If you enjoy Nickelodeon tween series such as “iCarly” and “Zoey 101”, then more than likely, you will enjoy “Victorious”.  A fun series featuring crazy comedy and music!
© 2011 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved. NICKELODEON, VICTORIOUS and all related titles, logos and characters are trademarks of Viacom International Inc. TM, ® & Copyright © 2011 by Paramount Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
DVD TITLE: Victorious: Season One, Volume One
DURATION: 10 episodes (Duration: 243 Minutes)
DVD INFORMATION: Full Screen Format, Dolby Digital (English Stereo), Closed Caption
COMPANY: Nickelodeon/Paramount
RATED: G
RELEASE DATE: July 5, 2011
Directed by Steve Hoefer, Adam Weissman, Russ Reinsel and David Kendall
Sweries Written by Dan Schneider, Jake Farrow, George Doty IV, Matt Fleckenstein, Arthur Gradstein
Producer: Sean Gil, Joe Catania, Bruce Rand Berman
Associate Producer: Aline Robey, Irene Oncley, Erin Braun
Executive Producer: Dan Schneider
Music by Michael Corcoran
Cinematography by Mike Spodnik
Edited by Nancy Morrison, Andrew Hirsch, Patricia Barnett
Casting by Krisha Bullock, Leslie Zaslower
Production Design by Harry Matheu
Set Decoration by Jason Howard
Series Costume Design by Kristin Dangl
Starring:
Victoria Justice as Tori Vega
Leon Thomas III as Andre Harris
Matt Bennett as Robbie Shapiro
Elizabeth Gillies as Jade West
Ariana Grande as Cat Valentine
Avan Jogie as Beck Oliver
Daniella Monet as Trina Vega
Michael Eric Reid as Sinjin
Eric Lange as Mr. Sikowitz
Lane Napper as Lane
Hit the stage with Tori Vega and all the amazing students at Hollywood Arts, the most prestigious performing arts high school in the country! From wowing the crowd at the big showcase to movie roles, stage fights, costume make-up and more, these talented students are ready to shine!
From the executive producer of “Drake & Josh”, “iCarly”, “Kenan & Kel” and “Zoey 101” comes a new series titled “Victorious”, starring Victoria Justice (known for her role as Lola Martinez on “Zoey 101”) as Victoria “Tori” Vega.
In “Victorious”, the story focuses on Victoria “Tori” who has been accepted at Hollywood Arts High School, after taking her sister Trina’s (played by Daniella Monet) place in a showcase. While Trina is known more for her drive to become an actress, her sister “Tori” has talent that she is not too conscious about and now trying to fit in her new school.
She becomes friends with a talented musician Andre Harris (played by Leon Thomas III), a journalist/ventriloquist named Robbie Shapiro (played by Matt Bennett) and rival Jade West (played by Elizabeth Gillies) and her boyfriend Beck Oliver (played by Avan Jogia) and naive actress Cat Valentine (played by Ariana Grande).
“Victorious: Season One, Volume One” features the following episodes (spoilerless summaries):
Note: Episodes listing on this DVDÂ is not going by episode series #, but is going by production code #.
DISC 1:
- EPISODE 1: Pilot (Extended Version) – What happens when Tori Vega takes her big sister’s place in her school’s showcase.
- EPISODE 2: The Bird Scene – Tori wants to try out for the lead role in the play “Moonlight Magic”.
- EPISODE 3: Stage Fighting – When Jade and Tori are in a fight scene, things go for the worse when Jade accidentally hits Tori’s eye with a cane.
- EPISODE 10: Beck’s Big Break – Beck has a small role in a movie but Tori accidentally gets Beck fired. Now, Tori must try to fix things!
- EPISODE 6: Tori the Zombie – When Cat uses Tori as her assignment for class to make a person look scary, she accidentally uses cement glue on Tori’s face.
DISC 2:
- EPISODE 5: Jade Dumps Beck – When paparazzi take pictures of Beck and a popular star, Jade gets jealous and splits up with Beck and later regrets it.
- EPISODE 4: The Birthweek Song – Tori needs to figure out what to get her sister Trina for her Birthweek and comes up with a song. But when Trina is expecting a present, it causes a little dilemma for Tori.
- EPISODE 7: Robarazzi – When Rob starts filming his friend’s personal lives and posts on his blog on the website “The Slap”, although it becomes a hit, his friends are upset of seeing their personal moments online.
- EPISODE 19: A Film by Dale Squires – Tori and friends are excited when they get to work on a film directed by Dale Squires, but he takes full credit for the film which upsets the group.
- EPISODE 15: Rex Dies – Robbie’s dummy Rex is damaged when Tori tries to create a tornado for a play.
VIDEO, AUDIO & SUBTITLES:
“Victorious: Season One, Volume One” is presented in full screen, Dolby Digital (English Stereo). The series is shot via Digital and the picture quality is very good on DVD. I didn’t notice any major artifacting or digital noise. But for the most part, fans should be pleased with the video and audio.
There are no subtitles but closed captions are included.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
“Victorious: Season One, Volume One” comes with the following special features:
- Meet Tori Vega – (:34) A short featurette featuring Victoria Justice talking about her character.
- Meet the Cast – (:46) A short featurette featuring the cast talking about how they love working with each other and on the series.
- Freak the Freak Out Music Video – (2:19) An upbeat dance track featuring Tori and starring her friends from the series.
- Beggin’ on Your Knees Music Video – (3:15) A romantic video featuring Tori.
“Victorious” is a fun and entertaining show that isn’t deep, just teenage fun with music and comedy!
When I saw Victoria Justice appearing on “iCarly” last year, I had the feeling that Nickelodeon or even Dan Schneider was planning to use the actress for a new show and I was right. Victoria Justice who had starred on “Zoey 101” and had short roles in various Schneider-related series has her chance to not just showcase her acting but also singing.
And here we are with “Victorious”!
Because Dan Schneider’s name is attached to this series, I know that the series has been compared to “iCarly” and when you make those comparisons, it makes it difficult because “iCarly” is such a popular show and if it doesn’t measure up, some people tend to think its not a good show.
With “iCarly”, the series tends to focus on three friends (and one family member) and there is a good amount of character development within those four characters. It’s a tight-knit group featuring tight-knit stories and with “Victorious”, you have seven individuals and storylines that primarily focuses on Tori.
In some way, because it’s taking place at an art school, some people may feel that it’s a contrived series that is a Nickelodeon take on entertainment ala “Glee” and some may even compare it to Disney’s teenage film series such as “High School Musical” or the TV series “Hannah Montana” but in this case, it’s not. It’s a different type of series that takes on teen issues, friendships and wacky situations.
The show is primarily about Tori Vega and while others may display their musical or acting chops, its a series about Tori and friends. No one breaks out in song or dance unless the situation calls for it but if anyone is doing any singing, it’s Tori Vega and sometimes you will see her sister on stage, albeit more of a comedy-based supporting character.
But overall, I found the series to be fun and wacky at times. You have the teen drama, the teen angst and crazy moments, especially when it features ventriloquist Matt Bennett and his dummy Robbie or Tori’s bratty older sister Trina.
While “iCarly” has had success not just in ratings but also giving Miranda Cosgrove a music career, you know that Nickelodeon is hoping to match that success with Victoria Justice by creating music and music videos based on her character Tori. And I do feel that it’s good to showcase Victoria’s music as she is a pretty good singer and her acting is good but it helps to have those supporting characters around her.
The series does have its moments of uber-corniness but it’s tween show and for the most part, the writing and acting is appropriate.
As “Victorious” is on its second season, it’s important to note that this is not a complete first season DVD release. It’s pretty much 10 selected episodes of its 20-episode first season run and part two will hopefully come out later this year.
As for parents who are wondering if this is fine for children, for older children, I can say yes as there is no scenes that caused me to rethink of having my own son watching the series. But the series does focus on teenagers and it’s a teen-driven comedy series. I didn’t see any violence but kids who like to mimic what they say on TV, it’s up to parent if they feel that the show is appropriate. I personally didn’t find anything wrong with older children watching “Victorious” and may enjoy the music especially the comedy presented in the series.
Overall, “Victorious” is a fun and enjoyable series and right now, like most series in its infancy, writers are getting a feel for its characters and its overall setting. Is it better than “iCarly”, my answer is no. But then again, I would also remind people that its a different type of storyline as well and it features more characters but also focuses on one primary protagonist. For the most part, if you are a fan of the series, then this DVD is for you!