# Movies and TV Shows Not On Streaming **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2021, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441 "2021-01-01T15:17:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/1 "2021-01-01T15:17:11Z")
What movies or TV shows that you would like to see do you find are not on streaming (not counting the pay per episode options where you can get most TV shows)? Ran into this a couple of times recently and it reminds me why I will never get rid of my DVD/Blu Ray collection. A few weeks ago my wife and I watched the movie Alien Nation. I was telling my wife the TV series was so much better but unfortunately it’s not on Streaming. I knew at some point I had it on DVD (not only the series but all the sequel TV movies) but I think it got packed away or misplaced in my move a few years ago. Another was the movie Electric Dreams. I loved this movie as a kid and teenager (I remember one of the first things I did online was track down the hard to find soundtrack) and wanted to show it to my wife who had never even heard of it let alone seen it. Only option I found was a YouTube video that looked like it was transferred from a VHS tape. What are some movies or TV shows you couldn’t find on streaming? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/2 "2021-01-01T15:24:21Z")
Thanksgiving weekend, I was surprised I couldn’t stream _Planes, Trains, and Automobiles_ from any of the many services we’ve acquired during the pandemic, not even PPV. About two weeks later it was suddenly available. ---
**Author:** ![mundylion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundylion/32/3604_2.png) [@mundylion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mundylion)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/3 "2021-01-01T17:05:08Z")
Prizzi’s Honor has not been available to stream, as far as I can tell. I did buy a DVD version from Amazon but I’m too unlearned to be able to rip it so I can put it on my computer. I’m probably wrong but I understand some shows are unavailable due to copyright issues, often music related. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/4 "2021-01-01T17:06:37Z")
**Fringe** - a show that would be well suited to streaming has no streaming service I know of. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/5 "2021-01-01T17:15:40Z")
You can stream _Fringe_ on the IMDB channel, but it has ads. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/6 "2021-01-01T17:17:03Z")
A show called [Jesse](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0156196/) with Christina Applegate. Never saw it but remembered it was on and got curious. Found an episode on YouTube a few years ago but the video quality was so bad it was unwatchable. No idea why this isn’t available anywhere. There are ton of shows available now on Pluto that weren’t so easy to see in the past, but they now seem to have more commercials in them than they did when they originally ran. ---
**Author:** ![Galactus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galactus/32/3581_2.png) [@Galactus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Galactus)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/7 "2021-01-01T17:37:42Z")
China Beach. I think the problem has to do with the music. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/8 "2021-01-01T19:50:34Z")
All In The Family. I had to buy the box set because it’s nowhere to be found on streaming. Not the entire series anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/9 "2021-01-01T22:17:12Z")
I had the same experience with Planes, Trains and Automobiles last Thanksgiving so I ordered the Blu Ray the next day and that was what I watched this Thanksgiving. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/10 "2021-01-01T23:24:20Z")
Can’t stream it. Can’t buy it: - Boston Public - Boomtown (season 2) - Medical Investigation - FreakyLinks - Herman’s Head - Roc - Third Watch (seasons 3-6) - The District ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2021, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/11 "2021-01-01T23:27:41Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > You can stream _Fringe_ on the IMDB channel, but it has ads. How pervasive are ads on IMDB? I…didn’t even know they had a streaming channel. If IMDB is owned by Amazon, this is obviously a separate thing? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/12 "2021-01-02T16:32:39Z")
I’ve been trying to get seasons 3 and 4 of a reality show called **Solitary** for a while now. Seasons 1 and 2 are available for purchase on Prime, but the later seasons have been unavailable for years now. It was an awesome show; people were confined in tiny “pods” and did challenges, but with no idea how anyone else was doing, they were basically pushed to their personal limit every time. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/13 "2021-01-02T18:34:23Z")
_[Most](https://youtube.com/watch?v=2vE3PZ_hg2A)_ episodes of _Homeboys In Outer Space_. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/14 "2021-01-02T19:08:07Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Thanksgiving weekend, I was surprised I couldn’t stream _Planes, Trains, and Automobiles_ from any of the many services we’ve acquired during the pandemic I encourage people to get a Vudu and a Movies Anywhere account (they’re free). Vudu has a service called “mobile disc to digital” where you can scan a barcode of a movie and get the digital version for $2. The available library has limits, but there are thousands of available titles (you can only convert 100 per year as well). ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/15 "2021-01-02T19:48:41Z")
The Stand 1994 version is not available on any streaming services that I can see. While there are unofficial versions on Youtube they suck because they do not have many of the original soundtrack songs like Don’t Fear the Reaper. Same with WKRP in Cincinnati. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/16 "2021-01-02T20:26:12Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > I encourage people to get a Vudu and a Movies Anywhere account (they’re free). Vudu has a service called “mobile disc to digital” where you can scan a barcode of a movie and get the digital version for $2. If you scan a DVD, does it give you an HD stream of the movie? Or SD? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/17 "2021-01-02T20:27:32Z")
It’ll be SD, but you can upgrade to HD for $5 instead. Or you can find the barcode for the Blu-ray and scan that instead for $2. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/18 "2021-01-02T20:39:06Z")
Heh, can people just scan the library copies, then? That seems shifty. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/19 "2021-01-02T23:29:55Z")
You can scan any barcode. The only limitation is that it checks your GPS location and it has to match up with your billing address. So you can’t go to Best Buy or the library. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441/20 "2021-01-03T08:57:59Z")
Because of this thread, I just checked both Netflix and PrimeVideo for Green Wing. Neither of them have it, but PrimeVideo has Episodes, but only in French. 😱 We both really like Tamsin Greig and have heard good things about both series. And I just figured out we have the spouting whale 🐋. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-and-tv-shows-not-on-streaming/929441.md?page=2)