Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Released more than a full decade after Wonder Woman (2009) -- which was only the fourth entry in DC's ongoing line of animated original movies -- and two years after the mega-popular live-action movie, Sam Liu and Justin Copeland's Wonder Woman: Bloodlines finds Amazonian princess Diana back in action. This brisk 83-minute adventure begins with her rescue of Air Force captain Steven Trevor after his plane crashes near her hidden island of Themyscira, where she treats his life-threatening injuries with a healing ray. Imprisoned at the command of Diana's mother Queen Hippolyta, Steve is desperate to warn the American government of a potential invasion. Diana sympathizes with his plight and, against her mother's wishes, breaks him out of prison and leaves the island. Their destination? "Man's World."

Warner Bros.' separate 4K edition of Wonder Woman: Bloodlines offers a tangible boost to that disc's already-great 1080p presentation, but every other aspect of this release -- audio, bonus features, and even packaging -- remains essentially the same. Regardless, die-hard Wonder Woman and DCAU fans will likely consider this to be a worthwhile upgrade, as it offers the best possible presentation of this largely enjoyable animated advendure.

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Like all previous DCAU 4K releases, Wonder Woman: Bloodlines is upscaled and not a true representation of native 4K content. Still, the format's much higher storage space, combined with the obvious benefits of HDR color enhancement, yield a smoother and more refined image overall. Costume designs and backgrounds fare extremely well here, as do some of the more fantastic effects: colors pop nicely but are not prone to bleeding, while contrast levels are likewise increased in darker areas. Banding and slight compression artifacts are also less noticeable on this disc, likely a result of its much higher bit rate -- a quick look at the 4K output showed that many scenes spiked over 100 Mbps, or almost triple that of the Blu-ray. While trace amounts of banding were still visible in certain cases (very harsh gradients -- no surprise there), it's quite possible that this is baked into the source material -- as are a few mind instances of aliasing in select backgrounds, which were mentioned in my Blu-ray review along with an accompanying screenshot.

While the native resolution and visual style of Wonder Woman: Bloodlines does not yield a significant boost in the 4K disc's overall image detail, the 2160p transfer's smoother appearance makes for a pleasing and consistent viewing experience. More immediately noticeable are those compression improvements and effective use of HDR which are, in my opinion, even better reasons for die-hard fans to seek out this release. The character designs and compositions on display are quite strong with great use of color, and this 4K disc makes the most of that source material.

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For a breakdown of the audio presentation, please see my review of the Blu-ray. Please note the different subtitles and foreign dub options on the 4K disc, which differ from that release and are listed above.

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Like its Blu-ray counterpart, this two-disc release (one 4K disc, one Blu-ray) is packaged in a dual-hubbed keepcase with attractive cover art, a matching slipcover, and a Digital Copy redemption code. All extras listed below are included on the Blu-ray disc only. For a full breakdown of these extras, please refer to my separate review of that release.

• DC Showcase: Death (19:08)

• The Cheetah: Ferocious Archenemy (10:50)

• Sneak Peek - Superman: Red Son (11:21)

• Preview - Justice League vs. Teen Titans (11:31)

• Preview - Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (7:48)

• Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2 episodes, 22:46 each)

• Trailers

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Despite my lack of familiarity with its titular heroine, Wonder Woman: Bloodlines is a perfectly accessible and wholly entertaining adventure that stands as one of DC's best animated productions this year. There's plenty of great action and drama to tie the story together, while the film's excellent visual design and artful compositions -- not to mention its terrific sound mix -- will keep your eyes and ears happy along the way. Despite a few needless supporting characters and other small speed bumps, it's an overall solid production that fans will really enjoy. Warner Bros.' 4K package is a capable effort, offering a terrific visual presentation along with outstanding DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio and decent bonus features that are identical to its Blu-ray counterpart. Still, this 4K release is for die-hard fans only.