Comparing Home Releases Cover Arts

[Farerb]

International Covers:

UK:

Musical Masterpiece DVD:


The Aladdin Trilogy:


Aladdin 1-3 DVD set:


Heroes cover:


Villains cover:


Australia:

Aladdin 1-3 DVD set:


Japan:

Laserdisc:


Aladdin 1-3 Blu-ray set:

[Farerb]

I like the Australian DVD collection, the Japanese Laserdisc and the Japanese Blu-ray set and I rank them higher than any US cover.
I don't care for any of the UK covers.

[JeanGreyForever]

So my issues with pretty much all the covers here are how off model Aladdin and Jasmine tend to be or the coloring of Jasmine's outfit. With that in mind, here are my rankings.

1. Japanese Laserdisc - My favorite with Aladdin and Jasmine on the carpet in silhouette, the crescent moon behind them, and the Cave of Wonders off in the background. A great edit of this cover has the Genie's face in the dark side of the moon which would make this cover perfect for me.


2. Target Signature Digipack - I'm a huge fan of this one especially since it includes the Sultan and Rajah so all the principal characters. Just hate how off-model Aladdin and Jasmine are and Abu looks really cheaply drawn. The Sultan's eyebrows also look weird white and not dark like in the movie. The composition is perfect but the drawings fail and I hate Jasmine in green rather than light blue.

3. Classics VHS - Probably the most on-model of the covers although Jasmine looks a little bimboish and Abu is really off. The composition of the cover is overall great but Jasmine really needed to be in light blue and not green. Carpet also looks a little magenta for my taste but that might be the lighting.

4. Signature Collection 4K UHD - basically a redo of the VHS which doesn't completely work for me because of how awful Aladdin and Jasmine look. I do like Aladdin in his Prince Ali outfit for a change but Jasmine is still in green and not blue. This fanedit is better.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B0b2LKHopl4/

5. Platinum Edition DVD Box Set - I love the indigo sky with the Cave of Wonders but I wish Aladdin and Jasmine flying off on the carpet was actually part of the box set and not just the book inside.

6. Platinum Edition DVD - Similar to the VHS. I like how this includes the Cave of Wonders and how Jasmine's outfit is more blue than green although still not blue or light enough for my taste. I rank this below the VHS (even though I love Genie at the top as a throwback to the VHS covers) because Aladdin and Jasmine both look awful. The vinyl art really improved on this and made them actually look like the characters. If the Platinum cover had been edited to look like this, I'd rank it higher.


7. Aladdin 1-3 Blu-Ray Set (Japan) - I absolutely despise the Diamond Edition clipart of these characters but I love the overall purple background and the golden geometric overlay. Really big fan of this style of cover like TLM one. Too bad BATB didn't get something similar. The clipart is also more tolerable because Jasmine's outfit doesn't have that awful dark teal color which is so movie inaccurate.

8. Best Buy Diamond Lenticular Exclusive - Would rank higher because I really like the idea but Aladdin's face is really off here. Looks like a cheap, knockoff storybook render of him.

9. Deluxe Laserdisc/VHS - I love the overall image but Genie already dominates the promotion for this film and I need Aladdin and Jasmine to be on the cover as well. At least it's pretty.

10. Best Buy Signature Steelbook - not really a fan of this. Maybe if the Cave of Wonders was in the background, it would work more like in the Platinum Edition DVD Box Set but I overall hate the Diamond Edition clipart of Aladdin and Jasmine.

11. Target Diamond Digibook - I hate the Diamond Cover (as seen below) but I rank this above that because the silver background and oval are gone.

12. Diamond Edition Blu-Ray - Just awful. I hate the logo, I hate the silver background, I hate the oval. Aladdin still looks awful with that crazed expression and while Jasmine was improved, I hate the coloring of her outfit and jewelry.

Like Farerb, I hate all the UK covers so not even going to rank them. I do like the Australia DVD cover because it's basically the Platinum Edition DVD Box Set but the book cover version which has Aladdin and Jasmine like I wanted.

[Disney's Divinity]

1. Platinum Box Set ~ I was going to say last night that I already had my pick for Aladdin, but I didn’t want to spoil it while it was still B&tB’s turn. I love love love this and TLK’s box set covers so much. The little glittering jewels in the ground leading from the Cave of Wonders is pretty, too. I like how they included the last shot of Aladdin and Jasmine flying into the moon for the book inside. I so wish B&tB and TLM could’ve got Box Sets of their own on the same level of these (that pink thing for B&tB’s Diamond doesn’t cut it for me). The only thing that would’ve been better is if they had made the cover simply a picture of the Agrabah palace and the Cave of Wonders on the back.
2. Aladdin 1-3 DVD Set (Australia) ~ They made the book cover from the Platinum Box Set the cover here. I like it.
3. Laserdisc (Japanese) ~ I like that the Box Set has a more purple touch to it than this, but this is still gorgeous, too.
4. Target Signature Digipack ~ I love this, too. The arrangement and the colors, the lamp and palace both playing a large role in the cover. Aladdin’s and Jasmine’s faces could look a little better, but what can you do.
5. Classics VHS ~ This one’s probably more perfect than the Digipack, I just like the Digipack’s arrangement more.
6. Signature ~ Other than Aladdin’s head looking like it's on backwards, I like this. And I like seeing Aladdin dressed as Prince Ali on the cover for once.
7. Aladdin 1-3 DVD Set (UK) ~ This looks sort of color book-ish, but I still prefer it to the ones I ranked below it. At least the characters look like themselves.
Platinum
8. Target Diamond Digibook
9. Best Buy Signature Steelbook ~ This is okay.
10. Villains Cover
11. The Aladdin Trilogy (UK) ~ Nice that they included Caseem.
12. Diamond
13. Aladdin 1-3 Blu-ray Set (Japan)
14. Laserdisc Deluxe Edition
15. Best Buy Diamond Lenticular Exclusive
16. Musical Masterpiece DVD (UK)
17. Heroes Cover ~ He looks horrendous.

I do the same thing, D82, as far as making my list before reading the other posts. I always add the quotes after I’m done.

[Vlad]

I went to Germany last December, and they did sets like this for many other series, including Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, The Jungle Book, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, and many others. While I do like it, I don't think Cogsworth was that big in the movie.

As for Aladdin's cover, I like them all, really. The Diamond Edition would have been perfect if they used the correct logo.

[Marce82]

JeanGreyForever,

WAIT WAIT WAIT!!! The image you just posted... that cover with Aladdin and Jasmine with the black and white sketches behind them.... is that real??? I have seen that before, but I thought it was fan art. Was that a french 3 movie release???

[nomad2010]

JeanGreyForever,

WAIT WAIT WAIT!!! The image you just posted... that cover with Aladdin and Jasmine with the black and white sketches behind them.... is that real??? I have seen that before, but I thought it was fan art. Was that a french 3 movie release???

That artwork of Aladdin and Jasmine comes from the music book and certain soundtracks for the film. It’s normally in a frame held by the Genie. Such as here:

https://images.app.goo.gl/vV75xCGG3RsERJgT6

[Marce82]

Thank you, Nomad2010. Yes.... I know. I think that soundtrack cover may be the best Aladdin artwork that's ever been created.

I just don't know if they re-used it for that blu ray cover in France... or is it just fan art...

[nomad2010]

Thank you, Nomad2010. Yes.... I know. I think that soundtrack cover may be the best Aladdin artwork that's ever been created.

I just don't know if they re-used it for that blu ray cover in France... or is it just fan art...

My apologies! I misunderstood. That cover is most definitely an art. I thought you were asking if the Aladdin and Jasmine art was fan art.

[Marce82]

Thank you again, Nomad.

Yeah.... it's real. But it's the cover of the companion book, not of the dvd or blu ray. So it doesn't count

[Farerb]

Thank you, Nomad2010. Yes.... I know. I think that soundtrack cover may be the best Aladdin artwork that's ever been created.

I just don't know if they re-used it for that blu ray cover in France... or is it just fan art...

Don't you think that Jasmine looks off in there?
Also what about this:

[Marce82]

Hey Fareb,

In the original soundtrack art?? No, Jasmine looks great. They both do. I will go into detail about this when I do my ranking of Home video covers...

The second soundtrack (the one you just posted).... it's sad... neither of them look very good, and it IS sad because it is based on some of the artwork that was released at the time of the movie's original run, where they both looked perfect. The city looks good tho!

[Disney's Divinity]

Thanks for bringing that that picture to this page, Sicoe, because it got me laughing again, this time at Cogsworth's expression in relation to how close they arranged them. Something about his hands made me think of Frankenstein's glee at his monster coming to life. "Yes, my pretty, worship me and despair!"

Also what about this:
https://i.postimg.cc/CMmrX7cz/3279024041-8e69899952.jpg

I've always liked this picture, although Aladdin's face admittedly does look a bit weird. It's a shame a Legacy Collection soundtrack wasn't released for Aladdin, at least around the time the re-make was blowing up theaters the way the B&tB LC soundtrack was. It's the only one of the Fab Four that didn't get one. :/

[Disney Duster]

Heroes cover:

OMG LOL This must be the worst cover for a Disney film I have ever seen!!! Look how he's drawn!!!

You know, we should later make threads where we vote for best and worst covers, and then see what is the best cover of all of Disney and the worst cover of all of Disney. Then again, that would be voting for way too many covers. It would take forever! I just think Aladdin's Heroes Cover would win Worst Cover!

[blackcauldron85]

^ I'm glad I'm not the only one!! I don't get it- Disney has access to some of the best artists ever, and they come out with that.

[Vlad]

Heroes cover:

OMG LOL This must be the worst cover for a Disney film I have ever seen!!! Look how he's drawn!!!

You know, we should later make threads where we vote for best and worst covers, and then see what is the best cover of all of Disney and the worst cover of all of Disney. Then again, that would be voting for way too many covers. It would take forever! I just think Aladdin's Heroes Cover would win Worst Cover!

I quite agree. But, to be honest, these covers are not the best. With the exceptions of the Princess movies, the covers are pretty awful. And even the Princess movie are not the best.

[nomad2010]

I check this thread but never reply. However I did want to pop in and say something. Seeing all these compiled, I really cannot believe Disney is not more strict with the representations of their characters and the artwork that goes with it. These are big home media releases. There a thousands of artists who could get the looks of these character correct and on-model who would kill for that job and probably would be happy to do so for half the pay day. Yet Disney allows these sloppy, bargain bin looking depictions of their characters on every release. The company has model sheets. The artists could easily be given those. I find it incredibly embarrassing, and an odd oversight for the company. Especially one with such brand and collector recognition. I honestly think Disney needs to wrap the Signature line and go all out, just once, for collectors. Do their own Criterion Collection kind of thing. One last go round for physical home media and make a cohesive, classic, release line and of the entire catalog. It’ll never happen, but for acting like their Vault collection is such a crown gem of cinema, it’s embarrassing to watch other companies trample them in their releases. All this is to say, I work as a graphic designer. If I ever did work that didn’t visually comply with a brand or their standards, I’d be toast. So why does Disney hire these mildly talented people when there are so many other talents out there who could do it right?

[Farerb]

The Signature Collection line was supposed to be that. That's why most of the titles had a more minimalistic "adult" design. They won't make another line after that, There's no point anymore. Whoever wanted to get the films already got them. That's why they don't bother with the Vault anymore, it's pointless. They could rerelease the films on 4K again, but IMO they'll rerelease them in the Signature Collection with the same covers like they are going to do with Beauty and the Beast. At least if that ever happens we could hope for better restorations.

[JeanGreyForever]

JeanGreyForever,

WAIT WAIT WAIT!!! The image you just posted... that cover with Aladdin and Jasmine with the black and white sketches behind them.... is that real??? I have seen that before, but I thought it was fan art. Was that a french 3 movie release???

No sadly that image I posted is fanart. Not a real product from France, although I wish it was because I'd purchase it in a heartbeat.

Thank you, Nomad2010. Yes.... I know. I think that soundtrack cover may be the best Aladdin artwork that's ever been created.

I just don't know if they re-used it for that blu ray cover in France... or is it just fan art...

Don't you think that Jasmine looks off in there?
Also what about this:

Slightly off but not as bad as on the Platinum and Diamond Edition covers. And that image is one of the most reused since the 90s so I guess I'm used to it and don't really have a problem with it.

[D82]

Searching for higher resolution versions of some of the covers to be able to judge them better, I found three international ones that I think haven't been posted: The UK Mondo steelbook, another 3-movie collection from the UK, and a Latin American DVD from 2015. The last two are similar to other covers already posted, but maybe you could add the Mondo steelbook to your post for international covers, farerb (or all of them if you want). Anyway, you outdid yourself once again, farerb with such a complete collection of covers. Again, there were some I had never seen like the Australian DVD set, the Japanese ones or some from the UK.

Well, D82, my process is not quite as involved as yours... I just sit with one window with all the covers, and a separate one where I write my ranking.

Your process is perfect. I just do it that way because it's easier for me to choose if I have the images downloaded and I can zoom in on them to see the details, for example, or put aside my favorites before ranking them, given that it's easier for me to do that part if I don't see all the covers at once. Also, I had saved some images of covers before, but I've always wanted to collect all of them, so I use the opportunity to do so at the same time.

And don't get me wrong: I often think I know which one is the best before I see them all, and then when I actually do see them all together, I find one that is better. I try to keep an open mind.

I try to keep an open mind too. And, come to think of it, the opposite has also happened to me. Sometimes I'm sure I won't choose the cover I grew up with because I never liked it much, but when I see all the covers I realize it's not that bad compared to the others and I end up selecting it for my top spot.

D82, your way of ranking is thorough, thoughtful, and cool!

I don't think it's that special, but thanks, Disney Duster.

I do the same thing, D82, as far as making my list before reading the other posts. I always add the quotes after I’m done.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who does that. Writing my comments is the last thing I do as well because it's the hardest part for me. Though I also find it tough to do rankings, that's why I usually don't rank all the covers.