WHV Announcement: Band of Brothers (Blu-ray) (1 Viewer)

[ManW_TheUncool]

Ooooh! I preordered mine from WHV also. Hadn't watched my DVD set in a long time (largely because I lent it out to family). Hope to receive it real soon then.

_Man_

 

[JoshB]

I just bought mine last night (actually early this a.m. from Wal Mart).

I will have to say...fans of the film and of BD will be impressed...they did very well with this release. The tin packaging is the same as the previous DVD set.

First off, the image quality is greatly improved at least to my eyes and having seen the series in both HDTV and DVD several times. It is much crisper, far more detailed, and the colors (what color there is, given the filmmaking techniques) are much more vivid.

Granted, this would be like trying to review SPR for for PQ since the source material and cinematography makes it slightly harder to judge. but in many scenes, it is easy to see that this is a stunnign trasfer. I would say it ranks as among the top 5 I have seen on the format so far.

audiop wise, I didnt detect a huge difference compared to the previous DTS track...it is still a strong mix. Likely more power on the low end and the surrounds, particuarily in the battle scenes (I only sampled the first two episodes in parts so far) but there is improvement over the previous DVD.

Extras appear to be the same, although the usual BD content related extras and menus are there. I actually like these menus a little better than the last...

My recommendation..if you havent bought before and own a BD player, this is a must have. If you own the previous release and can spare $60 (which given the month we have had so far with releases that might be difficult) then I would say at the very least rent it to see for yourself if it is worth the upgrade.

I plan to watch a few episodes tonight in honor of Vet's Day...

 

[Travis Brashear]

Can someone please clarify, since I won't be able to for several days--does the Blu-ray retain the "Who's Who: The Men of Easy Company" (a feature that would help the viewer identify each of the primary characters in the series) and the photo gallery? These are the only two features on the SD-DVD release wherein I can't find verification whether or not they've been migrated over to the new BD release.

 

[Felix Martinez]

Alas, it was not a selling point. The Blu-ray set has indeed been "remastered" via some grain-reduction, to a degree which I'm sure will be further debated.

Edit: Xylon just posted some screencaps which confirms what I'm seeing. This is not a replay of Patton, but folks bothered by the DNR used in Pan's Labyrinth and Dark City might be similarly peeved. I'm just frustrated HBO couldn't leave well enough alone.

 

[David Wilkins]

This is one of several titles that I couldn't imagine grain reduction being applied to, since grain was such an inherent, intentional "look" of the work. I was wrong.

I'm officially sorry that I pre-ordered.

In addition, unless I'm imagining things...the color is rather over-pumped. Another aspect of the original "look", was a subdued color pallet, as with 'Saving Private Ryan'.

I will NOT pre-order any of the latter half of Speilberg's work, since enhanced grain is part of the intent. Such as 'Saving Private Ryan', 'Minority Report', "War of the Worlds', etc. These titles and others, will be an absolute travesty if the grain is interfered with.

Aunt Mildred and Uncle Remus will adapt...I, and many, many others who know better, will not. Ever.

 

[Dave Mack]

I watched "Saving Private Ryan" in HD on TNT (or TBS) last week, (genuine HD, not that 4:3 stretch-o-vision thing they sometimes do) and it looks like they TOTALLY smoothed ALL the purposeful grain out. Like vaseline was smeared over it. VERY disappointing. I guess HD MUST equal "pretty pictures" to many still. Hopefully that will just be a broadcast master and not the sign of things to come. With Spielberg's input we SHOULD be ok as that is a VERY high profile title...

 

[Felix Martinez]

As I continue to watch episodes, the grain reduction seems to come and go and appears to have been applied with some discretion. For example, much of the grain in the "Crossroads" episode appears intact.

Overall, I'm still happy with the set when taking everything into account. I think most will be pleased.

 

[Edwin-S]

Is it a noticeable improvement over the DVD set? They want 80 bucks, not including tax, for the set at my local FutureShop. I really don't want to have to buy this set for a third time.

 

[RickER]

I ordered it from Deep Discount for $44, after the 25% code. Course its back ordered. Still, not a bad price, and the only reason i got it!
Of course i love the show, and the audio on DVD blew me away. Bet the Blu-ray will rock the house!

 

[Felix Martinez]

Big time difference over the DVD. But if you say you bought the DVD and have the HD-DVD and this would be your third purchase, I would say hold onto the HD-DVD.

 

[Robert Crawford]

There is no HD DVD. I think it looks and sounds great so far.





Crawdaddy

 

[Felix Martinez]

No domestic HD-DVD, but I thought the OP had the Japanese import and that this (the Blu-ray) would be his third purchase.

Without question, for the 99.99% that don't have the import, the Blu-ray set as a whole is wonderful. But could have been better, visually, without the totally unnecessary grain reduction.

 

[Southpaw]

There was an HD DVD release of BoB in Japan. It cost upwards of $200 to import it so not many own it.

I took a look at Xylon's pics and while I do see some grain reduction in the BD version compared to HD DVD, it does not look waxy at all. To me, it's subtle. On the other hand, a couple of still shots don't always tell the whole story.
Anyway, I bought it and I'm glad I did.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I do not think you will have much of a wait, Rick. It was back ordered when I placed my order on Tuesday, too (paid $41.14 after the 25% code), and I received a shipping notice on Friday.

 

[RickER]

Thanks Scott, seems everything i wanted was on back order. I ordered way to much stuff anyway. I think $41.xx is what i paid too. Thats a great price, how can you go wrong!

 

[Felix Martinez]

Also, I have to double check this, but on numerous instances throughout the first 4 episodes so far, the audio sounds much more enveloping, with greater sidewall imaging than the DTS track on the DVD set.

Now, I haven't spun the DVD set in about a year, but I've seen the entire BoB cycle on DVD 3 times over two years, and the audio really stood out on the Blu as I've been watching it these past few days. I do not have lossless DTS on my receiver, so I'm assuming I'm getting the core DTS stream with the Blu, which should be comparable to the DVD track...?

 

[David Wilkins]

Felix,

You're absolutely right about the audio. There were times when I nearly flinched or ducked.

After doing a mini-marathon, I agree with you, in that the DNR isn't applied heavily across the board. The first episode had me stewing, but upon a larger viewing, I've backed off my initial wholesale condemnation. Don't get me wrong...I still think HBO needs a spanking, but I can live with this, especially for the low price, until the set is revisited. I think most of these early titles will be, at some point, but I'm not holding my breath.

As with most all of the DVD releases during the first two or three years, there is a learning curve, both technical and practical. Don't forget that most of those early releases are disgusting by current standards.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I ordered more than I planned on, too. While much of it was back ordered, only two items have yet to ship. At those savings, though, I can afford to be very patient.

 

[Loregnum]

I am disappointed that they decided to use DNR on the Japanese hd-dvd transfer which (from what I have read and the screencaps I have seen) was fine to begin with but it does seem like the DNR isn't "too" bad so I will probably pick this up down the line. Plus, I do not wish to go and drop a bundle on the hd-dvd set.

It really is annoying when these companies do this though since it seems to take more work/effort to screw a perfectly good transfer up than to leave it alone.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Besides the DNR concern, I do wish I had not preordered from WHV just because it's substantially cheaper from the DDD sale now. And now that the good coupons seem dead for WHV plus they've hiked their regular prices, there goes the last incentive to preorder from them.

Anyway, glad to hear the DNR jobbies are not quite as bad as originally thought. I still haven't had time to spin my set yet though. Can hardly wait...

_Man_