If you're a multi-format, physical media lover, you've reached heaven. In an era when video stores…read moreceased to exist due to a gross miscalculation of the need for cloud infrastructure, Scarecrow Video restores the lost order. The films I checked out were The Visitors and Cast a Deadly Spell (part of the H.P. Lovecraft series) both perfect picks that I never would've stumbled on through an algorithm. Not to mention, there is a HUGE array of specialty and genre-specific films that can only be found on Blu-ray and/or DVD. And that's before you even get to the VHS and Laserdisc sections, which are very much alive and well here. The staff is friendly, welcoming, and warm, and they clearly enjoy where they work. I personally love their custom system of film organization sections broken down by theme, country, and some genuinely inspired niche categories that you won't find anywhere else. Also, the privately curated, rare graphic zines at the check-out counter are absolutely worth a glance. What's easy to overlook? This place is a registered nonprofit and the largest independent physical media library in the country, with over 150,000 titles. Many are out of print and flat-out unstreamable, titles that don't exist on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, or anywhere else combined. Supporting a membership here isn't just convenient, it's genuinely keeping film history alive.

This slice of perfectly preserved retro goodness has it all. Mr. T's Be Somebody or Be Somebody's…read moreFool afterschool special--they have it on video tape. Need a VCR, they got a few. That collection of obscure shorts where a cat convinces another cat to cut off its tail, but don't worry, it's actually a play you find out in the end, it's not only there, but the person working the counter has a recommendation for you if you liked that one. Jackie Chan's complete collection, rare imports and all, yep. Not sure what you want to watch, but you want be in one of the most special authentically vintage places on the planet, Scarecrow Video.

Been going to this shop for years, and it's amazing. Trading games is great because I don't get f'd…read moreover by stupid prices and the owner is such a chill guy. You could honestly go in there just to chat and you'll leave satisfied. The shop isnt just a shop it's like a little community gamer spot. - amazing customer service - employees/ owners are amazing people - great amount of games/ other gamer related products - come to the shop it's worth it!

Retro tour continues to not miss as this place borderline may have the spot for best lineup and…read moreclose to best service in the Seattle area. Loved talking to the guy there about our love of dragon ball and his help getting prices and recs were super helpful. Everything is well payed out with ample selections of games of any platform especially the 5th and prior. Prices are more than adequate and I'd come back alone to talk with the guy which is huge to me. Service takes this to the top with a tie for the area and I'm definitely stopping here next time I'm in town. Hope you completed og dragon ball as much as you did GT brah!

When I was looking for some indoor activities to get away from the rain I was pleasantly surprised…read moreto see that UW has bowling alleys on their campus! Not only do they have bowling but they also have board games, arcade games, and pool tables all for the enjoyment of students. I came here just for their bowling but it looked so fun I might just come back for their other activities. For bowling they allow you to play by the game or by the hour. They also allow you to book all 12 lanes for a private event. All of the prices are on their website and they were all pretty reasonable. They also have discounts for faculty, staff, and students. We played three games with two pairs of shoe rentals and the total came out to be about $30 with a UW staff discount. Our lane malfunctioned once but one of the workers was swift in helping us resolve the problem so we could continue having our fun. The facilities were pretty clean and overall we both had a great time. Most people were students but even as a visitor I still felt welcomed. It made me feel old being in the college atmosphere around all these youngins but at the same time I felt like I looked like them and probably could've fit right in. One thing that made me feel old though: the worker at the front asked for my ID and my mind defaulted to my driver's license and the worker replied, "Oh, I meant your student ID." Ouch.

This place is amazing! Went on a Saturday afternoon , the crowd was perfect. We were able to bowl…read moreand play arcade games all evening.

It's a great place to Relax and get assistance for all of your needs. Buy Videos, watch them in…read moretheir 3 small intimate Theaters and relax

There's a big difference between a hot, cruising , seedy spot and a plain ol dirty one. This place…read moreis absolutely filth from top to bottom. If you browse the magazines (yeah they're still around) you'll see they're somewhat faded, ancient, and dusty-same with the DVDs. The theater room is obnoxiously hot. Would it kill them to put in a couple fans? From what I could tell nothing gets cleaned in the back rooms. From fresh to old cum on the floor, walls, chairs, and some waste. The older guy who runs the place (maybe owner?) is nice to your face but will call you names when you're out of sight. I know because I got my ticket, went in and immediately sat down where there's a vent between the register and room, and I heard him say to another guy "what a f****n idiot." I let it slide. It's extremely hard (pun intended) to get off in a hot as hell room, with the old man at the register smoking pot, coughing up a lung, and his 2 or 3 yappy little dogs barking constantly. Too invasive and annoying for me. The clientele is nearly as old as the merchandise. Unless you're into geriatrics and placid d**k then go for it. They could really benefit from a good cleaning, restocking, and marketing to a younger crown; even if it's only for some advertised nights. Lots of good potential but horribly ran and filthy. Never again

I am an UW alumni and have been to this bookstore location several times a long long time ago when…read moreI was a student. I never realized or appreciated how amazing this store was. About two weeks ago, my favorite K-pop group, LE SSERAFIM, was in town and during the encore, they came out in full UW gear. After researching, I found out that the gear was from University Book Store. I really wanted to buy the hat that Chaewon wore and was able to find and buy one there. It was a University Book Store exclusive printed/embroidered on '47 brand Hat. There is a reason I am telling this story though! While I was there, I looked around and see what kind of merchandises they were selling and I noticed that they have done collaboration with quality brands such as Lululemon, Champion (reverse Weave), Adidas, '47 Brand, New Era, etc. Clearly, whoever is in charge of designing the fan gear here knows what they are doing. They also had a clearance section upstairs with items marked down up to 50%. If you're a current UW student or UW Alumni and haven't been here in recent years like me, I highly recommend checking it out. Check out my photos of all the UW gears that LE SSERAFIM members wore during the concert.

I'm not a big book reader, so take this review with a grain of salt. However, I do appreciate the…read morehusky gear and the coffee shop in the store. I've also noticed that books are arranged similarly to Barnes & Noble. I've been told that the books are carefully arranged and sorted via subcontracted by Barnes & Noble, so if you're interested in that, this is definitely the place for you. The prices are a bit high, but they do go back into student support and activities, so it's a good investment. Also, there is a 20% discount or specific dates and timelines along with promotionals for students. but I don't think that these discounts apply to text books. I definitely recommend a university bookstore.

I've driven past this shop for years, and as someone with experience in video conversion, I've…read morealways been curious about what sort of systems were set up inside. Their website looks straight out of the 90s. There's a lot of information, but I was floored by the fact that I could only order a conversion by **printing out and mailing in an order form** until I saw the fine print that said "walk-ins welcome". I had an old Betamax tape that I didn't have the equipment to convert, so I finally had a reason to stop by! I expected to find a 40-something in a clean, technologically up-to-date shop who could look at a piece of media and digitize it to a file type of your choosing. But stepping into Video Lab is like stepping back in time - decked out like a library with stacks and stacks of VCRs and cables, it looks like it could be a vintage bootleg server room. There's a life-size cutout of John Wayne and a variety of stickers that make the proprietor's politics apparent. The customer area is just a tiny sliver next to the front door blocked off by a counter, which gives the place the air of a museum exhibit to be observed from afar. I stood at the counter for maybe 20 seconds with no sign of life until a man shuffled out from around a corner. He didn't acknowledge me so I started the conversation. If I remember correctly, Steve's been running this shop since around 1982, and I get the sense that he stopped updating his processes once DVDs became the dominant media format. He plays a tape in real time while it burns to a DVD and watches TV in the background to fill the time. I was disappointed that he only offered to convert to DVD. My tape conversion was ready within 24 hours. Since DVDs have not been the dominant media format for close to a decade, my plan was just to rip the video to my hard drive and toss the disc. However, the disc wouldn't play in my Samsung DVD player, so I brought it back along with some of my equipment with the hope that I could just connect my computer to his Betamax player to import the tape directly. He seemed baffled by the request but invited me to step back into the stacks of players and helped me hook up my computer. Sitting there waiting for my tape to import, I marveled at the setup and thought about how much fun it'd be to help him streamline the operation. As we were chatting, I asked him why he was only offering DVDs instead of more versatile solutions like thumb drives, and he suggested that there wasn't demand for it. This surprised me, but he did have piles of finished orders on the counter so I suppose he's doing fine.

Truly happy with this experience and the product! I did some research on the places where you send…read moreyour VHS tapes to be dubbed. They were more money than I expected to or wanted to pay and there was up to a 6-week turnaround! So I remembered this tiny little place right around 56th and South Tacoma Way. I called and spoke with Steve. My first concern was with the copyright on an obscure exercise video from 1994 that was never made into a DVD. He immediately said copyrights expire after 25 years. I live about 3 or 4 miles away from there, so I popped into my car and drove right over. He quoted $24.95 plus tax, cash. ($27.49) He told me it would be ready the next day! So after phone call from him the following day, I popped back into my car and went back. I am deliriously happy that I will be able to use an exercise format that helped me lose over 50 lb back in the day. (I'm a little creakier and only need to lose about 15, but I know this video works for me.) the only place I have for a VCR has about three square feet of area in which to move. Now I can use my living room! I am viewing it as I write this, and I find it to be of perfect quality. In less than 24 hours! Steve was a pleasure to deal with and I can't find any reason why I would not go back once I find more things to convert! Definite 10 / 10 !

Without an Internet connection in our new abode in Metchosin, we were in deserperate need of DVDs…read moreto help pass the time. We were instructed by a cashier at Quality Foods to check out 2 Thumbs Up. We were pleasantly surprised. Great service, great selection (including video games) and great prices. We checked out 3 DVDs from the new releases and it only cost us $6. 2 Thumbs Up is a lifesaver if you live in this neck of the woods and need a DVD rental. Highly recommended.

This is a great neighbourhood video store. It has a good selection and a friendly staff. It's one…read moreof the last remaining movie stores in town, so hopefully it sticks around.

One of the best book shops in Seattle for used and out of print books. I've been coming here for…read moreover 20 years. The smell of this bookshops brings me back to when my uncle, the late David Ishii had his shop in Pioneer Square. Whenever i visit Magus, certain book covers and genres bring me back to a time and place of nostalgia. I also geek out on the weight of a book, the binding, and cultural significance. For example, I love Italian and French books and the Feltrinelli publishers. Magus also has a good selection of Dog Man for my kids at a good value.

I've had nothing but wonderful service with Magus Books. High-quality people and a beautiful…read morebookstore to match. Excited to keep coming back to the shop store again and again, one of my favorite spots in the city!