like Me
14. Ellen
15. ER
16. Firefly
17. How I Met Your Mother
18. Keen Eddie
19. Lost
20. Millennium
21. The Muppet Show
22. The Office
23. Once and Again
24. Oz
25. Prison Break
26. Robot Chicken
27. Seinfeld
28. Sex and the City
29. The Simple Life
30. The Simpsons
31. Six Feet Under
32. The Sopranos
33. South Park
34. Spider-Man: The '67 Collection
35. SpongeBob SquarePants
36. Supernatural
37. The West Wing
38. Will & Grace
39. Wonder Woman
40. Wonderfalls
41. The X-Files

If you are not aware, maintaining 41 television series is no easy task especially when you have The Simpsons in your collection and you don't see an end in sight. I'm not the only one in my family who also suffers from the need to complete sets, my Mom also suffers from it but probably not as extreme as I. What's frustrating is that some of these I don't even want anymore like SpongeBob SquarePants. WHAT WAS I THINKING!!! Looking at the list again, SpongeBob is probably my biggest regret, I watched it and it wasn't that funny. Possibly because I'm not five years old even though I may act like it on occasion.

I think the hardest thing I'm struggling with is the cost of some of these seasons. Take The Sopranos with Part 1 of the 6th season costing $80! I don't get the full season for $80?! What a rip off! This is par for the course when it comes to series from HBO and Showtime.

Another hard thing to deal with is that some of these production companies are not releasing the entire series on DVD. Take for instance, The Amazing Race, which currently has only two of its ten or so seasons out. This is also the case for Once and Again which currently has only two of its three seasons released. For someone who needs complete series or sets, this kind of behavior drives me insane. I hope that in the future, these companies realize that people like me need the sense of closure that completed series give us.