Leave It To Beaver: The Complete Series [DVD]

At last, one of the best TV shows of all time has arrived on Blu-ray. The DVD’s of LEAVE IT TO BEAVER released by Shout Factory a few years back were excellent, so the obvious question is: is the Blu-ray a significant upgrade? Well, as Beaver himself would say, kinda-sorta. The picture quality is a bit sharper, offering improved contrast and detail. This definitely helps the episodes from the first two seasons, which were shot on different film stock from the later years and always looked somewhat soft and fuzzy. However, it should be noted that the series has NOT been newly remastered for this Blu-ray release. The episodes appear to have been taken from the same source as the DVD’s, and any improvement in the image comes from the higher resolution of the Blu-ray format, not any new restoration work. This is not to say that the new set is a let-down in any way, it’s simply not the stunning upgrade some fans might have hoped for.As for the series itself, I'd like to offer a few random thoughts about the show. First off, LEAVE IT TO BEAVER holds up so well after all these years because it deals with basic experiences about home and school that just about everyone can relate to. The things that stand out for me personally are not the plots or the acting, but rather the simple moments showing the kids just being kids: Wally and the gang playing basketball in the driveway, Beaver waiting for his father to get home from work, the boys daydreaming about how they would spend a million dollars. These are things I remember experiencing in my own childhood, and the series did a marvelous job of capturing the essence of youthful innocence.There are certainly some memorable episodes in the first two seasons ("Beaver Runs Away" and "Happy Weekend" come to mind), but a lot of the early scripts are pretty thin. In my opinion the series reached its peak in its third year. The writers and cast really had things down to perfection in Year 3. Towards the end of the fourth season the show started to lose some of its freshness, mainly because Jerry Mathers was growing up and naturally beginning to lose his little-boy charm. Also, the characters of Ward and June turned closer to being caricatures in the final seasons, always being flawlessly groomed and speaking perfect English.It's kind of hard to tell just how big a place Mayfield is supposed to be. Sometimes it seems like a small town (as when Beaver visits old Gus at the fire station), but other times (as with scenes of the busy downtown area and the upscale sporting goods store) it seems like a pretty good-sized city. Actually I think BEAVER was as good as any series in TV history at creating a believable town. The writers did a great job of establishing and consistently referring to local sites such as Metzger's Field, Friends Lake, Miller's Pond and so on. The frequent use of outdoor scenes also added much to the believability.The pilot, "It's A Small World", is kind of eerie to watch. It's almost as if you're looking at the Cleaver family in an alternate universe. At first glance everything seems about the same, but then you start to notice familiar faces with different names, and vice versa. Spooky! It's interesting to note that in the pilot Mr. Cleaver is shown SMOKING (hard to imagine Hugh Beaumont as Ward puffing away on a cigarette while talking to his wife). Also, in the pilot Wally and Beaver seem to be looked upon as outcasts rather than popular kids: both of them are referred to as being "creeps" by the other boys.Tony Dow's lack of acting experience is pretty evident in the very early episodes. However, he improved rapidly, and by the end of the series he was probably the most natural actor in the cast. In fact, during the final two seasons the best episodes were those centering around Wally, not Beaver.It's kind of funny when you think about it, but the Cleavers were, to put it bluntly, ultra-square. After all, the series was produced during the heyday of the early rock `n roll era, but Wally and his pals went to formal dances, wore suits and ties, and never did anything wilder than the cha-cha. Apparently those Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley records never made it to the music stores in Mayfield!Speaking of funny, check out the opening credits of the sixth season. If you look closely at the final shot, you can see that there’s no glass in the back window of the family car! (I’m sure it was temporarily removed to avoid reflections and provide a clear view of Wally and Beaver.)For those who are interested in seeing cast members in other roles, you might want to take a look at the first season of MR. NOVAK, an excellent drama series from the early 60’s (now on DVD) set in a big city high school that features a number of familiar faces from LEAVE IT TO BEAVER, including Tony Dow.It’s interesting to compare BEAVER with another family-oriented series from the same era, FATHER KNOWS BEST. Both shows are great, and both have their strengths and weaknesses. The acting on FATHER is a lot more natural, and the stories often have some moments of genuine drama and emotion. Yet too many of the FATHER scripts seem calculated to deliver an all-too-obvious moral lesson and have a tendency to drift into teary-eyed sentimentality. BEAVER’s lessons are usually built into the situations themselves and are blunted by some off-the-wall humor. On the negative side, sometimes I wish the writers and actors had loosened up a bit. The characters on BEAVER (adults and kids alike) often seem a little TOO well behaved and proper, and the dialogue tends to be a little stiff. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons that Wally’s wise-guy friend Eddie Haskell is so entertaining and one of the highlights of the show.Even with its shortcomings, LEAVE IT TO BEAVER still stands as one of television's all-time top comedies, and its blend of gentle wisdom and low-key humor will certainly keep audiences laughing for years to come. In today's entertainment world of wretched excess and cheap laughs, it's certainly a welcome treat. Is the new Blu-ray package worth getting? For die-hard fans or for those who never got the previous releases, I’d definitely say yes. For people who already own the DVD’s from Shout Factory, which were pretty darn good, I’d let your wallet make the call.

Great, makes my childhood memory happy

Keep in mind this is from the 1950s, early 1960s.It is great for reminiscent.It also give one a real life feeling, understanding of how things were back then.

So glad to find the box of every single episode ofLeave it to BeaverI first saw this show when I was in the 6th gradeI fell for Wally and the Beaver felt like my little brother. It’s so good to have this set.Makes me have great memories.

In this review I am going to answer a lot of questions regarding these disc and give you my thoughts. First, I give these disc 5 stars. Many people have asked what is the quality like. The quality is absolutely perfect. Each episode is 5Gb in size and the disc are 50Gb disc. Some post mentioned that these are MOD released disc, however these are your standard pressed blurays. I received these yesterday and the packaging and disc are top notch. Overall I am very pleased with the quality of the product.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jerry "The Beaver" Mathers last month at the Iola, WI auto show! I'm 62 years old and very late to the Leave It To Beaver party, having just started watching it on tv a year ago. As I stood in line for my turn to meet him, I realized how much of an icon he and this show really is. He loves meeting his fans and he is truly proud of his work on the show.I bought this DVD set to remind myself of a simpler time. It proves that a show could be funny, innocent, touching, and positive all at the same time. The quality of the discs are excellent, and my set arrived perfectly intact. I highly recommend this series!And if you get the chance to meet Jerry, don't hesitate!

Glad I got this set. The episodes I've watched so far have looked wonderful!

The indoor scenes in season 1 are a little less grainy than the DVD release, but not as good as I was hoping. The video looks great, and if you don't have the DVD, the blu-ray is the one to purchase, though you'll miss out on the bonus material on the complete DVD box set. SO much more expensive in Canada, U.S. Amazon is the best place to buy this set. Four or five of my disc were loose in the season sets when it arrived, so that was a little disappointing.

AWESOME

Love the complete set.So happy I purchased it.

I like the beaver, so far no glitches

Well worth the money spent! I love these old innocent tv shows.

No problems so far, 2 discs in, but I am expecting issues with some discs. Signed - Pessimist.