Complete Battlestar Galactica Boxed Set Out Today!

[PoochJD]

Hi,

Anyone else buying this, or pre-ordered the lovely ULTIMATE EDITION SET via Amazon.co.uk?!

This set, currently on Amazon for £85 ( ), includes a lovely foot-high, articulated, Silver Cylon Robot figurine!

The set itself, comes in a deluxe metal tin, which has been lovingly crafted inside, to resemble a bookcase, in which you get:

- The original Mini-Series
- Season 1
- Season 2
- Season 3
- Razor: Uncut Version
- Season 4
- Two books
- A bonus disc of extra, never-before-released material
- A shed-load of extras, including audio commentaries, behind-the-scenes documentaries and featurettes, cast and crew interviews, making-of's, gag reels and other assorted material!

A great set, and it's out on Blu-Ray too in the same version, but BR collector's won't get the Cylon figurine - which is exclusive to the DVD edition!

WARNING: Forgot to mention: DVD release is a 15 certificate, but the Blu-Ray edition has been classified as an 18 due to some of the extra content being... well, let's just say slightly less appropriate for teenagers than would be the norm! According to the BBFC, it's the material on Season 3, Disc 1 that is the problem, but they don't say what the problem is. See here for the details!


Pooch

[Indiana Jones]

Dont get too excited about the cylon figure, its just a cheapy plastic toy (had one in my US BD set) and the metal tin isnt too sturdy, the slightest pressure will dent it and unless Amazon package it really really well I can see alot of sets arriving in a nasty state and inside its just abit of foam with slots cut in in.

For the sake of those buying it I hope they havnt just put the already released DVD in the set and have actually re-done them otherwise you will miss out on some extended episodes.

[pabulous]

Judging from the photos I've seen of the standard-DVD set (on Amazon and such), it does look like they've just repackaged the original bare-bones discs; while the Blu-ray discs appear to be identical to those in the US (since season 1 doesn't have the operatic theme, and it has a very American FBI warning at the start).

[Garrett]

Blu Ray thread on this here The 'who did you buy from and has it shipped yet' Battlestar thread

[Indiana Jones]

Just seen it posted elsewhere that the UK DVD Tin Boxset is just the already available discs repackaged so the Season 4 extended episodes are missing as well as other extra features such as commentaries and featurettes

[PoochJD]

Hi,

Originally Posted by Indiana Jones

Just seen it posted elsewhere that the UK DVD Tin Boxset is just the already available discs repackaged so the Season 4 extended episodes are missing as well as other extra features such as commentaries and featurettes

Nooooooo!

Does the standard UK Region 2, Season 4 box-set have the Extended Episodes, commentaries and featurettes?!

And, more to the point, why have these been left off of the Ultimate Edition boxed set?!


Pooch

[Indiana Jones]

Originally Posted by PoochJD

Hi,



Nooooooo!

Does the standard UK Region 2, Season 4 box-set have the Extended Episodes, commentaries and featurettes?!

And, more to the point, why have these been left off of the Ultimate Edition boxed set?!


Pooch

The UK DVD release of the final 10 episodes didnt include the extended episodes and this new set contains the already available discs so the only way to get them is to either go Blu or get the US DVD releases.

My guess for why they were left off is cost, so much cheaper for them to just make a tin and stick the already available discs in it instead of re-authoring brand new sets.

From what I understand though the included booklet details the extended episodes and extras so somewhere along the line a major **** up has happened.

[PoochJD]

Hi Indiana,

Originally Posted by Indiana Jones

My guess for why they were left off is cost, so much cheaper for them to just make a tin and stick the already available discs in it instead of re-authoring brand new sets. From what I understand though the included booklet details the extended episodes and extras so somewhere along the line a major **** up has happened.

This kind of thing makes me so angry, with Universal! They never want to bother doing boxed sets properly, and would much rather screw the UK fans over, and hope that no one notices.

Does anyone know if the Region 4, or other Region 2 territories (e.g. other parts of Europe) suffer the same problem?!


Pooch

[nwgarratt]

I have only just got season 3 on DVD (I am behind). I didn't realise that most of the extended episodes were not on the discs.

If I get the BD version, I will wait for a more complete set with The Plan too.

[PoochJD]

Hi,

Found out the following, which may explain why the 10 Webisodes aren't included on any regional DVD or Blu-Ray releases (courtesy of a reviewer on Amazon.com) :

NBC Universal, the studio behind "Battlestar," refused to pay residuals or credit the writers of these "Webisodes," claiming they're promotional materials. So "Battlestar" executive producer Ron Moore said he wouldn't deliver any more of them, including the 10 that were already in the can. In response, NBC Universal seized the Webisodes and filed charges of unfair labor practices against the Writers Guild of America, which advised Moore and producers of three other NBC Universal shows not to deliver any new Web content until they had a deal over residuals.

The stakes are huge: viewers streamed "Battlestar" Webisodes 5.5 million times last month, doubling traffic to SciFi.com within two days of the premiere. By comparison, 2.2 million people showed up for the show's third-season opener on Oct. 6.

See for more info!


Also: Contact Details for complaints about the Incomplete "Complete BSG DVD/Blu-Ray" sets, and the fact that much of the extras advertised in the UK booklet, are NOT actually on the set itself:

Battlestar Galactica Complete Series Complaints Section
Universal Playback
Universal Pictures UK Ltd
Prospect House
80-110 New Oxford Street
London
WC1A 1HB

Or e-mail: enquiriesuk@nbcuni.com

[PoochJD]

Hi Everyone,

Okay, I’ve just spent about two-and-a-half hours going through every single one of the 25 DVD discs that make up the new BSG Boxed Set release, and I wanted to now confirm what the set does and does not contain, and advise (where appropriate) about missing content. (Warning - there’s a lot of stuff missing! )

I apologise in advance, that this is such a long post, but I hope you all find it useful. This information ONLY applies to the UK, Region 2/4 BSG Limited Edition Set, and no other DVD or Blu-Ray version! You may prefer to print this posting out, for reference purposes.

Firstly, let me say this: this is a very difficult and controversial “Complete Series” release of BSG. Not only does it have content included that has been misplaced on other discs, it also fails to include some material that it promises to, AND it also includes other material where you least expect it. So, here goes, for my disc-by-disc account of the sets content. I hope this helps you all out, and displaces some of the myths about what is or is not included in the set. Alas, this is not – in my view – a “complete series”, and Universal need to know about this! Details about what to do, are mentioned at the end of this post.


Season 1
Disc 1
- Contains the original BSG Mini-Series, as one feature-length film, running to 2hrs 55m.
- Contains the BSG documentary featurette “The Lowdown”, running to 20m 31s.
- Does NOT contain an Audio Commentary, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 2
- Contains “33”, “Water”, “Bastille Day”, and “Act Of Contrition”.
- Does NOT contain an Audio Commentary, for any of the four episodes, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 3
- Contains “You Can’t Go Here Again”, “Litmus”, and “Six Degrees Of Separation”.
- Does NOT contain an Audio Commentary for “You Can’t Go Here Again”, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 4
- Contains “Flesh And Bone”, “Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down”, and “The Hand Of God”.
- Does NOT contain an Audio Commentary for “Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down”, nor for “The Hand Of God” as promised in the booklet!

Disc 5
- Contains “Colonial Day”, “Kobol’s Last Gleaming – Part 1” and “Kobol’s Last Gleaming – Part 2”.
- Contains 48m 27s of Deleted Scenes
- Does NOT contain an Audio Commentary, for any of these three episodes, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 6
- Contains the BSG documentary “The Lowdown” (as per Disc 1).
- Contains a set of eight Behind The Scenes featurettes.
- Contains various sketches and artwork from/for the show.
- Contains eight Season 2 Deleted Scenes!
- Contains 17 Season 3 Deleted Scenes!

TOTAL AMOUNT OF MISSING MATERIAL IN SEASON 1
- 10 Audio Commentaries missing, and 1 duplicated featurette!



Season 2
Disc 1
- Contains “Scattered”, “Valley Of Darkness”, “Fragged” and “Resistance”.
- The Deleted Scenes for each episode, are on Season 2, Disc 6!
- Does NOT contain an Audio Podcast Commentary for ANY of the episodes, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 2
- Contains “The Farm”, “Home – Part 1”, “Home – Part 2”, and “Final Cut”.
- The Deleted Scenes for each episode, are on Season 2, Disc 6!
- Does NOT contain an Audio Podcast Commentary for ANY of the episodes, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 3
- Contains “Flight Of The Phoenix”, “Pegasus”, “Resurrection Ship – Part 1”, and “Resurrection Ship – Part 2”.
- Contains only the Extended 56m 27s version of “Pegasus”.
- The Deleted Scenes for each episode, are on Season 2, Disc 6!

Disc 4
- Contains “Epiphanies”, “Black Market”, “Scar”, and “Sacrifice”.

Disc 5
- Contains “The Captain’s Hand”, “Downloaded”, “Lay Down Your Burden – Part 1”, and “Lay Down Your Burden – Part 2”.
- Contains only the Extended 1hr 5m 4s version of “Lay Down Your Burden – Part 2”.

Disc 6
- Contains Deleted Scenes for Season 2, Discs 1, 2 and 3 respectively.
- The 11 Video Blogs from David Eick, can be found on “The Final Season: Disc 4” of all places!

TOTAL AMOUNT OF MISSING MATERIAL IN SEASON 2
- 7 Audio Podcast Commentaries missing!


Season 3
Disc 1
- Contains “Occupation”, “Precipice”, “Exodus – Part 1”, and “Exodus – Part 2”.

Disc 2
- Contains “Collaborators”, “Torn”, “A Measure Of Salvation”, and “Hero”.

Disc 3
- Contains “Unfinished Business”, “The Passage”, “The Eye Of Jupiter”, and “Rapture”.
- “Unfinished Business” is the regular 41m 58s broadcast version, and is not extended in any way. Why was the longer version omitted?!

Disc 4
- Contains “Taking A Break From All Your Worries”, “The Woman King”, “A Day In The Life”, and “Dirty Hands”.

Disc 5
- Contains “Maelstrom”, “The Son Also Rises”, “Crossroads – Part 1”, and “Crossroads – Part 2”.

TOTAL AMOUNT OF MISSING MATERIAL IN SEASON 3
- Thankfully, absolutely none! However, as one of the Disc 3 episodes has been shown in an alternate, longer versions, omitting it is annoying and frustrating!


Season 4
Disc 1
- Contains only the Extended 1hr 39m 30s version of “Razor”.
- Contains an Audio Commentary, but it has to be selected via the Bonus menu section.
- Contains 2 Deleted Scenes, in the Bonus menu section.
- Contains 7 Minisodes, in the Bonus menu section!

Disc 2
- Contains “He That Believeth In Me”, “Six Of One”, “The Ties That Bind”, and “Escape Velocity”.
- Does NOT contain an Audio Podcast Commentary for ANY of the episodes, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 3
- Contains “The Road Less Travelled”, “Faith”, “Guess What’s Coming To Dinner”, and “Sine Qua Non”.
- Does NOT contain an Audio Podcast Commentary for ANY of the episodes, as promised in the booklet!

Disc 4
- Contains “The Hub” and “Revelations”.
- Contains Deleted Scenes from the 10 episodes that form the first half of Season 4
- Does NOT contain an Audio Podcast Commentary for ANY of the episodes, as promised in the booklet!
- Does NOT contain the 10 Minisodes, as promised in the booklet! However, these are likely to have been left-off, due to legal and copyright issues. (There are rumours that the creators and cast and crew were not paid for the 10 Minisodes, and although they were originally downloaded over 5.5 million times, including via iTunes, no payment was given to anyone involved, despite promises from Universal and/or Sci-Fi senior channel staff!)

TOTAL AMOUNT OF MISSING MATERIAL IN SEASON 4
- An undisclosed number of Audio Commentaries, and 10 Minisodes.


The Final Season
Disc 1
- Contains “Sometimes A Great Nation”, “A Disquiet Follows My Soul” (41m 58s broadcast version), “The Oath”, and “Blood On The Scales”.
- Contains 4 Audio Commentaries, (one per episode), but each of them has to be selected via the Bonus menu section.
- Contains 3 Deleted Scenes, but these are in the Bonus section.
- The Extended 50m 54s version of “A Disquiet Follows My Soul” is on “The Final Season: Disc 4”, hidden away stupidly in the Bonus section of that disc!

Disc 2
- Contains “No Exit”, “Deadlock”, “Someone To Watch Over Me”, and “Islanded In A Stream Of Stars” (42m 02s broadcast version).
- Contains an Audio Commentary for “No Exit”.
- Contains three sets of Deleted Scenes for “No Exit”, “Deadlock”, and “Someone To Watch Over Me” in the Bonus section.
- The Extended version of “Islanded In A Stream Of Stars” is not included at all, though this was never promised or assured to be!

Disc 3
- Contains “Daybreak – Part 1” and “Daybreak – Parts 2 and 3”.
- Contains the Extended 1hr 32m 26s version of “Daybreak – Parts 2 and 3”.
- Contains 5m 20s of Deleted Scenes.

Disc 4
- Contains a 1m 32s “Sneak Peak” of “Caprica”.
- Contains 11 David Eick Video Blogs.
- Contains an 8m 17s featurette that distils the entire series of BSG into one, miniscule little trailer, entitled “What The Frak Is Going On With Battlestar Galactica?”.
- Contains the Extended 50m 54s version of “A Disquiet Follows My Soul”.
- Contains a 23m 13s documentary about Bear McCreary and the music from the show, in a featurette called “The Evolution Of A Cue”.


I will not mention “Caprica” or “The Plan”, as they do not technically form part of this BSG series, and are due to be released separately, by Universal-Playback in the UK. Some people have complained that these movies should have been included, but I disagree. The fact that this is not the complete BSG saga, but the complete BSG series, explains that satisfactorily in my view.

Clearly, many errors have been made with this set, and some errors need to be urgently rectified by Universal Playback in the UK. I would therefore ask, that everyone who owns the UK Region 2/4 DVD set check their DVD’s according to the above list (especially all of Season 1), and make sure you have all of the above content. If, like me, your Audio Commentaries and other such material are missing, we can all combine our names together, and then contact Universal directly, as one big group, and try to get them to rectify the situation – either via replacing the faulty discs with ones that have the promised material, or some kind of compensation.

It is obvious to me, that some of us would not have paid for this release, if we knew so much material was going to be promised, but then fail to be delivered! In my eyes, there’s a good case for anyone not happy with their set, to return it to their online or high-street retailers under the Sales Of Goods Act, as omitting material from the set, (which can only be discovered once the set has been opened-up and examined) constitutes a form of false advertising, and the product is not “as promised”!

Anyone else who wishes to comment, please do so below, and let’s see if us UK BSG fans can get this ridiculous mess rectified before the end of the year!

Thanks for taking to read this necessarily mammoth posting!


Pooch

[Indiana Jones]

Just thought I would mention that the last episode of season 2 has always had a longer running time than normal so don't feel that a normal 45min cut is missing.

Also good job at going through the set and confirming what is and isn't missing, including next to no commentaries is a huge loss and they better have a good reason for it as it's a huge insult to the fans to market this as the ultimate set and then miss them off.

[vader100]

To me it would appear the main error is they have used the same booklet for the Bluray set and the DVD set.

The bluray set has everything the booklet states and is the same as the US bluray set. It would appear that the DVD set is of the usual BSG standard DVD set, ie. very few extras but the booklet doesn't reflect this.

[Babbler]

Isnt this illigal? I havent opened my set yet but surely - as the amazon site advertised it with all those features and so does the booklet - this is mis-selling and Universal need to do something about this??? I am extremely upset this isnt as "ultimate" as quoted and am half tempted to send it back now!! But it would cost me a fortune to do so.

Not happy.

[PoochJD]

Hi,

Vader100 - If Universal have used the same booklet for both the DVD and Blu-Ray versions, then why does the booklet not mention any of the Blu-Ray-specific extras in it? This leads me to believe that the extras in the booklet, should be on both the DVD and Blu-Ray sets, with Blu-Ray audiences, getting even more extras on top of this! Irrespective, it's a bad effort on Universal-Playback's part!

Originally Posted by Babbler

Isnt this illigal? I havent opened my set yet but surely - as the amazon site advertised it with all those features and so does the booklet - this is mis-selling and Universal need to do something about this??? I am extremely upset this isnt as "ultimate" as quoted and am half tempted to send it back now!! But it would cost me a fortune to do so.

Not happy.

Babbler, As far as I know, Amazon refund any postal charges back to you, so whilst it may cost £12 or so to send it back (more if you do so, via Recorded/Insured Delivery), you will get it back eventually. Having said that, technically, this is false-advertising in my view, not by Amazon, but by Universal. Amazon tend to only list what is shown on the boxed-set itself, in terms of extras.

The problem is, the only way of knowing what is or isn't included, is to go via the info inside the booklet, which you can't access until you've bought the set, and then opened it up! And even then, until you physically go through every single DVD disc, just as I did, do you realise that there are vast amounts of extras actually missing from the set!

Clearly, this is either one of the biggest UK DVD cock-ups in history, and proves that there was no Quality Control being used for this set (which begs the question, why the frak not!), but also, it shows that purchasers of the set have no legal way of finding out what is on the disc, until they open every single set up, and try every single disc! By then, it's theoretically too late for most to return the DVD set. But, because this will - as far as the law is concerned - constitute a breach of the Sale Of Goods And Services Act (by claiming an item has more extras on it, than it actually does, thus significantly reducing the "value" of the product to the end-user - you and I), then any store or company should legally accept returns back, and offer full refunds!

What I want to do, is get as many people to check their DVD and Blu-Ray sets as possible, and then, if we can all try and collate our names together, I can then formally approach Universal-Playback on everyone's behalf, and ask them what they intend to do. If necessary, I would be willing to get in contact with BBC1's WATCHDOG series, as I would think they would be interested in this issue too, and a national newspaper/entertainment publication (e.g. Home Cinema Choice, DVD & Blu-Ray Review, etc), to see if they would be willing to do a piece for their next issue on it, and hopefully get the sets replaced or for purchasers to force Universal to rectify the problem at their expense!

If any of you are members of other "film" or "DVD/Blu-Ray" forums, can I politely ask that you mention this thread in there, and get people to come here and join-up to AVForums, and tell us who they are, where they are, who they bought the DVD/Blu-Ray set from, and then we can try and sort something out.

The more people who know about this, the more pressure Universal-Playback will feel to get the sets replaced, and/or some other form of compensation (financial, or otherwise), for being misled into buying a set that is substantially less worth than it is claimed to be. Thanks!


Pooch