Game Over – The Complete Collection
Picture: C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C Episodes:
C+
It seems despite some serious attempts to make computer
graphics and television work well since the credits of the disappointing 1980s
anthology series Amazing Stories, CG graphics and series television have
not found that magical mix. We do not
count the few Animé series that have been made in Japan, all of which have been
forgettable.
Some shows were just too stale and slow (like the Johnny
Quest revival and Max Steel) or comedies that were ambitious and did not
pan out (Father Of The Pride).
Endless attempts have been unsuccessfully made to meld the big money
world of video games and film or TV.
One that looks like the more successful (and non-video game world of)
the hit feature film The Incredibles (2004) is Game Over.
Eventually picked up by the UPN Network, the all CG series
lasted only six shows. The premise has
a NASCAR-riding digital father, karate-fighting mother, skateboarding daughter
and insecure son. Voices include Lucy
Lu, Patrick Warburton, Rachel Dracht and several guest voices, all who help
make the now-dated animation seem more alive than it should. It has some jokes that work, including those
that are for then-gamers only and others that are just too obvious and
formulaic to work. It can be amusing at
times and that is why it is worth a look for those who might be
interested. The episodes are:
1) Meet The
Smashenburns
2) Basic
Win-Stincts
3) All Work
& All Play
4) Into The
Woods
5) Alice
& The C.A.T.s
6) Monkey
Dearest
The show fared so poorly that the last show was never
aired, but the show was at least onto something. The main problem is that you have to have an encyclopedia on
video games to really get the jokes and have read said document for the
show to work. That is why it might
become a cult item down the line.
Anchor Bay is good at releasing those kinds of titles, so it should be
right at home in their catalog.
The 1.33 X 1 image shows its age in fidelity as well as
animation, with some detail limits and a limited color range. The material used for the transfers is in
fine shape. The Dolby Digital 2.0
Stereo has very limited surround information, which is a shame, because sound
could have been used as a tool to bring out the comedy better as was the case
with The Incredibles. The
combination is as interesting as yesterday’s arcade game. Extras include character profiles on both
DVDs, a nice color booklet in the DVD case, stills on the crew on DVD 1, how
the animation was layered with a multi-angle function on DVD 1, and DVD 2 adds
a “watch closely” function and trivia game.
The show was ambitious and though it is ultimately a mixed success, Game
Over will find new play on DVD sooner or later and be recognized as some
kind of transitional work in a few years.
- Nicholas Sheffo
