Product Details

• Actors: Katherine Helmond, Richard Mulligan, Cathryn Damon, Ted Wass, Billy Crystal
• Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Unknown)
• Region: Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
  PLEASE NOTE: Some Region 1 DVDs may contain Regional Coding Enhancement (RCE). Some, but not all, of our international customers have had problems playing these enhanced discs on what are called "region-free" DVD players. For more information on RCE, click here.
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 3
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: September 16, 2003
• Run Time: 600 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (92 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00008EY5S
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #82,513 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Soap - The Complete First Season" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

SOAP, A PARODY OF SOAP OPERAS, IS A SHOW ABOUT TWO SISTERS &THEIR FAMILIES. THE ENTIRE 1ST SEASON, ALL 26 EPISODES

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

170 of 184 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars NOTE - 4 Episodes are Edited - Inexcusable for DVD, November 10, 2003

By 

esb100 "esb100" (Columbus, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soap - The Complete First Season (DVD)

As soon as this set came out, I posted below, enthusiastic about receiving complete, unedited episodes, even to the point of excusing the absence of extras.

I was wrong. As discussed by others below and on the Yahoo Soap Group, a comparison of the DVD episodes with the complete, unedited episodes on the Columbia House videotapes shows that 4 DVD episodes are edited:

Episode 2 - Edits out Jody singing "There's Nothing Like a Dame" and the tune the Godfather hums after Danny leaves the sauna.

Episodes 16 and 17 are the syndicated versions, each missing 2 and 1/2 minutes from the complete episodes.

Episode 19 deletes the "On the last episode on Soap" intro.

It should be noted that the company issuing Soap on DVD, Columbia TriStar, also puts out Sanford and Son on DVD, and that a second season DVD episode of Sanford and Son, "Blood is thicker than Junk" incredibly edits out 2 and 1/2 minutes which appear on the syndicated version.

All of this, of course, is not important in light of what's happening in the world, but it does show extrememe sloppiness and lack of care by Columbia TriStar.

39 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Show That Deserves a Better DVD, November 15, 2003

By 

P. Solinger (Yuma, Arizona United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Soap - The Complete First Season (DVD)

What can I say about this groundbreaking hit TV show from 1977 that other reviewers haven't already said? This is an excellent, hilarious soap opera spoof that focuses on two familes whose only link is the matriachs, Jessica and Mary, two sisters. Well, Jessica is also sleeping with Mary's stepson, so I guess there are more links. Several funny storylines are woven together in this first season, culiminating with a classic murder mystery that stretches for twelve of the 25 episodes.

This is definitely a five star TV show, but the DVD production is severely lacking. Not only are a couple of episodes edited, as previously reported, but there are no extras to speak of (unless you count movie trailers). I can easily recommend this collection to purchase, just due to the excellent episodes of this series that you will get. However, Soap deserved more effort from Columbia House, and one can only hope they release season two with complete, unedited episodes. Knowing their history, however, extras will probably continue to be a pipe dream.

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Television's Landmark Comedy, September 14, 2003

By 

Jose R. Perez "Jose" (Yonkers, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Soap - The Complete First Season (DVD)

At long last, "Soap" comes to DVD. An avid fan of the show since it originally aired in the 70's, I own the series on VHS but am estatic about the DVD release for a few reasons. Not only do I look forward to selecting which episodes to watch over and over again, ANY extras will just be icing on this delicious cake. But beyond that, having Season One on DVD means that there's a commitment to releasing future seasons of this quinti-sensational laugh-riot-of-a-comedy. Now I know what my friends are getting for Christmas this year!

Ruthlessly funny and irreverent, SOAP was like a breath of fresh air when it first made its network appearance 25 years ago. My best friend and I would literally watch each episode together - eithe rin person or on the phone, mostly to share the immediacy of the funniest gags we'd ever scene, but also to ensure one of us would remember all the lines the next day. With a cast of characters that quite honestly DEFINED the word CHARACTERS "Soap" ranks as the funniest comedy series of the past 40 years, perhaps ever. Up there with "I Love Lucy" each episode guarantees a laugh - guffaws and belly grabbing are a given. Few series have ever combined wit and wisdom the way SOAP did. Sure - it introduced prime time's first "out" gay character (Jodie, the incomparable Billy Crystal) but no show has even come close to creating some of the other situations you'll find here!

A demon baby? YEP, why not, when a fallen priest (Father Tim) hooks up with the ... daughter Corinne.
A talking grapefruit? Sure...if you're imitating one crazy sibling's unique attachment to a ventriloquist dummy named Bob.
A mother in lust with her daughter's lover (and tennis coach)? Trust me, Lifetime never had it this good.
How about murder? Alien Abductions? A gay quarterback? An all-knowing scene-stealing butler (the one and only BENSON)? Yep, they're all here. And Richard Mulligan - the late great and brilliant comedian who forever channelled the character of Burt -is absolutely the funniest TV dad you'll ever meet. You can keep Bill Cosby - gimme BURT any day! And Katherine Helmond, whose bust and boundless sex-kittenish turn as Jessica Tate made her a TV staple - is an absolute joy.

SOAP was - and remains - a series that breaks the rules and still works. Its humor was often raw and raunchy, but human nonetheless. Forget "Happy Days" - for pure unduplicated television laughs, SOAP is comedy heaven.