DVD Review Chicago P.D. Season 1 DVD Review (1 Viewer)

Chicago P.D. Season 1 DVD Review

Chicago P.D.: Season 1 books its first season onto DVD with this set, which became available last week. This slick, shallow police drama has sprung from the matrix of Chicago Fire, embracing the same formula of an attractive cast and gritty Chicago locations. The 5-disc collection presents all 15 episodes in anamorphic picture and 5.1 sound, along with a couple of episodes of the parent series. Like the parent series, this is more of a soap opera than a serious drama of any depth, but the series does try to give the characters a few rough edges here and there. Fans of the latest wave of Dick Wolf dramas will undoubtedly want to give this a try. Casual viewers are better advised to try watching the new episodes when they premiere on September 24.

Studio: Universal

Distributed By: N/A

Video Resolution and Encode: 480P/MPEG-2

Aspect Ratio:

Audio: English 5.1 DD

Subtitles: English SDH

Rating: Not Rated

Run Time: 11 Hrs. 21 Min.

Package Includes: DVD

Disc Type: DVD-9 (dual layer)

Region: 1

Release Date: 09/02/2014

MSRP: $44.98

The Production Rating: 2/5

Chicago P.D.: Season 1 is, sadly, another exercise in slick, attractive soap opera material being presented in lieu of serious drama. The hardest part about watching the show is knowing the talent pool involved with it. Starting at the top with Dick Wolf and Matt Olmstead, you already have writer producers with a combined track record of Law & Order and NYPD Blue. Add to that the presence of executive producer/director Mark Tinker (St. Elsewhere, NYPD Blue, Deadwood) and you have some serious street cred, as it were. Add to that the lead performance of Jason Beghe, whose blunt, raspy delivery suggests a diamond in the rough, and you have the potential for a really interesting police drama. And yet, this series simply squanders all of those resources – opting instead for easy soap opera theatrics and fairly ordinary material. If anything, this is a sad marker of just how far regular network television drama has fallen in the past ten years. Where in this series is a character with the memorability of an Andy Sipowitz or a Belker or a Frank Pembleton? Why is it that the only places we see such characters now are on HBO, Netflix or AMC? It’s frankly quite frustrating to see a series with this level of potential simply content itself to achieve the ordinary. On the other hand, it’s quite well produced and delivered, and for viewers looking for a simple distraction without much depth to it, this will be a safe, 1970s-style police soap opera that won’t push them out of their comfort zone. As an added bit of irony, the real Chicago location used for the exterior of the police precinct here is actually the same building seen 30 years ago in the opening titles for Hill Street Blues…

The DVD set includes all 15 episodes of the 1^st season in anamorphic picture and 5.1 sound, along with a pair of episodes of Chicago Fire as a bonus.

Video Rating: 3.5/5 3D Rating: NA

Chicago P.D.: Season 1 is presented in an anamorphic 1.78 transfer that shows off a clear picture and accurate flesh tones. As always, this is a perfectly acceptable standard definition presentation of the series, matching or exceeding how viewers without HD reception will have seen the show.

Audio Rating: 3.5/5

Chicago Fire: Season 1 is presented in an English Dolby Digital 5.1 mix that has some surround presence during the bigger sequences, as well as for the music. The mix certainly is clear and the dialogue is easy to understand.

Special Features Rating: 1/5

DISC BY DISC:
As I regularly do with TV series sets, I will describe what can be found on each disc, in order.

There are chapters to each episode, but they are not in any menu, so you wind up needing to jump through the episode blindly to get back to a specific point.




DISC ONE:

Episodes:

Stepping Stone – This is the first episode of the series. The primary character was previously introduced during the first season of Chicago Fire.

Wrong Side of the Bars

Chin Check

Now is Always Temporary



Disc One includes the following Special Features:

Chicago Fire: Professional Courtesy (43:28) – This is the first season episode of the parent series that introduces Jason Beghe’s character, Hank Voight.

Previews – Here is a collection of anamorphic previews for other television series available on DVD from Universal: Parenthood, Friday Night Lights, Grimm, Covert Affairs, psych, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Suits and Dracula.



DISC TWO:

Episodes:

Thirty Balloons

Conventions

The Price We Pay

Different Mistakes

A Material Witness




DISC THREE:

Episodes:

At Least It’s Justice

Turn the Light Off

A Dark Day (Chicago Fire Crossover event pt 1). This is the Chicago Fire side of the crossover event. The cast list is so long that the credits actually start as soon as the episode begins, without any teaser. Technically, this is a Special Feature for this Disc, but in reality, we’re just seeing the first half of the story.

8:30 PM (Chicago Fire Crossover event pt 2). This is the Chicago P.D. side of the crossover event.





DISC FOUR:

Episodes:

My Way

The Docks

A Beautiful Friendship

Overall Rating: 2/5

Chicago P.D.: Season 1 is collects the first season of the NBC spinoff drama. The picture and sound are good, and there’s a couple of bonus episodes of Chicago Fire to serve as special features. I can’t recommend this as a serious drama, but it can serve as light soap opera entertainment if you don’t dig too deep. Fans of the show will want to pick this up as the second season gets underway (starting September 24). More casual viewers may want to watch an episode or two on the air before committing to a full year on disc.

Reviewed By: Kevin EK

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