Serial Video
1st Logo (1986-1992)
Nicknames: "Serial in Space", "Zooming Serial"
Logo: In space, we see many stars. Then the words "SERIAL" in red zoom towards us. After "SERIAL" is finished zooming in, it stays still. "Video" in a cursive font and white then fades in. We then fade out at the end.
FX/SFX: The zooming and the fading in and out.
Cheesy Factor: Off the charts! The space background looks like something done on Apple II, the words "SERIAL" zoom in cheaply and "Video" doesn't fade in well. Also the space background's animation loops several times!
Music/Sounds: Beeping noises.
Availability: Seen on Serial Video releases from the era, check your video collection to find tapes that have this logo.
Scare Factor: None To Medium, the beeping noises may not sit well with viewers. The next logo you see below is MUCH, MUCH worse...
2nd Logo (1992-1995)
Nicknames: "Serial of Doom", "The REAL S from Hell!!!", "A Nightmare on Serial Street", "Serial from Hell", "Evil Serial", "Big S", "Serialmare", "That Loud Logo", "My Worst Nightmare", "The Personification of All That is Evil"
Logo: On a black background, we see a big "S" being drawn in a white outline, then a flash is seen and the "S" turns red. Then "Serial Video" in white fades in. Then another flash is seen, the "S" and text fade away in a puff of smoke and all that's left is a black screen.
FX/SFX: The entire logo being formed.
Cheesy Factor: The drawing, flashes, turning and fading in are REALLY choppy, even for a logo made in the 90's. All of this animation is REALLY horrible (kinda like early Hanna-Barbara animation).
Music/Sounds: Loud horror-type music throughout, then a crash when the S flashes, then another crash when the S flashes, then a whoosh to end the logo. A silent version exists.
Availability: Seen on Serial Video releases from the time.
Scare Factor: High to NIGHTMARE, the bad animation along with the scary and loud music can scare everyone. They burned these tapes due to the logo being EXTREMELY scary. Some people may have less a problem while watching it. None for the silent version. The animation is still creepier, but it's tamer than the original.
3rd Logo (1995-Late 1998)
Nicknames: "Silver S", "The Tame S", "Big S II", "Serial from Heaven", "Here! That's More Like It!"
Logo: On a blue background, the S from the previous logo (this time it's silver instead of being red) slowly slides in, with several silver lines joining in. Once everything stops, the S heavily flashes, bringing up the word "SERIAL" also in silver. The entire logo shines for a second, then fades out.
Variant: There is a extremely rare variant where the background is a slight tint of green. This has been once spotted on a 1997 VHS release.
FX/SFX: The S and the silver lines sliding in, the flash, the appearance of "SERIAL", the shining and the fading out. Nice CGI for 1995 and much better than the previous one.
Music/Sounds: An peaceful synth tune, complete with a piano and some splashes.
Availability: Common. It can be seen on later Serial Video releases, such as several Danger Mouse VHS's, the Serial VHS release of The Exorcist and rare Touchstone releases. The green background version is extremely rare.
Scare Factor: None whatsoever. The animation and music are much more tamer and it is soothing compared to the 2nd logo.
4th Logo (Late-Mid 1998)
Nicknames: "The Rainbow S", "Big S III"
Logo: On a space background (not like the one from the 1st logo), the S from the 2nd and 3rd logos (this time coloured rainbow and with an softer design) zooms in, leaving a trail of rainbow S's behind. The word "SERIAL" from before then fades in below the S. The trail then disappears, leaving the background, S and the word "SERIAL".
FX/SFX/Cheesy Factor: Not enough effort unlike the last three logos, but still has nice animation.
Music/Sounds: Same as the 3rd logo.
Availability: Not much is known about this logo, as it is extremely rare, thanks to it's shorter lifespan. It can be seen on their last releases from the time period.
Scare Factor: Low to medium, the animation and dark atmosphere might startle more than a few. However, it's still a tame logo.