Prepare for the chill of a lifetime as the master of suspense, Rod Serling (The Twilight Zone), hosts every spine-tingling episode from the complete first season of Night Gallery. Thrill to stories performed by Hollywood greats including Joan Crawford, Ossie Davis, Larry Hagman, Diane Keaton, Roddy McDowall, Burgess Meredith and Agnes Moorehead, and directed by cinematic masters like Steven Spielberg (Jaws) in this unforgettable series—available for the first time in HD, from 2K scans of the interpositives! Night Gallery: Season 1 also features top-notch direction by acclaimed filmmakers Daryl Duke (The Silent Partner), Boris Sagal (The Omega Man), Barry Shear (Across 110th Street), Jeannot Szwarc (Jaws 2), Don Taylor (The Island of Dr. Moreau) with wonderful performances by John Astin, Diane Baker, Martine Beswick, Tom Bosley, Jack Cassidy, Godfrey Cambridge, Bert Convy, Phyllis Diller, Louis Hayward, George Macready, Raymond Massey, Joanna Pettet, John Randolph, Barry Sullivan, Torin Thatcher, William Windom & many others.
For thoughts on Night Gallery: The Complete First Season, please see my previous article here.
Video Quality
Night Gallery: The Complete First Season comes to Blu-Ray from Kino Classics with a stellar 1080p transfer sourced from 2K remasters supplied by Universal Studios. As someone who has made their way through the old Universal DVD collection, this new Blu-Ray is quite the upgrade from start to finish. It should be pointed out early on that studios often did not preserve their television material with as much care as you would expect and some of the limitations of the source material are apparent. The level of clarity and detail on this release gives the series a whole new life. The black levels are fairly deep and allow for quite a bit more detail to come through. The series still struggles to reveal an immense amount of detail in the shadows due to lighting limitations, but there is way less crush.
Skin tones are mostly natural and lend themselves to showcasing an amazing amount of minute facial features, unlike the undefined DVD release. There are very subtle details in the production design that are visible here for the first time from certain text elements to subtle makeup effects. Even a few dated special effects look a little more natural in this presentation. Colors are nice and vibrant as certain moments really pop off the screen. For the most part, the presentation preserves its filmic look with natural grain resolved very nicely. Kino Classics has done an excellent job with this release, as almost all print damage has been cleaned up with very few nicks and scratches along the way. Those who have been waiting for this one to be faithfully preserved on Blu-Ray should be thrilled by this standout set.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono mix which sounds pretty incredible. The activity in the series is not as bombastic as most modern thrillers, but the activity that is present is quite engaging. The series’ music helps ground the tone of each story, but it never overpowers the dialogue or other important information. Conversations come through clearly and never fall victim to any digital anomalies. Environmental sounds likewise are delineated nicely in a way that is appreciated. The track packs a decent punch when it comes to the more kinetic moments. There are no noticeable instances of age related wear-and-tear. Optional English subtitles are included on the disc. You really cannot complain about this nicely rendered track that does everything it needs to do well.
Special Features
- Audio Commentaries
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- Pilot: Screenwriter/Historian Gary Gerani
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- The Dead Man/The Housekeeper: Night Gallery Authors/Historians Jim Benson and Scott Skelton
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- Room With A View/The Little Black Bag/The Nature Of The Enemy: Night Gallery Authors/Historians Jim Benson and Scott Skelton
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- The House/Certain Shadows On The Wall: Film Historian Tim Lucas
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- The House/Certain Shadows On The Wall: Author/Historian Amanda Reyes
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- Make Me Laugh/Clean Kills and Other Trophies: Filmmaker/Historian Constantine Nasr and Night Gallery Book Publisher Taylor L. White
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- Pamela’s Voice/Lone Survivor/The Doll: Novelist/Critic Kim Newman and Writer/Editor Stephen Jones
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- They’re Tearing Down Tim Riley’s Bar/The Last Laurel: Film Historian Craig Beam
- The Syndication Conundrum – A Look At The Show’s Troubled Second Life in Reruns: An excellent 58-minute featurette in which Historian Craig Beam takes you through the issues that prevented Night Gallery from thriving in syndication from the low episode count to the inconsistent episode length, along with the misguided solutions for making things work for the stations. This is a fascinating piece which really delves into how the production team tried to Frankenstein their way to success and how it impacted the artistic merit of the show.
Final Thoughts
Night Gallery is often seen as a bit less than when compared to The Twilight Zone, but when you are comparing against one of the greatest shows of all time you will quickly find there is still a lot to love about this series. The stories are really clever and feature some of the most talented performers and creators of the time. As with any anthology show, the show has its high and low points, but each story offers something engaging to latch onto for those wanting a bit of a thrill. Kino Classics has released a Blu-Ray featuring a stunning A/V presentation and an impressive array of special features. This one is a wonderful addition to any collection. Recommended
Night Gallery: The Complete First Season is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
