Fame: The Complete First Season [4 Discs]

"This four-platter, 16-episode package assembles all of the shows from the series' first year, when Fame, based on the 1980 Alan Parker-directed movie, was a network program (shown on NBC). Looking at the packaging, one is reminded how obnoxious most of the characters (especially the kids) on this series originally were during the network run of the show -- it isn't so much the portrayals, as just the sheer silliness of some of the ""drama"" and the almost over-the-top acting on the part of most of the cast. Not that the casting was bad -- everyone on the show was talented -- but once one got past the weaknesses in the writing, and the late Gene Anthony Ray, and Debbie Allen and the late Albert Hague (playing a stereotype), the best things about the show were the production numbers (even if they were too good by half for what they were supposed to be) and the occasional guest star. The DVD set presents each episode in full-screen (1.33:1) and intact, apart from ""Come One, Come All,"" which has had some of its music altered (because what was used couldn't be licensed for the home-video format). The picture quality is excellent and the sound has been mastered full and loud, which gives a good impact to the music (including the title-theme) on speakers. Each show gets six chapters that correspond with the segmenting for credits and commercial breaks, and the discs each contain four or five shows, except for the last platter, which has two episodes. Each disc opens to a simple menu that's easy to select from automatically on start-up."