What does abridged commercial break mean?

[502-to-right]

I see many references on this site to "abridged commercial breaks" for DVD copies of the show. What does this mean? I know what the word abridged means and I know what a commercial break is, but I don't know how the two relate on a DVD.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

I see many references on this site to "abridged commercial breaks" for DVD copies of the show. What does this mean? I know what the word abridged means and I know what a commercial break is, but I don't know how the two relate on a DVD.

It means you can't tell that a scene ends with a commercial break. Basically one scene transitions to the next so cleanly that you can't tell there was originally a commercial break there between those 2 scenes. Typically when watching an episode on DVD you can always tell where a commercial break is meant to be. The scene ends and the screen goes black for a second or two, then the next scene resumes. When it's "abridged" you don't notice this. I really have no idea why they decided to abridge some commercial breaks but not others. Maybe for experimental purposes?

[502-to-right]

So it's removing the long pause where a commercial was originally played? Does this bother people?

I guess I don't really mind one way or another when the commercial has been removed. But it seems like people here don't it, like it's detracting from the viewing experience.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

So it's removing the long pause where a commercial was originally played? Does this bother people?

I guess I don't really mind one way or another when the commercial has been removed. But it seems like people here don't it, like it's detracting from the viewing experience.

Yeah maybe some people don't like the pause/fade to black which reminds them it's a commercial break. But if the powers that be wanted to get rid of them why didn't they do it for all the commercial breaks for all the episodes? Instead of just a few. I personally don't mind the breaks because it reminds me that I'm watching a TV show (not a movie) and I kinda like to see how they originally broke up the episode into commercial breaks. If you've ever watched The Streets of San Francisco they actually have each part of the episode labeled as Act I, Act II, Act III, Act IV, Epilogue. In between those acts were the commercial breaks. So even if you abridged those commercial breaks (removed the fades to black) you would still see the captions on the screen showing Act I, Act II, etc. Either way it doesn't bother me.

[Styles Bitchley]

I didn’t know this. Thanks for the question (and response).

[502-to-right]

So it's removing the long pause where a commercial was originally played? Does this bother people?

I guess I don't really mind one way or another when the commercial has been removed. But it seems like people here don't it, like it's detracting from the viewing experience.

Yeah maybe some people don't like the pause/fade to black which reminds them it's a commercial break. But if the powers that be wanted to get rid of them why didn't they do it for all the commercial breaks for all the episodes? Instead of just a few. I personally don't mind the breaks because it reminds me that I'm watching a TV show (not a movie) and I kinda like to see how they originally broke up the episode into commercial breaks. If you've ever watched The Streets of San Francisco they actually have each part of the episode labeled as Act I, Act II, Act III, Act IV, Epilogue. In between those acts were the commercial breaks. So even if you abridged those commercial breaks (removed the fades to black) you would still see the captions on the screen showing Act I, Act II, etc. Either way it doesn't bother me.

Thanks.

I'm just glad with the DVD's I don't have to suffer through awful commercials any longer.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

So it's removing the long pause where a commercial was originally played? Does this bother people?

I guess I don't really mind one way or another when the commercial has been removed. But it seems like people here don't it, like it's detracting from the viewing experience.

Yeah maybe some people don't like the pause/fade to black which reminds them it's a commercial break. But if the powers that be wanted to get rid of them why didn't they do it for all the commercial breaks for all the episodes? Instead of just a few. I personally don't mind the breaks because it reminds me that I'm watching a TV show (not a movie) and I kinda like to see how they originally broke up the episode into commercial breaks. If you've ever watched The Streets of San Francisco they actually have each part of the episode labeled as Act I, Act II, Act III, Act IV, Epilogue. In between those acts were the commercial breaks. So even if you abridged those commercial breaks (removed the fades to black) you would still see the captions on the screen showing Act I, Act II, etc. Either way it doesn't bother me.

Thanks.

I'm just glad with the DVD's I don't have to suffer through awful commercials any longer.

Exactly, it doesn't bother me. I don't care if my screen fades to black for a second. It's not like I'm sitting through commercials. On the other hand, maybe a few of the original 80s commercials would be a nice touch for a few episodes. They sure don't make 'em like they used to. The commercials, I mean.

[502-to-right]

Exactly, it doesn't bother me. I don't care if my screen fades to black for a second. It's not like I'm sitting through commercials. On the other hand, maybe a few of the original 80s commercials would be a nice touch for a few episodes. They sure don't make 'em like they used to. The commercials, I mean.

I would absolutely watch the commercials if they were from the 80's. In fact, I sometimes do just that on YouTube.

[eagle]

I would absolutely watch the commercials if they were from the 80's. In fact, I sometimes do just that on YouTube.

Ha, I thought I was the only one who did this. 80s commercials were a special kind of thing. lol

Anyway, thanks for the question & answer. I wouldn't have known what it was. Also, I've never seen it in any DVD that I have.