12 Monkeys: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

12 Monkeys: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 10, 2020

Mill Creek has released the complete four-season run of the critically acclaimed SyFy TV show '12 Monkeys' to Blu-ray. The series was previously released by Universal (links below) on a season-by-season basis. This presentation bundles all eight discs together with the same essential tech specs and most of the same extras for a lower price.

For synopses and a few thoughts on each of the four seasons, please click through the following links which point to the individual Universal releases:

• Season One
• Season Two
• Season Three
• Season Four

12 Monkeys: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mill Creek's Blu-ray's appear to use the same transfers Universal employed to bring the series to Blu-ray, but there is a minor variance with season one appearing a little more green tinted than its Universal counterpart. Otherwise, the presentations appear identical in all other season one characteristics and identical in all ways for seasons two, three, and four. See the links below for full reviews, but keep in mind the slight color temperature variance for season one.

• Season One
• Season Two
• Season Three
• Season Four

12 Monkeys: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For its Blu-ray release of 12 Monkeys, Mill Creek seems to employ the same DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtracks Universal used to bring the series to Blu-ray. There may be minor bit rate variances but comparing a few moments from each season yielded no major discernible differences. Please click through the links below for reviews.

• Season One
• Season Two
• Season Three
• Season Four

12 Monkeys: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Mill Creek's complete series release of 12 Monkeys includes almost all of the extras from the Universal discs; the only omission appears to be a pair of trailers from season three. Please click through the links below for full reviews and see below that for a breakdown of everything that's been included. No DVD or digital copes are included with purchase. This release ships with a non-embossed slipcover.

• Season One
• Season Two
• Season Three
• Season Four

Season One, Disc One:

• Deleted Scenes (480i): Scenes from "Splinter" (16:35), "Mentally Divergent" (3:37), and "The Night Room" (0:25).

Season One, Disc Two:

• Deleted Scenes (480i): Scenes from "Yesterday" (3:28).
• Gag Reel (480i, 3:10).
• Cast Auditions (480i): Amanda Schull (4:28), Barbara Sukowa (5:49), and Todd Stashwick (1:36).
• Emily Hampshire -- Markridge Improv Speech (480i, 1:04):
• Webisodes (1080i): Self Portrait (1:59), Forty Three Minutes (1:45), Legacy (3:59), The Next Cycle (1:46), The Interview (2:44), and Names to Learn (2:15).

Season Two, Disc One:

• Deleted Scenes (480i): Scenes from "Year of the Monkey" (2:15), "Primary" (1:42), "One Hundred Years" (0:33), and "Bodies of Water" (1:50).
• Podcast Commentary (1080p): For "Primary:" Executive Producer/Showrunner Terry Matalas, Writer Sean Tretta, and Actors Aaron Stanford and Emily Hampshire. For "Bodies of Water:" Executive Producer/Showrunner Terry Matalas and Actors Amanda Schull, Todd Stashwick, and Emily Hampshire.
• Inside 12 Monkeys (1080p): Included are "Year of the Monkey" (4:35), "Primary" (4:21), "One Hundred Years" (2:43), "Emergence" (3:31), "Bodies of Water" (3:52), "Immortal" (3:11), and "Meltdown" (4:12).

Season Two, Disc Two:

• Deleted Scenes (480i): Scenes from "Fatherland" (2:56), "Resurrection" (0:40), and "Memory of Tomorrow" (6:37).
• Podcast Commentary (1080p): For "Blood Washed Away:" Executive Producer/Showrunner Terry Matalas, Writer Sean Tretta, and Actors Amanda Schull, Aaron Stanford, and Emily Hampshire. For "Memory of Tomorrow:" Executive Producer/Showrunner Terry Matalas and Actors Amanda Schull and Aaron Stanford.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 4:29).
• Inside 12 Monkeys (1080p): Included are "Lullaby" (3:37), "Hyena" (3:30), "Fatherland" (2:41), "Resurrection" (4:05), "Blood Washed Away" (3:59), and "Memory of Tomorrow" (4:31).
• Webisodes (1080p): (1:59), Pre-Apocalyptic (3:03), The Traveler (1:51), The Witness (1:09), The Witness Promo (1:18), and Alone (2:44).

Season Three, Disc One:

• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Included are 302 - The Trouble with Guardians (1:35), 302 - Deacon Is Alive (0:45), 303 - Better Times (0:49), 304 - Brother (1:57), 304 - Panic Attack (1:49), 305 - Jones Travels to the Future (1:30), and 305 - Brothers (1:23).

Season Three, Disc Two:

• Alternate Opening (1080p, 1:56): 306 - Zalman Shaw. Note that this was labeled as a deleted scene in the Universal release.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Included are 307 - Dark Christmas (1:24), 309 - Dinner for Two (1:33), and 310 - Much to Do About Athan (1:49).

Season Four, Disc One:

• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Scenes from "The End" (2:44), "Ouroboros" (1:47), "45 RPM" (3:40), "Legacy" (5:27), "After" (6:20), and "Die Glocke" (2:01).

Season Four, Disc Two:

• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Scenes from "Daughters" (5:19), "Demons" (6:22), "One Minute More" (1:40), and "The Beginning" (4:35).
• Season 4 Trailer (1080p, 1:54).

12 Monkeys: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

12 Monkeys emerged from curiosity with potential to must-watch television that was one of the best on television during its run. Smart, dense, intense, and grounded in real heart and detail even in a fantastical future -- and throughout the past -- the show's run of four seasons tells a complex and very satisfying story of journey and salvation, of life and death, and of inward and outward purpose from start to finish. Rarely a dull moment and never a poor episode, the whole series is both binge worthy and well worthy of repeat viewings. Mill Creek's Blu-ray series set is essentially identical to the Universal releases. A couple of brief trailers are lost from the season three set but otherwise the extras are the same: more bountiful for the first two seasons and essentially relegated to deleted scenes in seasons three and four. The video presentations are identical save for the season one color timing. Audio appears identical. Very highly recommended, particularly as the Mill Creek set costs much less than purchasing the Universal releases individually.