7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Comedy | 100% |
Biography | 18% |
Dark humor | 6% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
English, English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (3 BDs)
UV digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
You may have read about the recent hacking of Netflix, which resulted in the unauthorized release of the latest season of Orange is the New
Black after the hacker’s ransom demands weren’t met. That may end up getting the hacker a stylish (?) new orange outfit if and
when
he
(or she) is found,
but I had to kind of jokingly wonder whether the hacker was simply trying to get episodes that he (or she) assumed Lionsgate wouldn’t ultimately
be
forthcoming about providing, since I just realized after having received a PR request to review Orange Is the New Black: Season Four that Lionsgate had never sent (nor even sent PR
about) the series’ third season (hence this somewhat late review). It’s perhaps notable to realize that Piper Kerman, the woman whose memoirs
provided the ostensible source material for Orange is the New Black, spent “only” thirteen or so months in prison for a long ago offense,
and
so the fact that the series based on her “adventures” is forging into its third season may suggest that a certain amount of fictionalized elements
are
accruing. Despite the fact that the series may be departing from the actual historical record more and more as it proceeds, Orange is the New
Black offers a rather tart and at times quite bracing combination of (sometimes kind of weird) comedy and more dramatic, some might even
argue melodramatic, elements that offer insights into the social fabric of the old trope of Women in Cages (so to speak). The series may have lost a bit of momentum in this third season (an element which
may
help to explain why Lionsgate didn’t indulge in any massive PR efforts when it was released on Blu-ray), but there is still some compelling content
here for longtime fans of the series.
For those wanting to catch up on the story thus far, our reviews of the previous seasons of Orange is the New Black can be accessed by
clicking on the following links:
Orange Is the New Black: Season One
Blu-ray review
Orange Is the New Black: Season
Two
Blu-ray review
Orange is the New Black: Season Three is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This digitally shot series continues to look nicely sharp and generally well defined on Blu-ray with a video presentation that is very much in line with the series' first two seasons in high definition. As I've mentioned in the reviews of those seasons, the garish fluorescent lighting of the prison actually helps to establish excellent illumination that fosters very good to excellent levels of detail and fine detail. Also as with previous seasons, some nighttime or dimly lit sequences can have just a slightly murky look to them that tends to rob some isolated scenes of some minor amounts of fine detail. Again as with previous seasons, flashback sequences are often quite colorful, perhaps even graded or pushed to increase the sense of "difference" between them and the contemporary timeframe. Very little if any noise intrudes this season, despite some long dark sequences.
As with the two previous seasons on Blu-ray, Orange is the New Black: Season Three continues the tradition of a fine sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, one which derives decent energy from some fairly ubiquitous use of scoring and even source cues, as well as some of the more raucous moments inside Litchfield, where the sometimes crowded, claustrophobic confines allow for some good surround activity. Dialogue is always rendered cleanly and clearly (with the exception of some heavy accents at time, as in the case of Red), and the series' tendency to have skirmishes, both verbal and physical, break out from time to time means that dynamic range is quite wide throughout this season.
Disc One
This third season of Orange is the New Black continues the tendency shown in the series' second year of emphasizing Piper's travails less and less, offering more time with any number of supporting characters. That's actually a good thing on the whole, since this series is stuffed with some of the most colorful characters in series television. That said, this year tends to feel a little fragmented at times, and I personally found some of the flashback material positively distracting. Technical merits continue to be strong, and Orange is the New Black: Season Three comes Recommended.
2013
w/Bonus Disc
2013
2014
w/ Bonus Content
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2016
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Unrated
2015
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Director's Cut
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