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Not the complete DuckTales. They are missing "Sphinx for the Memories" and "Duckman of Aquatraz."Mickeyfan1990 wrote:While fans await for DVD releases to continue, the complete series of DuckTales, Chip n Dale Rescue Rangers, Tailspin, and volume 1 of Jungle Cubs are now available on iTunes! And according to a Facebook member, Rescue Rangers is in HD!!!
It isn't in true HD, sadly. He'll probably forgive me for posting this here, but a mate of mine did some analysis of what's available, and this is his take...Mickeyfan1990 wrote:And according to a Facebook member, Rescue Rangers is in HD!!!
First, the good.
- The OAR (original aspect ratio) is maintained.
- The iTunes version actually corrects a slight squash in the DVD image for Catteries Not Included.
- The iTunes version reveals that the DVD image was slightly cropped.
- There is significantly less macro-blocking (video compression artefacts) compared to the DVD, which had way too many episodes per disc. This is the biggest improvement over the DVD. The image is much sharper and clearer overall, and this is why.
The color timing is better in some ways and worse in others. The image is not as blown out (i.e. excessive brightness) but it's too dim overall. Even daylight scenes are too dark, and I have a calibrated CRT reference monitor. After making cels of my own, I can see how accurate the laserdisc is for color timing and the iTunes version is off. Digital noise reduction is a tad high at times, occasionally removing lineart. But overall it is not excessively done. The audio does seem to be out of sync at times. I am not sure if this is just from the preview copy but it is something to be aware of.
Now, is it really HD? The answer is no. The source is exactly the same as the DVD but with altered color timing. That source is SD quality from a Beta tape, not a fresh HD or 4K scan from the film elements. It is akin to making a photo from a scan of another photograph as opposed to a photo that's from a scan of the film negative. In short the source material used for the iTunes presentation isn't HD quality. How do I know this? First, a bit of explanation.
If I take a DVD copy of "The Great Mouse Detective" and watch it on my HDTV at home, the TV takes the SD picture and using line doubling and scaling algorithms, makes a 1920x1080 HD image out of it. It's called up conversion and is not a real HD source. If I watch the Blu-ray copy of the same movie, it looks a million times better because the Blu-ray is from a fresh scan (digitization) of the original 35mm film elements.
I have seen 35mm prints of Disney shorts, and Blu-ray editions of film-based cartoons like Tom and Jerry. The difference is night and day compared to this 11 year old sub-HD master. Also, the image is exactly the same in terms of positioning/framing. When there is a new master from film elements you will usually see a slight shift in the image when comparing the new to the old because the film won't lie exactly the same way in the scanner as it did when it was last scanned. A fresh scan would also have very fine, tight film grain from the 35mm elements and would have much better detail, color, saturation, contrast... everything.
So is it truly HD? No way. Does it look as good as my laserdiscs? No way. Is it a notable improvement over the DVD as a whole? I would say yes. Aside from the dull colors, this is as best as this source will ever look. I, for one, will be getting the episodes that aren't on DVD here- it is the best available source out there.
Huh. How about that? And all this while we're waiting for the missing episodes to hit the DVD?milojthatch wrote:Not the complete DuckTales. They are missing "Sphinx for the Memories" and "Duckman of Aquatraz."Mickeyfan1990 wrote:While fans await for DVD releases to continue, the complete series of DuckTales, Chip n Dale Rescue Rangers, Tailspin, and volume 1 of Jungle Cubs are now available on iTunes! And according to a Facebook member, Rescue Rangers is in HD!!!
Do you have the link for this review?Mayhem wrote:It isn't in true HD, sadly. He'll probably forgive me for posting this here, but a mate of mine did some analysis of what's available, and this is his take...Mickeyfan1990 wrote:And according to a Facebook member, Rescue Rangers is in HD!!!
Tricky, he posted it on a forum I'm on that has no read-access for non-members.milojthatch wrote:Do you have the link for this review?
Too bad. I for one support the DVD releases of these shows alone. I don't trust digital long term for a number of reasons. However, I'm willing to be fair and share with others positives about these digital releases. That's too bad that after Disney released previously censored episodes of TaleSpin onto DVD that they'd alter a few lines from Rescue Rangers.Mayhem wrote:Tricky, he posted it on a forum I'm on that has no read-access for non-members.milojthatch wrote:Do you have the link for this review?