7.4 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A mighty warrior and a young boy search for enlightenment in a ruthless territory controlled by feudal barons.
Starring: Daniel Wu, Orla Brady, Sarah Bolger, Aramis Knight, Emily BeechamMartial arts | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Four-disc set (4 BDs)
Digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
If there’s one thing Into the Badlands makes clear, it's that no matter how dystopian a post-Apocalyptic world might be, there’s evidently
always
going to
be really cool stuff to wear. AMC’s impossible to totally pigeon hole series was canceled after the third season presented on this set of
Blu-rays, and so some may feel investing time in the tale may not be worth it, especially since this season ends with several plot threads clearly
dangling and virtually begging for some kind of resolution. That said, Into the Badlands offers a glut of visual delights that make it
appealing eye candy a lot of the time, at least for those who can stomach copious amounts of blood and other gore sprinkled through a saga of
what amount to warring tribes in a land filled with strife and sociopolitical intrigue. Kind of incredibly, at least given its weird mishmash of
feudalism and retro-futuristic production design, Into the Badlands owes at least part of its genesis to the 16th century Chinese opus
which has given birth to an almost insane number of film adaptations, including Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back. For those enterprising enough to want to
know some of the other film adaptations of this source, I refer you to the first paragraph of my Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back Blu-ray
review, which details at least a few of them.
For those wanting to catch up on this particular kinda sorta adaptation via its previous seasons released on Blu-ray, please click on the
following links featuring reviews by my colleague Martin Liebman:
Into the Badlands: The
Complete First Season Blu-ray review
Into the Badlands: The
Complete Second Season Blu-ray review
Into the Badlands: The Complete Third Season is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films and AMC with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. The IMDb lists Red cameras and a 4K DI as data points. I've long been on record as stating I personally prefer the "look" of Red's digital capture over Arri Alexas, at least generally speaking, and this is another nicely detailed looking presentation that is elevated by an almost psychedelic palette at times. Hues in the blue and purple ranges are especially gorgeous throughout this season, but the entire aesthetic of the series is delivered with really commendably consistent fine detail, solid contrast and blacks, and a lack of any egregious compression artifacts. The series' odd but captivating production design offers all sorts of opportunities for visual blandishments, and both costumes and sets offer virtually palpable textures at times. There are occasional slight downturns in detail levels during some of the CGI, as well as some of the intentionally tweaked fight scenes that feature various video "bells and whistles" like step printing. This is a frequently astounding looking series, and this set of Blu-ray discs reproduces things with a good amount of flair.
Those of you who get a lot of releases from Lionsgate Films (as I do) may be used to seeing their discs basically default to an interstitial DTS-HD Master Audio vignette before the actual feature, since so many of their releases feature that audio codec. This is one of the outliers, perhaps due to the AMC connection, offering the same Dolby TrueHD 5.1 codec that the first two seasons on Blu-ray did. Marty wasn't especially impressed with the first season's audio, upping his score a bit for the second season, but to my ears this third season really raises the audio bar substantially from the previous two years, delivering a nice onslaught of surround activity in the many battle scenes, as well as offering good engagement of the surrounds for ambient environmental effects and the often propulsive score. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout all episodes. Optional English or Spanish subtitles are available.
Perhaps surprisingly, there are absolutely no supplements offered across the four discs included in this release. A digital copy is included. The discs also feature a "Play All" option that works like the old "Season Play" offerings on Fox Blu-rays. For example, when the last episode on Disc One finishes, you get a prompt to insert Disc Two. If you eject a disc before every episode has played and insert another disc, you'll get another prompt advising you to reinsert whatever disc you ejected to complete playing that disc's episodes. The discs do offer an option to play any given episode individually.
If you can accept the fact that not all of your questions are going to be answered as this third season of Into the Badlands unfolds, the series still provides a ready supply of visual delights and some intriguing characters, along with some of the most peripatetic action sequences on television. Yes, it's undeniably unfortunate that the show doesn't wrap everything up (could there be one final "special event" produced to do so?), and that will understandably be a major stumbling block for some. But that said, Into the Badlands is well produced and frankly kind of weirdly distinctive with its genre bending approach. Technical merits are solid, and with caveats duly noted, Into the Badlands: The Complete Third Season comes Recommended.
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