Panasonic PV-V4525 VHS VCR "tv screen freezes" Questions

...tv screen so am really at a loss. When I try to play a tape, REP shows up in window which normally would show PLAY. Any suggstions are appreciated. I did talk to a tech person at Panasonic toll free ...

...screen goes black like any channel change, but the last displayed channel is continued. When using the remote, clicking the up/down button again will usually force the channel up/down to work ...