8.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The wait for Venture Brothers Complete Season 5 Blu-ray and DVD is over. Releasing with all 8 episodes from Season 5 and packed with special features, fans will be thrilled when they watch Hank, Dean, Doctor Venture, and Brock as they are pushed in fun and unpredictable new directions.
Starring: Patrick Warburton, Christopher McCulloch, James Urbaniak, Michael Sinterniklaas, Doc HammerAnimation | 100% |
Comedy | 84% |
Dark humor | 73% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1, 1.33:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Before diving into the Blu-ray releases of The Venture Bros. and Adventure Time's latest seasons, let me try to put one prevailing criticism to bed. I'm sure you've heard it. It goes something like this... usually in a high-pitched whine: I can't stand *insert modern animated series title*. It isn't funny. The animation is terrible. The jokes are stupid. The episodes don't make any sense. It's all random references strung together with ridiculous characters. Cartoon Network needs to get back on track and produce quality shows! Sound familiar? I promise you fans of The Venture Bros. and Adventure Time -- each one successful enough to not only survive but to thrive -- have heard it countless times before, typically from a loud but irritable minority that's eager to complain without ever having properly sampled the goods. Inevitably, some series devotees stand proud and mount spirited defenses when attacked; others simply bite their tongues, knowing full well no argument, no matter how impassioned, will convert the unconverted. But here's the thing: dig into any cartoon junkie's Top Five and the same criticism can be leveled at almost any animated show. Old or new, well-known classic or obscure oddity. Venture Bros. and Adventure Time are no more random than a show about four underage, shuriken-slinging, skateboarding reptiles with a taste for pizza and a penchant for '80s slang; no more out there than SpongeBob SquarePants and its pineapple under the sea, Transformers and its clunky, chunky robots, Scooby-Doo and its talking, crime-solving dog, Looney Tunes and its anthropomorphic antics or Tom and Jerry and its mouse-house mayhem.
When did we all lose our minds, grow old and crotchety, and forget we're dealing with cartoons? If one isn't for you, find another. If everything Cartoon Network releases gets under your skin, maybe it isn't the style, the humor, the writing, the show or the channel you're on. Maybe you're just getting too old for cartoons, or at least cartoons that aren't fueled by childhood nostalgia. Or maybe, juuuust maybe, you aren't the target audience. Maybe the fact that Venture Bros. and Adventure Time have healthy audiences annoys you to no end, and for no good reason other than it means you're not a card-carrying member of a particular club. After all, if there's one thing the internet hates, it's someone who find joy in something someone else doesn't. Me? I'm a fan of both. I'll take The Venture Bros. and Adventure Time over a variety of other animated series, some with sizeable fanbases. But I'm also not afraid to say, "You know what? I just don't get such-n-such series. It's not for me. But I'm happy you love it. Moving on." So give cool, calm and collected a try. Scratch Venture Bros. and Adventure Time off your stress list. Or here's a thought: actually take the time to try each show. Watch more than a single episode. See what all the fuss is about. You might be surprised how quickly they grow on you...
"The most secluded island in Greece... Spanakos! You might say I had my first solo adventure there!"
The Venture Bros.' fifth season and Adventure Time's third season Blu-ray releases feature reliably and commendably encoded 1080p/VC-1 video presentations that share similar strengths and weaknesses. And fortunately, the good far outweighs the not so good. Both excel in color, contrast and clarity, with bright, punchy palettes, vibrant primaries, inky black levels and crisp-to-a-fault line art. Hardly a scene goes by that wouldn't make its creators proud, and each BD edition blows its DVD counterpart out of the water in terms of power, proficiency and raw visual oomph. What few issues there are trace back to each series' animated source. The Venture Bros. exhibits instances of obvious banding (keep your eyes glued to the night skies and darkest interiors for the worst of it), slight intermittent aliasing and some softness. Again, though, the animation, not the encode, appears to be the culprit, and fans will have no problem shrugging off most every eyesore. All told, the show's high definition presentation delivers.
Where as Adventure Time hobbles into view with a lowly Dolby Digital stereo mix, The Venture Bros: The Fifth Season stands tall and proud with a solid -- albeit somewhat flat -- Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround track. The series' sound design leaves a lot to be desired, especially when action isn't unfurling or chaos isn't erupting, but so goes the show. Dialogue is clean and clear at all times, sound effects have decent kick, and LFE output is reasonably brawny, with several deep, defining booms and thooms in its arsenal. Rear speaker activity is rather sparse and erratic, meaning immersion isn't priority one. But a few, fun directional flashbangs make up for it, at least in part. Will Venture's audio track impress? Not quite. Will it satisfy? Yep, so long as your expectations aren't set too high.
Fans will find The Venture Bros.' fifth season and Adventure Time's third season Blu-ray releases are well worth picking up. Are they perfect? Nah, but then neither is either series. The shows' latest seasons are funny, though, and those who've been with the Ventures or Jake and Finn from the beginning will have a blast with each crew's newest adventures. The Fifth Season also happens to feature striking video, solid Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround and a generous supplemental package (at least in terms of audio commentaries). Good enough to add to your collection? You bet.
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