TVB Released VCD/DVD Questions

[Pai Leung]

I am looking to buy some TVB DVDs from Taiwan but the episodes are all off... the show was 20 episodes long but the DVDs only say Ep 1-12. Do they get recut/reedited for a different broadcast length in Taiwan? Normally a show is 20 episodes long at 40 mins... I am buying from JSDVD and they sell legit Taiwan DVDs.

[caix_88]

Yep pretty much. Right now TVB already has a subcription based service for their classic shows, but it's only limited to HK. Again TVB couldn't' care less about people overseas. I'm old school and I still like to collect and own physical media, but everybody wants their stuff convenient and cheap now.

Yes you're right. TVB has started GOTV, a subscription based service where they intent to put up the entire collection of dramas since the very beginning. However, not all titles are up yet. You will need a VPN or IP changer to tune in though. The death of DVD release is near
http://gotv.tvb.com/years

[almo89]

Yes you're right. TVB has started GOTV, a subscription based service where they intent to put up the entire collection of dramas since the very beginning. However, not all titles are up yet. You will need a VPN or IP changer to tune in though. The death of DVD release is near
http://gotv.tvb.com/years

Ironically TVB has been aggressively releasing their classic dramas back on DVD for this past year. I was able to pick up The Bund and The Shell Game. These are strictly HK releases, but I am able to get it locally in Canada through a dealer. Just waiting for a few more shows to come out on DVD and I think that will be the end of TVB collecting for me.

[Ken Cheng]

Ironically TVB has been aggressively releasing their classic dramas back on DVD for this past year. I was able to pick up The Bund and The Shell Game. These are strictly HK releases, but I am able to get it locally in Canada through a dealer. Just waiting for a few more shows to come out on DVD and I think that will be the end of TVB collecting for me.

almo, are these the same releases as we got back in 2009, or entirely new releases?

[caix_88]

Ironically TVB has been aggressively releasing their classic dramas back on DVD for this past year. I was able to pick up The Bund and The Shell Game. These are strictly HK releases, but I am able to get it locally in Canada through a dealer. Just waiting for a few more shows to come out on DVD and I think that will be the end of TVB collecting for me.

I think I get what you mean. On my recent trip to Hong Kong, I actually saw such releases on the shelves of some random video shop, they are selling some classic DVD dramas with a different packaging that I have never seen before in Singapore. It is in soft cover unlike past DVD releases which were in hard cover. All of them had copyright year of 2014 / 2015 instead of putting the series release year. If I remember correctly, the publisher is by "Modern Audio Int'l". However, even being locally produced, they were terribly expensive

[almo89]

almo, are these the same releases as we got back in 2009, or entirely new releases?

I don't actually know because I believe the 2009 releases were only available on the US and I was never able to buy those in Canada. The ones I have now are definitely remastered as it states on the cover. Both Shell Game and The Bund look great. They seemed to have cleaned up the actually 16mm shots in The Bund because I don't see any white specs or dirt on them unless they didn't have them in the first place, but I don't remember for sure.

[almo89]

I think I get what you mean. On my recent trip to Hong Kong, I actually saw such releases on the shelves of some random video shop, they are selling some classic DVD dramas with a different packaging that I have never seen before in Singapore. It is in soft cover unlike past DVD releases which were in hard cover. All of them had copyright year of 2014 / 2015 instead of putting the series release year. If I remember correctly, the publisher is by "Modern Audio Int'l". However, even being locally produced, they were terribly expensive

Yeah all the current releases use the soft cover which looks a tad cheaper looking than the old book like covers. I can't really complain since we never got The Bund or The Shell Game in DVD in the past. Modern Audio is one of the the official dealers for TVB titles in HK. The dealer I get my stuff from here in Vancouver is also called MAL Music, but the chinese name is exactly the same as Modern Audio, so I think it's the same company which is probably why I am able to get their TVB stuff.

[Ken Cheng]

I don't actually know because I believe the 2009 releases were only available on the US and I was never able to buy those in Canada. The ones I have now are definitely remastered as it states on the cover. Both Shell Game and The Bund look great. They seemed to have cleaned up the actually 16mm shots in The Bund because I don't see any white specs or dirt on them unless they didn't have them in the first place, but I don't remember for sure.

I hope the weird edits from the 2009 editions have been removed, and the series are now issued as they were ORIGINALLY BROADCAST in 1980. If so, these should be the archival, legacy editions.

[almo89]

I hope the weird edits from the 2009 editions have been removed, and the series are now issued as they were ORIGINALLY BROADCAST in 1980. If so, these should be the archival, legacy editions.

There are the same weird abrubt edits that were on the Japanese bootleg version I watched. Like the KMT getting slaughtered, but only a split second of it is shown of their corpses. I don't believe a unedited edition exists unless you own the VHS. I kind of regret tossing the VHS. If you still have the VHS version, try to get that converted to digital.

[Ken Cheng]

There are the same weird abrubt edits that were on the Japanese bootleg version I watched. Like the KMT getting slaughtered, but only a split second of it is shown of their corpses. I don't believe a unedited edition exists unless you own the VHS. I kind of regret tossing the VHS. If you still have the VHS version, try to get that converted to digital.

Damn it. Almo, you get the feeling that the original masters of THE BUND and THE SHELL GAME might no longer exist? How hard could it be for TVB to just use the original, 1980 broadcast cuts otherwise?

[almo89]

Damn it. Almo, you get the feeling that the original masters of THE BUND and THE SHELL GAME might no longer exist? How hard could it be for TVB to just use the original, 1980 broadcast cuts otherwise?

It's hard to say. They might still have the original master, but it might not ever see the light of day. Maybe some of the violence is deemed too violent to air on TV now that they have to make these edits. Regardless of what the reason is for the edits, it's pretty sad that such masterful work of art has to be butchered. At least we get all 25 episodes and not some VCD hack job with new added music.

[Ken Cheng]

It's hard to say. They might still have the original master, but it might not ever see the light of day. Maybe some of the violence is deemed too violent to air on TV now that they have to make these edits. Regardless of what the reason is for the edits, it's pretty sad that such masterful work of art has to be butchered. At least we get all 25 episodes and not some VCD hack job with new added music.

Yeah...the lingering shot of the aftermath of the KMT slaughter was one of the most disturbingly violent images I've ever seen on television...in ANY country. Chilling to reflect upon even now, but not gratuitous. It wasn't violence for its own sake, but truly captured the dark side of Shanghai Grand.

[almo89]

Yeah...the lingering shot of the aftermath of the KMT slaughter was one of the most disturbingly violent images I've ever seen on television...in ANY country. Chilling to reflect upon even now, but not gratuitous. It wasn't violence for its own sake, but truly captured the dark side of Shanghai Grand.

That was what made The Bund such a great show. Nothing was gratuitous or trying to get a reaction out of people. The whole show had all these subtle nuances that isn't seen in today's dramas. I'm currently rewatching this new DVD and I like it more each time I watch it.

Back on topic of DVDs, I would love to see them release the original uncut Luk Siu Fung. I still have yet to see this from beginning to end.

[Ken Cheng]

That was what made The Bund such a great show. Nothing was gratuitous or trying to get a reaction out of people. The whole show had all these subtle nuances that isn't seen in today's dramas. I'm currently rewatching this new DVD and I like it more each time I watch it.

Yeah...and the scene is even more wonderfully disturbing when you realize that the ones who unleashed that carnage weren't villains, but the HEROES of the story...Hui Man Keung and Ding Lik. Clearly, the lines between good and evil were blurry here.

Back on topic of DVDs, I would love to see them release the original uncut Luk Siu Fung. I still have yet to see this from beginning to end.

Indeed. The VCD left the series basically intact, though a few Fa Mun Lau fight scenes were oddly edited.

[almo89]

Looks like Emissary is coming out on DVD:

http://www.hmv.com.hk/ch/product/dvd.asp?sku=842346

[caix_88]

Looks like Emissary is coming out on DVD:

http://www.hmv.com.hk/ch/product/dvd.asp?sku=842346

Haha yes it is out since June 2015. Saw it on the shelves already!

[caix_88]

It's hard to say. They might still have the original master, but it might not ever see the light of day. Maybe some of the violence is deemed too violent to air on TV now that they have to make these edits. Regardless of what the reason is for the edits, it's pretty sad that such masterful work of art has to be butchered. At least we get all 25 episodes and not some VCD hack job with new added music.

Yeah censorship in HK and around Asia is quite common, maybe that's one of the reasons why the VCD releases in the past is being edited so heavily. Then again, identifying the original opening & episode numbers is crucial to determine whether the release will be edited heavily. Hearing that The Bunds episodes totaled to be 25 is definitely good news. Let's hope that the content is being left untouched and uncensored!

[caix_88]

Damn it. Almo, you get the feeling that the original masters of THE BUND and THE SHELL GAME might no longer exist? How hard could it be for TVB to just use the original, 1980 broadcast cuts otherwise?

Haha I think your best bet to uncut series is to go online for reference already since TVB has put up GOTV.tvb.com now with its entire collection up for viewing. Or if not have to patiently wait for DVD releases =X

[caix_88]

I might have thought of an idea. If anyone here wants to confirm if the DVD release has scenes being cut, I can compare it against TVB's GOTV timecode of each episode.
Capture3.jpg

From here you can see that Episode 25 of The Bund is 48mins and 56 seconds. So if the DVD release time differs by a lot, that would probably mean that some scenes could have been cut away, hence the episode timing is shorten.

[almo89]

Haha I think your best bet to uncut series is to go online for reference already since TVB has put up GOTV.tvb.com now with its entire collection up for viewing. Or if not have to patiently wait for DVD releases =X

Too bad that service is only available in Hong Kong.