Hogan’s Heroes – The Complete Fourth Season
Picture:
B- Sound: C+ Extras: D Episodes: C+
Though
consistent, Hogan’s Heroes - The Complete Fourth Season was
starting to wear out by the 1968 – 1969 season was starting to wear out. At least we get the same fine transfers of
the episodes as the previous sets, but the show was still a big hit for CBS and
they were going to keep it going for a little while longer. This was also the last time the complete cast
would be together.
I think the 26 shows still show that the cast was good and
comfortable with each other, but the basis for the humor was pretty much
covered at this point and all they could do is really start to repeat
themselves. They did not look bored and
were likely still having fun during production, which at this point would be
the primary reason the show was watchable and few criticize the later seasons
as being poorer. However, the weekly TV
grind was starting to take it toll and the show was in creative decline.
The 1.33 X 1 full frame image continued to be shot on film
and holds up very well for its age. The
first pilot episode was shot in black and white, but the rest of the series is
in color, and this color looks as good as the previous sets, still shot by
cinematographer Gordon Avil, A.S.C., who continued to come up with an approach
that would make the show look distinct for the new color televisions that had
just arrived to the market. The Dolby
Digital 2.0 Mono sounds good for its age.
There are no extras this time, though.
- Nicholas Sheffo
