Finally!!!

By now, I'm sure that everyone has heard the news that Sony is finally going to release season 5 on DVD!!!
It's been years since I posted to this blog, so I thought I would write one final post just to add closure.
I finished my project in April, 2008.
Now, 4 years later, Sony will finally release season 5.
But there's a twist:  it is going to be released as part of a complete series package (Sony hinted that a separate season 5 set will be available in the future--but there is no date announced).
That means, you have to buy the complete series set in order to get season 5.
Some fans are upset because they don't want to buy the whole series all over again. The good news, is that the complete series set has a low MSRP, so it won't be too expensive--probably because the packaging will be cheap and the discs will be stored on a spindle instead of individual cases.    
www.charliesangels.com broke the news in July.
Today, www.tvshowsondvd.com posted the official press release from Sony.
Here's the link:  http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Charlies-Angels-The-Complete-Series/17340

Also, here's some old news you might not know. I don't know why I didn't post this earlier, but here it is: One of the episodes on the official season 4 set has music replacement. The episode is "Angels on Skates." The music replaced is an instrumental version of Donna Summer's "Last Dance." It occurs during the skating competition scene. Sony replaced it with a cheesy disco sound-alike because music rights are expensive.
If you have my set, then you have the original music, so you might want to hang on to it.

Season 4 Available at Amazon.com

You can now purchase the official season 4 in stores. Season 4 is also available at amazon.com. Click on the link below to go to amazon.com.

It's About Time!

It's been one year since I finished my Charlie's Angels DVD project, and now comes word that the long-awaited fourth season of Charlie's Angels will finally get an official release on July 21! Sony is expected to officially announce it on Monday (5/11), but VideoETA made the announcement early. It will be a 6-disc set and the suggested retail price is $39.95. Stay tuned for cover art.

The Reviews Are In!!!

I haven't posted in a while since I've completed my DVD project, but I'm happy to say the project lives on!!
In the past few weeks, I've been inundated with requests from other Charlie's Angels fans for copies of my set -- including people as far away as Italy and the United Kingdom!
I always knew that Charlie's Angels had a loyal fan base, but I figured most fans taped the episodes like I did. Unfortunately, not many TV stations are airing the show today, and when they do, most stations tend to skip over the Shelley Hack and Tanya Roberts years. Instead, they show the first season over and over.
I thought I'd share some of the comments from people who have sent me emails about the set. It's a good feeling to know that all the hard work I did has been worthwhile and is being enjoyed by others.

Hi Ron, I received the Charlie's Angels Season 4 dvd's in the mail today. Thank you so much, you have made me a happy person .=)I was also pleased with the good quality of the episodes, they are better than my poor old tapes that I had episodes of Charlie's Angels on.

-- Deborah (Batesburg, SC)

I recieved your package today. And was extremely anxious to watch them, and did. I must say you are a stroke of genius! The pix quality is superb and the sound is great, ecspecially w/ surround sound (which is how I watch them.) very professional quality!!! AAAAA+++++ Thank You So Very Much!!

-- Ken (Miami, FL)

And there it is -- and dang, great quality. (I mean, yeah, the content's off-the-air, but they're in broadcast order and great menus ... you take this SERIOUSLY! ;)

-- A (San Francisco, CA)

You are a master at authoring! I loved your Season 4 of Charlies Angels! my family and kids LOOOVED Season 4 with new faces and they thought the DVDs were real! (laughs) they're that good!

-- Tony (San Diego, CA)

Hi Ron, This is to say that I loved the sets! They're nicely done and the picture & sound quality are very good! I am enjoying the episodes once more with my family. Thank you very much.

-- Sergio (London, England)

New Re-Authored Set

I totally re-authored the set. Each disc now contains 3 episodes. There are 9 discs for season 4 (25 episodes), and 6 discs for season 5 (16 episodes).

Why did I do this? Let me explain:

The first set I did was a 21 disc set. I originally had 2 episodes per disc, but I noticed that there was a lot of extra free disc space leftover. As you may know, each DVD disc holds 2 hours of programing when recorded in the SP (high-quality) mode. Each of my Charlie's Angels episodes are approximately 45 minutes, so 45 mins. x 2 = 1 and 1/2 hours. That means there is 30 minutes of blank disc space left that is being wasted. I found that if I slightly compressed each episode file from 100% to 96%, I could fit 3 episodes on a disc. Since the compression is at a minimum, there is no significant image loss. Now all episodes from both seasons are on 15 discs instead of 21.

There are a total of 41 episodes on 15 discs. Here's the new episode list for the 15 Disc set.

EPISODE LIST

SEASON 4

Disc 1:
Episode 69: "Love Boat Angels" (Part I)
Episode 69: "Love Boat Angels" (Part II)
Episode 70: "Angels Go Truckin’"
Disc 2:
Episode 71: "Avenging Angel"
Episode 72: "Angels at the Altar"
Episode 73: "Fallen Angel"
Disc 3:
Episode 74: "Caged Angel"
Episode 75: "Angels on the Street"
Episode 76: "The Prince and the Angel"
Disc 4:
Episode 77: "Angels on Skates"
Episode 78: "Angels on Campus"
Episode 79: "Angel Hunt"
Disc 5:
Episode 80: "Cruising Angels"
Episode 81: "Of Ghosts and Angels"
Episode 82: "Angel’s Child"
Disc 6:
Episode 83: "One of Our Angels Is Missing"
Episode 84: "Catch A Falling Angel"
Episode 85: "Homes $weet Homes"
Disc 7:
Episode 86: "Dancin’ Angels"
Episode 87: "Harrigan’s Angel"
Episode 88: "An Angel’s Trail"
Disc 8:
Episode 89: "Nips and Tucks"
Episode 90: "Three for the Money"
Episode 91: "Toni’s Boys"
Disc 9:
Episode 92: "One Love…Two Angels" (Part I)
Episode 93: "One Love…Two Angels" (Part II)
Bonus Episode - The Love Boat: "Dumb Luck" (featuring Shelley Hack)

SEASON 5

Disc 1:
Episode 94: "Angel in Hiding" (Part I)
Episode 94: "Angel in Hiding" (Part II)
Episode 95: "To See an Angel Die"
Disc 2:
Episode 96: "Angels of the Deep"
Episode 97: "Island Angels"
Episode 98: "Waikiki Angels"
Disc 3:
Episode 99: "Hula Angels"
Episode 100: "Moonshinin' Angels"
Episode 101: "He Married an Angel"
Disc 4:
Episode 102: "Taxi Angels"
Episode 103: "Angel on the Line"
Episode 104: "Chorus Line Angels"
Disc 5:
Episode 105: "Stuntwomen Angels"
Episode 106: "Attack Angels"
Episode 107: "Angel on a Roll"
Disc 6:
Episode 108: "Mr. Galaxy"
Episode 109: "Let Our Angel Live"
Special Feature Documentary - TV Tales: "Charlie's Angels"

The Final Piece of the Puzzle

I'm happy to report that my search for "Dancin' Angels" is over!!!! Here's some screencaps. This particular episode was taped during the '80s. The runtime for this episode is 48 min 47 seconds, so it appears that very little (if any) was edited out.

Thanks to Todd (a.k.a. CHERISLAND) over at the Sitcoms Online Trading Post message board for providing me with the missing episode.

I now have all season 4 and 5 episodes. That's a total of 41 episodes spread across 21 discs. There are 13 discs for season 4 (25 episodes), and 8 discs for season 5 (16 episodes).



The average episode runs approximately 45 mins and 30 sec, so they are cut like most syndicated series. All commercials have been edited out.
The majority of the episodes were recorded off the TNT network circa 1999. On most episodes, there is a small TNT logo in the bottom right-hand corner. However, it is faint and not that distracting. See the screen caps.

The sound and picture of these episodes is very good considering that the source of these episodes are ten-year-old VHS recordings that were taped in EP mode. When I transferred them to DVD, I made sure to recorded them in SP mode so that each episode would retain its image quality. That is why there are only two episodes on each disc.

If I were to rate these episodes on a scale of 1 to 10, I would have to say these episodes rate about a 7-8. In my opinion, a set rated a 10 would be reserved for an official commercial release on par with the first 3 seasons of Charlie’s Angels that Sony already released.
A 9 rating would be a show recorded direct from satellite TV.

The picture and sound is very good. I would not say they are outstanding, but I would have not gone to all this work if the episodes were unwatchable. I have posted screen caps on this blog so people have the opportunity to look at the pictures and judge them for themselves.

In addition, I have added 7 chapter stops where each commercial break would be.

Here are some testimonials from people who have viewed the set:

• Many many thanks for the GREAT and AWESOME Charlie's Angels Season 4! Your work is brilliant and am loving them!

-Tony (San Diego, CA)

• I got the Charlie's Angels Season 4 today. They were great. Really nice set. I like how you did the menus. I have already watched 2 episodes. Sure do bring back the memories.

-Jerry (Brazil, IN)

Finishing Touches

All season 4 discs are done with the exception of Disc #10. However, someone has contacted me regarding the missing episode, so my search may be over (fingers crossed).
In the meantime, I've begun authoring the season 5 discs. I've also add chapter stops at each commercial break. Here's a sneak peek at the menu for Season 5/Disc 7 and some more screencaps.