Thor: Tales of Asgard Blu-ray/DVD Combo Review (1 Viewer)

[Timothy E]

 

THOR: TALES OF ASGARD Blu-ray

Studio: Lionsgate

Year: 2009

Rated: Not Rated

Film Length: 1 hour, 18 minutes

Aspect Ratio: 1080p High Definition Widescreen (1.78:1)

Audio: English 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio

Subtitles: English SDH

Release Date: May 17, 2011

The Movie

Thor Tales of Asgard is the most recent direct-to-video animated feature released by Marvel Animation through Lionsgate. This film is a prequel of sorts to the live action feature that was released recently in theaters. This animated feature was apparently produced in 2009 and held back for release to tie in with the film directed by Kenneth Branagh.

In this film, Thor is a young warrior already in defiance of his father, Odin. This Thor is a spoiled young man given greater deference and respect from the community in Asgard than he has earned on his merits. Like young Jedi knights everywhere, Thor longs for adventure and finds it in a quest for the legendary Sword of Surtur. Obviously, this version of the legend draws from the same sources and ideas as many other classical and modern day myths.

Thor Tales of Asgard is produced by many of the creative talents behind The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes animated series. Fans of the character will be pleased to see that Loki, Sif, and the Warriors Three also appear in this film. This film seems in many respects like an extended version of an episode from that series but without the remaining Avengers.

Video

The movie is in 1080p high definition in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The color palette is pleasing to the eye. There are no compression artifacts apparent. This is part of a combo pack which includes a DVD of the film in addition to the Blu-ray. The DVD was not examined as part of this review.

Audio

The English 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio tracks make fine use of all speakers. This is not a reference quality mix but it also does not have any perceptible flaws.

Special Features

The special features include all of the following:

Audio Commentary 1: The first of 2 commentaries is provided by supervising producer Craig Kyle and Screenwriter Greg Johnson. The second commentary includes supervising producer Gary Hartle, animation director Sam Liu, and character designer Phil Bourassa.

Worth: The Making of Thor: Tales of Asgard(22:04): Production crew are interviewed regarding making the movie along with some footage from the film itself.

The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes(23:10): This bonus episode is entitled "The Mighty Thor."

Trailers(6:10): Trailers for Hulk Vs., The Next Avengers, and Ultimate Avengers 2. These trailers also show automatically at the beginning of the disc. As stated earlier, a DVD is also included as part of this combo pack.

Conclusion

Thor: Tales of Asgard is a moderately entertaining prequel of sorts to the live action film starring Chris Hemsworth. Video and audio quality may not be exceptional but have no obvious flaws either. The special features are as comprehensive as one might hope for, so there is much to explore if the main feature catches your fancy. Ultimately, Thor: Tales of Asgard is recommended to fans of the comics but may be of limited appeal to larger audiences who have made the live action film one of the highest grossing theatrical films of the year to date. 

 

[Jason_V]

Based on the relative quality of the other Marvel animated features, I'm waiting for Thor to hit $9 at Wal-Mart. No way it's worth more than that at under 90 minutes and a relatively unimpressive-looking list of extras. At least the DC movies include multiple docs and more than one episode of a related television series.