Editorial: Why The Inevitable End of Home Video Is Good For Fans of Home Video

SO HIDEOUS

For years now, people have been calling out home video as something that's on its last leg, just gasping its last breath before being replaced by Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu and the like. Unlike other similar declarations, that actually does seem reasonable, considering how much home videos sale have dipped in recent years. And interestingly, studios seem to have also gotten the memo things are gloomy for the home video department, because their upcoming home video releases for their numerous summer blockbusters are...unique, let's say.

Now, Collectors Editions of movies is nothing new, but the sheer amount of 'em coming to your local Wal-Mart in the coming months is astounding. In order to give the Blu-Ray release of films like The Amazing Spider-Man 2 that feel of an "event", it and numerous other films are getting collectors editions that not only contain Blu-Rays, but also nifty trinkets related to the movie. Spider-Man gets a creepy Electro head, X-Men: Days of Future Past gets Magnetos helmet, Dawn of The Planet of The Apes gets a bust of Caesars head and even the Godzilla Blu-Ray collectors edition gives you the nifty feature of a button that, when pressed, unleashes the titular beasts famous roar.

Most of those are pretty much marketing stunts, pure and simple, but the thing I like about them is that they show studios putting effort into their home video releases again. For years, in an effort to make Blu-Rays more appealing, DVD's were stripped of all bonus features, but now, Warner Bros. has begun putting out 2-disc editions for certain movies (which leads to the humorous banner on the Godzilla DVD which proclaims "Bonus Disc Filled With Bonus Features!") and if sales for those keep going good, I could see studios following that procedure.

So, let's leave those Electro heads in a dumpster where they belong, but the promise of more bonus features and care going into home video releases feels like a cause for celebration. Perhaps home video is on its last leg, but it sure isn't going out on a whimper.