Timothy E
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The Limited Edition of the fifth Season of The Walking Dead is released immediately following the midseason finale of the 6th season of The Walking Dead on November 29, 2015. The Limited Edition comes packaged in a fold-out digipack which can be stored in the "Asphalt Walker" case designed by McFarlane Toys. The intricately sculpted plastic walker lying forward menacingly on the "asphalt" sits on a flat plastic frame that slides aside to open the plastic box in which the Season 5 Blu-ray set may be stored in its digipack.
Season 5 of The Walking Dead resumes with our group held captives in Terminus, a town that they hoped would provide sanctuary but ended up being something else. The fifth season sees the characters we know depart in different directions, some living, some not, bringing some of them back to Atlanta and others to a more benign sanctuary in Virginia.
Studio: Anchor Bay
Distributed By: N/A
Video Resolution and Encode: 1080P/AVC
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: English 7.1 Dolby TrueHD, French 2.0 DD
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Rating: Not Rated
Run Time: 11 Hr. 50 Min.
Package Includes: Blu-ray, UltraViolet
DigipackDisc Type: BD50 (dual layer)
Region: A
Release Date: 12/01/2015
MSRP: $134.99
The Production Rating: 4/5
Rick Grimes and his group found themselves trapped by other humans in a train car in Terminus at the end of season 4 of The Walking Dead. As season 5 begins, they find their way out with unexpected assistance. Our survivors separate for much of the season, with some obtaining sanctuary in a church with Father Gabriel(Seth Gilliam) and others finding themselves back in Atlanta living in a virtual police state among humans still living there. A safe haven in Alexandria, Virginia, also presents itself while some of the survivors are still seeking to travel to Washington, D.C., in search of a possible cure to the plague of walkers.
The splintering and separation of the group of survivors in season 5 creates some dramatic opportunities for character interaction, particularly with Daryl and Carol, since many viewers want to see romance develop between those characters. The story arc of this season shows us several different ways that groups of survivors can organize themselves following the breakdown of civilization as we know it. One community has turned to cannibalism, while another one is a virtual police state. Perhaps the most ideal one is in Virginia, but our survivors find it difficult to blend into that community, which may be because they have started to lose their humanity, or it may be that the residents of the community have lost sight of priorities. The fascinating aspect of this is that the series creators seem to leave it to the viewers to develop their own judgments about the righteousness or wrong-headedness of these characters' choices.
All 16 episodes of season 5 are included in this set as follows:
No Sanctuary(43:37)
Strangers(42:59)
Four Walls and a Roof(43:08)
Slabtown(42:54)
Self Help(42:51)
Consumed(42:49)
Crossed(42:53)
Coda(42:56)
What Happened and What's Going On(42:59)
Them(42:56)
The Distance(42:59)
Remember(42:57)
Forget(42:50)
Spend(42:57)
Try(42:58)
Conquer(1:04:34)
Video Rating: 4.5/5 3D Rating: NA
Season 5 of The Walking Dead appears on Blu-Ray in 1080p in its original 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The series is created on Super 16 mm film and then printed up to 35 mm for transfer. As with the prior seasons, this process results in a very film-like grain structure that preserves a relatively high level of fine detail. The film grain and fine detail are infinitely more perceptible on this blu-ray release than were visible in HD broadcasts. The result on this fifth season Blu-ray set is a sublime video presentation that surpasses the quality of the original HD broadcast presentation.
Audio Rating: 4.5/5
The English Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio is excellent. Ambient sounds are used extremely well in the mix to create the sonic illusion of modern civilization retreating from the encroachment of mother nature. Dialogue. music, and sound effects are mixed well in the sound mix with very nice directional audio at times to create a true illusion of immersion in this dysfunctional but fascinating world.
Special Features Rating: 4.5/5
All 16 episodes from the fifth season are included in this 5-disc set.
The most special feature unique to this limited edition set is the "Asphalt Walker" packaging depicting a menacing walker crawling forward. There are other body parts, including a spine, visible on the flat asphalt. This macabre packaging is perfect for The Walking Dead fan who wants to decorate a bookshelf or home media center with a scary artifact.
The first four discs have 4 episodes to each disc with disc 5 having all of the special features, other than the episode commentaries specific to each episode.
The following episodes have audio commentaries:
No Sanctuary: Writer/executive producer Scott M. Gimple and Executive Producer Gale Ann Hurd.
No Sanctuary: Executive producer/director Greg Nicotero and actor Melissa McBride.
Self Help: Actors Steven Yeun, Lauren Cohan, Michael Cudlitz, Josh McDermitt, Christian Serratos, and Alanna Masterson.
What Happened and What's Going On: Executive producer Greg Nicotero and actor Chad L. Coleman.
Them: Director Julius Ramsay and actors Norman Reedus and Sonequa Martin-Green.
Remember: Executive producers Greg Nicotero and Tom Luse and actor Danai Gurira.
Conquer: Executive producers Greg Nicotero and Scott M. Gimple.
Disc 1 also has the following brief trailers preceding the main menu: Comic Book Men(0:32), Fear The Walking Dead(0:18), The Walking Dead(0:06), and Into The Badlands(0:15).
Disc 5 has the special features divided into categories of Featurettes and Deleted Scenes.
Featurettes
Inside The Walking Dead: There is a brief featurette for every episode featuring cast and crew discussing the particular episode.
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 501: No Sanctuary(5:56)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 502: Strangers(5:24)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 503: Four Walls and a Roof(4:54)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 504: Slabtown(4:18)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 505: Self Help(4:43)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 506: Consumed(5:27)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 507: Crossed(4:52)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 508: Coda(5:45)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 509: What Happened and What's Going On(3:57)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 510: Them(4:22)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 511: The Distance(4:30)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 512: Remember(4:15)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 513: Forget(4:44)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 514: Spend(3:08)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 515: Try(5:09)
Inside The Walking Dead - Inside Episode 516: Conquer(5:29)
The Making of The Walking Dead: There is a featurette covering every episode of season 5 of The Walking Dead.
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 501: No Sanctuary(5:38)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 502: Strangers(4:39)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode503: Four Walls and a Roof(5:10)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 504: Slabtown(3:36)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 505: Self Help(3:52)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 506: Consumed(4:42)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 507: Crossed(4:17)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 508: Coda(2:54)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 509: What Happened and What's Going On(4:27)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 510: Them(3:44)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 511: The Distance(3:30)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 512: Remember(3:12)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 513: Forget(1:53)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 514: Spend(2:56)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 515: Try(2:47)
The Making of The Walking Dead - Episode 516: Conquer(2:52)
The Making of Alexandria(9:45): Featurette shows behind the scenes on in "Alexandria."
Beth's Journey(4:20): Cast and crew discuss Beth's character arc in season 5.
Bob's Journey(4:54): Cast and crew talk about developments for Bob's character during this season.
Noah's Journey(4:26): Actor Tyler James Williams(Noah) talks, along with other case and crew, about his character's background and motivations.
Tyreese's Journey(6:52): Cast and crew talk about Tyreese's personality and character background.
A Day In The Life of Michael Cudlitz(7:58): Cameras follow the actor who plays Abraham behind the scenes for a day.
A Day In The Life of Josh McDermitt(7:56) Cameras follow the actor who plays Eugene for a day behind the scenes on set.
Rotters In The Flesh(4:35): This featurette highlights the characters' return to Atlanta and the producers' efforts to show how the walkers have deteriorated during that time.
Deleted Scenes
Deleted Scenes are presented for the following episodes:
Four Walls and a Roof(2:14)
Crossed(3:16)
Coda(1:58)
Remember(2:16)
Forget(1:39)
Spend(4:35)
Also included in the packaging is a paper insert for digital HD with Ultraviolet which promises that you can "Watch It Anywhere!"
Overall Rating: 4/5
Season 5 of The Walking Dead is highly recommended for anyone who has enjoyed the prior seasons to date. The separation of the cast of characters may lead long-time viewers to miss the interactions among the cast members, but the travails of the respective characters through different environments mixes up the dynamics sufficiently to keep things interesting without becoming too predictable.
The video and audio presentation are excellent as always and up to the high standards of previous season set releases. The special features are certainly worthwhile viewing, even for fans who have already seen all of the episodes in this set. The Walking Dead Season 5 Limited Edition is recommended as a Christmas or birthday present for the Walker fan who has everything as we wait for the end of the 6th season midseason hiatus before the second half of the current season resumes on February 14, 2015.
Reviewed By: Timothy E
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