The Brady Bunch - The Complete Series DVD Review - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TJ · 04-03-2007, 01:13 AM

Here's the story...the COMPLETE story of The Brady Bunch now available for the first time in one complete 20-disc set with a bonus disc filled with more Brady series! That's right, this groovy & far-out collector’s edition features all 117 episodes plus the holiday classic TV-movie A Very Brady Christmas, the pilot movie for The Bradys, and two episodes from The Brady Kids cartoon! Join Mike, Carol, Greg, Peter, Bobby, Marcia, Jan, Cindy, and the housekeeper Alice for their entire story!

Read our review here:
http://www.sitcomsonline.com/thebrad...dvdreview.html

Post any questions or comments about this set.

julian bozo · 04-03-2007, 05:11 AM

I'm glad they finally put all that together. I'm going to hopefully buy it soon.

(one smiley face for each member of the family)

Heidi Dawn · 04-03-2007, 09:27 AM

I didn't get a chance to buy each season set, so I ordered the complete series set instead. I should get it within a couple of days.

HelloLarry · 04-03-2007, 04:38 PM

I was one who sold off my seasons 1-5 at a bit of a profit and used that money to buy this set. I think the presentation is very good. The carpeting is cool and while it may be a little fragile that will only come if you continue to rub on it. We HAD this carpeting when I was a kid and I'm almost sure this actually IS our carpeting. We had to rake it when I was younger (which was part of my chores) so I will do the same now when I clean my house. Only this time, I will use a plastic fork.

The discs are the same and the edits don't bother me so much. The MASH set is similar in that its in paper sleeves but unless I'm going to watch these every single day, the risk of scratching them beyond playing is pretty low.

Between MASH, All in the Family, Get Smart, The Monkees, The Partridge Family, The Job, Rescue Me, The Shield, The Brady Bunch, The Sopranos, The Munsters, Three's Company, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Arrested Development (you get the idea)...there are only so many hours in a week one has to watch this stuff and I do like to be social so I rotate a lot of these things and watch them in spurts.

I think they did a nice job but do hope they release some of the other properties as well.

Lee G · 04-05-2007, 12:52 PM

I'm satisfied with the five individual seasons already released, so I'll stick with those. I'm not interested in any of the extras, just the 117 original episodes themselves.

I think The Brady Bunch could have easily continued on for another 2 or 3 seasons. Too bad they quit after season five, if I recall there were problems with Robert Reed and the decision was made to cancel the show.

HelloLarry · 04-05-2007, 10:03 PM

Interesting POV but I don't know if it really could've gone on. Shows like the Brady Bunch, Partridge Family, and My Three Sons (which was already off the air in 1974) were pretty old fashioned compared to the contemporary television landscape. Cop shows and All in the Family (and All in the Family-esque) type programming dominated the networks by the time the Brady Bunch left the air. In fact the Partridge Family went head to head against All in the Family in this same season (also the last for this show) and they regularly got creamed. IMO, the show was pretty played out by the fifth year so, as much as I love the show, I think the time was right to go.

The box set didn't cost me a cent so I'm glad I picked it up. The interesting thing is that they now note at the bottom of the box that some of the episodes may be edited from their original broadcast. So the edits that were in the separate releases are still here but I don't really find them to be dealbreakers. I don't recall them being listed on the separate releases so at least there is a step of responsibility on the part of the distributor. I do understand how they can be to some people though. Honestly, if I had to pay for it I wouldn't have bothered.

BTW...the set is distributed by CBS DVD. Do they now own Paramount properties? All the individual season discs have the Paramount logo (since they are obviously the same discs) but the bonus feature disc has the CBS DVD logo.

I get a kick out of the spinoffs. Don't really find them compelling television (not that the original series was either) but they are fun to watch once in a while. Some major guilty pleasures here.

gidgetgrape · 04-05-2007, 11:18 PM

Can someone (pretty please) post a photo of what the inside of the box and the DVDs look like?

HelloLarry · 04-05-2007, 11:33 PM

Sure...here ya go. It's pretty cool.

The booklet fits in the sleeve to the left of the box.

I also took a picture of the back of the box as well.

Saves space on the old DVD shelf.

D

gidgetgrape · 04-06-2007, 12:54 AM

Thank you so much HelloLarry for the photos! I wasn't able to imagine what the set looked liked based on the reviews I read - I totally get it now. The set looks super! I'm feeling tempted now too.

Thanks again! Your DVD collection looks great.

HelloLarry · 04-06-2007, 02:27 AM

Honestly, I wouldn't have bought it if I didn't get it for free (by selling off my individual season sets on EBay to cover for the price of this one). If you have the season sets already, it might be a waste of money unless you can get a really good deal on a used one. While the bonus features are nice to have, they don't justify a new purchase IMO.

I see its $90 on Amazon right now and upwards of $100 with a 'buy it now' option on EBay. However, like I do with a lot of the HBO sets, I wait a few months until they're out and pick them up used or from another dealer at sometimes half the price.

I know the concern may be there for some for the cardboard sleeves that the DVDs are housed in and how that may compromise the discs. While I'm not a big fan of them myself and was equally irriated when Rhino released the Monkees series with cardboard sleeves, I've never had a problem with the discs being damaged. I've had the Monkees DVDs since they came out and play them a lot without issue and that is going on 4 years now.

I save a little space with the way the set is packaged as well. The MASH set that you see on my shelf is another one that has the cardboard sleeves but again, haven't had any issue with them. In addition, from the perspective of space it saves me so much instead of the 11 individual sets. That is another that paid for itself by selling seasons 1-10 on EBay.

Lee G · 04-06-2007, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HelloLarry

Interesting POV but I don't know if it really could've gone on. Shows like the Brady Bunch, Partridge Family, and My Three Sons (which was already off the air in 1974) were pretty old fashioned compared to the contemporary television landscape. Cop shows and All in the Family (and All in the Family-esque) type programming dominated the networks by the time the Brady Bunch left the air. In fact the Partridge Family went head to head against All in the Family in this same season (also the last for this show) and they regularly got creamed. IMO, the show was pretty played out by the fifth year so, as much as I love the show, I think the time was right to go.

The box set didn't cost me a cent so I'm glad I picked it up. The interesting thing is that they now note at the bottom of the box that some of the episodes may be edited from their original broadcast. So the edits that were in the separate releases are still here but I don't really find them to be dealbreakers. I don't recall them being listed on the separate releases so at least there is a step of responsibility on the part of the distributor. I do understand how they can be to some people though. Honestly, if I had to pay for it I wouldn't have bothered.

BTW...the set is distributed by CBS DVD. Do they now own Paramount properties? All the individual season discs have the Paramount logo (since they are obviously the same discs) but the bonus feature disc has the CBS DVD logo.

I get a kick out of the spinoffs. Don't really find them compelling television (not that the original series was either) but they are fun to watch once in a while. Some major guilty pleasures here.

When The Brady Bunch ended, there was still public demand for The Brady Bunch in some form or another, thus came the Brady movies and spin-offs. But none of those were any good, it would have been much better if The Brady Bunch had continued for another 2 or 3 seasons. After season five, the show still had plenty of life in it, it wasn't to the point where it was played out. The only thing that came remotely close to capturing the magic of the original series was The Brady Girls Get Married and The Brady Brides. The Brady Bunch Variety Hour was so bad, it helped to kill off the variety show format. And when you watch shows like A Very Brady Christmas and The Bradys, there is a negative atmosphere and everyone has a personal problem of one kind or another. I know that's how life is, everyone has their problems, but when you watch these later Brady entries you can see how much things had changed and the way they chose to portray the people. The change was not for the better, and it makes the charm and innocence of the original series all the more appealing.

I know The Brady Bunch episodes have their share of cheezy moments, but it's such a positive show. Everyone generally has a smile on their face. And when something bad happens, no one gets terribly upset about it. (Well, no one except for Jan.

) And things always work out for a happy ending. It was a great family show, and nothing they tried to do afterwards came close to re-capturing that magic.

BTW, thanks for posting the pics of the new box set. What a horrendous design that is. A poor concept. The booklet looks cute, though. The five individual seasons are much better, I will gladly stick with those.

Rich3 · 04-06-2007, 07:20 PM

I got it for $89 on Amazon. Not bad for all seasons plus some of the "extras" are things I've been waiting for for a long time.

EricR · 04-06-2007, 10:10 PM

Should I get this? I have Seasons 1-3. The extras don't really interest me because I have everything but the animated series on vhs and I know they will eventually release them separately, and I love the cover art of the single sets. But I love the packaging for this and the booklet...what to do?

BradyFan27 · 04-06-2007, 11:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EricR

Should I get this? I have Seasons 1-3. The extras don't really interest me because I have everything but the animated series on vhs and I know they will eventually release them separately, and I love the cover art of the single sets. But I love the packaging for this and the booklet...what to do?

I dont have it, not going to get it because i really just want the series of the brady's and the brady brides, and the brady kids...ill wait until they release them seperatley...i only have the first season....watch Mike's Horrorscope today and that episode was great! I wish they would have focused more episodes about Mike's job and him in his office with his clients more often, so cool!

HelloLarry · 04-07-2007, 01:57 AM

You'll miss the lenticular design of the front of the individual sets which is VERY cool and you'll trade it in for a little different kind of design which is equally cool, you'll get the 4th and 5th seasons, a few bonus features, and be done. Each option has its merits. It's kind of six of one half a dozen of the other.

If price is a dealbreaker and you've already sunk enough money into the first three sets and it makes sense financially to just complete them separately, that is the way to go. However, if you can trade 'em in and get the complete series at a decent price (also watch, they should start showing up at lower than Amazon prices with some of their merchants in the next few months) then I'd say go for that.

It was financially attractive for me to get the complete series or else I would've just hung onto the individual sets quite honestly. I'd be just as happy with either one because I don't think there is much added value in the new packaging. The bonus disc in this case wasn't a big selling point for me.

David

04-03-2007, 01:13 AM	#1
TJ Site Owner Administrator Forum Star Join Date: Feb 03, 2000 Location: Marietta, GA Posts: 10,658	The Brady Bunch - The Complete Series DVD Review Here's the story...the COMPLETE story of The Brady Bunch now available for the first time in one complete 20-disc set with a bonus disc filled with more Brady series! That's right, this groovy & far-out collector’s edition features all 117 episodes plus the holiday classic TV-movie A Very Brady Christmas, the pilot movie for The Bradys, and two episodes from The Brady Kids cartoon! Join Mike, Carol, Greg, Peter, Bobby, Marcia, Jan, Cindy, and the housekeeper Alice for their entire story! Read our review here: http://www.sitcomsonline.com/thebrad...dvdreview.html Post any questions or comments about this set.

04-03-2007, 09:27 AM	#3
Heidi Dawn Muppets Forum Regular Join Date: Jan 01, 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 883	I didn't get a chance to buy each season set, so I ordered the complete series set instead. I should get it within a couple of days.
	__________________ Complete Series Box Sets I own: MASH, Three's Company, Gilligan's Island, The Dukes Of Hazzard, The Golden Girls, The Monkees, The Brady Bunch, Full House, I Dream Of Jeannie, Bewitched, Taxi, Gimme A Break, Dallas, Charlie's Angels, Joanie Loves Chachi, Laverne & Shirley, Mork & Mindy, The Cosby Show, The Facts of Life, Family Ties, Diff'rent Strokes, Green Acres.

04-03-2007, 04:38 PM	#4
HelloLarry Meathead Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 21, 2006 Posts: 273	Brady Bunch: Complete series I was one who sold off my seasons 1-5 at a bit of a profit and used that money to buy this set. I think the presentation is very good. The carpeting is cool and while it may be a little fragile that will only come if you continue to rub on it. We HAD this carpeting when I was a kid and I'm almost sure this actually IS our carpeting. We had to rake it when I was younger (which was part of my chores) so I will do the same now when I clean my house. Only this time, I will use a plastic fork. The discs are the same and the edits don't bother me so much. The MASH set is similar in that its in paper sleeves but unless I'm going to watch these every single day, the risk of scratching them beyond playing is pretty low. Between MASH, All in the Family, Get Smart, The Monkees, The Partridge Family, The Job, Rescue Me, The Shield, The Brady Bunch, The Sopranos, The Munsters, Three's Company, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Arrested Development (you get the idea)...there are only so many hours in a week one has to watch this stuff and I do like to be social so I rotate a lot of these things and watch them in spurts. I think they did a nice job but do hope they release some of the other properties as well.

04-05-2007, 11:33 PM	#8
HelloLarry Meathead Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 21, 2006 Posts: 273	Brady Bunch box set Sure...here ya go. It's pretty cool. The booklet fits in the sleeve to the left of the box. I also took a picture of the back of the box as well. Saves space on the old DVD shelf. D Attached Images

04-03-2007, 05:11 AM	#2
julian bozo Member Senior Member Join Date: Jun 30, 2001 Location: Cullman,Al,United States Posts: 1,534	I'm glad they finally put all that together. I'm going to hopefully buy it soon. (one smiley face for each member of the family)

04-05-2007, 12:52 PM	#5
Lee G Member Forum Regular Join Date: Jun 24, 2004 Posts: 850	I'm satisfied with the five individual seasons already released, so I'll stick with those. I'm not interested in any of the extras, just the 117 original episodes themselves. I think The Brady Bunch could have easily continued on for another 2 or 3 seasons. Too bad they quit after season five, if I recall there were problems with Robert Reed and the decision was made to cancel the show.

04-05-2007, 10:03 PM	#6
HelloLarry Meathead Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 21, 2006 Posts: 273	Interesting POV but I don't know if it really could've gone on. Shows like the Brady Bunch, Partridge Family, and My Three Sons (which was already off the air in 1974) were pretty old fashioned compared to the contemporary television landscape. Cop shows and All in the Family (and All in the Family-esque) type programming dominated the networks by the time the Brady Bunch left the air. In fact the Partridge Family went head to head against All in the Family in this same season (also the last for this show) and they regularly got creamed. IMO, the show was pretty played out by the fifth year so, as much as I love the show, I think the time was right to go. The box set didn't cost me a cent so I'm glad I picked it up. The interesting thing is that they now note at the bottom of the box that some of the episodes may be edited from their original broadcast. So the edits that were in the separate releases are still here but I don't really find them to be dealbreakers. I don't recall them being listed on the separate releases so at least there is a step of responsibility on the part of the distributor. I do understand how they can be to some people though. Honestly, if I had to pay for it I wouldn't have bothered. BTW...the set is distributed by CBS DVD. Do they now own Paramount properties? All the individual season discs have the Paramount logo (since they are obviously the same discs) but the bonus feature disc has the CBS DVD logo. I get a kick out of the spinoffs. Don't really find them compelling television (not that the original series was either) but they are fun to watch once in a while. Some major guilty pleasures here.

04-05-2007, 11:18 PM	#7
gidgetgrape Forever Gidget Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 20, 2003 Location: Texas Posts: 3,503	Can someone (pretty please) post a photo of what the inside of the box and the DVDs look like?

04-06-2007, 12:54 AM	#9
gidgetgrape Forever Gidget Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 20, 2003 Location: Texas Posts: 3,503	Thank you so much HelloLarry for the photos! I wasn't able to imagine what the set looked liked based on the reviews I read - I totally get it now. The set looks super! I'm feeling tempted now too. Thanks again! Your DVD collection looks great.

04-06-2007, 02:27 AM	#10
HelloLarry Meathead Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 21, 2006 Posts: 273	Honestly, I wouldn't have bought it if I didn't get it for free (by selling off my individual season sets on EBay to cover for the price of this one). If you have the season sets already, it might be a waste of money unless you can get a really good deal on a used one. While the bonus features are nice to have, they don't justify a new purchase IMO. I see its $90 on Amazon right now and upwards of $100 with a 'buy it now' option on EBay. However, like I do with a lot of the HBO sets, I wait a few months until they're out and pick them up used or from another dealer at sometimes half the price. I know the concern may be there for some for the cardboard sleeves that the DVDs are housed in and how that may compromise the discs. While I'm not a big fan of them myself and was equally irriated when Rhino released the Monkees series with cardboard sleeves, I've never had a problem with the discs being damaged. I've had the Monkees DVDs since they came out and play them a lot without issue and that is going on 4 years now. I save a little space with the way the set is packaged as well. The MASH set that you see on my shelf is another one that has the cardboard sleeves but again, haven't had any issue with them. In addition, from the perspective of space it saves me so much instead of the 11 individual sets. That is another that paid for itself by selling seasons 1-10 on EBay.

04-06-2007, 07:20 PM	#12
Rich3 Member Forum Regular Join Date: Oct 10, 2005 Posts: 688	I got it for $89 on Amazon. Not bad for all seasons plus some of the "extras" are things I've been waiting for for a long time.

04-06-2007, 10:10 PM	#13
EricR Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Mar 10, 2005 Posts: 66	Should I get this? I have Seasons 1-3. The extras don't really interest me because I have everything but the animated series on vhs and I know they will eventually release them separately, and I love the cover art of the single sets. But I love the packaging for this and the booklet...what to do?

04-07-2007, 01:57 AM	#15
HelloLarry Meathead Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 21, 2006 Posts: 273	You'll miss the lenticular design of the front of the individual sets which is VERY cool and you'll trade it in for a little different kind of design which is equally cool, you'll get the 4th and 5th seasons, a few bonus features, and be done. Each option has its merits. It's kind of six of one half a dozen of the other. If price is a dealbreaker and you've already sunk enough money into the first three sets and it makes sense financially to just complete them separately, that is the way to go. However, if you can trade 'em in and get the complete series at a decent price (also watch, they should start showing up at lower than Amazon prices with some of their merchants in the next few months) then I'd say go for that. It was financially attractive for me to get the complete series or else I would've just hung onto the individual sets quite honestly. I'd be just as happy with either one because I don't think there is much added value in the new packaging. The bonus disc in this case wasn't a big selling point for me. David