Customer Reviews

Forever Knight - The Trilogy, Part 1 (1992 - 1993)

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Will I be buying the next two - absolutely! Would I be willing to pay more for a better product - absolutely! Will I let other FK fans know about the DVDs - already have, with cautions.
I fell in love with Forever Knight the first time I saw it on late night TV. I have been anxiously waiting for the show to come out on DVD,and pre-ordered as soon as I found that it was finally going to be released. Within the first 30 minutes my excitement was tinged with disappointment...there are missing scenes from the pilot episode, there are no extras, interviews, etc. C'mon guys why aren't all the eps at least the full Canadian version (European would be even better!) Why no extras? All the actors, producers, directors and writers are still around would getting some interviews be that difficult? Outtakes have to exist why not include them? As for the ads for other products that are being presented as extras - didn't watch and not going to watch - if it doesn't include some of the FK cast don't even bother to put it into the next two.

While Forever Knight is a fantastic show, this is one of the worst, if not THE worst TV DVD set I have ever seen. Columbia Tri-Star did NOTHING to clean the image of the film up. I own seasons 1-4 of MASH on DVD, and let me tell you that there was no other TV show that had such poor film quality. Well guess what...the MASH DVDs are beautiful, so TV show picture quality CAN BE improved. My VHS taped recordings off of Sci Fi channel are way better than this DVD set. Yes, that's how bad the picture quality is. Looking for Forever Knight extras? Don't look here. Columbia-Tri Star didn't include a SINGLE EXTRA feature. Quite frankly, if season 2 and 3 are this poorly done, count me out. I don't want them. A true shame this is. This is probably one of the finest, most under-appreciated TV shows of the 1990's. A true shame that the folks at Columbia Tri Star are too ignorant to do a DVD set right.

Sure, I'm disappointed that there's no extras, and that there's just a few seconds missing out of the first episode, but overall, I'm doing a happy dance! It is great to finally have this wonderful series out in a professional format instead of my taped of the air well-worn tapes. These also are the Canadian versions, which are slightly longer than the episodes which aired in the USA.

Sure, the price should be less since there are no extras. However, if these had been released in a VHS format, it would have been 11 or so tapes at *at least* $14.95 OR MORE per tape. The DVDs are MUCH less expensive. So am I disappointed in the cost? Yes. Will you see me lowering my rating of a great DVD set because of it? No. I'll certainly get my money's worth out of this set.

The series itself is a classic. Not quite a vampire series, not quite a detective series, yet the best of both. It appeals to people who normally don't like either, and also to fans of both genres.

Nick Knight is a detective who was "brought across" as a vampire in 1228 and now wants to "repay mankind for his sins." He wants to be mortal again, but his "sire" LaCroix has other ideas.

I'm eagerly awaiting the other two seasons on DVD. I hope the producers of the DVD include extras, but if they don't, I'll still be first in line to own a set!

The show 'Forever Knight' gets five stars. Easy. This DVD set, on the other hand? Four is being generous.

I'm not a greedy person in general, and certainly not when it comes to Box Sets. I'm not *against* special features, of course, but it's not my main concern. My main concern is the *show*, having all the episodes be easily accessible and in the beautiful quality that DVDs can provide.

Unfortunately, however, this particular box set doesn't even manage to provide *that*.

The picture quality is utter, complete and total crap, at least when it comes to a DVD. If I'd bought the show on VHS, I'd understand. But since I didn't, I just don't. So much of Forever Knight is set, well, at *night*. It's a show about vampires, after all. And night time on a typical TV show is hard to light, and generally hard to see. That's the beauty of most DVDs, keeping the night look while allowing me to actually see what's going on.

I'm sure you can guess where I'm going with this. :)

I actually took the time to pull out one of my old tapes of Forever Knight to compare it with the DVDs, so annoyed was I by the quality. And you know what? My *tape* looked *better*. And it wasn't even taped in SP speed, it was taped in EP speed.

Why bother making a DVD of a show if you're not going to improve the quality? I don't get it.

Did I still buy it? Of course. Did I buy the next one? Yep. But if I'd had all the episodes on tape, I probably wouldn't have. There's really no difference.

I have been a fan of the vampire genre my whole life. There have been many films and television shows that have focused on that very subject. However, Forever Knight is one of the best overall that I have ever seen. The storyline could not have been better. Nick Knight ( Geraint Wyn Davies) is a vampire who has lived for almost 800 years. However, he has always wished that he could become mortal again. To repay his debt to society, he works as a homicide detective for the Toronto Metropolitan Police. While he secretly uses his vampire abilities to solve the city's most difficult cases with his smart-mouthed and witty partner Don Schanke ( John Kapelos), he attempts to find a cure for his case of vampirism with his best friend and fellow medical pathologist Natalie Lambert (Catherine Disher).

The different cases, the outstanding vampire effects, and the superb acting from Davies, Kapelos, and Disher really make Forever Knight one of the best television shows that I have ever had the pleasure of watching. Every episode manages to offer moments of outstanding action, humor, and horror. Now if this review was only for the show itself, I would give it 5 stars hands down. But this review is also for the DVD set as well. That is the reason why I can only offer a 3 star rating. While it is nice to have all the episodes for season 1 together in one collection, the DVD set is seriously lacking in some areas. First of all, the picture quality of the episodes is extremely average and even grainy at times. The transfer of the episodes could have been much better. Secondly, the very first episode "Dark Knight PT 1" has scenes missing from it. When you purchase the DVD of anything, you are supposed to have access to the best version available. This is simply not the case. There is also NO EXTRAS at all. I would have enjoyed a behind the scenes look into the show as well as interviews with the cast members. However, that is not to say that the DVD set does not have its good points as well. With the acception of the very first episode, the rest of the episodes offer all the original footage shown in the U.S., and then some with the Canadian footage added in. The sound quality is also very good. I just wish that if Columbia went all out with giving us the best versions of the episodes, why not do it for the first episode as well?

Overall, this DVD set is a must have for fans of the vampire genre and obviously fans of the show. However, the buyers need to look out for poor picture quality, a serious lack of extras, and missing scenes from the first episode.

I am not rating the show, as I loved it and never missed an episode. Am rating the dvd. It is one of the worst transfers to watch on a digital big screen tv I have ever seen. Shame on them. They could have spent a little time cleaning up the grain. Lot of pixelization also. Other than that, will buy the other 2 just so I have all the episodes, but it still annoys me, such a quality show given such shabby treatment on dvd. Shame--Shame--Shame

I think I was a bit more fortunate than some of the other reviewers. Due to horrendous marketing, and bad advertising on the part of CBS, and the local network that acquired it, I never got a chance to see the first season of "Forever Knight." This whole box set was a special feature to me, in, and of itself. As for seasons two, and three, all I've ever known are the American edits (though I sure wouldn't argue if future volumes include apocryphal, and restored footage). I also don't mind that they left the broadcast bands in at the beginning. As a matter of fact, I like it better with them, than without. For me, this is partly a nostalgia thing, and I spent many a night seeing that attached to the hook in each episode. To be honest with you, I wouldn't care if they added the commercials in too. It's interesting to see how the world has changed. Seven years is longer than you think. So long, and so far.

The show wasn't digitally remastered for this release--on the other hand, the source prints from which the set was derrived appear to be very clear compared to other shows that I've seen (many of those early transfers of "Dark Shadows" were godawful). It's packaged with attractive conceptual art, and each DVD includes the option of watching all five episodes straight through.

To the people who are upset, I would counsel you to take heart. Columbia-Tristar wanted to experiment with this before they committed themselves in any grave, financial way. If these sell well, I would be willing to bet that Volumes 2, and 3 will have extras, and at a reasonable price.

With this one, they got "Forever Knight's" foot in the door, and I'm glad they did.

Forever Knight is about a vampire (Nick Knight) who wants to regain his mortality. After centuries of killing hapless victims, he is trying to repay his debt to humanity by working as a Toronto homicide detective. His circle of friends includes his former vampire lover, the beautiful Janett; his vampire "master", LaCroix (present only in flashbacks for Season 1); his garlic-loving, jovial yet perceptive detective partner, Don Schanke; Toronto coroner and confidante, Dr. Natalie Lambert; and his police Captain, Joe Stonetree. Nick must struggle against his vampire urges, much like a former addict, and he must try to keep his identity a secret from all mortals while also working at his job.

Unlike Angel or Buffy, Nick is a vampire working in a mortal world. Unlike the Buffy vampires, Nick is not a demon, but he does have some cool supernatural abilities; not only are FK vampires extremely strong and very fast, but they have very acute senses of hearing and smell, the power to hypnotise people, and to fly.

Aside from vampires and the occasional ghost, there are no supernatural creatures in this show, and most of the murders Nick investigates are committed by people. Nick doesn't do anything as dramatic as saving the world or killing monsters, a la Buffy. For Angel fans, this is a distinctly different look at the vampire-seeking-redemption story, and one that is just as good in its own way. Nick is more mature and thoughtful than Angel, in my opinion. And if you think Angel is angsty and brooding, then you clearly haven't met Nick Knight!

Let me move respond to the criticisms made about this DVD series.

1. The video quality is poor.
--I have a big-screen digital TV, and I don't have any complaints about the video quality. Perhaps some early DVD sets were below standards? It's the only explanation I can see for the huge discrepancy between what I see at home and the picture some people have complained about.

On the other hand, the audio quality is clearly superior to the audio quality off of broadcast TV. And that has brought a freshness to certain episodes. Kudos to Sony for their attention to this aspect of the DVD.

2. The episodes are the U.S. version, not the (much longer) Canadian version.

For the first season, Canadian episodes were substantially longer (by 5-6 minutes) than American episodes. On the DVDs, the first two episodes (Dark Knight parts 1 & 2) are the American episodes, and so DVD viewers are definitely missing out on some Canadian version goodies. However, all the remaining episodes on the DVD set are the longer Canadian ones.

3. There are no goodies on this set.

Too true! In fact, the DVDs don't even have a scene selection menu to find scenes within an episode, although you are allowed to at least select an episode... Let's hope we see more on the Season 2 discs.

In short, I think this is a thoroughly enjoyable show, with good picture quality and enhanced sound. The DVDs have all of the first season (except for about five minutes of Dark Knight), but nothing else. Is it worth it to buy the series at the listed price? Well, it hurt my pocketbook a bit at first, but now that the pain has gone, I still have the pleasure of being able to watch this great show whenever I like. And I can't wait for Season 2!

Although the series had it's flaws, it was great fun and something different. The great cast made you forget some of the mistakes in the script. I was thrilled when I discovered this on DVD and bought it right away. I am hoping the rest of the episodes will be released on DVD. However, I am hoping that Columbia Tri-Star will show some respect for the fans and add some extras, like interviews etc. The picture quality is so poor I thought it was my DVD player or television that was going on the blink. I also seem to recall scenes that do not seem to be on the DVD's. The picture is actually so bad I have to watch it with the lights off!!! Overall I am thrilled to have the first trilogy and that prompted me to buy the soundtracks, which are great too. Does anybody know when the next installment is due out or if it even is? Thanks.

Many people have never heard of the TV series Forever Knight, and that's a terrible shame. It is one of the best character-driven shows I've ever seen, ranking right up there with Buffy and the early seasons of X-Files. Everyone I've ever introduced to the series has become a loyal fan--and yet, it's been almost impossible to find it on TV! Between cancellations, network-hopping, and horrible time slots, it's a miracle anyone ever saw enough of it to develop an appreciation for the characters and the writing. Now, with its appearance on DVD, a new cadre of Forever Knight fans can understand the appeal of this quirky vampire-cop series set in Toronto.
Are you one of those people who enjoyed the dark conflict/redemption arcs of Angel and Spike in the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Forever Knight has that. Do you like the monster-of-the-week integrated with the ongoing character development of X-Files? Forever Knight has that. Do you like those ubiquitous cop shows wherein the characters struggle with their (metaphoric) inner demons as they try to make the world a safe place for the innocent? Forever Knight has that. Or are you a sucker for tortured, star-crossed romance that can never be? Forever Knight has that, too. What's more, Forever Knight did it first, without a huge budget for special effects, and managed to create a believable world that has endured years after its cancellation in the various fan sites scattered across the Internet. (Keep it up, Knighties and Nat-Packers and Cousins all!)
As a teacher, I don't have a lot of money and I don't buy a lot of things on DVD. In fact, my entire collection consists of the Lord of the Rings movies, the Harry Potter movies, Buffy, X-Men, The Muppets Take Manhattan, and Monty Python's Quest for the Holy Grail. I will, however, CHEERFULLY shell out the bucks for all three seasons of Forever Knight. Trust me--it's worth it.