8.6 | / 10 |
Users | 2.5 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
It’s no longer hidden. The word is spreading that Jesus is the Messiah. Increased fame brings growing crowds, new disciples, and more miracles. It also brings trouble. Mary is confronted with old demons. The tension between Simon and Matthew explodes. James & John battle their prejudices and fiery tempers. But they all continue to passionately pursue the man they don’t always understand but will always follow.
Starring: Jonathan Roumie, Shahar Isaac, Elizabeth Tabish, Janis Dardaris, Erick AvariHistory | 100% |
Period | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.00:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.00:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
English: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps)
English, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Region free
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
The second season of the Biblically based show The Chosen continues in the same style as the first season, exploring Jesus' ministry through the eyes of, in this season, an increasingly large gathering of disciples witnessing His teachings and miracles firsthand. However, this is not the Bible verbatim. Creator Dallas Jenkins has built a show that essentially colors in the black-and-white Biblical text, bringing more life and detail to the characters while still remaining fully true to the letter and spirit of the gospel. It's very well done, from performances to production values and certainly, after two seasons, stands as one of the giants in the faith-based entertainment arena.
It is not an understatement to say that there are some major trouble spots throughout the entire eight episode run. Season two's Blu-ray compares
similarly to the season one effort in terms of video ups and downs. The trouble begins almost immediately at the 4:17 mark of episode one where
viewers will find an example of some severe macroblocking, rendering full backgrounds inorganic, littered with digital chunks rather than smooth
clarity.
Unfortunately, such egregious issues run rampant throughout, persistent through the season's entire run. This particular example is a low light
sequence, taking place indoors, at night, lit only by mild candlelight. It is in these sorts of scenes where the macroblocking is at its most severe, but
even in some daylight or otherwise moderately- or well-lit locations such macroblocking is in evidence. Heavy noise is also in evidence in low light,
notably during a single long take early in the season as dusk turns to night. This take betrays the lower quality of the photography as the noise
becomes
increasingly dense and the compression issues more readily evident.
However, the picture holds relatively stable in good light, such as the many outdoor scenes taking place during the day as Jesus and the disciples are
traveling about the land. Here, viewers will find impressively defined clothing details revealing frays and dirt and other imperfections with impressive
stability and clarity, Likewise, facial hair, pores, and other skin and body details are reproduced with excellent definition. Location clarity is strong,
whether considering grasses and trees, dirt terrain, or the various manmade structures of the day. Color reproduction is fine. The picture is saturated
with many examples of earthen colors but there are likewise many examples of lush natural greenery abounding in various scenes as well as
numerous examples of colorful
clothes. Many costumes are beige, brown, or off-white, but Thomas, for example wears a more colorful tunic, as do the ladies, the Roman soldiers,
and
even the Pharisees, though color is used more sparingly on these latter costumes, offsetting the dominant black, which does hold deep on these
clothes and
at night as well. This is hardly the stuff of Blu-ray perfection but it looks decent in the aggregate, the macroblocking notwithstanding.
Performing somewhat better is the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack which is more than adequate to handle the show's modest sonic needs. A light rain falls outside during the season's open, with some sharp, cracking thunder near and lingering far making for a fine ambient setting. Environmental details are vital in bringing the show to life, and these are handled without flaw or flub as viewers will feel transported to various open grounds, inside densely packed streets, or inside the offices holding high ranking Romans or Pharisees. Listeners will appreciate the definition apparent with the musical presentation in addition to excellent width, clarity of individual instruments, and some accompanying choral vocals as necessary. The season's bread-and-butter is, of course, dialogue, which is clear and center focused for the duration.
This "Premiere Edition" season two release of The Chosen includes no supplemental content. However, it does ship with a full color, glossy, stapled booklet that includes a message from Creator Dallas Jenkins who outlines the remainder of the booklet, writing "my wife Amanda and I wrote some content for this booklet. We want to give you some spiritual context to the stories you'll be watching and hopefully enhance your experience a bit." Indeed, what follows is a blurb on each episode on one side, a color photo opposite, and a message from a fan embedded in a small box with the photo.
The Chosen's second season is every bit as good as the first, if not better for its established roles and styles that this season only builds upon. The video quality is questionable at best and the audio quality is only adequate. It's also unfortunate that the season two two-disc set includes no extras, but considering the quality of the show itself it's impossible to offer anything less than a hearty recommendation.
Pre-release Special Edition
2017-2019
2017
Season One Special Edition
2017-2019
2017
2017
2021
Season Two Special Edition | Includes Christmas episode "The Messengers"
2021
2022
Season Three Special Edition
2022-2023
2024
2024
(Still not reliable for this title)
2015
2015
ITV Series
2012
2015
2013
2013
2010
2017
2014
2013
2014
2018
2016
35th Anniversary Edition
1979
2014
2016
2019
2006
2018
2023