The Walking Dead: The Complete Third Season [Blu-Ray]

Release Date: Now Available on Blu-Ray & DVD

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Disc Rating: 10/10

Plot Summary:

Police officer Rick Grimes leads a group of survivors in a world overrun by zombies.

*Warning: This review contains spoilers for Seasons 1-3 of ‘The Walking Dead’

While I have heard some folks speak repeatedly about how disappointed they were with this season, I don’t believe it to be the general consensus at all, and I personally thought this was the best season of the show yet. I find that ‘The Walking Dead’ is one of the few shows that continue to improve each season as it continues to build its foundations deeper and we truly get to know, love and hurt for these characters as we join them on their journey. While I will not go into detail in regard to characters who are killed off in the season (as I feel that’s an unfairly heavy spoiler to divulge here) this is one series that never fails to surprise us when it comes to who will die next. They have kept some elements of the comics intact regarding character deaths, while at other times altering it completely and killing off characters that are still around in the comics to this day. This is a creative, intense, and incredibly emotional show that truly delves into the remainder of humanity as the world around crumbles away from the civilization that it once thrived as and watches them try to hold on to what makes them human.

Season Three of ‘The Walking Dead’ begins following the groups departure of the farm in the end of season two, and finds the group coming upon a prison that appears to be mostly deserted aside from the walkers surrounding it.  They come to the conclusion that if they can simply remove the walker element from the interior of the prison, that they would be much safer in a place such as this than they would be on the open road, so they decide to take it. The season focuses not only on the group we know, but another community down the road a ways, run by a madman who calls himself The Governor (portrayed brilliantly by David Morrisey) which a strayed member of the group and her sword wielding new friend along with her zombie pets come across and are brought into. Things are of course not what they seem, and soon they must decide if they want to remain here, or get out and warn their friends of the very possible threat that this community could be to them.

Season Three of ‘The Walking Dead’ is an all out, intense, emotional and just overall extremely entertaining good time that should keep fans on the edge of their seat throughout. For those fans (like me) that are watching the season for the second time on Blu-Ray, let me assure you that it certainly holds up well on repeat viewings. The Blu-Ray release features a full 1080p High Definition video presentation, Dolby TrueHD 7.1 uncompressed multichannel surround sound, and an array of special features which you can read more about below and will without question be a title that all fans will want to add to their collection.

VIDEO:

The video on the Blu-Ray release of ‘The Walking Dead: The Complete Third Season’ is a full 1080p High Definition presentation utilizing the show’s original 1.78:1 Aspect Ratio and it looks truly phenomenal. The difference between the High Definition television broadcast on AMC and the Blu-Ray is like night and day. Everything is smooth, sharp and incredibly detailed. Fans of the series will certainly be more than pleased with the impressive video presentation included on this Third Season release.

AUDIO:

The Blu-Ray release features an uncompressed English 7.1 channel Dolby TrueHD soundtrack. Yes, I said 7.1 and that was not a typo. Let me start by saying that I personally found the uncompressed 7.1 Dolby TrueHD soundtrack to be the most notable part of this release. When the action scenes get into gear, you can hear bullets and explosions surrounding you in every possible direction, and all of the timing and placement is spot on. The soundtrack certainly kept a grin pasted on my face during the more action oriented sequences and the subtle drips and creaks in the quieter moments also help immensely in maintaining a truly creepy and unsettling vibe throughout. Audiophiles and Walking Dead fans out there will be in awe at this truly impressive soundtrack, which I’d have to say is almost certainly the most impressive TV Blu-Ray soundtrack I’ve heard all year.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Blu-Ray release features a nice chunk of special features. The features on the release include: Audio Commentaries on five episodes, Deleted scenes on six episodes, and a whole array of various featurettes. This is a very nice little collection of features that should keep most of you busy for a good while following the completion of viewing the season in this truly breathtaking video & audio transfer of all 16 episodes.

Disc Rating: 10/10

‘The Walking Dead: The Complete Third Season’ is now available to own on Blu-Ray & DVD from Anchor Bay Entertainment.