1/5 Can't get past the terrible packaging...
  by Iona Sun (Detroit, Michigan USA)
What was Universal thinking...

The blu-rays may be alright, but I've never seen something that costs so much money packaged so badly. You get this big ungainly box that won't fit on most shelves, but I'm thinking "hey, I'll just take the individual season boxes out and store the big outsized box. But then you discover that you get the dvd's in these cheap cardboard boxes that are in loose sleeves... and there's no booklet of any kind with it. I could live without the booklet except THERE'S NO EPISODE LIST. ANYWHERE! What if you want to watch a particular episode. You'll have to remember or guess what disc it's on... for all four seasons. And there's no list of extras, either. Are there extras? Where are they? Does anyone know?

I think this is the most negative review I've ever written, but I feel like I've been suckered. This set costs a lot of money, and to get so cheap on the packaging is just condescending. I've have to think long and hard about ever buying another box set from Universal.

4/5 Not quite as good as I expected...
  by K. Kanitz (Upper Midwest)
The complete series box set is a *big* box, not something that will fit easily on a shelf. The box is quite sturdy, with each season's discs packaged in their own sleeve (four in all). These sleeves are cardboard with flip up covers; inside, the discs are nested in a folded cardboard separator.

Some have claimed that this set would include the movie "Caprica", but it is *not* included. The 25 DVDs in this set are the same DVDs available in the 6 season sets (1, 2.0, 2.5, 3, 4.0, 4.5).

The series was produced in HD, which means a wide-screen presentation; however, it was deliberately shot with a grainy look to give it a 'gritty' film quality.

Why get this collection instead of the six season sets? You get a neat Cylon Centurion figurine (and it's good sized!), but no booklet, a huge box, and inferior internal packaging. I bought the series this way mainly because it was (slightly) cheaper than purchasing the six season sets individually; nevertheless, I'm experiencing a bit of buyer's remorse.

4/5 Exceptional boxed set with seasons one thru four deserving between 4 to 5 stars; packaging bit more problematic for Blu-ray/DVD
  by Wayne Klein (My Little Blue Window, USA)
THIS REVIEW IS FOR THE BLU-RAY BOXED SET.

Seasons 1-4 deserve anywhere from 5 to 4 stars depending on the season. The extras deserve 4 stars while the packaging deserves 2 for the bigger box 1 for the cardboard sleeves.

Edit: FYI, this includes the mini-series in addition to ALL the seasons of "BG", "Razor" is included but "Caprica" and "Face of the Enemy" webisodes are not.


During its four season run "Battlestar Galatica" produced some of the best episodes for ANY television series whether it be a mainstream drama or science fiction. While some fans of the series were disappointed with the conclusion quite a bit was hinted at in previous episodes and it doesn't detract from the quality of the previous ones. The image quality varies from exceptionally good to fair but the show retains the "look" the producers wanted; some shots are meant to be not only extremely grainy but also a bit soft so you'll forgive the studio and makers for going with their artistic vision. Either way the image looks terrific but don't expect this to look like a smooth high def show designed to look slick. Detail is sharper regardless of the "look" of the show.

Audio sounds terrific throughout with an active 5.1 lossless soundtrack that highlights the level of detail that went into preparing the show.

The extras for seasons one through three are more or less the same as on the original DVDs the only new extra (aside from the new extras for season four which I'll address in a minute)to this set is the BD-Live "Battlestar Galatica Card Game". So far there isn't anything else on BD-Live (as of the release date) available but I'd also note that the season one Blu-ray and DVD as part of this boxed set includes the deleted scenes from the first season something missing if I recall correctly from the DVD (I sold mine to upgrade to the Blu-ray so can't look at it).

It appears as if most of the extras are exactly like like the previous sets with one exception the deleted scenes for the first season. I'm going to focus on the extras for the fourth season because most of the special features are ported over from the previous DVD boxed sets. We get extended episodes for "A Disquiet Follows My Soul", "Islands in a Stream of Stars" and "Daybreak" as well as 13 commentary tracks, David Eick's Video Diaries and deleted scenes for the fourth season set.There's also pip's that allow you to watch behind-the-scenes stuff while watching the show as well as an explanation of some of the jargon used by the characters on the show.


The packaging is a bit more problematic. While the big box is sturdy enough and looks extremely nice, the smaller boxes that hold each season set holds the discs in cardboard sleeves. It will increase the chance that these could get scratched and I am disappointed that Universal didn't design this set for a more traditional DVD or Blu-ray holder. The good news is that each season comes in its own compact box and they will stand up with other Blu-ray and DVDs on the shelf. I personally think it is nicer in concept than execution and wish it was designed similar to the UK boxed set coming in September but that's me.

Let's not forget the toy Cylon that's on the top of the cardboard boxed set it looks kind of cool but I haven't opened it to examine yet.

In conclusion there's good and bad with this set with the good outweighing the bad. "BG" receives a handsome looking Blu-ray transfer with great sound and some terrific extras. A terrific series where Gaius Balter redeems himself and Cavil proves to be everything we believed him to be from the first introduction of his character.
Recommended

1/5 Buy the individual boxes, the packaging is crap
  by Gabi (Michigan)
Almost all of the DVDs arrived scratched. The DVDs are stored in cheap cardboard sleeves and slide around everywhere. If you want this set to last, buy the original season releases with better packaging.

Also, they are literally just re-packaged DVDs of the original season releases. They didn't even change the menus.

There is no reason to buy this when you can find the individual seasons for less money.

3/5 Five stars for series. Three for Box
  by M. Heim (MN)
Just got my boxset in the mail, paid $137.00 for it. Great packaging and overall sturdiness of the main box. However the individual boxes for each season hold the discs in an awkward fashion. The front cover is a flap that is closed via a little Velcro tab, inside the box the discs are held in slots cut out from a cardboard insert. This insert moves up and down within the box making it annoying to try and pull a disc out let alone put the disc back into its cutout slot. To put the disc back in you have to spread the slot apart with one hand and slide the disc back in with the other otherwise it is quite a pain to stick the disc in. Also when putting the discs back I cant help but feel like i am going to scratch the disc since they are sliding against cardboard.

The Cylon figure is nice, nothing too special. You can pose it, however the plastic feels cheap like it could break. The figure is housed in a plastic sleeve on the top of the main box in a cutout hole. Once you take it out there is a big ugly hole on the top of your box which looks really bad when its empty. The plastic sleeve can be put back into the hole on the top of the box but it still looks hideous. I'll just be leaving the Cylon figure inside the box.

Overall its a nice boxset, but for the price that its advertised for, it should have been better.