The Show
A little bit Buffy, a little bit Night Stalker, and tipping its cap to The X-Files, Supernatural is a weekly horror series ultimately like no other. In Supernatural: The Complete First Season, we meet The Winchester Family, brothers Sam and Dean who, following the bizarre death of their mother 22 years ago, have taken to amateur demon hunting to protect the innocent and hopefully track down the evil force responsible for their own loss. Sam (Jared Padalecki) has left that all behind and is about to turn a corner in his life. Poised to become a star law student, Same gets a visit from Dean (Jensen Ackles) bringing news of the sudden disappearance of their father -- the man who taught them everything they know. Dad (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) was on a hunt, and so the boys aim to pick up his trail before it's too late.
Along the way they stare down a bunch of lore and local legends, starting with The Disappearing Hitchhiker. The Winchesters' consummate evil-busting cool and also the series-wide story arc help the show transcend what could otherwise easily devolve into a trite monster-of-the-week formula. Their journey leads to discoveries and reunions and confrontations of biblical import, along with plenty of laughs and family bonding.
The Picture
Seasons One thru Three were shot on 35mm film, and the results here are quite good for TV on Blu-ray. Dimly-lit and misty scenes--which comprise most of the series--are generally solid, blacks look natural with fine details in some shots, although the image can lean toward the soft, and out-of-focus areas of the 1.78:1 frame can show noise. Special effects are usually brief but of excellent quality.
The Sound
The audio is mere Dolby Digital 5.1, and a bit timid at that. There's a little surround fill, some modest directionality for cars driving past, discrete front-channel placement of doors closing off-camera, etc. As often happens, music is the big winner here, both the original score and remixed classic tunes which are big, full and engaging. Otherwise the sound is decidedly front-heavy, although scary/action scenes are mixed bigger, busier and louder overall.
The Extras
All of the bonus material from the DVD set of Season One is ported over here, and then some. Audio commentaries are supplied for the "Pilot" episode by series creator Eric Kripke, director David Nutter and producer Peter Johnson, plus "Phantom Traveler" by stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles. These two hunky dudes are also the focus of the amusing "Day in the Life of Jared and Jensen" (ten-and-a-half minutes). "Supernatural: Tales from the Edge of Darkness" is a broader 23-minute overview, while deleted scenes from eight assorted episodes run 21 minutes total.
"Supernatural at the Museum of Television & Radio's Paley Television Festival" (73 minutes), recorded in March of 2006, was previously available only as a Best Buy-exclusive bonus disc, so that's a nice treat for the rest of us. The eight-minute Gag Reel is also good for a chuckle. All of this video value-added content is in VC-1, an HD format, but at a low bitrate and extremely soft, more akin to SD.
New for Blu is "The Devil's Road Map: Interactive Map Guide to Season One's Urban Legends and Unusual Facts," chock full of new creator interviews, show clips and more, in an elaborate navigate-and-click interface. It covers every episode, and also allows us to follow the same route taken by The Winchesters. A tremendous amount of work went into this, right down to the virtual thumbtacks to indicate that we've already viewed something. And upgraded from the old DVD-ROM weblink is shiny new BD-Live connectivity on Disc Four.
Final Thoughts
It's great to see Warner going and back and reissuing classic seasons of series like Supernatural on Blu-ray. Brandon DuHamel reviewed Season Three, and that leaves Season Two as the only set either unannounced or unreleased on high-def disc. The First Season quickly reveals the reasons for show's popularity (Season Six begins this fall), I only wish that the audio had been upgraded along with everything else.
Product Details
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