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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Fireman Sam-Fields of Fire (2005)

Fireman Sam-Fields of Fire (2005)

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Released 6-Sep-2006

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Childrens Menu Animation
Rating Rated G
Year Of Production 2005
Running Time 60:26
RSDL / Flipper No/No Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 1,2,3,4,6 Directed By Timon Dowdeswell
Studio
Distributor

Roadshow Home Entertainment
Starring Andrew Offiler
John Sparkes
Case Handle
RPI $19.95 Music None Given


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None English Dolby Digital 2.0 (256Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio None
16x9 Enhancement No
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles None Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

    Title of Show : Fireman Sam

    Title of Disc : Fields of Fire

    Year of Production : 2003

    Country of origin : UK

    What's included? : 6 episodes

    Episode Length : approx. 10 minutes each

    Details of episodes : 

      1. High Jinx - Norman is mucking about and ends up in the lake but can't swim.
      2. Fiery Finale - The village is having a talent show and Norman manages to set fire to the stage.
      3. Birthday Surprise - It's Sam's birthday and he thinks everyone has forgotten but they are planning a surprise.
      4. Fields of Fire - There is a fire in some hay fields which Norman and Mandy get caught in.
      5. Let it Snow - Lot's of snow closes the roads into the village and Norman is so desperate to get a Christmas tree that he gets caught in the snow.
      6. The Big Freeze - Very cold weather means Norman is trying to find somewhere warm for Wooly to sleep but ends up causing a fire.

    Style of Production : Puppet animation

    Premise of show : The series follows the adventures of the residents of the town of Pontypandy in Wales which seems to have an inordinate amount of situations which require help from the Fire Department. Obviously the lead character is Fireman Sam, the local fire fighting hero and all round good guy. The other firefighters include the slightly dopey Elvis Criddlington, Penny Morris and their boss Station Officer Steele. A new addition to the fire service is a rescue helicopter, Wallaby One, flown by the intrepid Aussie Tom Thomas. The townsfolk who need rescuing include Bella Lasagne, who runs an Italian restaurant and Dilys Price who runs the local general store. The main source of business for the fire station is the town's kids, Norman Price, Dilys' son; Mandy and the twins Sarah & James (niece & nephew of Sam). Each episode generally sees someone getting into trouble and being rescued by the fire service..

    Age Group : 2-8

    Related to any other children's shows? : Not really

    Adult's view : Good children's show which has good stories but also subtly teaches fire dangers and the importance of not lying.

    Child's view : My boys enjoy the music and the show but the older one is a little wary of the fires.

    Other Releases of this show available? : There are five volumes of this show now available locally.

    Overall : Heartily recommended.

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Transfer Quality

Video

    The video quality is excellent.

    The feature is presented in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio non 16x9 enhanced which is different to previous releases which were 1.75:1 widescreen.

    The picture was very clear and sharp throughout, with no evidence of low level noise.

    The colour was wonderful, rich and solid throughout.

    There were no noticeable artefacts.

    There are no subtitles.

Video Ratings Summary
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is very good.

    This DVD contains an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 256 Kb/s.

    Dialogue was clear and easy to understand and there was no problem with audio sync.

    The music is a lot of fun and the theme tune really sticks in the head, which may or may not be a good thing depending on your point of view.

    The surround speakers and subwoofer were not used.

Audio Ratings Summary
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

    None

Menu

    The menu was still but allowed for the ability to select episodes.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    This disc is available in the same format in Region 2 but not in Region 1.

Summary

    A fun series for the pre-school set, on a quality disc.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Daniel Bruce (Do you need a bio break?)
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Review Equipment
DVDPioneer DV667A DVD-V DVD-A SACD, using Component output
DisplaySony 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 DecoderBuilt in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials.
AmplificationPioneer VSX-511
SpeakersMonitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Yamaha YST SW90 subwoofer

Other Reviews NONE