The Twilight Zone - On BD and DVD Like Never Before! Vol 1 and Beyond...
 

“THE BEST THAT HAS EVER BEEN ACCOMPLISHED IN HALF-HOUR FILMED TELEVISION.” – VARIETY.

Get ready to enter a fifth dimension of high-definition video entertainment, one that lies between the pit of man’s fears and the summit of his knowledge… a dimension of imagination that is undoubtedly going to be the most highly anticipated home entertainment release of the year!

One of the most iconic and celebrated TV shows of all time, The Twilight Zone is coming to DVD and, for the first time ever in the UK, to Blu-ray from 2nd May 2011. Over the course of 2011, Shock Entertainment and FremantleMedia Enterprises will be releasing all five complete seasons of the series (originally broadcast between 1959 and 1964) plus the complete 1980s revival series.

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Over the years, The Twilight Zone has been acknowledged as an influence by countless writers and filmmakers, including Steven Spielberg (“I was a complete obsessive-compulsive Twilight Zone follower.”), J.J. Abrams (“The Twilight Zone at its best is better than anything else I've ever seen on television.”), Joe Dante, John Landis, Wes Craven, George Miller, Clive Barker, Steven King and Michael J. Straczynski.

The year of The Twilight Zone begins on 18 April with the release of The Twilight Zone: Season One, featuring all 36 original episodes and a spectacular line up of additional features.

For all releases, every effort has been made to maintain the highest standards of quality in bringing this classic series to DVD and Blu-ray.

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The DVD has been digitally remastered and comes packed with extras including audio commentaries, vintage recollections from cast members, Rod Serling’s Network Pitch and original unaired pilots.

Presented for the first time in the UK, the Blu-ray edition is in pristine high-definition, digitally remastered from new 1080p film transfers using the original camera negatives and magnetic soundtracks. As well as all the features on the DVDeditions, the Blu-ray editions will also include a host of extras, available for the first time in the UK. Season 1 alone includes an unofficial pilot written by Rod Serling, 19 new audio commentaries, 18 radio dramas, 34 isolated music scores, and much more.

The Twilight Zone: Season Two will be released on DVD and Blu-ray on 23rd May, Season Three on 27th June, Season Four on 8th August and Season Five on 19th September 2011. Complete boxed sets of the original series and the 1980s series will be released on DVD only on 31st October 2011.

Created by the legendary Rod Serling, the multi-Emmy award-winning The Twilight Zone is a true landmark show in television history. It made an indelible mark on popular culture and remains, to this day, one of the most innovative and influential series of all time. The original series ran for 156 episodes between 1959 and 1964, spawning a revival series (1985-1989), a Steven Spielberg-produced feature film (1983), a TV movie (1994) and a final TV series (2002-2003). Sophisticated and entertaining, much of the show’s success was due to the timeless nature and universal appeal of its stories. Its writers included leading sci-fi and fantasy genre writers Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury, Charles Beaumont and Serling, himself.

The series also helped launch the careers of many soon-to-be famous stars, including Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Robert Duvall, Peter Falk, Dennis Hopper, Ron Howard, Lee Marvin, Vera Miles, Elizabeth Montgomery, Agnes Moorehead, Leonard Nimoy, Donald Pleasence, Robert Redford, William Shatner and Natalie Trundy, as well as providing a platform for established acting greats such as Buster Keaton, Burgess Meredith and Mickey Rooney.

An essential viewing experience for fans of sci-fi, fantasy and groundbreaking TV drama, these newly remastered editions of The Twilight Zone present Rod Serling’s television masterpiece as never seen before.

The Twilight Zone: The Original Series – Season One (cert. tbc) will be released on DVD (£34.99) and Blu-ray (£49.99) by Shock Entertainment and FremantleMedia Enterprises on 18th April 2011.

Episodes
Where Is Everybody?; One For The Angels; Mr. Denton On Doomsday; 16 Millimetre Shrine; Walking Distance; Escape Clause; The Lonely; Time Enough At Last; Perchance To Dream; Judgement Night; When The Sky Was Opened; What You Need; Four Of Us Are Dying; Third From The Sun; I Shot An Arrow Into The Air; The Hitchhiker; The Fever; The Last Flight; The Purple Testament; Elegy; Mirror Image; The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street; A World Of Difference; Long Live Walter Jameson; People Are Alike All Over; Execution; The Big Tall Wish; A Nice Place To Visit; Nightmare As A Child; A Stop At Willoughby; The Chaser; A Passage For Trumpet; Mr. Bevis; The After Hours; The Mighty Casey; A World Of His Own.

Editor’s notes

The Twilight Zone: The Original Series – Season One includes some of the series’ most celebrated and memorable episodes, including “Time Enough At Last” (starring Burgess Meredith), “The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street” (starring Claude Akins), “Walking Distance” (starring Gig Young), “The After Hours” (starring Anne Francis), “When The Sky Was Opened” (starring Rod Taylor), “A World Of Difference” (starring Howard Duff) and “A Stop At Willoughby” (starring James Daly).

Special Features (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Audio commentaries by Earl Holliman, Martin Landau, Rod Taylor, Martin Milner, Kevin McCarthy, Ted Post and William Self.
- Vintage audio recollections with Burgess Meredith, Douglas Heyes, Richard L. Bare, Buck Houghton, Anne Francis and Richard Matheson.
- Rod Serling audio lectures from Sherwood Oaks College.
- Rod Serling promos for Next Week’s Show.
- Isolated music scores featuring the legendary Bernard Herrmann, Jerry Goldsmith and others.
- Original unaired pilot version of “Where Is Everybody?” with Rod Serling’s network pitch.
- Footage of the Emmy Award wins for the series.
- Liar’s Club Show. A segment of the popular 1970s games show hosted by Rod Serling.
- Rod Serling blooper.
- Original Twilight Zone billboards.
- Photo gallery.
-The Twilight Zone Comic Book (pdf format). An issue of the popular comic from 1963.

Special Features (Blu-ray only)
- 19 new audio commentaries, featuring The Twilight Zone Companion author Marc Scott Zicree, author and historian Gary Gerani (Fantastic Television), author and music historian Steven C. Smith (A Heart At Fire’s Center: The Life And Music Of Bernard Herrman), music historians John Morgan and William T. Stromberg, writer/producer David Simkins (Lois & Clark; Dark Angel), writer Mark Fergus (Children Of Men; Iron Man), actor William Reynolds and director Ted Post.
- Extremely rare, never-before-released unofficial Twilight Zone pilot, “The Time Element”, written by Rod Serling and hosted by Desi Arnaz.
- Interviews with actors Dana Dilaway, Suzanne Lloyd, Beverly Garland and Ron Masak.
- “Tales of Tomorrow” episode, “What You Need”.
- Vintage audio interview with director of photography George T. Clemens.
- 1977 syndication promos for “A Stop At Willoughby” and “The After Hours”.
- 18 radio dramas.

Volume One will be released 2nd May 2011 on DVD and Blu-ray.

From Fremantle? Does that mean it'll be cropped to buggery then? They seem to be under the impression you can only release widescreen stuff in HD...

That's just for distribution into stores etc - so fret not - this is the real deal - truly amazing quality.

These look like straight ports of the US sets. I have Season 1-3 on US blu and if these are the same you will not be disappointed!

As someone who's only seen season 3 of the 80's version and only a handful of original episodes I absolutely cannot wait to get these!

Very reassuring! Thanks.

yes it's the CBS releases so if you've seen them in the US or in Oz then you'll know just how good these are - even on DVD the epsiodes look and sound so much better than previous incarnations.

Is the 80's show going to BD too or is that just DVD?

I'm seriously behind on TZ - it's just something that I've always missed seeing so I can't wait to get my mitts on these!

Right now it's the 60s show for Blu-ray - have to see what the demand is like for those volumes (very expensive to do) so folks - we gotta make it a hit - and this show deserves it!

I only seen some of the 80s show. was good!

Great news. :) Now how about the Outer Limits?

Really nice to see a news story up already over from Anton at Home Cinema Choice:

Shock Entertainment delves into Twilight Zone; brings back new DVD and Blu-ray boxsets | Home Cinema Choice: AV, surround sound and TV reviews

Posted too at The Twilight Zone Podcast site :)

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Top man - thank you!

Almar

Excellent news. I've seen some screencaps from the US blu-ray releases and it's jaw-dropping how amazing the picture quality looks. Can't wait fron the UK releases.

It's great that these are getting a UK Blu-ray release. The US screencaps indeed look fantastic, so I have high expectations for the UK versions, too.

As said elsewhere recently,these will look stupendous in HD!
Can't bloody wait! :woot:

I want. It'll take a bit of time but I will have these eventually!

I had a suspicion there was something behind the recent Twilight Zone threads... :lol:

Excellent news, I was just about to stick an order in for the Australian blu-ray set so will settle back now and wait for these to come out instead. If there's anyone out there not familiar with the original black and white series, be assured - you wont be disapointed!

With the DVD release (I'm not sure if I'll get the blu-ray due to lack of blu-ray player outside of my laptop), will the features and bonus bits be different to the Cinema Club releases?

I believe the extras are the same on the DVD - and it's the Blu that has the new stuff. The key difference between the old Cinema Club and these new Shock discs are the all the episodes come from the new hi-def masters and they look and sound stunning on DVD. Better still on Blu but the DVDs will please plenty.

Hmmmm it's a tempting offer. I'd be interested to see the transfers to season 2 - as some of them did not transfer well to DVD due to the way they were made.

Are those the ones recorded pretty much live on video tape?

Yeah. Episodes like "Twenty Two" don't look too hot. Which is shame because that is a great story.

I had the Twilight Zone boxsets the last time they were released,but foolishly sold them when financing the move to Blu Ray,so this is excellent news.:nod:

BD Woo!
 

only just heard about this from the twilightzone podcast (well worth a listen if you have the chance)

uber excited at the prospect of TZ on BD. My only concern is that maybe some of the effects and make up make not look so good under 1080p, but to be honest, after watching TZ on video for years it will be stunning to see it in HD.

Anyone know how much each season will be?

F:S

Good question.....:nod:

.

Shock are releasing these? :eek:

Oh no, get ready for pink front covers.

Mind you, I suppose Twilight Zone fans won't have to suffer pink covers because it's not a show especially known for being liked by 'the gay community'.

Seriously though, Shock do an awful job with their releases. The Prisoner Cell Block H release was advertised as being "completely uncut". -it wasn't. The UK release could have rectified this but is instead just the same as the Australian release. The Edna Pearson release is advertised as being competely uncut. -it isn't. And the art work for the front covers is god awful.

Didn't mean to go off topic. Just saying, hope they do a better job with The Zone than they did with Prisoner.

And I'm sure they will. It's a more mainstream show so more relies on getting it right. With a show with higher status there'll be no pink covers for this little baby!

I'm sure they'll be fine. The US releases by Image are topnotch. So nothing to worry about.

Wow. My brothers and I were just talking about this the other day. I was saying I'm going to have to get a region A player to enjoy the Criterion and Twilight Zone Blu rays. Now I'm only going to have Criterion as my excuse for buying a region a player!

I remember seeing the original series play on ITV a few years ago at some ungodly hour. I've never seen the modern remake of the show with Forrest Whitaker so I don't know how it plays out. But the 60's and 80's versions I loved :)

Thanks to all at Shock for bringing the series to English/Irish shores. Hopefully we'll continue to get the AV and extras qualities as our American neighbours.

I am so, so excited at this news.

I just watched 'The Monsters are Due on Maple Street' on blu. No exaggeration I was blown away by the quality. Absolutely blown away.

It really is like watching these episodes through fresh eyes.

Won't be long until the 26th of April!:woot:

Really looking forward to seeing these classic episodes on Blu - I'm sure the screen-grabs do them no justice.

Nice little touch that I noticed on these today: there are 18 of the Twilight Zone radio dramas on the disks too. Considering it's about £1.50 per episode to purchase these from the official site, that really adds value to these releases.

I've only listened to a few of the radio dramas, but the ones I have heard were really good.

Hi everyone Im new here, from Greece. Im a big fan of the classic twilight zone. Happy these are getting a uk blu ray release so I can buy them from amazon uk. 2 questions I have, Isnt it a little strange amazon uk is the only place you can preorder this? Nothing on play or hmv. Also how are we so sure this is going to have the same picture quality as the usa sets? Someone earlier in the thread said season 1 comes out april 26, but amazon uk shows april 18 ?

Welcome Tony - help us grow this new little forum!

I'm sure HMV and Play have yet to catch up. As for release date it may change by a week or so but we'll tell you here so don't worry.

As for the DVDs and BDs - they are the same elements as the US releases - I've seen some of them and they are AMAZING - and as someone who collected the CBS/Fox UK VHS tapes, imported the Image discs in '99, bought them in the UK and the 2E releases - I'm happy to say these new discs are a dream come true!

I'm glad you all are getting the Zones in the UK. I was gonna wait for the eventual complete BD boxed set on sale somewhere until I found the first two seasons for around $35 each. I had to pounce.

I used to tape all the episodes from syndication (in the '80's) and edit them together to get the longest versions since they never made the same cuts. A huge project that I never finished. :)