DVD The Dick Van Dyke Show - Season Four

32 More Great Episodes In Stunning Digital Quality!

There are 32 splendiferous episodes on tap in this fourth-season DVD set (all "uncut", as originally aired in 1964-1965).  Some of the many funny-bone-tickling episodes that await you in Season #4 include: "The Ghost Of A. Chantz", "4-And-A-Half", "Pink Pills And Purple Parents", "The Impractical Joke", "The Case Of The Pillow", and the hilarious "Never Bathe On Saturday", which features a distressed Laura Petrie getting her toe stuck in the bathtub (and also features one of my all-time favorite Rob-isms: "Don't toy with me, you saucy wench!").  LOL! 

The five-disc Season #4 DVD boxed set comes handsomely-boxed in comparable eye-appealing packaging to that of the previous boxed entries in the series from Image.  The outer box looks like an old '60s television set, with a 3-D "motion" type insert card placed inside the "TV" on the box.  Season 4's slipcase picture shows Laura Petrie (Mary Tyler Moore) struggling with the inflatable fishing boat that's contained in a package she "accidentally" opens in "The Curious Thing About Women" (which is an episode from Season 1).

Individual slim-type ("ThinPak") cases house each of the set's five discs (with each disc displaying attractive disc art).  Ample episode information is provided on the cover of each separate case (ep. numbers, air dates, film dates, synopsis, and chapter selections).  Very nice cover art photos grace each of the five individual cases. The discs are "Region Free" (Region "Zero").

VIDEO ..... Like the Van Dyke season sets before it, Season 4 boasts of A-1, Grade-A type digital transfers.  These black-and-white programs never looked so fine. You'll still run into an occasional bit of dirt and/or grainy image, but overall these shows look terrific on DVD! Very good detail is the result of the re-mastering and clean-up that was undertaken here, with objects (and people) exhibiting a sharpness that you'll never see on any VHS release of this TV series.  These shows are a joy to watch on DVD, again and again.

AUDIO ..... Sound comes through clean and clear via each disc's quite acceptable 2.0 Dolby Digital Mono soundtrack.

MENUS ..... An easy-to-navigate menu system is employed here.  The Main Menu allows access to any of that disc's six (or seven) different episodes, with separate sub-menus offered for each program.  Each sub-menu shows that program's Chapter Selection, plus an "Extras" area, which will take you to any applicable "Bonus" features for the episode in question.  A "Play All" feature is also included from the Main Menu. Unfortunately (for many people), no subtitles or captions of any kind have been included here (or on any of the other Van Dyke Show sets issued by Image).

BONUS FEATURES .............................  

>> Two episodes have audio commentary tracks by Dick Van Dyke and Carl Reiner ("Baby Fat" and "Never Bathe On Saturday").  "Baby Fat" has two separate commentaries, in fact -- one by Dick and Carl; and another track done by writer Garry Marshall. 

>> The complete, uncut CBS-TV documentary "The Dick Van Dyke Show Remembered" (from 1994). Many clips from this same program are used throughout the different boxed sets that Image has released.  But here you can see the whole documentary all at once.  Darn good program too. Running time -- 46:35.

>> A clip from TV-Land's animated program, "The Alan Brady Show" (length: 1:15).

>> Cast Photos and "Proofs", taken by actor Roddy McDowall (length: 0:48).

>> Clip from the "DVD Exclusive Awards" (2003), where Image's boxed set of "The Dick Van Dyke Show Season One" took home the award for "Best Overall DVD for a TV Program". This clips lasts 3:13, and features Dick Van Dyke and disc producer Paul Brownstein accepting the award. Dick provides some funny ad-libbed comments during this entertaining video clip.

>> Dick sings the "Dick Van Dyke Show Theme Song" at The Hollywood Bowl (in August 2001).  Mary Tyler Moore also appears in this video clip, which lasts 2:26.  Dick (and the other singers who join him to belt out this cute tune) sound pretty dang good too!  -- BTW: If you've got the Season Three Image boxed set of "The Dick Van Dyke Show", you can hear Dick (solo) singing this very same ditty at the end of one of the Commentary Tracks for a third-season episode.

>> Clip from "Diagnosis Murder", in which Dr. Sloan (Dick Van Dyke) encounters "Rob Petrie".  This inventive 35-second clip features "Rob" as a disc jockey in the episode "One Hundred Terrible Hours" as "Dr. Sloan" passes by him in the hallway.  Clever way of putting both Sloan and Petrie in the scene at the same time.

>> Photo Galleries for 29 of the 32 episodes.

>> One Emmy Awards clip (length: 2:58).

>> Two "Tune In To Part 2 Next Week" Network Promos (integrated into the episodes themselves).

>> 4-Page Booklet about the 4th season of the show. This mini-booklet also contains photos, trivia, and a bio on Morey Amsterdam.

EASTER EGGS ..... There are six total "Eggs" to be found amongst these 5 discs (one per disc, except Disc #5, which has two).  Like the third-season DVD-on-DVD set, all of these Easter Eggs contain short "Nick At Nite" ads featuring "spokesman" Dick Van Dyke. You can find them in the "Chapter" sub-menus, by "Left-Clicking" on a chapter title (usually the "Opening Titles" chapter, but not always). If there's an "Egg" there, the cursor will move to the upper-right corner of the screen, highlighting the picture (drawing) of series star Dick Van Dyke.  Pressing "Play" or "Enter" at this point will access the ads.

Image Entertainment has a perfect 1.000 Batting Average with these Dick Van Dyke Show boxed sets.  Each set has been darn near perfect ... with nice, abundant bonus features included, terrific picture quality, full-length unedited episodes, and classy packaging.  Hard to ask for more.