This wonderful British comedy comes to DVD once again… this time in a Vol. 6-10 box set. If you are not familiar with this outrageous show, it ruled BBC airwaves from 1972-1985, and continues to entertain today on DVD. Taking place solely on a single floor of a department store, this show covers the lives and misadventures of the staff who are employed there.
Audio
Not much can or should be expected from an aging British television audio track such as this. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono …ounds, well… mono. The most disappointing and distracting flaw with this audio on this set is the laugh track. This laugh track is so overpowering that at times it is hard to hear the dialog. Other then that, you will get what you should expect… a very dull sounding track.
Video
The video, presented in 1.33:1 fullscreen, is somewhat better then the audio. The picture is surprisingly clean for an older television show. There are some notable flaws to mention… notably a number of edge enhancements and halo’s. These flaws are not overly distracting, especially since the rest of the video looks quite good.
Special Features
There are a number of long extras found in this set. First up is a 1 hour 17 minute “Best of Are you Being Served?” episode. This episode shows a number of memorable scenes from the show, all incorporated into the context of an episode. Next up is a 1 hour 28 minute featurette entitled “Celebrating Mollie Sugen”. Hosted by a number of her costars, this special covers the life and career of everyone’s favorite blue-haired lady from Are you Being Served?
Also found on this disc is episode one of “Are you Being Served? Again! This show, also known as Grace & Favour, was a spinoff from Are you Being Served? Lastly, you will find a DVD sampler for Allo Allo which features the shows pilot episode, bios, and trailers.
Final Thoughts
If you are familiar with this show, you will know how funny it really is. The humor is now outdated, but the show still has the same feel as it did when it originally aired. The audio and video are nothing to write home about, the there are a number of extras to check out. All-in-all, if you are a fan of British comedies, you should really pick this set up.
Special Features List
- Are You Being Served, Again!” episode
- “Celebrating Mollie Sugden: An Are You Being Served Special”
- Mr. Humphries looks back at the funniest moments
- Who’s Who
- Trailers
- Allo Allo pilot
