FlashFoward is one of those high concept shows that I was initially excited for, but then let me down. I tried watching the first few episodes when they originally aired but could not get into it. The pacing was too slow, it took forever to establish the characters and it’s way too serious. I decided to give it another chance now that the first 10 episodes are on DVD. This is one of those series that’s made for the DVD medium, the show works surprisingly well when you can sit back and soak it all in and let it wash over you. It still requires a LOT of patience.
Here’s the thing though, I generally hate these types of DVD releases. The whole point of releasing TV Shows on DVD is to release the ENTIRE season, not give us half assed releases and call it “Season 1.5”. Battlestar Galactica started this bad trend and it ruined collecting that show on DVD for me. Burn Notice does the same thing now to the point where I no longer have any idea what “season” they are on – but at least they still release only the full season sets. What’s the point other than to price gouge people?
FlashForward is an example of why this philosophy is stupid, it isn’t like Glee: Road to Sectionals where there was a full story with a clear beginning, middle and end point. Here it just sort of stops. Since FlashForward is a bubble show, there’s no clear indication how many episodes are actually left in this season. I heard they were only going to air 3 more episodes – that may have changed, but if true, then what’s going to happen to fans who purchase this 10 episode set? Is Disney going to release the full 13 or 16 season set making people who purchase this, buy it again? Or will they just release the remaining eps as it’s own thing? Well the answer is, they are already promoting “Own the complete First Season in August” in the DVD Insert. So, why waste your money getting this set?
Disc 1
Previews
- Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (The girl explaining every little thing is annoying)
- Lost Season 5
- Everybody’s Fine
Disc 2
Features
- Creating Catastrophe: The Effects of a Global Blackout (7 Min)
- FlashForward: A Look Ahead (5 Mins)
- Could – A preview trailer for the upcoming season (1 Min)
Comments
I said all there is to say in the beginning of this. Skip this release and wait until August when you can get the full season in one go. If you feel like you have to see these episodes, rent it. FlashForward returns to ABC Tuesday 3.16 with a Recap episode and returns to Thursday nights 3.20 with a 2 hour edition.
Grades
TV Show – B-
Features – C
Final Overall Grade D
EM Review
By Michelle Alexandria
Originally posted 03.14.2010
Sounds pretty much like my review – only I still think there's enough potential that the series could still fly with a few improvements – though it's probably too late to save the show's ratings. They are showing the rest of the season, though, so who knows?
Unlike you, though, I don't count previews as bonus material. They're marketing and I only count features directly related to the DVD's actual content. I gave the pathetic few features for this set a D – and the set an overall grade of C+.
I too gave it a few episodes in the beginning but it just didn't grab me. The whole point to getting a DVD set is to get the WHOLE season together so that one can sit down and watch it all. The only way to put a stop to this very bad price gouging trend of partial seasons on DVD is to simply not buy it at all and wait for the complete set. As far as i know, ABC has announced a second season of this show.