8.7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.8 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.7 |
As the power of the island to both heal and destroy comes into sharp focus, the lines between good and evil are blurred and loyalties are challenged when the survivors of the crash become tangled within the lives of the Others. Plan your escape, and immerse yourself in all 23 episodes of Season Three. Go deeper than ever before in this six-disc Blu-ray box set, complete with hours of never-before-seen bonus features, including secrets from the world of the Others, behind-the-scenes featurettes, unprecedented access to the Lost writers room, and so much more.
Starring: Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Jorge Garcia, Josh Holloway, Terry O'QuinnAdventure | 100% |
Sci-Fi | 72% |
Action | 63% |
Mystery | 60% |
Thriller | 45% |
Psychological thriller | 38% |
Supernatural | 25% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: LPCM 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0
English SDH, French, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Six-disc set (6 BDs)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
In September of 2004, a highly-hyped new series was about to bow on U.S. television. Little was known of the series' premise, other than it was some sort of sci-fi adventure that came packaged with one of the hobbits from Lord of the Rings. After playing witness to the pilot episode's gripping, film-quality title sequence, however, audiences would soon discover there was much, much more to this island Wonderland.
As a TV production, LOST was hashed together rather recklessly. Given the budget floating it and the names behind it, such as TV giant J.J. Abrams, one would reckon the series would be mapped out well beforehand. But ABC seemed eager to put the cart before the horse, and snapped up the series based on a mere outline alone. The writers, needless to say, had their work cut out for them. It is this chaotic creation which may have lead to some plot stinkers down the road; three seasons in, and LOST has lagged a bit. Season three seemed especially rife with meandering subplots, dedicating whole episodes to the meaning of Jack Shephard's tattoo, or a couple of obnoxious side characters that had never been introduced before, and held no importance to the series' overall arc. Time slot changes and constant new episode hiatuses did their fair share as well; confused and frustrated viewership meant a loss in Nielsen ratings. The latter, in turn, may have induced ABC to announce that the series would have a finite end and would run for six seasons total. Thus, three more seasons of 16 episodes each are planned for production; this "light at the end of the tunnel," so to speak, has invigorated LOST fandom and, hopefully, general viewership in turn.
Locke demands you marvel at his stubbular glory. Marvel!
LOST is most certainly a series that benefits from a high definition presentation. Being the first time that the series is presented in 1080p resolution, the BD release is currently the only way to enjoy the series in "full HD." ABC's high definition broadcast of the series plateaus out at 720p... and the difference is keenly noticeable. With an AVC 1080p/24 encode, the episodes themselves range from 15 to 40 Mbps, with an average of about 25 Mbps. To be perfectly honest, what consistently brought my attention to the acute detail was the stubble on the faces of various male characters; every hair was so distinct. Likewise the sheen of sweat or water. Being set in a very wet, tropical environment naturally leads to lots of wet characters. If they're not damp from some recent storm, they're finding other excuses - such as leaping into the ocean to save some hapless soul from riptide. The play of light is crisply captured on all of this residual liquid; it is simply awesome to watch.
But I'm a connoisseur of fine detail, after all. Often I find the mise–en–scène more interesting than the characters or the action. To this end, the picture quality succeeds in spades. The set certainly makes for some good eye candy, and even better demo material.
Almost as impressive as the video is the set's audio options. Supplied with an uncompressed 5.1 English PCM track, the episodes also offer English and French Dolby Digital 5.1, as well as Spanish in Dolby Digital 2.0. A handful of episodes also offer audio commentary from various cast and crew. The PCM track completes the AVC picture to make a cohesive presentation that really compels one to experience the series, rather than just watch it blithely from a distance. Foley effects in the surround mix are rich and full, and dialogue is clear and unmuddied. Michael Giacchino's unnerving score is laced intricately throughout, making its presence known but never overwhelming the action. Rounding out the offerings are the Dolby Digital 5.1 mixes in English and French. One can't help but be a bit disappointed that a Spanish 5.1 track was shafted, though I am uncertain whether it was due to limited disc space, or perhaps a 5.1 mix was never produced for broadcast. In any case, a flat stereo track on an otherwise richly laden disc seems a shame.
The third season BD comes with a separate, sixth disc brimming with interesting extra features. Most notable are those exclusive to the Blu-ray release - "Access: Granted" and "Blu-Prints." The former is a LOST fan's dream come true, as chief writers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse sit down for a no-nonsense interview to give answers (and closure) on a virtual laundry list of obscure questions. The pair give the once-and-for-all on who is truly dead, where the polar bears cames from, and the fate of certain Dharma stations, among other things. The feature is accompanied by thoughts and speculations from various television critics, editors and TV personalities. An overall satisfying piece, "Access: Granted" actually succeeded to get me wound up about the greater story arcs of LOST, having been unexposed to new material for months!
"Blu-Prints," the other not-so-cleverly-titled exclusive feature, leads the viewer around among various sets with production designers leading the way. The creative process is interesting to watch on several props and locations, though the feature was a bit too "engineer geek" for my tastes overall.
The most substantial single feature is arguably "LOST On Location," which brings the viewers along for a fly-on-the-wall experience during production of several episodes. Quite a bit of humor is apparent as the cast and crew goof around between takes, and it makes the piece a rather enjoyable experience. "LOST In A Day" is similar in that it shows all phases of production on the series in a single day - from early morning shooting with cast, to editing of dailies, adding foley effects and music, writer's discussions on upcoming episodes, flying film from Hawai'i to Los Angeles every night - one is agog at how such a busy and multifaceted production stays organized! Along the same vein is a "Crew Tribute" wherein Evangeline Lilly borrows a cameraman and sneaks up on sheepish crew members unawares to give them proper gratitude and "face time" on tne disc for all of their hard work behind the scenes.
"The World of the Others" is an in-universe look at the behavior and the motives of the morally ambiguous Others; what is it that they are after? What secrets have yet to be revealed about their community? A final featurette is "The LOST Book Club" - a very interesting discussion on the significance of various literature referenced in the series. Almost always, the depiction of a character reading a book in any given episode flags a thematic similarility - either within the episode itself, or perhaps foreshadowing events to come.
The remainder of the extra features are treats and tidbits, like deleted scenes, unused flashbacks, and a blooper reel. There's even a short, but humorous piece featuring Terry O'Quinn "educating" one on how to throw a knife from the handle in order for it to properly stick its target. Predictably, this little piece is slathered with disclaimers for the stupid. Also included on the set are four audio commentaries with various cast and crew for the episodes "A Tale of Two Cities," "I Do," "Exposé," and "The Man Behind the Curtain."
Though slow at times, LOST's third season is one of exposition as well as expansion. We learn much of the island's "other" inhabitants and uncover a wee bit about the ambiguous Dharma Initiative project. More significantly, perhaps, are the "shades of gray" added to many of the series' regular characters. Sun is not "the good wife," Sayid is not "the virtuous soldier." Mr. Eko became a priest chiefly as atonement for his sins of the past. Claire is plagued with lifelong guilt. The third season even humanized the "bad guys" like Juliet and Ben - if only marginally! It created a heap of sympathy for characters like Sawyer and Locke. What the season lacked for in island time events, it made up for by fleshing out its recurrent characters.
It is no secret that I enjoy this series - it started off with a bang and still has huge potential. In terms of story, I highly recommend it. As a Blu-ray Disc recommendation, I would push it even more. This set boasts a stunning presentation in both picture and sound, and succeeds in further immersing the viewer into "the LOST experience." The exclusive BD extra features are a further incentive for hardcore fans, as well. In my humble opinion, LOST: The Complete Third Season should be the benchmark by which all other Blu-ray television series should strive to meet - or exceed!
2004-2005
2005-2006
2008
2009
Dharma Initiative Orientation Kit
2009
Collector's Edition with Bonus Disc and DHARMA Luggage Tag
2009
The Final Season
2010
Collector's Edition with Bonus Disc
2010
2020
2013
2007
2009
2009
Movie Only Edition
2012
Director's Cut
2009
2009
2018
1991
2004
1993
2004
2001
1997
2013
50th Anniversary Special
2013
2015
2014
Collector's Edition
2013