The Middle Earth Collection (Blu-ray Limited Collector's Edition) [USA]

[IRON MAN]

Release date: October 4, 2016 (Amazon) - November 1, 2016 (In stores)
Purchase links: Amazon - Best Buy - Import CDS
Price: $499.96 $389.99 $328.45 (Amazon) - $559.99 (BB) - $503.91 $368.75 (Import)

In-hand pics by @srngsmb HERE

Spoiler

Middle Earth Collection:UCE (AMAZON/6-pack/BD) (BD)

- For the first time ever, Academy Award®-winning director Peter Jackson's epic adventure is available in one spectacular limited collector's edition box set.
- The Limited Collector's Edition includes 30 discs featuring all six Middle-earth films in their extended edition forms, housed in six stunning faux leather books and a collectible Hobbit-style wood shelf. The one-of-a-kind wood shelf is crafted from solid wood with design selected by Peter Jackson.
- In addition to the extended edition release of every film, the collection also includes all previously released bonus content from both the theatrical and extended editions.
- Exclusive premiums designed for the collection include: · Spectacular 100-page sketch-style book with replica The Red Book of Westmarch, filled with original film sketches and new artwork · Original reproductions of exquisite watercolor paintings by acclaimed conceptual artists Alan Lee and John Howe, framable and wall-ready
- THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY – Follow Bilbo Baggins, who – along with the Wizard Gandalf and 13 Dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield – is swept into an epic and treacherous quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor. THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG – Our heroes escape the giant Spiders and Wood-elves of Mirkwood before encountering the mysterious Bard, who smuggles them into Lake-town. Finally reaching the Lonely Mountain, they confront the Dragon Smaug. THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES – The Dwarves of Erebor have reclaimed their homeland, but face the consequences of unleashing Smaug. As five great armies go to war, Bilbo fights for his life, and the races of Dwarves, Elves and Men must unite or be destroyed.
- THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING – With the help of a courageous fellowship of friends and allies, Frodo Baggins embarks on a perilous mission to destroy the legendary One Ring. THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS – In the middle chapter of this historic movie trilogy, the Fellowship is broken but its quest to destroy the One Ring continues. THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING – The final battle for Middle-earth begins. Frodo and Sam, led by Gollum, continue their dangerous mission toward the fires of Mount Doom in order to destroy the One Ring.

 

[Noodles]

Thanks for the tag @Noodles!
I felt like I was watching the Home Shopping Network there!
Still not sold. The "Slip disc pocket" books are trouble. Especially since all of the appendices are on DVDs that can be scratched. The original MASH set was roundly rejected because of this type of book that housed the discs and scratched them too much. If they were all Blu rays this would not be an issue....HOWEVER, the BULK of these discs are DVDs. That could be trouble.
I'm also not convinced this the end-all-be-all set. The promised PJ documentary is not here.
Just not sold on this yet....

Good point... they are terrible for DVDs! Maybe they're hoping the discs get scratched to hell though, so everyone has a reason to buy the next $1000 set in a years time.

 

[elle82]

Good point... they are terrible for DVDs! Maybe they're hoping the discs get scratched to hell though, so everyone has a reason to buy the next $1000 set in a years time.

Ugh that is true but i still want it.....lol

 

[Huguito]

Maybe a poll to know what price range would ninjas be willing to spend for this release?

 

[DarkChild]

fingers crossed for a European release aswell

 

[davetherave]

Price drop to 719.99 - yay(!) and unboxing video

 

[Noodles]

Ugh that is true but i still want it.....lol

Me too.

 

[ste22]

I REALLY want this. But cannot justify the cost. It's a crazy amount for what it really is. How much of the 800 dollars goes to Dominic Monaghan for marketing?

 

[DarkChild]

I REALLY want this. But cannot justify the cost. It's a crazy amount for what it really is. How much of the 800 dollars goes to Dominic Monaghan for marketing?

Dominic Monaghan cannot cost more than 5$....

 

[paulboland]

$80.00 price reduction
$719.99
It's still way to expensive for me to even consider this

It does look nice but no way is it worth $719.99
To me a release like this max price should be $100 to $200 and even that's a high price
It don't include any new Blu-ray or DVD extras

I already have all the Discs from Both Films so it's simply not worth purchasing at that price even I had lots of available income
Even if I was a Multi Millionaire (I wish I was ) I would not pay that price

 

[Scary Hair]

Typed it before typeing it AGAIN . Only way I will bite is IF the first Trilogy has one disk one film .

 

[JackRegan]

It is a very elaborate and nicely presented set ; that is most likely knocked together on the (extremely) cheap in China !!

It is way, WAY too expensive, and like so many others, I wouldn't entertain it at half the price.

 

[JackRegan]

Thanks for the tag @Noodles!
I felt like I was watching the Home Shopping Network there!
Still not sold. The "Slip disc pocket" books are trouble. Especially since all of the appendices are on DVDs that can be scratched. The original MASH set was roundly rejected because of this type of book that housed the discs and scratched them too much. If they were all Blu rays this would not be an issue....HOWEVER, the BULK of these discs are DVDs. That could be trouble.
I'm also not convinced this the end-all-be-all set. The promised PJ documentary is not here.
Just not sold on this yet....

Yes it does look like HSN - only most of the stuff I ever saw there is trash you'd only buy after you've had a skinful
Talking about the placeholders, the only ones I've ever seen with a finish kind to DVDs were the original issue Buffy DVD box sets - all of which had a soft liner to the sleeve. After that initial flourish the quality of the box sets diminished rapidly

edited for typo

 

[shazman]

Do this contain the 3d versions of the hobbit films?

 

[MrsRobinson]

No, no 3D - that's one of the flaws of this (otherwise totally stunning!) set.

 

[dazza78]

That unboxing video is amazing. Here's hoping gets released in Australia. I will get if does.

 

[shazman]

Firstly, this is way too expensive. Secondly, you could show a picture of this stand to a carpenter and ask them to make something similar (not exactly the same) with designs from the books for the carvings and then fit all of your extended versions of the movies whether steelbook or digipack into this. You could have some compartments designed for the actual books themselves plus any maps which are easy to get hold of. I'm only stating this for the die hard Tolkein fans. Nothing stopping you from commissioning your own custom made stand plus you'll save so much compared to this.

 

[kierano]

http://www.importcds.com/middle-earth-limited-collectors-edition/883929477128

A cheaper price for the set!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! $503

 

[C.C. 95]

This kinda says it all:
(From DigitalBits)
"IN THE LANDS OF MIDDLE-EARTH, LEGEND TELLS OF AN $800 BLU-RAY SHELF...”

Spoiler

“IN THE LANDS OF MIDDLE-EARTH, LEGEND TELLS OF AN $800 BLU-RAY SHELF...”
August 18, 2016 - 2:46 pm | By Bill Hunt



So um... yeah. Since yesterday morning, when the SRP and final product images first went up on Amazon – and even before we posted our column on the subject yesterday afternoon – we started getting e-mails and private messages from diehard Rings fans asking: “Is Warner’s Middle Earth: Ultimate Collector’s Edition Blu-ray set really $799.99?!”

I understand the feeling behind that question, believe me, because I feel it too. When I first saw that $799 price listed, I thought surely it was an error. Especially when you consider that the theatrical set was listed at $68.99, and when that price info quickly disappeared.

I figured there was absolutely no way Warner would charge $800 for a Blu-ray release of these films that contained no new disc-based content whatsoever. Had to be a mistake.

Which was why I was so surprised to see it appear again last night... and stick: $799.99. And yes, I’ve now confirmed it with the studio. That is the price. Not including sales tax, mind you.

For a SHELF.

Oh my GOD.



Now, you might be saying: “But Bill... look at it! It’s not just a shelf! You get all those discs! 30 of them. Plus you get that swag – an art book, and cards, the packaging.” True. What you do get amounts to the Blu-ray 2D versions of all the Extended Edition films, plus digital copies of both the Theatrical and Extended Editions, plus the bonus discs from all of the Extended Editions and the bonus discs from the Theatrical Editions too. Plus the packaging and swag.

Does this set also come personally delivered to your door by Benedict Cumberbatch wearing a dragon suit? Because at that price it probably should.

(Mad props to my friend Amy Wagner, of the delightful Stuart Ng Books, whose joke that is. It really made me laugh yesterday over all this. And boy, I needed a good laugh.)

So... here’s Problem #1: The people who are going to most want this set for that packaging are the diehard fans of Jackson’s films. And you can bet that they probably already own most – if not all – of those discs. So the people who most want that set are people who already have all the content – and they’re being asked to pay $800 for new packaging and swag alone.

Here’s Problem #2: Those same fans have been promised for years by the filmmakers that when the 6-film saga was finally complete, there would be a truly ultimate release of all the films with new documentary content, deleted scenes, outtakes, and all the as-yet-untold stories. In other words, new bonus content.

Here’s Problem #3: Peter Jackson and company wanted to make that content, proposed doing so, and the studio passed. (Yes, I’m confident that’s true and we have it from multiple sources now.) It sure ain’t here in this set.

Here’s Problem #4: The content you do get in the set isn’t even truly “ultimate,” because again you don’t get the Theatrical versions of these films on disc, and you don’t get the Blu-ray 3D versions of the Hobbit films.

Now, I don’t know who at Warner Bros. Home Entertainment made these decisions, but I’d be willing to bet that precious few of them have even seen all of the Extended Editions of these films, much less watched all of these extras. They are not truly fans of these films. And that’s a problem. Because this decision is seriously out of touch with what those fans would like to see and be willing to pay for. No one who is actually a fan of these films would ever make so wrong-headed a decision about a release like this.

It’s really deeply insulting to diehard fans. As in kick in the balls, poke in the eye, having salt tossed in your face, and then getting crapped on for good measure insulting.

Why, you might ask? Well... let me walk you through it, so there’s no confusion…

So, let’s say you’ve been a fan of Peter Jackson’s cinematic journey into J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth from the very beginning. That means you’ve probably already purchased:

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Theatrical Edition on DVD when it was first released back in early 2002 for $19.99.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Extended Edition on DVD when it was first released back in late 2002 for $39.99.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Limited Edition on DVD (including both the theatrical and extended editions plus new extras) when it was released back in 2006 for $29.99 (because it had all-new bonus content).

So that’s a possible outlay of $90 per film, times three films (or $270) just for The Lord of the Rings films on DVD.

Then there was The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Theatrical Edition on Blu-ray when it was released back in 2010 for $99.98.

And The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Extended Edition on Blu-ray when it was released back in 2011 for $119.98.

So now you’re up to $490 spent for just the Rings films over the years, if you’ve been a loyal diehard fan and collected all the available versions because you want all the content and extras in the best possible quality.

Then there was each of the Hobbit films on Theatrical DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D (for $28.98, $44.95, and $44.95 each), and the DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D Extended films (for $34.99. $35.99 and $54.98), as well as The Hobbit Trilogy: Extended Edition on DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D (for $78.92, $99.98, and $154.98). Now, all that happened post Blu-ray, so you probably didn’t buy it on both formats. But some of you probably did bite on the individual film releases and the various retail-exclusive packages with statuettes and swag that the studios love to offer these days.

But let’s take a guess: Go ahead and add about another $50 per film. That’ll bring you up to about $650 spent to buy these films on disc by diehard fans over the years. Keep in mind, that doesn’t include theatrical tickets, books, toys, swag, collectibles and whatever else you may have purchased.

And now, Warner is asking you to spend another $800 to re-buy most of those exact same discs just to get the nice new packaging and swag, which every diehard fan would certainly love to have.

That’s why this is insulting.

But you might be asking: “But this release isn’t targeted at the diehard fans! It’s meant for people who haven’t purchased any of the films on disc yet!” First of all, are you nuts? Second of all, who would those people be exactly that are in the market for an $800 Blu-ray set but aren’t diehard fans?

Now sure… I’ll allow that there’s a chance that Elon Musk hasn’t picked up a copy of these films on Blu-ray yet, because he’s been a little busy building rockets to go to Mars and all. But I have to believe that Elon Musk would be smarter than to pay $800 for these discs, a book, and a shelf. Because A: Rockets and Mars and all. And because B: You can buy all these discs (plus better books and more) for much cheaper individually!

This is true: I did a little window-shopping research and ran the numbers last night. For $799.99, I could – right now on Amazon – buy...

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – Theatrical Edition BD set ($21.75)

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – Extended Edition BD set ($48.99)

The Hobbit Trilogy – Theatrical Edition Blu-ray 3D Combo set ($97.89)

The Hobbit Trilogy – Extended Edition Blu-ray 3D Combo set ($106.98)

(And if you add up all those movie and extras discs, that comes to 48 discs of content – which is truly complete – as opposed to this set’s 30.) Plus...

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy 3-CD Soundtrack Collection ($30)

The Hobbit Special Edition soundtrack CDs ($20 each x 3 films = $60)

The “Art of The Lord of the Rings” hardcover books for each film ($44 each x 3 = $132)

The “Art & Design of The Hobbit” hardcover books for each film ($30 each x 3 = $90)

If you’re following along at home (or the office) that comes to a subtotal of $587.61.

That leaves me with $212.38...

... which is almost enough to buy a hand-crafted prop replica of The Hat of Gandalf The freaking Grey from the WETA Workshop too (for $219 – see this link, and yes that’s it pictured up above there on the left side of the page. It’s kind of badass).

And I’ll build my own damn shelf to hold it all.

Anyway…

I don’t think I really need to say much more about how I feel personally – as a diehard fan of Peter Jackson’s films – about all this. But I will say this from a professional perspective: This may very well be the most misguided release decision I’ve seen a major studio home video operation make in the 20 years I’ve been covering this industry as the editor of The Digital Bits. It really couldn’t be more out of touch with consumers, the fans, and especially the studio’s specific target market for this release.

I am kind of shocked by it, actually.

And I’m not going to lie: It’s also a little bit sad and depressing too, that the industry has come to things this.

Now… as to what the Middle Earth fans I’m hearing from today think about this... well, I don’t want to post exact quotes here, because it’s not pretty. But I think this clip (below) from John Oliver pretty much covers the overwhelming vibe I’m getting from their e-mails and private messages today...


Enough said.

FYI: This will be my first, last, and only comment on the above subject for the forseeable future, because it’s just too damn irritating and life is too short. So to all fans: I 100% feel your pain on this but please direct your frustration elsewhere.

- Bill Hunt (@BillHuntBits)

 

[Noodles]

This kinda says it all:
(From DigitalBits)
"IN THE LANDS OF MIDDLE-EARTH, LEGEND TELLS OF AN $800 BLU-RAY SHELF...”
View attachment 259915

Spoiler

“IN THE LANDS OF MIDDLE-EARTH, LEGEND TELLS OF AN $800 BLU-RAY SHELF...”
August 18, 2016 - 2:46 pm | By Bill Hunt



So um... yeah. Since yesterday morning, when the SRP and final product images first went up on Amazon – and even before we posted our column on the subject yesterday afternoon – we started getting e-mails and private messages from diehard Rings fans asking: “Is Warner’s Middle Earth: Ultimate Collector’s Edition Blu-ray set really $799.99?!”

I understand the feeling behind that question, believe me, because I feel it too. When I first saw that $799 price listed, I thought surely it was an error. Especially when you consider that the theatrical set was listed at $68.99, and when that price info quickly disappeared.

I figured there was absolutely no way Warner would charge $800 for a Blu-ray release of these films that contained no new disc-based content whatsoever. Had to be a mistake.

Which was why I was so surprised to see it appear again last night... and stick: $799.99. And yes, I’ve now confirmed it with the studio. That is the price. Not including sales tax, mind you.

For a SHELF.

Oh my GOD.



Now, you might be saying: “But Bill... look at it! It’s not just a shelf! You get all those discs! 30 of them. Plus you get that swag – an art book, and cards, the packaging.” True. What you do get amounts to the Blu-ray 2D versions of all the Extended Edition films, plus digital copies of both the Theatrical and Extended Editions, plus the bonus discs from all of the Extended Editions and the bonus discs from the Theatrical Editions too. Plus the packaging and swag.

Does this set also come personally delivered to your door by Benedict Cumberbatch wearing a dragon suit? Because at that price it probably should.

(Mad props to my friend Amy Wagner, of the delightful Stuart Ng Books, whose joke that is. It really made me laugh yesterday over all this. And boy, I needed a good laugh.)

So... here’s Problem #1: The people who are going to most want this set for that packaging are the diehard fans of Jackson’s films. And you can bet that they probably already own most – if not all – of those discs. So the people who most want that set are people who already have all the content – and they’re being asked to pay $800 for new packaging and swag alone.

Here’s Problem #2: Those same fans have been promised for years by the filmmakers that when the 6-film saga was finally complete, there would be a truly ultimate release of all the films with new documentary content, deleted scenes, outtakes, and all the as-yet-untold stories. In other words, new bonus content.

Here’s Problem #3: Peter Jackson and company wanted to make that content, proposed doing so, and the studio passed. (Yes, I’m confident that’s true and we have it from multiple sources now.) It sure ain’t here in this set.

Here’s Problem #4: The content you do get in the set isn’t even truly “ultimate,” because again you don’t get the Theatrical versions of these films on disc, and you don’t get the Blu-ray 3D versions of the Hobbit films.

Now, I don’t know who at Warner Bros. Home Entertainment made these decisions, but I’d be willing to bet that precious few of them have even seen all of the Extended Editions of these films, much less watched all of these extras. They are not truly fans of these films. And that’s a problem. Because this decision is seriously out of touch with what those fans would like to see and be willing to pay for. No one who is actually a fan of these films would ever make so wrong-headed a decision about a release like this.

It’s really deeply insulting to diehard fans. As in kick in the balls, poke in the eye, having salt tossed in your face, and then getting crapped on for good measure insulting.

Why, you might ask? Well... let me walk you through it, so there’s no confusion…

So, let’s say you’ve been a fan of Peter Jackson’s cinematic journey into J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth from the very beginning. That means you’ve probably already purchased:

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Theatrical Edition on DVD when it was first released back in early 2002 for $19.99.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Extended Edition on DVD when it was first released back in late 2002 for $39.99.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Limited Edition on DVD (including both the theatrical and extended editions plus new extras) when it was released back in 2006 for $29.99 (because it had all-new bonus content).

So that’s a possible outlay of $90 per film, times three films (or $270) just for The Lord of the Rings films on DVD.

Then there was The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Theatrical Edition on Blu-ray when it was released back in 2010 for $99.98.

And The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Extended Edition on Blu-ray when it was released back in 2011 for $119.98.

So now you’re up to $490 spent for just the Rings films over the years, if you’ve been a loyal diehard fan and collected all the available versions because you want all the content and extras in the best possible quality.

Then there was each of the Hobbit films on Theatrical DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D (for $28.98, $44.95, and $44.95 each), and the DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D Extended films (for $34.99. $35.99 and $54.98), as well as The Hobbit Trilogy: Extended Edition on DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D (for $78.92, $99.98, and $154.98). Now, all that happened post Blu-ray, so you probably didn’t buy it on both formats. But some of you probably did bite on the individual film releases and the various retail-exclusive packages with statuettes and swag that the studios love to offer these days.

But let’s take a guess: Go ahead and add about another $50 per film. That’ll bring you up to about $650 spent to buy these films on disc by diehard fans over the years. Keep in mind, that doesn’t include theatrical tickets, books, toys, swag, collectibles and whatever else you may have purchased.

And now, Warner is asking you to spend another $800 to re-buy most of those exact same discs just to get the nice new packaging and swag, which every diehard fan would certainly love to have.

That’s why this is insulting.

But you might be asking: “But this release isn’t targeted at the diehard fans! It’s meant for people who haven’t purchased any of the films on disc yet!” First of all, are you nuts? Second of all, who would those people be exactly that are in the market for an $800 Blu-ray set but aren’t diehard fans?

Now sure… I’ll allow that there’s a chance that Elon Musk hasn’t picked up a copy of these films on Blu-ray yet, because he’s been a little busy building rockets to go to Mars and all. But I have to believe that Elon Musk would be smarter than to pay $800 for these discs, a book, and a shelf. Because A: Rockets and Mars and all. And because B: You can buy all these discs (plus better books and more) for much cheaper individually!

This is true: I did a little window-shopping research and ran the numbers last night. For $799.99, I could – right now on Amazon – buy...

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – Theatrical Edition BD set ($21.75)

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – Extended Edition BD set ($48.99)

The Hobbit Trilogy – Theatrical Edition Blu-ray 3D Combo set ($97.89)

The Hobbit Trilogy – Extended Edition Blu-ray 3D Combo set ($106.98)

(And if you add up all those movie and extras discs, that comes to 48 discs of content – which is truly complete – as opposed to this set’s 30.) Plus...

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy 3-CD Soundtrack Collection ($30)

The Hobbit Special Edition soundtrack CDs ($20 each x 3 films = $60)

The “Art of The Lord of the Rings” hardcover books for each film ($44 each x 3 = $132)

The “Art & Design of The Hobbit” hardcover books for each film ($30 each x 3 = $90)

If you’re following along at home (or the office) that comes to a subtotal of $587.61.

That leaves me with $212.38...

... which is almost enough to buy a hand-crafted prop replica of The Hat of Gandalf The freaking Grey from the WETA Workshop too (for $219 – see this link, and yes that’s it pictured up above there on the left side of the page. It’s kind of badass).

And I’ll build my own damn shelf to hold it all.

Anyway…

I don’t think I really need to say much more about how I feel personally – as a diehard fan of Peter Jackson’s films – about all this. But I will say this from a professional perspective: This may very well be the most misguided release decision I’ve seen a major studio home video operation make in the 20 years I’ve been covering this industry as the editor of The Digital Bits. It really couldn’t be more out of touch with consumers, the fans, and especially the studio’s specific target market for this release.

I am kind of shocked by it, actually.

And I’m not going to lie: It’s also a little bit sad and depressing too, that the industry has come to things this.

Now… as to what the Middle Earth fans I’m hearing from today think about this... well, I don’t want to post exact quotes here, because it’s not pretty. But I think this clip (below) from John Oliver pretty much covers the overwhelming vibe I’m getting from their e-mails and private messages today...


Enough said.

FYI: This will be my first, last, and only comment on the above subject for the forseeable future, because it’s just too damn irritating and life is too short. So to all fans: I 100% feel your pain on this but please direct your frustration elsewhere.

- Bill Hunt (@BillHuntBits)

Pure greed from Warner Bros. I seriously hope these sets sit around collecting dust in a warehouse until they realise what a big mistake they've made and have no choice but to knock at least 80% off the current price.

 

[C.C. 95]

Pure greed from Warner Bros. I seriously hope these sets sit around collecting dust in a warehouse until they realise what a big mistake they've made and have no choice but to knock at least 80% off the current price.

The real middle finger to the fans is their saying "no" to PJ making a new documentary and new extras.
He obviously wanted to make a set to rule them all...
But all we get instead is a cash grab from