Spot-Bumper Adventure Pack (Musical Adventure/Goes to a Party/Grandparents) (2000) |
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Spot-Bumper Adventure Pack (Musical Adventure/Goes to a Party/Grandparents) (2000) |
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| General | Extras | ||
| Category | Childrens | Main Menu Audio | |
| Rating |
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| Year Of Production | 2000 | ||
| Running Time | 151:20 (Case: 148) | ||
| RSDL / Flipper | Dual Layered | Cast & Crew | |
| Start Up | Ads Then Menu | ||
| Region Coding | 1,2,3,4,5,6 | Directed By | None Given |
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Studio
Distributor |
 Roadshow Home Entertainment |
Starring | Jane Horrocks |
| Case | Amaray-Transparent-Secure Clip | ||
| RPI | $19.95 | Music | None Given |
| Video | Audio | ||
| Pan & Scan/Full Frame | None | English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) | |
| Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 1.29:1 | ||
| 16x9 Enhancement | No | ||
| Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
| Original Aspect Ratio | 1.29:1 | Miscellaneous | |
| Jacket Pictures | No | ||
| Subtitles | None | Smoking | No |
| Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
| Action In or After Credits | No | ||
Otto, Plet, Dribbel, Lagun, Bran, Korochan, Flekk, Stip & Tassen. These are just some of the names by which Spot is known in the more than 100 countries where the children's books are available. The first book, Where's Spot, was published in 1980 in England and quickly became a huge seller. The books are written by Eric Hill who first developed the character for his then two year old son as a bedtime story. The success of the books led to the creation of the animated television series in 1986. Since then four separate series of Spot have been made and this DVD includes 23 of the 49 episodes and specials which have been made. Despite the slightly confusing title, this is a single DVD disc, which includes the contents of three previously released videos. The earliest episode included comes from the first series and was made in 1986, and the latest ones were made (or touched up) in 2000.
Spot Bumper Adventure Pack includes the following videos; Spot Goes to a Party (Eps 12 - 20), Spot's Musical Adventures (Eps 1 - 11) and Spot and his Grandparents Go to the Carnival (Eps 21 - 23). Most of the episodes run for approximately 5 minutes, however one is a special which runs for nearly 30 minutes. All up this disc contains over 150 minutes of program which is significantly more than most children's DVD's. The menu set up allows you to play either individual episodes, the original videos in their entirety or everything on the disc. Also, between the episodes there are also some live action sequences of children playing Spot-related games. Unfortunately, some of these are repeated. The animation is quite simple 2D animation very much in keeping with the look of the books. A lot of the voiceover work is done by Jane Horrocks, best known to adult audiences as Bubbles from Absolutely Fabulous. The best news is that this is the UK version, not the re-dubbed US version, which features Haley Joel Osment.
The show itself is very simple, like the books, with each episode containing a simple story of Spot playing with his friends, or visiting his relatives or a wide variety of other normal childhood activities. The main characters are:
This disc includes 23 episodes which are (NB they are listed in a different order on the case than actually how they are arranged on the disc and the timings include the live action section when applicable):
This is a fun series loved by children everywhere. If your kids love the books you cannot go wrong with this bumper collection of Spot.
The video quality is very good.
The feature is presented in a 1.29:1 aspect ratio non 16x9 enhanced which is the original aspect ratio.
The picture was clear and sharp throughout, with no evidence of low level noise. There was, however, some light grain in all episodes and heavier grain on the one episode from 1986.
The colour was generally very good, however it was quite dull on the 1986 episode.
There were some specks of black to be seen in all episodes, more prevalent in the older ones. From an MPEG artefact perspective there was some aliasing on lines and rug borders, however it is certainly not enough to bother the kids.
There are no subtitles.
The layer change is placed between episodes.
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The audio quality is good .
This DVD contains an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s.
Dialogue was clear and easy to understand
The music by Dan Russell & Duncan Lamont fits the show well.
The surround speakers and subwoofer were not used.
| Dialogue | |
| Audio Sync | |
| Clicks/Pops/Dropouts | |
| Surround Channel Use | |
| Subwoofer | |
| Overall | |
None!
The menu included stills, and the ability to select episodes or play all.
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
This particular DVD seems to be only available in Region 4, however it is coded for all regions.
The video quality is very good.
The audio quality is good.
The disc has no extras.
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| Review Equipment | |
| DVD | Pioneer DV667A DVD-V DVD-A SACD, using Component output |
| Display | Sony FD Trinitron Wega KV-AR34M36 80cm. Calibrated with Digital Video Essentials (PAL). This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 576i (PAL)/480i (NTSC). |
| Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials. |
| Amplification | Pioneer VSX-511 |
| Speakers | Bose 201 Direct Reflecting (Front), Phillips SB680V (Surround), Phillips MX731 (Center), Yamaha YST SW90 (Sub) |