In need of a detective

The packaging for the collected Columbo DVD box sets I bought recently leaves something to be desired. It looks like the individual series DVD box sets have merely had the internal cardboard sleeves repackaged in to a bigger external case. Not that there is anything wrong with this, because the important material is the shows themselves.

The outer case has a listing of all the series in the collected box set, series one to seven, and listings of the episodes in the individual series. The internal boxes have no explanatory graphics at all, so I only have the printing on the discs to work out what series and disc number I am watching. Luckily, all but one series has the series number printed on the disc, so by elimination I can work out the missing printed series number.

The episode listing for the first series has seven episodes, and the box set contains six discs for that series. This didn't prompt any questions until I had watched four episodes on two of the discs, leaving three episodes apparently spread over four discs. The case didn't list any extras for the series, or the collected box set for a whole, and it left me wondering what I would uncover on the seemingly 'extra' disc.

Watching Columbo has obviously perked up the detective in me, and I hit the internet to find the collected box set listed somewhere. I found from that simple investigation that the first series also includes two pilot films, Diagnosis: Murder and Ransom for a Dead Man, as extras. Of course, I could have simply watched the discs and found out, but I would have been none the wiser as to them being pilot feature-length episodes. Now I know, but don't call on me to solve a murder that can't be solved by a Google search.

Posted in Video |
Tags: columbo, dvd, tv