Wednesday: Season 1 [Blu-Ray]

Cast: Jenna Ortega, Gwendoline Christie, Jamie McShane

Release Date: March 26, 2024

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Disc Rating: 6.5/10

Synopsis:

“Wednesday” is a sleuthing, supernaturally infused mystery charting Wednesday Addams’ years as a student at Nevermore Academy. Wednesday’s attempts to master her emerging psychic ability, thwart a monstrous killing spree that has terrorized the local town and solve the supernatural mystery that embroiled her parents 25 years ago — all while navigating her new and very tangled relationships at Nevermore.

Please Note: Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Post. The opinions I share are my own.

The debut season of ‘Wednesday’ focuses on Wednesday Addams as she is expelled from a public school after trying to enact revenge on a group of teens who humiliated her brother, causing her to be transferred to Nevermore Academy, a school dedicated to outcasts, and where her parents thrived, met and fell in love. Initially unwilling to give the new school so much as a chance, Wednesday slowly begins to embrace the curious Academy after she discovers a set of brutal murders occurring nearby and can’t help but investigate, especially when she uncovers unexpected tidbits about her parents’ time there. Refusing to adhere to the rules of the school and the law, Wednesday joins forces with some unlikely others and her loyal friend Thing as she dives entirely into the mystery, regardless of any consequences that it might result in.

‘Wednesday’ hails from series creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, with talented filmmaker Tim Burton taking on directorial duties for the first half of the season. Leading the series is Jenna Ortega who absolutely shines in the titular role as Wednesday Addams, with an altogether solid supporting cast that includes Gwendoline Christie, Jamie McShane, Hunter Doohan, Percy Hynes, Emma Myers and Joy Sunday. The season also features a handful of noteworthy guest stars such as Catherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzmán, Isaac Ordonez and Fred Armisen who each contribute positively to the fun and mayhem of this original and thoroughly entertaining series based upon the beloved Addams Family characters.

Season 1 of ‘Wednesday’ offers viewers a slightly different and grimmer take on the beloved Addams Family characters and more specifically Wednesday Addams as it chronicles the early days of her time at Nevermore Academy where she goes from unenthusiastic new student to determined mystery solver. While Wednesday is the unequivocal focus of the series (something that shouldn’t be at all surprising given the series name) it still features most of the family members in guest roles, while also repeatedly paying homage to the legacy of the characters, both with the tone and of course Wednesday’s unique attitude and bleak outlook, along with other little nods such as a secret entrance requiring two snaps for admittance.

The series never gets aggressively dark or gruesome, although that’s not to say there aren’t plenty of dark moments and some bloody sequences throughout; with the series finding a fitting balance between adult and teen series that works splendidly. Jenna Ortega might have just been born to play the role of Wednesday and she absolutely shines in the lead, offering a relatable, yet equally offbeat and disinterested vibe that perfectly captures the roots of the Addams’ daughter. Longtime fans of the property such as me will surely appreciate how faithful to the origins it manages to be without constantly forcing the references and nods down your throat, all while providing a smart little murder mystery at its core and the end result is a remarkably smart, beautifully crafted and thoroughly entertaining ride that’s absolutely worth taking.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and MGM bring home ‘Wednesday: Season 1’ on Blu-ray, featuring all eight episodes from the debut season sporting largely solid high definition video presentations on each, complemented by enjoyable and fully capable 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtracks, spread between two discs for optimum quality. While no extras are included in the release, dedicated fans of the series which debuted on Netflix in late 2022 who would like to physically own the show’s debut season should be largely pleased with what the release has to offer quality wise; even if it may not be the most outstanding Blu-ray release of a series season to ever grace the format, it holds up quite well throughout and maintains solid video and audio presentations for each episode. If you’re already considering a purchase, then this one is certainly recommended.

VIDEO:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Wednesday: Season 1’ features a full 1080p High Definition presentation with the show’s original 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio on all of the debut season’s episodes. The video presentations look very good as a whole and deliver sharp, clean and nicely detailed presentations from start to finish on every episode of the season which do a nice job of capturing the gloomy tone and style of the series throughout. Crisp detail and clarity is visible on character faces and clothing, along with the expansive forest and other outdoor settings, in addition to the interiors and exteriors of the school and the nearby town, with only a few minor examples of banding and other occasional artifacts visible here and there, but never in a manner that’s overpowering or troublesome. Overall, these are very nice High Definition video presentations that do their job well for the most part and should please fans of the series as well as newcomers.

AUDIO:

The Blu-ray release features a 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on all 8 Season One episodes. These multichannel soundtracks offer clean, crisp and frequently immersive audio presentations throughout that make a tremendous complement to the onscreen fun and excitement. They repeatedly utilize all five available channels in order to send music, along with some creature and nature effects, bits of chatter and more whipping throughout the various speakers quite regularly, while never causing any dialogue or other simultaneously occurring audio elements to become distorted or rendered problematic in the process. Overall, these are great 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtracks that deliver splendidly throughout and shouldn’t disappoint.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Wednesday: Season 1’ does not include any bonus content.

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray and resized. They will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on this Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Disc Rating: 6.5/10

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‘Wednesday: Season 1’ is Now Available to Own on Blu-ray & DVD from Netflix, MGM & Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment

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You can Purchase your copy of the ‘Wednesday: Season 1’ Blu-ray on Amazon HERE!

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