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CLEOPATRA 2525
COMPLETE SERIES
Release Date: July
26th 2005
MSRP Price: $49.98
(estimated price)
Amazon Price: $37.48
Costco Price: 38.99
Sam's Club: $37.99
Complete Series - 28 Episodes
Format: full-screen
Studio: Universal Television
Run Time: 12hr, 37min
Number of Discs - 3
Sound - Remastered Dolby Digital 2.0
Cleopatra 2525
Series
Boxed Set Rating: "B"
Video: A (gotta give it to them)
Audio: C
Acting: C
Content: C
Packaging: B
Extras: B
STARS:
Gina Torres, Jennifer Skye, Victoria
Pratt, Elizabeth Hawthorne (voice), Patrick Kake & Joel Tobeck
One episode and you
can tell this is from the same folks that gave us Xena and Hercules.
That being said Cleopatra 2525 is a much cheesier product and lacked
any of the acting that existed with the other shows. Airing with
sister program "Jack of All Trades" as half hour programs,
found both shows struggling in the ratings.
Victoria Pratt would
go on to star in another hit syndicated series "Mutant X".
Gina Torres comes from a Sci-Fi background with such series as
"MANTIS", "The Underworld", "Firefly",
"Hercules" and even got a role in the second and third
Matrix films. Cleo's lead Jennifer Skye comes mostly from guest
appearances on television. She was a regular on General Hospital
before landing on Cleopatra 2525.
This show was not on
my main radar during its original air dates. I would watch pieces of
the show since it aired with Jack of All Trades which I thought was
a riot. With three babes, scantly dressed it was of course worth the
watch and Victoria Pratt is quite a physical specimen. Watching the
discs without commercials is quite a treat and it's much easier to
get into the show. The half-hour format has to be the real show
killer with just 20 to 21 minutes to tell an intrigue story. They
stories were forced to be to basic and lacked any real depth.
Another downside was Jennifer Skye and her annoying screaming. She's
definitely the worst actress on the set and her character takes away
from what the series could have been.
The special effects
are low budget and the acting is better than I remembered. I do like
the opening theme. It's got a good beat. While the stories aren't
deep they really aren't that bad. The make-up is questionable put
passable for what it is.
It's a sweet DVD boxed
set to have. 28 episodes that can easily keep you entertained.
PACKAGING
Universal went cheap on the packaging. They've gone with the fold
out digipack except they've got two of the three discs overlayed on
the other. To get to the second disc you have to pull disc one out.
Once folded up it slides neatly into the cardboard designer sleeve.
Three very cool images are used to create the boxed set and its eye
catching. It looks great on the shelf.
VIDEO:
The video transfer is really nice. There are a few blemishes in the
video transfer with flakes of dirt and debris flashing here and
there. The colors are vivid and the blacks are dark with no wash
out, fading or bleeding. The video is only five years old and still
looks good.
AUDIO:
The audio is remastered to Dolby
Digital 2.0. The rear speakers get very little action, but the
voices and special effects are sharp through the center and side
speakers. The bass is solid and there not tinny sound during
playback.
BONUS FEATURES:
Anchor Bay knows what the Bonus Feature area is for, and they never
hesitate to stuff the boxed sets with it.
SUMMARY:
It looks like Universal understood the audience factor for this
series is small and sales for the show aren't going to set any
records. That being obvious I think that any hot blooded male (and
some women) would enjoy catching three young beautiful women scantly
clad and kicking some enemy ass. I did.
What about the price?
The MSRP of $50 is steep, but if you can shop at Costco, Sam's or
Wallmart you might be able to get the set for under $40 and that's
not bad at all. 28 episodes with some bonus material... nice
buy.
Cleopatra 2525
Overall Rating: B
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