Spanking Video Reviews Policy
Patty of A Creative Spanked Wife has posted a nice review of the spanking video The Schoolmaster’s Revenge (which I also liked when I reviewed it). Patty also includes some commentary about spanking video reviews in general, and makes one very good point: sites that focus on reviewing spanking videos don’t always have the best interests of the consumer in mind, and may not tell you if a video stinks.
Since I sometimes review videos on Spanking Blog (and cheerfully accept review copies from spanking video producers — consider this a big “hint hint nudge nudge” to the outfits who aren’t sending me review copies yet) I figure I owe you all a statement of my review policy.
Which is, simply: Life is too short to write bad reviews. If a video stinks, I don’t want to waste my time writing a bad review. And you won’t see the review here. Truly bad spanking videos should languish in well-deserved obscurity, without any extra attention from me.
Mind you, I’ve never seen a perfect spanking video. These are usually low-budget semi-amateur projects in the porn industry, in a niche without many experienced actors, directors, or videographers. There are always things not to like. So my strategy is to lead with what I liked about the video, then include a section on what I didn’t like, and wrap up with a summary that acknowledges the defects but emphasizes what I liked. The net result is a positive-sounding review (or I won’t write it) that also identifies whatever I didn’t like so much about the movie.
Bottom line: Video reviews are my honest opinion. I’m not for sale — or, at least, not for the retail value of a porn video.
More to the point for consumers, I think, is how reputable or not an organization is in dealing with their customers. I am quite sure I am not the only customer who has ordered a video and waited in vain for it’s delivery.
While this is not nearly the problem now as it was in the early days, it does still exist. I would welcome an unbiased source of information on the reliability of vendors.
It’s the cost of spanking videos most of all that prompts me to want an honest review if I’m looking for them. For the most part DVD’s & videos are selling for more than $40.00 & with shipping, they can be well over $50.00. I am less interested in play by play type content in a review than I am in the reliability of and then general impression of the reviewer. Honestly, if I respect the reviewer’s opinion, and have an idea of their tastes, what they choose NOT to say can be as helpful as what they choose TO say. The vendors themselves do a very credible job of describing the content of their products. A good links list to video vendor catalogue pages has become much more useful to me in keeping up with what’s new than the two video review sites I used to frequent. Not that I fault them… neither are comercial sites, and they depend on preview copies of tapes for content… I bet it wouldn’t take more than two pans to cause a vendor to question the wisdom of advancing more tapes… Rock & a hard place kind of business I’d say…
If asked I will be honest if I thought a video was awful, and I will say why I thought that, so that readers can weigh things from their own set of preferences… We’ve paid full price for 40 tapes & DVD’s & been given 6 or 7. I’ve only trashed (as in literally thrown in the trash) 4 of them, and most we’ve watched more than once. I tried to write a content descriptor type review for one tape once and failed miserably. But, as good and reliable paying consumers of the product, I’d really like to see reviews that are frank and honest as long as the reviewer’s tastes and kink preference biases are also out in the open… I understand that most of these videos are produced in two or three days and that once a bottom is red retakes from the start are impossible… it’s not reasonable to expect SAG quality acting or even local improve quality since rehearsal time is limited… even so, for half a C-bill of my money, a review can make the difference between a decision to buy or not. Effusive glowing reviews of garbage, really makes me ANGRY, because I’ve been gullible enough twice to go with them and felt more fleeced and taken than if I’d just gone with the vendors description.
By the way Spankboss, while you are much more likely to be a diplomat than I am if a video stunk, I’ve never yet found one of your reviews to seem ‘bought.’
respects
patty :)
I own about 10 or 12 spanking videos – most are ShadowLane, one is some studio from the 80’s, and the other 2 are from Bethany’s Spanking Epics. I have to say, the ShadowLane videos are (so far) the best I’ve seen. In Keith’s Girl Friday, Samantha Woodley takes one heck of a spanking (three, actually) from silver-haired spanker Keith Jones. Keith has improved a lot since Cold Comfort Farm (from the late 80’s or early 90’s), and newcomer Samantha must have a bottom of steel! She’s much better in this DVD than she is in I Married A Brat (which, if I’m not mistaken, is her first DVD/video). She shows a lot more emotion with Keith than she did with Gino (sorry, can’t remember his last name, but, man, can he wield a hairbrush!), and in this offering, I actually believed she was feeling the spanking.
The actors/actresses in the Schoolmasters Revenge are ok; I thought the spankings were very wimpy in The Vacation(at least, compared to the original story by Bethany).
I really think that you can’t go wrong with a ShadowLane offering (although A Lover’s Discipline III wasn’t really my cup of tea – I thought the actress was very…taken with herself.) Anyway, Spankboss (or Dan), that’s my two cents. Love your blog…thank you for starting it and sharing it with us.
Sincerely,
onebrat (suze)
[…] ny experienced actors, directors, or videographers. There are always things not to like. – SpankBoss I certainly don’t claim to be an […]