Those who watched and loved NX on TV know how integral the music was to the story. Each episode came with music as unique and endearing as the writing. These DVDs are but a mere shadow of the original production.

When I heard about this re-release box set of the entire series, I got excited . . . until I learned nothing had changed with the audio.

I can't imagine the royalty situation would be so difficult to fix, but at this late date I doubt anyone will ever release the true originals in DVD format. For me, these DVDs might as well have been overdubbed in Chinese.

NE is arguably the best tv series ever created so even with the music tampering I have to give it five stars. Every character is multifaceted and distinctive. Even the guest stars were carefully chosen to fit in with Cicely's quirky inhabitants (my favorites are Adam and Eve and Officer Semanski). The original music was a perfect fit as well and its a shame its been replaced. Universal is out of touch with customers on this one. Can't think of another series where the music plays such an integral role in atmosphere and mood and I'd gladly pay the extra bucks to have everything intact. The excellent moosechick.com site dedicated to all things NE offers more insight into the music situation. For those who don't mind the substitutions this set is fine -you still have the great story lines and characters all encased in a cleverly designed knapsack case. Thankfully, for the rest of us there are some fully original episodes still available on VHS tape.

I got the complete series set as a birthday gift and was so excited. Yes, like others have said, the original music is gone. Even without it it's still great TV and I'm still loving it all over again.

I too, was at first put off by some negative reviews. I read and digested the best of the worst, yet, my memories of the characters, the humor, the sense of atmosphere and place, all created a longing and desire to have, own, and possess this complete series. The music of course was integral, but for me, not critical, and I can forgive the creators for this. The magic of it all still lives for me in the people, lodgepole pines, and animals of NE. From Maggie and Joel's misdirected sexual energy to Ed's burning desire to create the next great epic, I'm there and locked in as if in my own piney cabin in the woods. Even though some music was cut, the show 'feels' the same, and I love it!
I am totally pleased with the packaging. Although a bit camp and cheesy, it actually is the perfect house for the dvd's. The functional suede bag will serve well as a dust barrier, and organizer for the series. Please, If you are on the fence about buying this comprehensive collection, I think it would be a greater crime to deny yourself this treasure because of some music issues. p.s. I forgot to mention what an enhanced experience it is now to watch these discs on the newer, flatscreen digital tv's. Everything seems so much 'more', with the beautiful imagery and full stereo sound produced by today's digital televisions.

Excellent. Carrying case is a convenient organizer of plastic case finished with real or faux leather and wool. Episodes grouped chronologially by season. The "deleted scenes" and "unexposed film" extras are interesting and add new nuances of what the director had once considered for the episode, but are not particularly noteworthy; they are identified by episode title and are separated out from the episodes themselves. One can select any episode to view on a CD, or just select "play" and CD will run through all episodes. Each episode has complete intro music/credits and complete trailor music/credits, and are separated by a few seconds of blank screen. Highly recommended for those Northern Exposure dedicated fans who want the complete, organized mint-condition CD set of episodes they remember exactly as aired!