Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII Blu-ray Movie Review

Just the games.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 17, 2014

This is a release that just gets down to business. The two-disc Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII contains the Seattle Seahawks' three playoff games from the 2013 NFL season: vs. New Orleans in the NFC Divisional playoff game (from January 11, 2014, disc one), vs. San Francisco in the NFC Championship game (from January 19, 2014, disc one), and vs. Denver in Super Bowl XLVIII (from February 2, 2014, disc two). The games have been edited to remove commercials but do contain replays and stretches between plays. Each game runs at just a few minutes shy of two hours. They are sourced from the original Fox television broadcasts, complete with Fox play-by-play and color commentary audio. Unfortunately, hometown Seattle radio broadcasts are not an audio option. This release is, in essence, little more than a way for Seattle fans to clear space off the DVR and have the games available on disc-based media. Picture and sound qualities are on par with the original broadcast presentations.

Swarmed.

Below is a brief recap of the Seahawks' three postseason games:

Divisional Playoff Game:

The Seahawks, after amassing an impressive 13-3 record in the regular season and securing a first-round bye, hosted the sixth-seed New Orleans Saints, a team coming off a two-point road victory in Philadelphia. The Seahawks appeared to be in control through the first half, the offense amassing 16 points and the team's top-ranked defense surrendering none after thirty minutes of play. A scoreless third gave way to a barrage of scoring in the fourth. The Saints rallied to score 15 but surrendered an additional touchdown to the Seahawks. Final score: Seattle 23, New Orleans 15. Saints quarterback Drew Brees threw for three times as many yards as his counterpart in bright green and blue, but Seattle's dependable running back Marshawn Lynch carried the ball 28 times for 140 yards and two scores en route to the victory.

NFC Championship Game:

In what would prove to be the Seahawks' toughest challenge of the post-season, the team hosted division rival and 2012 season Super Bowl runner-up San Francisco in a tight contest for the right to advance to the Super Bowl. The game would play out much differently than the Divisional game. The 49ers would hold the Seahawks offense in check through the first half, surrendering only three points while the club's offense put 10 on the board for a seven-point halftime lead. Pete Carroll's defensive squad would tighten up in the second half, allowing only a third-quarter touchdown, giving quarterback Russell Wilson's offense the opportunity to put four scores -- two touchdowns and two field goals -- on the board and carry the team to a 23-17 victory. Russell Wilson threw for 215 yards, Marshawn Lynch put up another 100 yard performance on the ground, and receiver Doug Baldwin caught six passes for 106 yards.

Super Bowl XLVIII:

It wasn't even close. From the opening safety forward, the Seahawks were in complete control over the record-setting Denver Broncos, the AFC's champions and a team with a bulldozer of an offense led by future Hall-of-Famer Peyton Manning. The Broncos would score a touchdown and convert a two-point opportunity in the third quarter, but the stingy Seattle defense overpowered a frazzled Denver squad all night long, providing ample opportunity for Russell Wilson and the Seahawks to score seemingly at will. Seattle would score in every quarter and finish off the Broncos by a mile. Final tally: Seattle 43, Denver 8. Russell Wilson threw for 206 yards and two scores. The club spread the love on the ground and in the air; no player rushed or caught the ball for 100 yards. Seattle Linebacker Malcolm Smith was awarded the coveted MVP trophy. He recorded 10 tackles, recovered a fumble, and returned an interception for a touchdown.

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII won't thrill video purists, but this high definition presentations satisfies basic requirements. There are plenty of compression issues, often minor to be sure but nevertheless distracting at times. Definition is decent, revealing good, clear lines on turf and uniforms. However, some ringing is evident, particularly around graphics that pop up from time to time to present statistics. Colors are bold and pleasing, particularly the neon green accents on Seattle uniforms. More general shades, such as green turf, San Francisco red, and Denver orange are nicely defined and robust. In essence, this is pretty much the exact picture fans saw watching the games on Fox. There's nothing spectacular here, but fans accustomed to televised football in the HD era should be pleased with the quality.

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack. There's not much happening here. The track is dominated by the play-by-play and color commentary that plays on top of the game. It's crisp and nicely defined and plays with a volume appropriate to everything heard underneath it. Crowd noise dominates the non-speaking pieces of the sonic puzzle. It's not very well defined or spacious but it does at least convey the basic feel of a live sporting event attended by a frenzied crowd. Referee whistles and other minor in-game sound effects are nicely presented.

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII contains only one supplement, an optional trivia track on disc two (the Super Bowl game).

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Seattle Seahawks: Road to XLVIII is one of the simplest releases ever to appear on Blu-ray. Aside from the trivia track, there's absolutely no supportive content, and the discs contain the games as they were broadcast and nothing more. Seattle Seahawks fans should be rightfully tempted, particularly if the DVR is full and the wallet is stuffed. At over $40 at time of publishing, though, the set costs far too much and contains too little beyond the games to recommend to general audiences. Casual football fans should alternately consider the other Seattle Seahawks release, Seattle Seahawks: Super Bowl XLVIII Champions, instead. This release contains adequate, broadcast-quality video and audio. No extras beyond the trivia track are included. Recommended only to the team's biggest fans.