Freaks and Geeks is set in Michigan in 1980, where sophomore Lindsay Weir (Linda Cardellini, Bloodline) and her younger brother Sam (John Francis Daley, Bones) attend McKinley High School. Two of the school’s main cliques are the “freaks”—the burn-outs and musicians—and the nerdy “geeks”. Sam is one of the geeks, and spends most of his time with best friends Bill Haverchuck (Martin Starr, Silicon Valley) and Neal Schweiber (Samm Levine, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp), but also finds himself constantly pining away for cheerleader Cindy Sanders (Natasha Melnick). Meanwhile Lindsay is one of the smart kids, and was even a Mathlete along with best friend Millie (Sarah Hagan, Breaking Fat), but this year she has decided to try to find herself. She dons her father’s army jacket and starts hanging out with the “freaks”—Daniel Desario (James Franco, 11.22.63), Ken Miller (Seth Rogen, Steve Jobs), Nick Andopolis (Jason Segel, How I Met Your Mother) and Kim Kelly (Busy Philipps, Cougar Town). Lindsay quickly becomes the bridge between the freaks and the geeks.

The series finds the students dealing with the standard pressures of high school, such as bullying, drugs, alcohol, sex and first loves. While show is quite funny, it does take a few dramatic turns. And the series doesn’t often go in the direction you would typically expect it to—the situations aren’t always resolved in a perfect, neat way, and not every ending is a happy one. Instead the show goes for a much more realistic tone. The series deals with some interesting topics, a few of which I’m surprised were even discussed on network TV back in 1999, let alone today—there is a special needs student, several obese students who aren’t played for laughs, parents having affairs, a girlfriend who has ambiguous genitals, getting high while babysitting, throwing a kegger, cheating on tests, etc.

The Weir parents, Harold (Joe Flaherty, SCTV) and Jean (Becky Ann Baker, Girls), often find themselves dealing with the mess left behind by their kids—though this does usually lead to Harold telling some ridiculously-humorous anecdotal story about a friend’s life that ended in tragedy. While the series is most certainly set in 1980, the themes it explores and the struggle to fit in in high school are timeless and universal ones. The series feels just as relevant today as in any period.

When Freaks and Geeks first debuted in 1999, NBC didn’t realize what a great show/phenomenal cast they had. The series bounced around the schedule, and several episodes even remained unaired until almost a year later. Just look at this amazing cast—almost all of them have gone on to huge careers, including some of the guest stars: Lizzy Caplan, Ben Foster, Rashida Jones, Shia LaBeouf, Joanna Garcia and Matt Czuchry. Plus the show had appearances by Tom Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and even Ben Stiller.

Shout! Factory has really championed this series over the years, going through the painstaking process of licensing all of the original music and collecting a plethora of bonus materials. In 2004 they released a Complete Series DVD set, and a special limited edition Yearbook Edition that contained even more bonus material. The Yearbook Edition was later made into a generally-available release, just without the collectible yearbook packaging.

Now Shout! Factory has gone back to the original source, painstakingly cleaned it up and created all new 4K masters to release the series in HD on Blu-ray, along with all of the bonus material from the previous two DVD releases. While the series was framed for full frame TV, it was actually shot in widescreen, and so viewers now get an additional 33% more picture on the sides of the screen! The only caveat to this is the pilot. There is a disclaimer at the beginning of the episode:

The following Pilot is the only Freaks and Geeks episode that was not originally filmed in a widescreen film format. Therefore the following version has been formatted to fit your screen. To access the original open matte version, please insert Disc 1 from the “Original Broadcast” Blu-ray set.

The set comes packed in a sturdy outer box which houses an all-new collector’s booklet, two 4-disc Blu-ray cases (one for the New Widescreen Presentation and one for the Original Broadcast Aspect Ratio), and a slim Blu-ray case housing the Land O’ Extra Stuff bonus disc.

The 36-page full color booklet includes a letter from Shout! Factory about how the Blu-ray set was remastered, a letter from series creator Paul Feig, a 2004 Q&A with Judd Apatow about the DVD set, a letter from director Jake Kasdan, a page for each episode listing the credits, music, and a quote from Paul Feig, a guide to the Load O’Extra Stuff disc, Thank You messages from Paul and Judd, the Blu-ray credits, and a bunch of production photos.

I had never seen the series before, so I checked it out via the widescreen version, and found the picture quality to be amazing! If I didn’t know the show was originally released in 4:3 format I never would have guessed this. The full 16:9 frame looks very natural, and it never looked like there were huge amounts of wasted space or unintended objects or people in view. It really felt like this show was meant to be seen in widescreen in the first place. I also checked out the 4:3 version of the series, and the picture quality is equally impressive, so the purists who only want to watch the show in the OAR will also be pleased by the remaster. It’s great that Shout! Factory has included both versions so that both camps can enjoy this series.

Another really impressive feat is the fact that all of the original 70s and 80s music is in tact, and it sounds phenomenal on this release. From Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” that opens each episode to all of the amazing artists who appear on the soundtrack—Van Halen, Kenny Loggins, Styx, Deep Purple, Santana, Janis Joplin, Kiss, Cheap Trick, Rush, Madness, Billy Joel, Journey, The Moody Blues, Boston, Queen, David Bowie and so many more.

The set also includes an overwhelming amount of bonus material, most of which has been ported over from the previous DVD releases. Note: most of these features have not been retored in any way, and in some cases the picture quality pales in comparison to the episodes. In addition to an all-new 45-minute interview with Paul Feig and Judd Apatow, there are 28 audio commentaries, deleted scenes for every episode, raw footage, behind-the-scenes footage, audition footage, table reads, a Paley Center panel, and so much more. If I had one complaint, it’s that some of it just seems a bit disorganized—for example, some of the deleted scenes are lumped together in one feature on the bonus disc instead of just putting those individual scenes on the discs with the episodes, along with all the other deleted scenes for that episode.

What’s Included:
Episodes: (13.5 hrs)

• All 18 episodes in both the original aspect ratio (1.33:1) and widescreen (1.78:1):
  “Pilot”, “Beers and Weirs”, “Tricks and Treats”, “Kim Kelly Is My Friend”, “Tests and Breasts”, “I’m with the Band”, “Carded and Discarded”, “Girlfriends and Boyfriends”, “We’ve Got Spirit”, “The Diary”, “Looks and Books”, “The Garage Door”, “Chokin’ and Tokin'”, “Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers”, “Noshing and Moshing”, “Smooching and Mooching”, “The Little Things”, “Discos and Dragons”
• 1080p / Full Frame 1.33:1 & Widescreen 1.78:1
• Audio: English DTS-MA 5.1, English DTS-MA .20
• Subtitles: English SDH,

Extras:
All of the original bonus features from 2004’s The Complete Series DVD set and 2008’s The Yearbook Edition set have been included here as well as a new interview with Paul Feig and Judd Apatow.

• Audio Commentaries
  Audio Commentaries can be found on each disc along with the corresponding episodes. There are a total of 28 commentaries:
  • “Pilot Episode” Commentary 1 (47:30)
    Judd Apatow, Paul Feig and Jake Kasdan
  • “Pilot Episode” Commentary 2 (47:30)
    The Fans Meet Samm — Michael “Humphries” Beardsley, Arnold “The Vegan” Freeman, Kibbles the Rocker (on phone), Samm Levine
  • “Beers and Weirs” Commentary 1 (44:14)
    Judd Apatow, Linda Cardellini, Paul Feig, Jake Kasdan, Jason Segel, J. Elvis Weinstein
  • “Beers and Weirs” Commentary 2 (44:14)
    The Parents — Bob Daley (John Francis Daley’s Father), Debbie Hagan (Sarah Hagan’s Mother), Jean St. James (Martin Starr’s Mother)
  • “Tricks and Treats” Commentary (44:09)
    John Francis Daley, Paul Feig, Samm Levine, Stephen Lea Sheppard, Martin Starr
  • “Kim Kelly is My Friend” Commentary 1 (44:12)
    Judd Apatow, Lesli Linka Glatter, Mike White
  • “Kim Kelly is My Friend” Commentary 2 (44:12)
    The Executives — Justin Falvey (DreamWorks), Shelley McCrory (NBC), Dan McDermott (DreamWorks), Judd Apatow
  • “Tests and Breasts” Commentary 1 (44:10)
    Mr. Fredricks, Mr. Kowchevski & Mr. Rosso (in character)
  • “Tests and Breasts” Commentary 2 (44:10)
    Paul Feig & Ken Kwapis
  • “I’m With the Band” Commentary 1 (44:11)
    Judd Apatow, Paul Feig, Jeff Judah, Gabe Sachs & Jason Segel
  • “I’m With the Band” Commentary 2 (44:11)
    The Production Team — Russ Alsobrook, Judd Apatow, Curtiss Bradford, Paul Feig, Vistor Hsu, Debra McGuire & Jeff Sage
  • “Carded and Discarded” Commentary (44:16)
    Judd Apatow, Linda Cardellini, Paul Feig, Joanna Garcia, Samm Levine, Seth Rogen, Mr. Rosso & Jason Segel
  • “Girlfriends and Boyfriends” Commentary (44:16)
    Judd Apatow, Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley, Paul Feig, Samm Levine, Patty Lin & Jason Segel
  • “We’ve Got Spirit” Commentary (44:10)
    The Fans — Geoff Black, Tami Lefko & Eric Williams
  • “The Diary” Commentary 1 (44:14)
    Judd Apatow, Paul Feig & Rebecca Kirshner
  • “The Diary” Commentary 2 (44:14)
    Judd Apatow, Becky Ann Baker & Joe Flaherty
  • “Looks and Books” Commentary 1 (44:12)
    Judd Apatow, John Francis Daley, Paul Feig, Samm Levine, Natasha Melnick, Jerry Messing, Stephen Lea Sheppard, & Martin Starr
  • “Looks and Books” Commentary 2 (44:12)
    Paul Feig & Ken Kwapis
  • “The Garage Door” Commentary 1 (44:13)
    Judd Apatow, John Francis Daley, Paul Feig, Jeff Judah, Sam McMurray, Seth Rogen & Gabe Sachs
  • “The Garage Door” Commentary 2 (44:13)
    Paul Feig, Bryan Gordon & Samm Levine
  • “Chokin’ and Tokin'” Commentary (44:15)
    Judd Apatow, Miguel Arteta, Sarah Hagan, Seth Rogen & Martin Starr
  • “Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers” Commentary (44:07)
    Judd Apatow, Claudia Christian, Sarah Hagan, Bob Nickman, Busy Philipps, Seth Rogen, Martin Starr & Tom Wilson
  • “Noshing and Moshing” Commentary 1 (44:15)
    Judd Apatow & James Franco
  • “Noshing and Moshing” Commentary 2 (44:15)
    Michael Andrews & Jake Kasdan
  • “Smooching and Mooching” Commentary 1 (44:12)
    John Francis Daley, Paul Feig, Samm Levine, Natasha Melnick, Jerry Messing, Stephen Lea Sheppard & Martin Starr
  • “Smooching and Mooching” Commentary 2 (44:12)
    The Girls — Linda Cardellini, JoAnna Garcia, Natasha Melnick & Sarah Hagan
  • “The Little Things” Commentary (44:19)
    Judd Apatow, Jon Kasdan, Seth Rogen & Mike White
  • “Discos and Dragons” Commentary (44:14)
    Judd Apatow, Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley, Paul Feig, Samm Levine, Stephen Lea Sheppard & Jason Segel
• Deleted Scenes
  Deleted Scenes can be found on each disc along with the corresponding episodes. The scenes contain optional commentary by Judd Apatow, Martin Starr and John Daley. Some of these are more raw than others and end in such a way that it could have been part of a gag reel. In most cases the picture quality is nowhere near as good as that of the episodes themselves.
  • “Pilot Episode” (4:23)
    5 scenes: “Alan Brings Sam Another Twinkie”, “Bill and Neal in Biology”, “Millie in Trouble”, “Eli’s Cast”, “Best Job (Original Ending)”
  • “Beers and Weirs” (5:40)
    5 scenes: “Neal Oppressed”, “Bill and the Keg”, “Bill on Phone”, “Bill Says ‘Your Mom’ on Phone”, “Daniel Dirtbag”
  • “Tricks and Treats” (5:20)
    4 scenes: “Lindsay Mirror (Original Teaser)”, “Bionic Bill”, “More Bionic Bill / Charlie Chaplin Schweiber”, “Hippie Hands Out Candy”
  • “Kim Kelly is My Friend” (2:18)
    2 scenes: “Neal, Bill, Chromium”, “Martin Flubb / John Cracks Up”
  • “Tests and Breasts” (3:58)
    3 scenes: “Rosso Ecology Club”, “Geeks Watch Porn”, “Bill After Porno”
  • “I’m With the Band” (6:14)
    4 scenes: “Amazingly Long Rope Climb Scene”, “Nick Scolded in Class”, “Mr. Fredericks Talks To Sam”, “Sam Lifts Weights”
  • “Carded and Discarded” (4:03)
    3 scenes: “Bill & Eli (Original Teaser)”, “Freaks Ditch School (Original Teaser)”, “Geeks Eat Too Much”,
  • “Girlfriends and Boyfriends” (10:16)
    6 scenes: “Lindsay and Kim in Bathroom”, “”Korea”, “Lindsay Kisses Nick”, “Sam/Cindy-Lindsay/Nick Sequence”, “Selling Yearbooks”, “Sam ‘Listens’ To Cindy (Original Ending)”
  • “We’ve Got Spirit” (8:12)
    5 scenes: “School Spirit / Lindsay & Nick”, “Sam’s Mascot Audition”, “Nick ‘Listens’ To Lindsay”, “Sam & Cindy Pyramid”, “Cindy Asks Sam About Todd’s Call”
  • “The Diary” (12:53)
    6 scenes: “Kim’s Mom”, “Parents Search Room”, “Bill in Rosso’s Office”, “Fredricks Tries To Find Phone Prankster”, “Bill in Mr. Fredricks’ Office”, “Fredricks Accuses Sam of Pranks”
  • “Looks and Books” (5:58)
    5 scenes: “Superstud”, “Full Sam Dance in Mirror”, “Freaks Make Lindsay’s Life Worse”, “Daniel Asks Kowchevski To Tutor Him”, “Nick at Mathlete Competition”
  • “The Garage Door” (2:58)
    2 scenes: “Ken & Tuba Girl Exchange Barbs”, “Sam in Dentist Chair”
  • “Chokin’ and Tokin'” (8:51)
    6 scenes: “Lunch Line Nick”, “Rosso’s Stoned Buddy”, “Dr. Dunk — Former State Champion”, “Lindsay Babysits High”, “Stoned Lindsay & Kid”, “Geeks Invite Girls Goofy Golfing”
  • “Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers” Commentary (4:05)
    2 scenes: “Full Lady L”, “Ken Breaks Guitar”
  • “Noshing and Moshing” (2:22)
    2 scenes: “Bill Dances To Spacefunk”, “Freaks Talk About Punk Girl”
  • “Smooching and Mooching” (7:48)
    4 scenes: “Cindy and Todd Ignore Each Other”, “Weir All-Study Hour”, “Sam Asks Cindy About Party”, “Lindsay Tells Freaks About Nick”
  • “The Little Things” (6:10)
    3 scenes: “Our Creepiest Moment”, “Kowchevski’s Secret”, “Bill Kisses Neal”,
  • “Discos and Dragons” (5:12)
    2 scenes: “Daniel Good at D&D”, “Nick vs. The Magician”

  

• An Conversation with Paul Feig and Judd Apatow; Moderated by Los Angeles Times Critic Robert Lloyd* (45:59)
  Paul and Judd sit down with Los Angeles Times Critic Robert Lloyd for an interesting, informal chat. They talk about how they first met, how the show got green-lighted, selecting the director for the pilot, selecting a casting director and cast, assembling the writers room, improv on the set, dealing with economic and FCC restrictions of network TV, the always-impending death of the show, the petition to save the show and the fan message board, the post-cancellation afterlife of the show and the show’s small victories that offset the more realistic failures the characters experience.
• Paley Center Q and A (1:13:06)
  Recorded on March 11, 2000, this is the full panel from The Museum of Television & Radio’s William S. Paley Television Festival with the cast moderated by Ron Simon. The panelists include Becky Ann Baker (“Jean Weir”), Joe Flaherty (“Harold Weir”), Dave Allen (“Jeff Rosso”), Seth Rogen (“Ken Miller”), Martin Starr (“Bill Haverchuck”), Busy Philipps (“Kim Kelly”), Samm Levine (“Neal Schweiber”), Jason Segel (“Nick Andopolis”), John Francis Daley (“Sam Weir”), Linda Cardellini (“Lindsay Weir”), director/consulting producer Jake Kasdan, writer/executive producer Judd Apatow, and series creator Paul Feig.
• Table Reading
  Full-length table readings of the three episodes.
  • “Kim Kelly ls My Friend” (49:36)
  • “I’m With The Band” (47:l8)
  • “Girlfriends And Boyfriends” (52:14)
• Deleted Scenes (9:04)
  Play All Deleted Scenes with or without audio commentary by Sam Weir and Bill Haverchuck (yes, the characters). The scenes include “Former Mascot Gives Sam Tips” (from “We’ve Got Spirit”), “Fredricks’ Soft Side (from “Dead Dogs And Gym Teachers”), “Sam And Cindy Are A Couple” and “Cindy At The Weir Table” (from “The Little Things”) and “Ken Drills Nick About Disco” (from “Discos And Dragons”)
• Cast Auditions
  Each grouping contains raw audition footage of the cast, which play back to back, but are separated by chapter stops.
  • Main Cast (12:16)
    Segments include Linda Cardellini, Jason Segel, John Daley, Samm Levine, Martin Starr, Seth Rogen (Freak Reefer), and Busy Philipps (Slumming).
  • The Freaks (7:37)
    Segments include Linda Cardellini (Grandma Scene), Linda Cardellini (Cold Open and Dinner Scene), Jason Segel (T-shirt Scene), and Seth Rogen (T-shirt Scene)
  • The Geeks (6:54)
    Auditions videos of the cast play back to back (separated by chapters). Segments include John Daley (Cold Open), John Daley (Cindy Scene), Martin Starr (Geek Talk), and Samm Levine (Fight Talk).
  • Students of McKinley High (8:57)
    Segments include Sarah Hagan (Dance Discussion), Sarah Hagan (Academic Decathlon), Natasha Melnic , Chauncey Leopardi, Mark Allan Staubach, and Shaun Weiss.
  • Freaks and Geeks Alternate Universe (11:37)
    Segments include Linda Cardellini As Kim Kelly, Samm Levine Audition As Sam (With Shatner), Busy Philipps as Lindsay, Seth Rogen As Geek, and Joe Flaherty As Mr. Fredricks.
  • The Authority Figures (11:45)
    Segments include Joe Flaherty (She Died), Becky Ann Baker (Smoking Scene), Becky Ann Baker (Homecoming Dance), Tom Wilson (Dodgeball), Steve Bannos, Dave Allen, Lea Sheppard (Geeks Fighting), and Lea Sheppard (Freak Reefer).
• “Long Live Rock” (7:41)
  Raw footage of some of the musical performances from the series. Segments play back-to-back, but are separated by chapter stops: “Jesus ls Alright” (from “Beers And Weirs”), and “Mr. Rosso Live ln Concert: I’m Eighteen (Acoustic)” and “Mr. Rosso Live ln Concert: I’m Eighteen (Electric)” (from “Carded And Discarded”)
• Sober Students Improv Players (5:04)
  Extended footage of the Sober Students Improv Players showing you how you can still be cool without drinking at a birthday party (from “Beers And Weirs”).
• Tales Of The Secret Service (7:19)
  Extended footage of Ben Stiller’s Secret Service character talking about his job (from “The Little Things”).
• Behind The Scenes (18:32)
  A collection of fun behind-the-scenes footage with the cast and crew as they sing, dance, ham it up for the cameras and just have fun on set. The segments include “True Siblings”, “John Daley Has Too Much Energy”, “Get Busy”, “Samm Levine in Locker”, “All Star Rerun Geekathon”, “A Little Starr”, and “Sarah Hagan”. Segments play back-to-back, but are separated by chapter stops. In the final segment, “The Day The Freak Died”, the cast and creators say goodbye to one another.
• Smorgasbord
  • Raw Footage (27:01)
    Lots of raw/extended footage from the series, including “Nick’s Drum Kit” and “Dinner Scene – Lindsay’s Coverage” (from “Pllot”), “Bill Will Drink Anything” (from “Tricks And Treats”) , “Harris And Judith” (from “Tests And Breasts”), “Beautiful Body” (from “I’m With The Band”), “Howie Hands Out Fake I.D.s” (from “Carded And Discarded”), “Nick Sings ‘”Lady’ To Lindsay” (from “Girlfriends and Boyfriends”), “Geeks Watch SNL” (from “The Garage Door”), and “Bill’s Reward” (from “Smooching And Mooching”). Segments play back-to-back, but are separated by chapter stops.
  • Odds and Sods (26:03)
    An additional collection of raw footage—many of these end in laughs or gaffs: “Daniel And Sam A/V Club Moment” (from “Discos And Dragons”), “Sean Mocks Weir Family Photo” (from “Beers And Weirs”), “Bill Prepares For Spin The Bottle” (from “Smooching And Mooching”), “Laughing Alan Recites Phony Phone Call” (from “The Diary”), “Nick At Lindsay’s Door” (from “We’ve Got Spirit”), “Is Bowie Gay?” (from “The Little Things”), “Deadheads At Lunch” (from “Discos And Dragons”), “Nick Talks To Oreo” (from “We’ve Got Spirit”), “Sam Eats Banana” (from “Kim Kelly ls My Friend”), “Flaherty At Breakfast” (from “Beers And Weirs”), “Kowchevski Catches Sam” and “Kowchevski Catches Sam Improvathon” (from “I’m With The Band”), “Ken Miller Acne Riff” (from “The Garage Door”), “Rosso’s Beatup Story” (from “Tests And Breasts”), “Beatup Makeup Test” (from “Tricks And Treats”), “Sam And Cindy Get Political” (from “The Little Things”), “Corrigan And Cock” (from “Carded And Discarded”), “Stare At Her” (from “The Garage Door”), and “Bill ls Still Preparing” (from “Smooching And Mooching”). Segments play back-to-back, but are separated by chapter stops.
  • NBC Promos (27:58)
    A collection of Original NBC Promos followed by the Original NBC Electronic Press Kit, which contains interview excerpts with stars Linda Cardellini, John Daley, Samm Levine, James Franco, Busy Philipps, Jason Segel, Martin Starr, Seth Rogen, Joe Flaherty, and Becky Ann Baker, costume designer Debra McGuire, and prop mater Chuck McSorley, clips from the series, and behind-the-scenes footage.
• Bloopers (5:28)
  A fun blooper reel with the cast flubbing/forgetting their lines, cracking up and having fun on set.
• Seven Minutes In Heaven (1:49)
  Music video for “I’m Going To Kiss You All Over” set to footage of Bill’s big kiss scene.
• Graduation (2:30)
  Footage of the cast going through some sort of graduation ceremony (from the wrap party?).
• Extra Goodies (14:46)
  This video is a random mix of footage—many takes of a scene with a kid crying outside the principal’s office as John Daley tries not to laugh; footage of Neal and Sam talking to themselves while driving go-karts; Jason Segel, Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen singing “Lady L” at a cast/crew party; fight choreography with the boys; a karaoke version of the “Lady L” song; and Judd Apatow making obscene gestures at the camera while walking and talking on his phone.
• Thanks, Goodbye! (2:50)
  Montage of the clips from the show set to “Come Sail Away”.

Final Thoughts:

Freaks and Geeks is a well-written, humorous show that subverts expectation, and still holds up great over 15 years later. It features an amazing cast who have all gone on to make it big since the series was unfortunately cut short. Shout! Factory has done a phenomenal job restoring the picture, and the new widescreen transfer looks amazing. Longtime fans of the show will find a whole new way to watch, or just enjoy the OAR version in a spectacular new transfer. If you haven’t yet picked up this series, this is most definitely the version to own—it includes all of the previous bonus material (which is a massive amount) plus a new 45-min interview and HD transfers! This show is quite a gem, and I’m embarrassed it took me this long to finally check it out.