Series 

It’s hard to call “The Clone Wars” a series, mostly due to the fact that the story arcs don’t last more than a few episodes and it’s really a stab in the dark to tell when each storyline is taking place. Remember, I know as much about Star Wars as I do about quantum mechanics. However, even though these tangent storylines are short, they’re the perfect length to tell a quick story within the Star Wars universe without having to worry about infringing on canon set forth by the films.  Lucas knows how to please his fans in a way that is both exciting and completely null considering we know Anakin isn’t going to suddenly die in a storyline that takes place before the Darth Vader days… I may know a little about star wars.

When I started watching the first episode I was frightened when opposed to having your regular scrolling text like they do in the films, they decided to put in a narrator to recap the storyline. A bad thing? Not at all, time is tight on a 23 minute tv show… However when the voice of the narrator is that of a 50′s car salesman, perhaps your casting director should be fired. You get used to the voice over time though.

Throughout the different storylines we’re presented with a mixture of different elements. There’s great action scenes that contain amazing visual effects and very intense battles and then there’s these odd Saturday morning cartoon moments that really show you the seams of the production, this is a television show that needs to acceptable due to the fact it’s for kids. If you’re fearing that nothing tastes more bitter than a sugar-coated version of something you cherish like the Star Wars films, don’t worry. For the most part the droids are the main element that caters to younger audiences, from their silly dialogue to their slapstick antics… Did I laugh when a group of droids accidentally jumped to their death and the only droid who made the landing was subsequently hit by a train? Perhaps.

For the most part the series is a great watch mostly for the visuals, but the storyline isn’t as campy and cheesy as I feared. It’s definitely the perfect helping for a quick dose of some sci-fi adventure. The distribution of television series is probably my favorite aspect of being an avid movie watcher, because when you only have an hour to kill and can’t finish a full length feature, sometimes it’s nice to kick back and watch something short and sweet. Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 1 is definitely short and sweet!

Video 

The Clone Wars comes at us in 1080p/VC-1 and surprisingly uses 2.35:1 aspect ratio for a television series. I was originally going to critique the animation at times throughout the series. I was going to say when you compare it to the amazingly fluid animation from other Lucas arts or ILM projects that the Clone Wars series seems a bit lesser in quality… but then I remembered THIS IS A WEEKLY TELEVISION SERIES! Considering they have to pump out 2 hours (roughly a Pixar movie’s length) worth of animation within a month is insane.

The animation is great, the backdrops are detailed and well designed, and the character models have this unique and almost anime look to them that really fits the style of series.

The graphics look phenomenal being projected onto a 100″ screen and I was blown away by the colors and lighting throughout. The details are crisp and clear and everything moves smoothly and fluidly. The visual effects look amazing as well, it seems Lucas Arts spends just as much detail on the compositing on the show as they do in their bigger projects.

This is definitely showroom quality!

Audio

I had high expectations, being a bit of an audiophile, and my expectations weren’t met. Considering this is a Lucas Arts project and it was mixed at Skywalker Ranch (one of the top audio studios in the world), it better have some amazing sound!

I immediately expected to see a THX codec used or at the very least DTS-HD, but instead we’re given a subpar Dolby digital 5.1 mix that wasn’t mixed incredibly well. Sounds bled into one another in the multi-layered scenes such as a battle sequence that involves dozens of audio tracks on top of each other.

That being said the film doesn’t have a bad mix, just not a great one. The dialogue comes through nicely, the score sounded great and everything can clearly be heard when a million things are happening at once, but when the complex mixing is pushed to the limits the codec shows its weakness.

Special Features

The Blu-ray offers only two special features, minus trailers. They’re labeled Jedi Temple Archive and the Enhanced Jedi Temple Archives Mode. Although that doesn’t seem like much, both are actually quite insightful and allow the fans to see every facet of the development of the show from early concept art to pre-vis 3D tests.

The enhanced version of the archives plays while you’re watching the series and when a nugget of info is available for the scene you’re watching you have the option to learn more. The regular archive is more of a mini behind-the-scenes documentary that you don’t need to watch in the middle of each episode.

Even though there’s truly only two special features, they provide for information, back-story and insight into the development and production of the series then I’ve seen on a lot of other Blu-ray’s that have a giant list or separate discs full of features.

The only thing that may have been missing was a commentary track.

Final Thoughts 

Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Season 1 is definitely a well-made series on a technical level and although the show does have a lot of sugar-coated elements for kids, the action is intense and the storylines aren’t as 2 dimensional as they seem. With showroom quality video and great special features; newcomers, such as myself, are going to enjoy this release just as much as the fans. Even though I still have no idea how the Star Wars chronology goes, this series is a great watch!

Unfortunately, Blu-ray enthusiasts have had to wait a very long time (almost nine years since the DVD release) to get their hands on a high-def transfer of the show.  Considering that it originally aired at a time when HDTV was still a marginal technology, one has to be curious as to how well the original prints translated.

As a reviewer, there is also very little for me to say regarding the show – my experience was that it either hooked you, or it didn’t.  Although I fell into the latter category, I did still tune it in regularly, and was always impressed with the cinematography, acting, and overall quality of the show.  Again, I’m curious to see how well an obviously high-quality 1999 television show transfers to Blu-ray, and if it is worth its price tag.

Show 

As mentioned in the introduction, I was never a dedicated viewer of the Sopranos, despite having access to it via my satellite package subscription.  It should be noted that this is less due to a dislike of the show, and more due to a personal aversion to serialized television shows.  My life was simply too busy (in pre-PVR days) to make the necessary commitment to be home for the show.  Considering the number of characters and plot twists that happened, missing even a week could create extreme confusion two weeks later.

However, watching a TV series on Blu-ray is infinitely better, as it allows for watching at your leisure, plus allows the viewer to watch episodes back-to-back while the story arc is fresh in one’s mind.  And now I am hooked.

In reviewing the Blu-ray release, I am again reminded of how well-produced and cast this show was.  The ever-lovely Edie Falco is fantastic as Carmela Soprano (Tony’s wife), Nancy Marchand is pitch-perfect as Tony’s manipulative mother, and Lorraine Bracco is very credible as Dr. Melfi (Tony’s psychiatrist).  Towering over all these cast members is the absolutely superb James Gandolfini, who owns the character of Tony Soprano.  I believe he deserves the highest compliment for his work: I cannot picture any actor doing a better job in this role, period.

And although the casting is strong top to bottom, it is really the character of Tony Soprano that makes the show work.  Although he is still nominally a mob capo (in Season One anyways) who enjoys wealth and power, he still suffers from elements many viewers can sympathise with.  His mother emotionally manipulates him and fights with his wife.  He has to deal with this ageing parent who can no longer take care of herself, and has her placed in a home against her will.  He has marital troubles, and commits infidelity.  He suffers from stress, depression, and insecurity and needs to seek councelling for it.  His libido is impaired due to drugs prescribed to combat his depression.  He struggles with his children, who start exhibiting reckless behaviour.  His uncle and mom conspire to whack him (well maybe most viewers won’t sympathize with this point).

He also struggles with moral dilemmas that he (unlike us) has the power to address through his mob involvement.  Does he whack the high school soccer coach who is having an inappropriate relationship with one of the players?  Should he smother his mother?  Is he really helping out Anthony Junior’s science teacher by procuring him a replacement car (obviously hot) when he is unable to recover the one that was stolen?  How does he deal with the possible betrayal of one of his most trusted friends?

Truly I believe this is where the lasting appeal of the series originated.  We are allowed to live vicariously through Tony Soprano – he appears to live a consequence-free life, and we as viewers occasionally wish we could too.  And despite the grimness of the subject matter, there is a surprising amount of humor interspersed throughout the show.

Regardless, it was truly a treat to re-watch episodes I had seen before, and fill the gaps with the episodes I had missed; with only thirteen episodes, reviewing the season was not an overly burdensome chore.  As a movie fan, it was also a pleasure to watch a television show with movie-level production values.  The Sopranos never really felt like a television series to me; it felt more like a very good, very long movie when watched in this format.

Video  

Due to the film being shot near the dawn of commercially available HD, I expected Season One to lack some of the polish and quality we see in today’s releases.  Although this was somewhat true, the studio also appears to have made some errors that may have made the transfer worse than it could have been.

Generally speaking, I have seen a number of Blu-rays where it is a “garbage in – garbage out” or “good in – good out” transfer.  In almost every case, Blu-ray highlights the errors and flaws in the original recording for all to see; the best transfers are those where the studio recognizes this transparency and makes small unnoticeable corrections.

In the case of The Sopranos, the studio appears to have gone a bit overboard post-production to try and make the show look as “high def” as possible, likely due to the source material being weaker than they wanted.  Therefore, we suffer from what appear to be computer-induced over-enhancements similar to when one wants to boost the contrast and sharpness on digital photos.

This can be seen as occasional wash-outs in the light areas on screen, excessive noise in lower light shots, strange skin tones, and even excessive grain in daylight shots.  Oddly enough, this is inconsistent from scene to scene, and episode to episode, though they appear less as the season progresses.  All of these symptoms can be seen in the first ten minutes of the third episode.

However, Season One gets a mulligan from me.  Firstly, the video issues described above are not overly frequent, and do not distract from the show.  So even though a reviewer or hi-def junkie might pick up on a number of these flaws, the remaining 98% of possible viewers likely won’t.

Secondly, the show was shot in 1999.  I admire that the studio had done what it could to try and wring all 1080 horizontal lines out of the print that they could, even if they did overdo it.  In fact, I don’t think I’ve even seen another mainstream TV show from this era released on Blu-ray; most are old shows (i.e. Star Trek) or new ones.

And finally, as we progress through the season, we see marked improvements through the thirteen episodes.  To me, this suggests that the studio did have “garbage in” issues with the earlier episodes, and they did everything they could to compensate.

Video-wise, this is a very nice presentation, and is a marked improvement over the quality of an upscaled DVD or broadcast.  Is it perfect?  No, but I believe it is about as good as anyone could expect based on when the series was filmed.

Audio 

Audio has always been the area where I feel DVD and Blu-ray absolutely destroys broadcast content (i.e. satellite, cable).  Even when I changed satellite service providers back in the day so that I could get Dolby Digital 5.1, the sound quality never measured up to media-based content.

Therefore, I was looking very forward to the quality of the sound on this release and hearing how much improved the soundtrack was.  In relation to most broadcast TV programs, there was improvement, though less than I expected.

Sounds were sharp and well-separated, though LFE information was still not at a level one would expect from a Blu-ray (a typical shortcoming of most broadcast material).  Ambient sounds were nice, and the show appears to have been generally well-recorded.  As a dialog heavy show, interior scenes were a bit front mixed, but the sound certainly opened up as the scenes transitioned to outdoor ones.  Overall, The Sopranos had a good (though not perfect) audio presentation.

Dynamic levels are also reasonably good, but the transitions between dialog and violent acts could be a bit sudden.  However, dialog remained clear throughout, and the volume remained untouched for the entire season.

Special Features 

At first glance there does not appear to be any additional extra features on the Season One Blu-ray compared to the DVD.  Other than a truly unrevealing commentary for the pilot episode, the remainder of the features are tacked on to Disc 5, which contains an interview with the creator (David Chase), plus two short pieces that look to have been used as promo material.

Overall, a fairly underwhelming set of special features, and nothing here for those who already own the DVD set.

Final Thoughts 

Season One of The Sopranos is a great buy for any individuals who enjoy mob movies or are fans of the series.  Even if you’d never seen The Sopranos (let me move that rock so you can quit living under it), this Blu-ray release would appeal to anyone who likes quality television dramas with compelling characters.  Being in the Blu-ray format only enhances the enjoyability of the series with a better than DVD print and enhanced audio.

If you have the DVD release already, is there enough to upgrade to the Blu-ray?  This is a somewhat subjective question.  The Blu-ray certainly has an enhanced picture, but does display the expected challenges a 1999 series would have.  The sound is also improved, though it is still not perfect.  For those who want the best possible audio and video transfer, this is it.  How much value is placed in this improvement will ultimately be up to the individual viewer.

Show 

I am sure that all of you are very familiar with The Simpsons TV show so my description here will be brief. The show is a parody of a typical working class American family consisting of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie Simpson, in your typical small town Springfield which could have easily been dubbed Anytown USA. The show parodies American culture, the media and society in general.

The fact that it has been on TV now for 21 years is amazing. The fact that it is still fresh and funny is even more amazing. Given some of the crazy things that happen in real life anymore, I guess the show can go on forever. I am sure that the news will continue to provide material and fodder for the writers of the show for a long, long time.

The complete 20th season contains a total of 21 half hour episodes. The 20th season of the show was the first to go HD but did so only near mid season. Accordingly, 9 of the episodes included here are in standard definition with the remaining 12 being in HD.

Disc one contains the following 9 episodes, all in SD: Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes, Lost Verizon, Double, Double, Boy in Trouble, Treehouse of Horror XIX, Dangerous Curves, Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross Words, Mypods and Broomsticks, The Burns and the Bees and Lisa the Drama Queen.

Disc 2 contains the following episodes, all in HD: Take My Life Please, How the Test Was Won, No Loan Again, Naturally, Gone Maggie Gone, In the Name of the Grandfather, Wedding for Disaster, Eeny Teeny Maya, Moe, The Good, the Sad and the Drugly, Father Knows Worst, Waverly Hills 9-0-2-1-D’oh, Four Great Women and a Manicure and Coming to Homerica.

The show features the usual voices of Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer. If you are a fan of the show, this is a great collection as it features the same great writing that made the show a hit as well as the first episodes of the show in HD. Recommended.

Video  

The video quality here is a mixed bag, but only because the first 9 episodes of the series are presented here in 4×3 SD. Even though the SD material is upconverted, there is really little that could be done to make it look good. It looks just like you would expect SD to look, fuzzy, soft, noisy and unappealing, rating a 3 on the 5 star scale. However, the HD material looks great and so much better than the SD material that it is hard to believe it is the same show, the difference is that dramatic.

The HD material features bright bold colors, deep and stable blacks as well as exceptional clarity and depth. The HD video quality on this release even exceeds the quality of the Fox broadcasts. I averaged the 9 SD shows with the 12 HD shows and came out to an overall rating of 4, with the SD content rating a 3 and the HD content a solid 4.5. I have no doubt that fans of the show will be thrilled with the quality of the episodes presented in HD.

Audio 

Unlike the video side, the audio for all of the episodes is encoded using DTS HD Master Audio so that the audio quality does not vary at all between the SD and HD content. The audio design here is pretty good for a cartoon TV series. The sound design is not all that sophisticated and is mainly front heavy with some occasional and mostly subtle use of the surrounds. Do not expect an immersive sound field as you will be disappointed.

I will comment that the sound here is appreciably better than the rather tinny sound on the broadcast version of the show but still falls a good deal short of what one would expect for a film. My main complaint with the audio, other than the lack of immersion, is the overall fidelity of the audio which sounds a but bright for my tastes. If simply lacks the smoothness, fullness and openness of some of the better sounding Blu-ray discs I have heard to date and is better off not being experienced at reference sound levels. While not totally devoid of any meaningful dynamics, the dynamics also fall short of what you would expect with a motion picture release. However, for a cartoon series, the audio is more than acceptable.

Special Features 

To say that the extras on this release are threadbare would be a bit of an understatement. There is only one very brief extra contained in disc one, a 20th Anniversary Special Sneak Peek hosted by Morgan Spurlock that may clock in at a whole 2 minutes or so. That is it folks. At least it is in HD. Were it not, the extras would have to rate a zero. There is no digital copy provided and the release is not BD-Live enabled.

Final Thoughts 

The Simpsons – The Complete 20th Season is a great release for fans of the show and contains the first HD episodes of the show and the same clever writing that has made the show such a long running hit. Recommended.

Show

My Name is Earl, which if you’re interested in season 4 you should already know, is about Earl (Jason Lee) who dedicates his life to righting the wrongs of his past. Earl bases his new way of life off of the universal idea of karma… which he learned from watching Carson Daly. The show is an awesome and funny white trash odyssey that incorporates a slew of wacky characters and insane scenarios, but always maintains the original spirit of the show that made it a very watchable sitcom.

The fourth season is no exception, after watching it actually became saddened as I came closer to the end. Knowing that this is the last season, and the creators didn’t get a chance to end the show properly.. heck they ended the show on a cliffhanger! It really doesn’t do the show that I’ve watched for three years justice.

However, with a few great cameos (Seth Green & David Arquette) and some very memorable episodes, the last season is just as funny and full of heart-warming sentiment as the previous three.

Video

It was nice being able to enjoy My Name is Earl in its original 1.78:1 high-definition video, so often I find myself annoyed watching a TV show on a station that crops the edges to fit the overused 4:3 aspect ratio. It was nice to see the full picture.

As for the quality, the video is very clear and sharp, I was actually surprised… this is the first television show I’ve watched on Blu-ray and it’s great to see the quality really shine, especially when it’s original broadcast quality is super compressed.

The colors are vivid and carry that warm atmosphere that always makes for a great environment to watch the events play out. My only complaint is that there is some digital noise in the low-light shots, but overall it’s a clean and crisp looking Blu-ray.

Audio

My Name is Earl is presented in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and even though it’s a dialogue heavy sitcom, there is a decent usage of the surround speakers. Foley and the soundtrack come through in a way that created a great sense of depth.

There’s also a surprisingly nice usage of low frequencies, I was surprised when my subwoofer started rumbling in that subtle way that is perfectly suited for this kind of Blu-ray.

Although it might not be the kind of audio you’d use as a demo, for a sitcom… it’s not too shabby.

Special Features

• Deleted scenes – Each disc contains deleted scenes from the episodes on that specific disc. Some are extended scenes, with jokes that may run a little long, while others are scenes that were cut completely. The amount is nothing to brag about, but for the Earl fans, it might be worth it.
• Gag reel – As with the other ‘My Name is Earl’ seasons, we get a chance to see blown takes and on set antics that occurred during the shooting, it’s hard to critique a gag reel, so I’m just going to say, it’s worth the watch.
• “Movie trailer” for the 2 the Max Film – Getting a chance to see the extended film within the show from the pilot is a great feature. You get some extra Seth Green screen time and a hilarious cheap rubber squid.
• Earl’s Fan Mail featurette – This extra is probably the most depressing. It’s a lengthy fan mail reading in which the cast and crew read viewer submitted questions. The main reason this extra is sad is that everyone talks about the future of the show (obviously this occurred before the news of the cancellation). However some of the Q&As are entertaining and it’s worth a watch.

Final thoughts

My Name is Earl was one of my favorite sitcoms when it first came out and even though they didn’t get a chance to end the show right, the final season is a great testament of how funny karma can still be. With a good video transfer and surprisingly full audio, I was impressed by the presentation.

The special features section is a little empty, I feel if there was selective episode commentary then this would feel more complete. However for fans of the show this is a no-brainer, pick it up, and to those who are looking for something funny to watch, rent it and have a great laugh.

Show

While A Very Sunny Christmas is not one of their best efforts, it is still very funny and well worth a look for fans of the series. I mean, who else can combine Charles Dickens, claymation characters from old TV specials such as Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and obscure old Phillies references into a coherent and over the top funny tale about the real meaning of Christmas?

The special finds the Mac, Charlie, Dennis and Dee trying to find the Christmas spirit while hanging out Paddy’s Pub. In comes Frank who has a habit of buying himself gifts that Dennis and Dee covet but can’t afford, which this year includes a Lamborghini sports car, just the car you need to navigate the streets of South Philly! They all recall the Christmases of their childhood which are very unlike any Christmas anyone has experienced, with breaking into neighbors homes to steal their gifts, huffing glue and various Santas visiting Mom for some good old Christmas cheer.

Dennis and Dee try to convince Frank’s old business partner to help scare him into being a better father re-enacting Dicken’s A Christmas Carol. Meanwhile Mac and Charlie decide to make up for the theft of a kid’s toy robot over 20 years ago with a trip to the mall that ends with a vicious attack on Santa on Christmas Eve. All is not lost as Frank comes to see the light after being thrown from his Lamborghini and having a vision where he ends up in a claymation feature hosted by the dentist elf from the old Rudolph the Reindeer TV special.

Yes, the story is crude, vicious and often ugly but funny nonetheless. If you are a fan of the show, you will know exactly what I mean. Recommended as a rental only in terms of content.

Video

This is the first Blu-ray disc I have seen that is not in high def. The video is unconverted widescreen standard definition which really shouldn’t have been the subject of a Blu-ray release. The disc even has a brief introduction by the producers explaining that the video presented in not in HD even though it is a Blu-ray disc. The only mention of this fact is on the back of the box where a 1080p upconvert is noted in very small type. The fact that the show is presented in standard def is obvious as soon as the show starts, as it has the fuzzy, noise filled haze which is the hallmark of standard definition video. Besides being in standard def, the upconversion isn’t all that impressive. Why this release was issued on Blu-ray given that it is in standard definition is beyond me. Under these circumstances, the release should have been released on DVD only.

Audio

The audio here was just as much of a disappointment as the video, even with a DTS HD Master Audio track. The mix is rather front heavy with sparse use of the surrounds. Dynamics are substandard with little in the way of any bass in the mix. The overall sound itself can best be described as thin, shallow and shrill. THis is not a disc that you will want to crank up as it will be fatiguing.

Special Features

As one would expect in light of the video treatment of the feature, none of the extras are presented in HD. All are presented in 4×3 standard definition in a 16×9 window. The extras include some deleted scenes, a Sunny Sing Along where the cast sing some Christmas Carols as well as a behind the scenes featurette. I can’t say that there is much here to pique one’s interest.

Final Thoughts

While I enjoyed the show, this release should not have been released on the Blu-ray format given that none of the content is presented in HD. This is one release that should have been limited to DVD only. Accordingly, while I enjoyed the content, I can’t recommend that you purchase this release. If you are a fan of the show, stick to the DVD only. Rated as a rental only in terms of content. As for the Blu-ray, you should skip it in its entirety and go with the DVD.

It was great to see season one of the original TV series of Star Trek TOS as it is now known make its way to high definition first on HD DVD and then Blu-ray. The shows were re-mastered from the original 35 mm prints with new CGI added to replace the old grainy and by today’s standards, almost primitive looking effect that while great for 1960′s TV, look awful today. Thankfully, the new CGI sequences were done very tastefully and do not really call attention to themselves. With the Blu-ray release, you get the option of watching each episode with the old or the new effects. I prefer the new. I was really anxious to see if season two of the series, which contains a few of my very favorite episodes, would be the equal to the presentation of season one on Blu-ray. Thankfully, the answer is a resounding YES.

Series

I guess I am a bit biased, but I really can’t imagine giving the series anything but a 5 star rating. While some of the episodes are at times, a bit campy by today’s standards and even a bit sexist, many are just as thought provoking as they were when the originally ran, dealing with issues that were not normally dealt with on prime time TV at that time, including a racially diversified cast.

I am sure that you are all well versed in Star Trek, so it will not be necessary for me to go to great lengths to describe the series and the exploits of the three principal characters that are at the very foundation of the series, namely Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Dr. McCoy (a/k/a Bones played by the late DeForest Kelley). Season two of the series contains three of the all time classic episodes in the series, including my favorite of them all, Mirror Mirror, where Captain Kirk, Dr. McCoy, Mr. Scott and Uhura are beamed up to the Enterprise in a parallel universe, where the crew of the Enterprise are cutthroat barbarians, who are promoted in rank through murder. The episode is probably most famous for the appearance of Mr. Spock with a beard in the parallel universe.

Other favorites from season two include The Doomsday Machine, I, Mudd, Amock Time and The Trouble with Tribbles. As far as this writer is concerned, season two of the three year season run of the show was the best of the three, with more consistently good episodes than the other two and with better writing overall. This is a great set and a must for any Star Trek fan.

Video

Don’t let the 4 star rating fool you. This is a great looking set, with picture quality that was simply unimaginable during the first run of the show and certainly, during the syndication period where poor and chopped up prints of the show were often used. The 4 star rating is comparison to more modern TV shows and films that have appeared on Blu-ray.

The picture quality is just not up to the overall quality of a more modern production. However, the folks at Paramount did an incredible job with the HD transfer of the shows and took great care in doing so. Each episode is presented in its original 4×3 aspect ratio with side black curtains. The show features bright and bold primary colors with deep blacks and excellent levels of detail. You can clearly see the texture of the fabrics of the uniforms, the cheap plastic sets and the makeup applied to the various actors, including Spock’s ears. The detail is so good that you can clearly make out the rubber scar on Zulu;s face in Mirror, Mirror, which looks like a rubber noodle hanging on to the side of his face and applied with a bit of rubber cement.

The only real negative that I could add concerns the consistency of the video from episode to episode. Some episodes look better than others, probably due to the condition of the original film negatives from which the new HD masters were made. Some episodes have better black levels than others and better skin tones. It is the accuracy of the skin tones where the real variation is. On the whole, detail and clarity is very good to excellent, resulting in an image with far better clarity, depth and three dimensionality than one would expect for a 1960′s era TV series. I doubt very much that we will ever see better looking versions of this series released any time in the foreseeable future. I would also like to add a little about the new and improved CGI. The Enterprise, planet renditions, space scenes and the like look many orders of magnitude better than they did in the old versions of the show.

While I tend to be a bit of a purist, I can’t really imagine wanting to watch the old episodes with the old special effects. However, for those of you out there who feel differently, you are given the choice to watch each episode fully re-mastered, without the new CGI. At least you are given the option here which was not the case on the HD DVD release. However, the new CGI was done very respectfully and in keeping with the look of the show. The look of the Enterprise is a clear example of what I mean, as it looks very much like the old Enterprise, lacking the detail and bells and whistles of the films and subsequent TV shows. It looks just like the old Enterprise with a few tweeks and much cleaner presentation. Give the new CGI a look. I am sure that even the purists will be pleased. I know I sure was.

Audio

All in all, the audio on this release is much better than you would have the right to expect given the original mono source elements. I am also sure that overall audio fidelity was not the utmost concern during the original production of the TV series. There are two audio options here, a lossless 7.1 DTS HD Master Audio track as well as the original mono track. For me, the 7.1 track is the clear winner. The best audio on this release is the rerecorded opening theme which sounds wonderful with the opening credits. Excellent overall fidelity and immersive sound. Some of the sound effects have been rerecorded as well, such as the firing of the photon torpedoes and phasers, which sound much more 21st Century. The rest of the sound is what it is, a little on the thin side without much in the way of dynamics or deep bass. The surrounds are used surprisingly well given the original mono design, with sound effects placed in the rears such as the swooshing Enterprise and room acoustics. I wouldn’t call the overall sound immersive in any way. However, considering the source, much more than respectable.

Special Features

As one would expect, this set is packed with many interesting extras, spread out over the 7 disc set. Disc one contains preview trailers, a Starfleet Access Episode and actor Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest featuring home movies taken by him during the filming of the series. Billy Blackburn was one of the actors who was often seen in various roles on the show but seldom heard, much like a human prop. It is amazing how many episodes he appeared in in one guise or the other, often one of the two men at the helm of the Enterprise. This extra is presented in HD and is part two, with part one appearing on the season one Blu-ray release.

The only extras on discs two and three are preview trailers which should just be skipped. Disc four is the disc that contains The Trouble With Tribbles episode and contains several extras tied to it. They include a episode from the cartoon TV series entitled More Tribbles, More Troubles, with audio commentary with director David Gerrold as well as the Deep Space Nine episode Trials and Tribble-ations where Captain Sisko and the crew of the Defiant travel back in time to visit the Enterprise and the space station during The Trouble With Tribbles episode while attempting to foil a plot to change the past.

Also included are two featurettes, Trials and Tribble-ations: Uniting Two Legends and Trials and Tribble-ations: An HIstoric Endeavor. For me, the extras tied to the Trouble with Tribbles episode are the best of the bunch and not to be missed. Disc 5 contains preview trailers as well as a featurette To Boldly Go… Season 2. In addition to the preview trailers, disc 5 contains the featurette Designing the Final Frontier. Disc 6 contains several extras entitled Star Treks’ favorite moments, Writer’s Notebook: D.C. Fontana, LIfe Beyond Trek: Leonard Nimoy, Kirk, Spock and Bones: Star Fleet’s Great Trio, Star Trek’s Divine Diva: Nichelle Nichols and Enhanced Visual Effects Credits.

The only extras included on the entire set that are in HD are the Billy Blackburn Treasure Chest and the episode of the Star Trek cartoon TV series entitled More Tribbles, More Troubles featured on disc 4. The set is also BD-Live enabled as well as Mobile Blu enabled, with Content to Go available exclusively via Mobile Blu, consisting of Writing Spock (on disc one), Creating Chekov (disc two), Listening to the Actors (disc three) and Spock’s Mother on disc five.

Final Thoughts

Star Trek: The Original Series Season 2, is a must have for any fan of the series or a fan of television history. The set features excellent video and more than respectable audio and looks much better than the series has ever looked and is a real winner on Blu-ray. Highly recommended.

CBS was the early leader in providing prime HD programming and hence, was the network that we would most often turn to, to watch shows such as Diagnosis Murder and Nash Bridges, which were two shows I would never had tuned into were it not for them being in HD. The same is true of the show which is the subject of today’s review, CSI. I must say that I was never all that big on crime shows and one that focused on a team of forensic investigators in Las Vegas didn’t exactly sound all that interesting. However, the picture and audio quality on CSI was so good that we began to watch every week. With the original look of the show and the increasing strength of the scripts, it didn’t take all that long for us to be hooked. Over the years, the picture quality of CSI has remained among the best of all network programming (with CSI New York being the best IMHO), I was very curious to see what effect the 1080p video and increased data rates available on Blu-ray would have on the already stellar picture quality on this show. With the release of the complete ninth season of CSI on Blu-ray, it was now time to find out.

Show

I am sure that most, if not all of you, are all well familiar with CSI. I will therefore dispense with too many particulars about the series and the ninth season in particular other than to state that the ninth season was fraught with many significant changes. After having been on for 8 seasons, I guess the story lines and characters may have gotten a bit stale and a shake up was in order.

The season starts off with the death of CSI Warrick Brown and the trauma of his murder which happened right at the end of the last show of season 8. His death had quite an effect on the entire team. So did the departure of Sarah Sidle (Jorga Fox) during season 8, who had become the love interest of the lead CSI, Gil Grissom (William Petersen), who early on in season 9 decides that it is time to leave CSI. This was a decision that you could clearly see coming over the last couple of seasons of the show. His departure was handled with style and his presence on the show was replaced by Dr. Raymond Langston played by veteran actor Laurence Fishburne, a M.D. turned college professor turned level one CSI. It seemed to me to be a bit of a stretch for an M.D. to accept the position of an entry level CSI and its accompanying low pay.

While the reasons behind his decision are only hinted at briefly during season 9, he quickly goes from a rookie to a veteran and leader of the crew in a couple of episodes. His arrival on the scene really injected some new life and energy into the show. It also enabled the writers to flesh out the more minor characters on the show more fully. As a result, I thought that season 9 was one of the best seasons of the show ever. The release contains all 24 episodes of season 9 spread out over 6 discs. This Blu-ray release is a welcomed addition to any video collection and is highly recommended.

Video

The bar was already set quite high for judging this release due to the great picture quality of the series on broadcast TV. However, I am pleased to report that this Blu-ray release has taken the video quality of the show to an even higher level. Perhaps a few levels higher. This is without a doubt the best looking TV series that has yet to appear on Blu-ray. The image retains all of the stylized renderings of the TV show but improves on the overall color saturation, shadow detail and clarity. The level of clarity here is simply outstanding. The image on screen has a finer and smoother overall look that the broadcast version but with much more detail. I was not able to detect any evidence of digital noise reduction.

Black level is simply superb as is also the case with shadow detail., which, with the level of detail and clarity, results in an image of incredible depth. It was hard for me to believe that one could improve on the picture quality of the TV series this much but they have and shows just how much the bandwidth starved Mpeg-2 encoding process along with the rate shaping and re-encoding performed by some of the cable companies, effects the image quality we see at home. Watching CSI the Ninth Season on Blu-ray is almost like watching the show for the first time. It really appears as though you are peering through a window watching actors perform before you rather than watching a TV the image quality is so good. If you are a fan of the show, you owe it to yourself to see how good the show can really look.

Audio

While I did not feel it to be as dramatic, the lossless audio track on Blu-ray (DTS HD Master Audio 7.1) does offer a significant improvement over the Dolby Digital 5.1 track available on broadcast TV. I was immediately struck by the overall smoothness of the sound, which sounds more refined, less edgier and more open and transparent than the broadcast version. As a result, the sound field has a greater sense of apparent depth to it, with a greater overall sense of real actors speaking in real space. The dialogue track in particular sounds wonderful. The surrounds are used to great effect to provide sound effects as well as a sense of room acoustics. Inside CSI, the surrounds are used to provide room ambiance as well as the sounds of people walking by, talking, the rustling of papers, the clanging of instruments and the reverberation of voices.

For a TV series, I have always found that CSI and CSI New York offered rather sophisticated sound designs that really add to one’s enjoyment of the show. The only downside I can think of in regards to the audio here involves the bass which I didn’t find to be quite as robust as the broadcast version of the show. All in all, that is one very minor quibble given the overall quality of the audio track on this release.

Special Features

Frankly, this release comes packed with more extras than I had expected it would. The extras are spread out over all six discs. They include deleted scenes (in SD) as well as several other extras all in HD including Crime Scene Initiation, Interactive Investigative Mode, CSI Mode, Rats in Space, From Zero to 200 in nine seasons and Goodbye Grissom. There are several standouts in the extras. One id CSI mode where during the running of the a given episode, a box pops upon the screen explaining technical details behind the collection of the evidence, explaining, for example, why a particular type of fingerprint powder is used in that scene.

I also found the Rats in Space featurette to be entertaining. The term Rats refers to the more minor cast members who are given there own episode each season in which to shine. In season nine, it is the hilarious take off on sci-fi conventions and Star Trek The Original Series entitled “A Space Oddity”. It is a blast wee how many scenes in that episode are lifted right out of the original Star Trek TV series, which I guess was appropriate given the release of the new Star Trek film around the same time as the broadcast of that episode.

However, the best of the extras is the featurette Goodbye Grissom where the producers, writers and cast members discuss their feelings as to William Petersen’s departure from the show and how it was written into the series. It contains the first extensive interview with William Petersen that I have seen explaining the reason he decided to leave the series. If you only have the time or inclination to check out one of the extras, this is the one to check out. The release is also BD-Live enabled which you can use to access audio commentaries on two the episodes, the aforementioned A Space Oddity and Turn, Turn, Turn.

Final Thoughts

CSI has been one of my favorite TV shows since the dawn of the high definition age. This Blu-ray release offers significant improvements over the already excellent audio and video quality on the broadcast version of the show and is well worth checking out. Highly recommended.

While it involves very different subject matter, Torchwood has something in common with another piece of great television, The Sopranos, namely shocking turns. When watching The Sopranos, one never knew what plot twist or violence was lurking around the corner. A soft and touching scene could be followed by an incredibly violent or ugly scene. Death and surprise was just a minute away which is one of the reasons why The Sopranos was such compelling television.

Torchwood is much the same way. You just never know where the story will go. I was anxious to see what the brief (5 episodes) and perhaps final third season of Torchwood would bring, so much so that I watched all 5 episodes in standard definition when they debuted on BBC America on July 31st. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait long for the series to appear on Blu-ray, as the series was released the week after its initial run on BBC America. Was it worth the wait? The answer to that question is a resounding YES!

Series

Torchwood is great science fiction pure and simple. Torchwood: Children of Earth, as hard as it is for me to believe, improves on the first two stellar seasons. If Children of Earth is in fact the end of the series, what a way to go out. For those of you who are not familiar with Torchwood, please so yourself a favor and pick up all three seasons and check it out for yourself. It will be well worth the effort.

Torchwood is a group of investigators who keep track of aliens on the Earth, as well as the supernatural, and at times, have to take actions to save the earth from destruction. The series as a whole features various elements very familiar to sci-fi fans, including aliens and time travel as well as subjects not the usual subject of science fiction, namely a bisexual male lead.

The series was created by Russell T. Davies of Doctor Who and Queer as Folk fame, and involves the spin off of a character from Dr. Who, Captain Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman, who leads his team of investigators as they keep track of aliens, often times requiring their forceful removal.

Torchwood is a bit of a mix of The X-Files and Men in Black, only with richer, deeper and more creative story lines and a bit of a hard edge. Captain Jack Harkness has quite a way with men as well as women. which makes for some very interesting TV moments such as the initial kiss between him and Yanto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd), whcih caused such a stir during season 2. Despite Captain Jack’s affinity for men, there is an underlying sexual tension between him and the series female lead, Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles), who is arguably, the center of the series. Captain Jack Harkness is probably one of the most original and interesting characters to ever appear on TV. In addition to being bisexual, he also can’t be killed. It does matter whether he is shot or blown to bits, he always comes back to life.

Season 2 ended with the shocking death of two members of the team. Season 3 opens several weeks later, with the team discovering that all the the children in the UK froze motionless at the same time at 10:30 a.m. They quickly discover that not only were all the children in the UK so affected, but every child on Earth as well. The children eventually all begin to chant in unison, “We are coming, we are coming” and Captain Jack finally realizes that the alien civilization known as the 456 are the ones that are coming and are demanding the ransom of 10% of the children of the Earth to forestal the destruction of the entire human race. In addition to defeating the 456, Torchwood also has to fight the British government who are trying to kill all the members of Torchwood and Captain Jack Harkness in particular, due to his knowledge of the British government’s past encounter with the 456.

Torchwood: Children of Earth is gripping television and keeps you emotionally involved for the entire emotionally charged 5 part third season and involves Captain Jack making the ultimate sacrifice to save the human race. Pure and simple, Torchwood is great television and deserves to return for a fourth season, at the very least. Very highly recommended.

Video

Torchwood has always featured excellent video quality during its run on HDNet. I was expecting the same quality, if not better, on Blu-ray. Watching the five part series in standard definition on BBC America was a real let down as it looked terrible. I am pleased to be able to report that Torchwood: Children of Earth looks great on Blu-ray, even surpassing the stellar picture quality during its run on HDNet. What strikes you immediately about season 3 is the very natural color palette with spot on skin tones.

The series also features deep and rich blacks and well saturated colors that look very real. There is no post production fiddling with the colors here. This is one of the most natural looking high definition television presentations I have had the pleasure of viewing. Clarity and detail are outstanding with skin textures and background details rendered with razor sharp precision. The only real flaw I could detect with the video presentation is a bit of softness on overhead distance shots. Other than this very minor quibble, this is a great looking transfer and is one that fans of the show will be thrilled with. I know I was.

Audio

While very good, the audio quality on Children of Earth is not quite up to the level of the video. As one would expect from a science fiction action series, the surrounds are used fairly aggressively throughout creating an effective and realistic sense of immersion. Dialogue was also well recorded and well placed in the mix and always intelligible.

Where the audio on this release came up a bit short for me involved dynamics and overall fidelity. The dynamics were a bit flat for me, with the lack of deep room shaking bass during explosions and action sequences. The best sequence illustrating this is the scene where the Torchwood headquarters is blown up, with the explosion being more of a whimper than a bang. The dynamics here just don’t grab your attention in the way they do in a major action motion picture, sounding flat in comparison. In regards to the fidelity of the audio, I found the audio to be a smidge on the thin side, sounding a tad harsh, lacking the smoothness, and richness of a lossless encode. This issue is more noticeable while listening at reference sound levels and as a result, can be a bit fatiguing.

Special Features

There is only one extra included with this release and is a featurette entitled Torchwood Declassified and consists of a behind the scenes look at the series featuring interviews with Russell T. Davies as well as members of the cast and crew including Jack Barrowman, Eve Myles and Gareth David-LLoyd, among others. The featurette is presented in widescreen standard definition rather than in high definition. As featurettes go, it is rather standard fair and far from compelling and not exactly must viewing.

Final Thoughts

Torchwood: Children of Earth is science fiction TV at its finest and is well worth your time. This Blu-ray release features excellent video and good audio that should more than please fans of the series. Highly recommended.

Series

As I noted in my reviews of seasons 1 and 2 of Dexter, the subject matter of this series is a bit bizarre. The show is abased on the Jeff Lindsay novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter and stars Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan, the top forensic blood spatter expert in the Miami PD. Not only is Dexter a blood spatter expert, he also happens to be a serial killer. However, rather than kill indiscriminately as most if not all serial killers do, Dexter only kills those he believes deserve death, like the habitual drunk driver who kills and maims repeatedly or the psychologist who drives patients to commit suicide.

Using his position inside the police department he is able to track down the bad guys that either escape prosecution or jail time, investigates them thoroughly and acts as the final arbiter of justice. He also disposes of his victims in a rather gruesome way. What really makes this series so compelling is how well it is written.

The Dexter character and what drives him is slowly revealed over the course of the series. In addition, the series just isn’t about Dexter. The series is filled with many other characters in his life, his sister, his girlfriend and fellow police officers whose lives are featured in many different subplots which really add to the flow of the narrative. Dexter is probably the most original TV series I have ever seen. It features a deep and compelling story and was a real joy to experience on Blu-Ray.

The third season picks in what seems like a few weeks after the end of the second season. There are a lot of changes in Dexter’s life in the third season. The season is centered around three main story arcs. the pregnancy of Dexter’s girlfriend and pending marriage, the hunt for a serial killer known as “The Skinner”, and Dexter’s budding relationship with Miami’s top Assistant DA, Miguel Prada, played by Jimmy Smits. It seems that Dexter has never had a close male friend before and finds one in Miguel. While Miguel seems to be an upstanding man at the beginning, he has a dark side just like Dexter, even darker. Dexter invites Miguel into Dexter’s dark little secret as Miquel is looking to dispense the type of justice the criminal justice system doesn’t always seem to be able to dispense. However, Miguel goes a little too far and breaks Dexter’s Code, forcing Dexter to take matters into his own “hands.”

The third season of Dexter is every bit as good as the first two seasons. One would think that the subject matter of the show would get a bit stale after two years but the writers here manage to keep the story line fresh. The key to this is the ability to add a few new characters each year and expand on what we know of the personal lives of Dexter’s sister as well as his fellow co-workers.

In addition the series gets more and more interesting as Dexter develops as a person, being able to experience emotions he was never able to experience in the past and to be able to relate to people on a more personal level. I can’t wait to season 4 to see just how Dexter will deal with being married and a father and how that will curtail his murderous activities. Season three, just like the two seasons before it is highly recommended and is some of the best TV I have ever had the pleasure to watch.

Video

The video on season 3 is every bit as good as the video on the first two seasons, maybe even a bit better. As I noted in my review of season 2, this is great looking encode with an extremely natural color palette with spot one skin tones. Primary and secondary colors are bright and well saturated and look fantastic. Black level is deep and stable generating an image of excellent depth and three dimensionality.

Detail is excellent as well with skin blemishes and skin pores clearly visible. The tight shots are particularly impressive and are fully worthy of a 5 star rating. In my reviews of seasons 1 and 2, I noted that the only issue I had with the video involved the distance shots, which I found to be a bit soft and lacking the uber detail and clarity of the best looking releases I have seen on Blu-Ray. I noted a bit of an improvement in this in season 3, but not enough to increase the overall score a full half a point to a perfect 5. more like a sold 4.75 stars.. This is without a doubt the best looking TV series release I have seen on Blu-ray.

Audio

As was the case with seasons 1 and 2, I continue to be bowled over by the quality of the audio on this entire series, which is spectacular. Dexter features a lossless audio track encoded with Dolby True HD, in a 5.1 channel configuration. While I have heard more immersive sound designs, I have heard few releases which have the level of audio fidelity this release has. The special quality of the audio is apparent from the moment when you hear Dexter speak. The dialogue track features a smooth and rich sound that is very lifelike, sounding as though Michael C. Hall is in the room speaking to you rather than though a speaker.

Audiophiles will love the sound on this release. The remainder of the sound field features the same excellent audio reproduction with a smooth and open sound, excellent transparency and imaging with pin point placement of the sound effects. When someone knocks on a door to the far right of the sound field, it sounds as though it is coming from outside your room. I was kind of shocked to be honest to experience this level of audio quality and sound design on a TV series. Dynamics are excellent with full, deep and tight bass. When the rear speakers kick in, they kick in with a gusto, filling your entire room with incredibly lifelike sound. I can say without question that fans of this series will be thrilled with the audio on the release and every bit as good as the audio on seasons 1 and 2 which also garnered a 5 stars rating. Very well done!

Special Features

The are no actual extras included with this release. The only extras will be available via BD-Live which I do not believe to be on line at the time I am preparing this review. The extras slated to be included consist of interviews with Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz, Jennifer Carpenter, Lauren Velez and David Zayas. Also included are a Dexter By Design Book Excerpts, the first two season one episodes of the Showtime series United States of Tara and Two season three episodes of the Showtime series The Tudors. While I will be than interested to check out the interviews, the remainder of these slated extras leave me cold.

Final Thoughts

In short, Dexter – The Third Season is an excellent release, and improves on the excellent first two seasons of the show, featuring a compelling story and first rate video and audio. It is well worth a purchase. At the very least, please do your self a favor and check this release out on the basis of a rental. I am sure you will be glad you did.

Who is Jack Bauer to me?  Jack Bauer is my fictional reason for waking up every morning.  He is the role model I choose to personify and embrace.  I shudder when I think of what my life would be without ever knowing about Jack Bauer.  I strive to be Jack Bauer in everything I do as I struggle to overcome the odds and achieve what I deem at times to be impossible.  He is the sliver of hope that we the people can change the world, even if one person has to bear the burden at times.  Jack constantly defies the odds and proves that one person can make a difference for the greater good.  Jack Bauer will always do whatever it takes to get the job done right.  He may not necessarily do things the way you or I would want him to, but at the end of the day he still delivers the goods.  Underneath that harsh abrasive exterior he possesses a charitable heart of gold, especially towards the people he chooses to let into his life.  To be in Jack’s inner circle is to never wonder whether he has your back.  Without a second thought he would lay down his life to protect you.  He is the leader I can only aspire to be one day.  He is my champion and my hero.  He is Jack Bauer in 1080P and he is everything to me.

The following events happen in real-time. Tick…tock…tick…tock…

The Film 

After a lackluster Season 6, mostly because of the failed family plots, 24 returns with an explosive Season 7.  Is it me or do you notice how every TV show that tries to interject treacherous parental plots always fails (i.e. Prison Break)?  The lackadaisical family plots nearly destroyed 24‘s Season 6 (that and Ricky Schroeder as a CTU Agent from Denver).  Thankfully, with Season 6 behind us now, Jack is back, with the usual plot mix-ups and sudden twists that originally wooed the hearts of primetime TV viewers back in 2001.  Be prepared to be captivated all over again with that familiar uncontrollable urge to start the next hour immediately after each show’s end.

In case you have been living under a rock for these past eight years, the television show 24 is shown in real time, taking place over a period of one day, or 24 hours.  There is a real time clock that continues to tick as the show goes to commercial breaks emphasizing that the time never stops.  Unlike other shows, 24 does not make use of character flashbacks or slow motion techniques, thus grounding you in the reality of the 24-hour period.  If you should choose to watch a season of 24 continuously, let’s dub it a marathon, then a whole day in the life of Jack Bauer would take an investment of approximately 17 hours.

24: Season 7 was originally scheduled to air on January 13, 2008.  Because of the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike, it was officially postponed until January 2009 to ensure a nonstop season, a trademark of the show where every week features a new episode with no holiday breaks or hiatuses in between.  To alleviate the sadness of the fans who missed their beloved show, a feature-length TV movie, also presented in real time, titled 24: Redemption, set up the plot of Season 7.  Unfortunately, at the time of this writing, 24: Redemption is only available on standard DVD.  I remember learning of this television movie event during Comic-Con 2008 and feverishly awaited the airing of it on November 23, 2008.  That’s a good way to waste your summer away, huh?

Season 7, also affectionately known as Day 7, premiered on Sunday, January 11, 2009.  Season 7 is supposedly set four years after Season 6 and features the show’s first female president, Allison Taylor.  Another interesting tidbit is the fact that this is the first season to take place outside of Los Angeles.  The season begins and ends at 8:00 AM.  I would hate to ruin anything for the people who did not see the show or season yet.  Let’s just say that the bad boys from Sangala, as first introduced from the television movie 24: Redemption, take their fight to American soil while Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) must save the world again from terrorists and home grown private military contractors, but not before the ultimate showdown with a former friend Jack thought was long gone.  It sounds absolutely riveting, thrilling and too good to be true doesn’t it?  Well it is!  24 is a roller coaster ride filled with complex turns, speed bumps and sharp objects around every corner just begging to be plucked.  If that is not enough enticement, how about acknowledging the fact that everyone’s favorite daughter and the hottie from The Girl Next Door, Elisha Cuthbert, is back for Season 7?  I’m sold!  Put me down for two copies.

In a rare event, up until this point virtually unheard of, Season 7 arrived on Blu-ray disc the very next day after the season ended on television, May 19, 2009.  Kudos to Fox Home Entertainment for making the fans not have to wait until the usual December DVD release time frame.  Unfortunately, Season 7 is currently the only season of 24 that is available on the Blu-ray format.  Season 1 was announced back in 2007, but it never came to fruition.  Personally, as I adjust my suspenders of disbelief, I am just ecstatic to have anything 24 to watch on Blu-ray.

Video 

24: Season 7 makes its Blu-ray debut with a sometimes impressive 1080P AVC MPEG-4 video encode presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio spread over six 50-GB discs.  I say sometimes because there are some really bad examples to be found here of rough grain, compression artifacts and minor banding issues.  However, with that being said, 24 has never looked so good!  The Blu-ray transfer is definitely a step up from its HD television broadcast counterpart and it is not even worth wasting our time discussing a comparison between the DVD sets.  Let’s just say that I opened my Season 6 box set last week and used the discs as coasters for this little get together I was hosting.  I will hopefully be replacing them sometime soon with their respective Blu-ray families.  Although, there are some rough spots here and there, the video presentation is a remarkable upgrade from what HD television viewers are used to with rich and deep blacks and extra fine details.  The show’s color palette is often overblown and thus produces a washed-out look at times, but this is faithful to how it is shot, not a fault of the Blu-ray transfer.  The inky blacks more than make up for the contrast issues I just mentioned.  Here’s a thought I just had.  Maybe some of the issues mentioned above could be alleviated with a seventh disc in the next box set to give the episodes just a little more breathing room.

Audio 

Using an expletive from the vocabulary of Jack Bauer, one word describes the audio of Season 7‘s Blu-ray release…”Dammit!,” followed by the words “this audio is good.”  Fans will rejoice in aural pleasure with the DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track found here.  The television broadcast never really sold me on the audio, but the Blu-ray edition makes me a believer.  From the explosions and constant gunfire to the opening-ticking clock, your subwoofer will get a firm workout alleviating the need for that 5-minute abs video.  Not since True Blood have I been this impressed with the audio quality of a television show on Blu-ray.  The rear channels are almost always actively engaged.  I like that!  Most importantly, the dialogue audio is impeccable.  No matter where the camera or sound is panning to the dialogue always remains distinguishable.  This easily earns a 4.5-star rating from me as I slowly release and take my finger off the trigger.  Did you hear that?  On this Blu-ray release you will.  I just have a hard time awarding it a 5-star score, much like other reviewers out there, as there are just so many more examples out there of perfect audio.  24 falters in score only because it is a television show with a lower budget than your typical Hollywood blockbusters.  Therefore, the audio will almost always be a bit less in quality.

Special Features 

Finally, we come to the special features department where I am excited to report that all of 24: Season 7‘s supplemental package is in High Definition.  The special features are identical, minus the High Definition part, as to what you would find on its DVD counterpart.  Most importantly, for special feature junkies, there is plenty of material to keep you busy here for almost a whole day if you are a diehard fan of such.  Let’s get out of the pool, grab a lounge chair and discuss what you can expect to find here.

• Audio Commentaries – There are a total of 12 audio commentaries spread over an obvious number of 12 episodes.  The audio commentary participants vary by episode from the actors to the directors, but sadly to note, Kiefer Sutherland does not partake in any of them. 
• The Music of 24 – This was actually pretty cool.  I found this an interesting piece to watch as always being a fan of the show’s soundtrack.  This is a 13-minute look at a recording session mixed together with multiple clips from the series.  It’s sort of like a 24 music video for diehard fans.
• Deleted Scenes - There are a total of 15 scenes accumulating a length of 26 minutes with optional commentary from Co-Executive Producer Stephen Kronish and Producer Paul Gado.
• The Ambush - This 13-minute documentary explores the exciting stuntwork and effects that went into making Hour 19.
• The Untold Story – This 16-minute short documents the effects of the Writer’s Strike on the show and what changes the writers made for Season 7 to redeem themselves from the mistakes made in Season 6.

Final Thoughts 

How do I recap a season that totally exceeded my expectations?  Well, by encouraging others who have not seen 24 before to start from the beginning.  That’s right.  I am not going to make my sales pitch and tell you Season 7 is the best thing since Michael Jackson’s image on a piece of toasted bread.  That’s up to you to decide.  Seriously, if you jump in right now you will be lost.  I know.  I made this mistake before.  I tried to jump into Season 5 to see what all the hype was about.  Not only did I not understand the show, but also I did not even like it.  If it were not for an unplanned rental of Season 1 from Blockbuster, I would have never found the role model I have been searching for my whole life…Jack Bauer.  My wife and I watched Seasons 1-4 within a month’s time and we were anxiously waiting for the December 2006 DVD release date of Season 5, which I finished in under a week.  That’s right.   Can you believe it?  At one point in my life I used to anxiously await DVD releases.  The television show 24, to me, is like oxygen.  You just got to have more and more!  Ironically, Season 5 went on to become my favorite out of all the seasons.

As I mentioned before, Season 7 totally rebounded and redeemed itself from the failed plot points of Season 6.  That is not to say Season 7 is perfect in every way, far from the truth, but it gets the show back on track with its formulaic foundation that anything can happen and eventually does happen.  The shocking moments fans learned to love from the past seasons are all back in full force.  You just have to brace yourself in for the ride.  The Blu-ray release of 24: Season 7 features the highest quality production values that has ever graced a viewing of the show with exceptional video, near reference quality audio and supplemental features package that will keep diehard viewers busy on end.  I can’t recommend this enough as a MUST buy, but beware of my disclaimer above.  As much as I hate hearing myself preach to my readers to go out and rent a standard DVD, I cannot emphasize enough how beneficial this will be to newcomers of the 24 franchise.  I care about all my fellow 24 fans and I want you to have the absolute best viewing experience.  Of course, with regards to the loyal legacy fans, there should be no doubt in your mind that this Blu-ray set is worth every penny in capturing 24 in its best viewing experience ever.  “Dammit!”…Go get it now!

I hope you enjoyed my review of the 20^th Century Fox’s 24: Season 7 Blu-ray release.  Please feel free to share your thoughts and comments below.  I look forward to receiving any feedback from my readers.

24: Season 7 was released on Blu-ray May 19, 2009.  If you like what you read in the review above, then please show your support for our site by clicking the shopping cart link above to order and save with Amazon’s Everyday Lowest Price Guarantee.  Thanks!