The State: The Complete Series

Thankful, but a bit let down
It has been years since I've seen The State, and the moment I saw the commercial for it on TV, I immediately ordered it. It's a great DVD set with some really worthwhile bonus features, particularly the cast commentaries.

That being said, yes, the music replacement is quite noticeable, as is the frequent and sometimes scene devastating blurring of any and all images that might require MTV to pay something for their display. The insert that comes with the DVD set claims that to include these images and songs would have cost millions and forbade the production of the DVD. I find that hard to believe.

How much is it going to cost to have a picture of Andrew Shue on a goofy homemade collage? Or some obscure album cover from 15 years ago? I can't imagine those would cost all that much. And how much can the inclusion of a handful of songs cost? Even just for those few that were played over the live performances in studio, which is where the dubbing is most noticeable...

Disk info.
Disc 1 (Season One)
All five episodes from Season One
Commentary on every episode by various cast members
Interviews
Origins
Feedback
Outtakes

Disc 2 (Season Two)
All six episodes from Season Two
Commentary on every episode by various cast members
Interviews
Roles
Catchphrases
Outtakes

Disc 3 (Season Three)
All six episodes from Season Three
Commentary on every episode by various cast members
Interviews
Outtakes

Disc 4 (Season Four)
All seven episodes from Season Four
Commentary on every episode by various cast members
Interviews
Outtakes

Disc 5 (Bonus Disc)
Pilot
Over 90 minutes of unaired sketches with commentary from the cast
Outtakes
Special Appearances:
-"The State" on "The Jon Stewart Show"
-The cast's performance on MTV's "Shut Up & Laugh, Panama City" (1996)
-Spring Break Safety Tips
-MTV...

Less than $60 worth of pudding...
I don't know how much of the music has been replaced (I've only checked Pants and $240 Worth of Pudding) but it's definitely jarring to not have Cannonball playing while Kerri is high-kicking or to hear Barry sound like a giant pudding clot is stuck in his throat. It's a sad commentary that such an incredible pop culture high-water mark can be scarred by the pop culture copyright tsunami. The dubbing probably won't bother somebody who has never seen the show but it may make even an infrequent 90s viewer feel that something is a little off. Surely somebody out there will compile a list of music substitutions and dialog re-recordings, but MTV already has our money and at the end of the day this is better than the tape that got eaten by my VCR.

(Edit: There's an episode I've never had on tape, that I caught maybe two or three times on MTV, and that contains the one line I've blurted out who knows how many times any time I see a bottle of rosemary - "Ahhhh! Rosemary!" - and the...

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