Eerie, Indiana - The Complete Series

First the good news:

"Eerie Indiana" has aged very well since its debut a decade ago on NBC. It is long overdue for a DVD release, but with mega-hits like Friends, Frasier and Seinfeld getting the lion's share of attention when they come to DVD, it's easy to see how this gem of a show got left off the studio's to-do list.

Now that it has finally been released on DVD it's time for fans of the show to celebrate. You get all 18 episodes PLUS a 19th episode -- the one called "Broken Record" --which never aired!!

Now the bad news:
The box set is a decidely low budget affair. The packaging, what there is of it, is bland and flimsy. The DVD cases are slimline and there is no booklet to speak of. Episode titles and descriptions are found on the back of each individually shrink wrapped case. It is a hassle to have to tear open all five discs after having wrestled with the box itself -- they went way overboard on the plastic wrap here. But that's the least of the problems...

THE VIDEO TRANSFER IS NOT DIGITALLY REMASTERED! The video source appears to be from a good one-inch master tape. It is a little grainy in spots, but overall very good. But it should have been remastered.

The sound however is not that great. It's listenable, but some of Marshall Teller's narration is obscured by loud music in the muddy sound mix. I also noticed that some of the scene fades don't fade out completely before the next scene starts, and that's just sloppy mastering on BMG's part.

There are no subtitles, and sadly, no audio commentary track featuring the creators or star(s) or anyone connected with the show that could have shed some light on what we were watching.

But my nitpicking shouldn't stop you from purchasing this great show. It is doubtful we will ever see it again in any form unless there is a clamor by fans to purchase it now. Maybe BMG didn't think hardcore Eerie fans would want all the bells and whistles the more popular shows are getting when they finally come out on DVD. Of course, they were wrong. We want it all. We love this show.

Support this show by buying this DVD set. You will be THRILLED to see them all again.

I rate it 4 out of 5 stars because of the missing bonus material which would have been easy to include, and the less than A+ transfer.

I remember watching this show as a kid and really digging it. After watching the DVD set, it does bring back good memerories. It's basically Twilight Zone for kids and portrays some G rated scares and creepyness as a family moves into perhapes the weirdest town in the contry. I was amazed to see Joe Dante (Gremlins, The Howling, Explorers) directing the pilot episode. I enjoy most of his films and its no wonder I liked it as a kid. I was also surprised to see this series released on DVD as it was really a failure on its initial release. I assumed the series would never get its just home video release so I am happy to see that everyone that enjoyed it growing up can now own it.

I was unsure about buying this DVD set since some other reviewers had said it was of such bad quality etc. However, I did buy it and I was very happy that I did as it was just as fun and entertaining as I remember it being when I was young and first watched it. The DVD is just the bare minimum, but that is really enough. The episodes look just like they did when they aired on tv to my eyes. The adventures are fun and would be slightly spooky to children. Even with out the ability to spook an older audience the stories are still fun to watch and the acting quality is good. Lots of interesting guest stars. A good buy for someone who watched the first time around or for parents looking for something different for their kids.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 56 reviews  4.6 out of 5 stars