# "The Singing Detective" on DVD. Worth watching? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 1, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021 "2003-09-01T21:31:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/1 "2003-09-01T21:31:27Z")
I saw a short clip of this series many years ago and it looked like it’d be great. I’m just not sure I’m willing to spend $100 to find out if it’s good or bad. So what did you think? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/2 "2003-09-01T22:51:29Z")
Excellent series, though I wouldn’t spend $100 for it. Rent the DVD instead. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/3 "2003-09-02T00:35:21Z")
I wouldn’t pay $100 for it - it’s $51 at amazon. It certainly was a great series, but it was made for television 17 years ago, so the picture/sound quality might not be up to modern standards (and the music is obviously 70 years old). ---
**Author:** ![Extraneous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/0ea827/32.png) [@Extraneous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Extraneous)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/4 "2003-09-02T03:46:20Z")
It is an excellent dark (noir) psycho-sexual drama. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but a great example of the genre. I have the VHS edition (which I burned to DVD) - it gets watched with some regularity. When in doubt, rent first… p.s. - it is worth the price for “Blues in the Night” alone - great music - check out the soundtrack! ---
**Author:** ![Short\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Short\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Short_Guy)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/5 "2003-09-02T11:06:44Z")
I agree that $100 is a bit steep, but it _is_ one of the absolutely greatest series ever made. Like **RealityCheck** said, rent it first, then make up your mind. ---
**Author:** ![refusal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@refusal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/refusal)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/6 "2003-09-02T12:16:10Z")
Rent it at least. It’s a long time since I’ve seen it. At the time it was a true classic, innovative and very clever. Also very dark and nightmarish. It’s still utterly different from most of what’s on television: shows like Ally McBeal may have combined reality with fantasy, but in an incredibly watered-down way. At the same time, it’s often not easy viewing (whether due to the disease, the grotesquerie, or the general sense of embarrassment and humiliation) but it should probably be seen if you want to watch what TV is capable of (and hopefully watching it would change the mind of those viewers and program-makers who think that The West Wing or Six Feet Under are innovative TV). ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/7 "2003-09-02T13:03:45Z")
Think if I tied myself to the door of my local Blockbuster I could pursuade them to carry it? ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2003, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-singing-detective-on-dvd-worth-watching/199021/8 "2003-09-02T13:11:20Z")
It’s still, to my mind, the single best thing that’s ever happened on television. Buffy comes close, Sopranos comes close, The Shield comes close, 24 comes close, NYPD Blue comes close Xfiles comes close, but none of these reached the level of just goddam _ART_ that The Singing Detective did. You can get it for around $50; buy it now.