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REVIEW: Friends: The Complete Series 4K Blu-ray

In spring 1994, I was reading a series of articles in The New York Times about pilots for the forthcoming TV series, and they profiled a series featuring six twnetysomethings trying to adjust to adulthood. It sounded promising so my wife and I sampled the NBC series the following September.

And Friends has been running somewhere on television ever since. It is now 30 years old and to celebrate, Warner Home Entertainment recently released Friends: The Complete Series, debuting on 4k Ultra HD for the first time. Every episode is included along with a variety of bonus features making this an ideal addition to your video library.

What’s interesting about the series today is how it has endured despite aspects no longer appearing as fresh. The creators, David Crane and Marta Kauffman, cleverly found six types that could bounce off one another with heart and humor. With director James Burrows handling the pilot, all the elements from the first episode were there and remained in place for the next decade.

Largely set in two adjacent apartments in Manhattan, and their favorite coffeeshop, the six worked to live with running gags about their jobs (or not having jobs). They never seemed to worry about paying the rent or utilities, so their struggles were more about relationships—finding them or keeping them. They loved and lost, laughed and cried, and turned to one another for support. Over the course of ten seasons, we saw two couples form, one long-simmering and filled with pathos, while the other unexpected and funny. By the time they turned the lights out in an hour-long finale, they had become part of the national dialogue.

The show endures because the character relationships feel real and their affection for one another is evident from when Monica’s friend Rachel turns up in her wedding dress, having run away from her wedding and is immediately adopted by the others.

Wisley, the showrunners, plotted out the character arcs for each season well before writing and filming began, serving the characters first, then the gags. This may be one of the reasons why it is among the series I continually find my high schoolers watching via streaming.

The series has 23 triple-layered 4K discs and two dual-layered Blu-rays for the special features. They’re tidily packaged in a nice plastic case that fits snugly on the shelf. The 2160p transfers, framed at 1.78:1, look just fine, and as you remember, the series back in the CRT days. That said, the color is oddly saturated throughout and look just a wee bit off, enough to nag at veteran fans.

The 4K discs come complete with a fine DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio, serving the dialogue and music just swell.

The Special Features are mostly taken from previous Blu-ray and DVD editions of the seasons such as the audio commentaries with executive producers Kevin S. Bright, Marta Kauffman and David Crane.

On the first bonus disc, we get a new Friends: Through the Peephole (15:18), hosted by Warner Bros. archivist Matt Truex, examining some of the 2,000 props and costumes. There is also the less interesting trivia contest How Well Do You Know Your Friends? (6:37).

Each season carries over the other Blu-ray extras such as trailers, music videos, shorts spotlighting the series’ international appeal and other topics.

The second disc contains extras imported from seasons 6-10, so we have gag reels, Gunther’s chats about each subsequent season, and various Friends appearances on talk shows plus the Extended Broadcast Episodes – “The One Where Rosita Dies,” “The One Where They All Turn Thirty,” “The One with Joey’s New Brain” and “The One with the Truth About London.”

I suppose the Max reunion special should be here, but it isn’t, which is a shame. Overall, though, it’s nice to have the entire series in one place, so you can watch at your leisure and not worry about the show vanishing from your favorite streaming service or cable channel. As promised in the catchy title song, one of the last to chart on top 40 radio, they’ll be there for you.

Black Is the Color by Julia Gfrörer

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I often find I’m thinking about or focused on the wrong things in the books I’m reading – that I need to specifically tell myself to ignore something so I can move on.

For example in Julia Gfrörer’s short, dark, creepy 2013 graphic novel Black Is the Color , the story opens on a wooden ship, far out in the ocean, several hundred years ago. One of the leaders – not the captain, maybe the first mate or owner – tells two sailors that they are, unfortunately, running lower on provisions than expected. So he’s going to kick the two of them off the ship, into a small open boat, to die in the middle of the sea.

And my first thought was: was that a thing? I’ve heard of crews going on half-rations, or even less – stretching their food farther and farther. And I know that a merchant ship, which this one appears to be, had a small, tight crew to begin with – especially compared to a warship, which would be swarming with gunhands and marines and others. So it didn’t quite make sense that they could or would just kill two of a very limited crew at the first sign of trouble.

But that’s how Gfrörer gets to the story she wants to tell: this is about two men, in that open boat, and what happens to them. So the setup almost doesn’t matter: it’s plausible, it’s quick, it gets them out there, under a baking sun, with no food or water.

And then the mermaids come out to investigate.

Black is the story of one of those two men: Warren. He lasts longer. He’s…befriended? made a pet? visited? by a mermaid, Eulalia. We see him alone in the boat, slowly dying. We see him with her, being comforted or having sex or being a new object of interest. We see her down in the depths, among her people, callous and self-centered and flighty. We see that she and all her people view humans as amusing distractions, as entertainment – interesting in the moment, maybe, but nothing more important or significant than that.

Gfrörer’s art is detailed and organic, her lines dark black and usually thin, her borders in this six-panel grid just slightly irregular, her people with sharp defined faces, her seas a mass of lines rippling and undulating, endlessly. This is a book that’s black in multiple ways: story, theme, characters, often visually. Black is the color here.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

Bad Boys: Ride or Die Arrives on Disc Next Week

SYNOPSIS
The world’s favorite Bad Boys are back with their iconic mix of edge-of-your-seat action and outrageous comedy, but this time with a twist: Miami’s finest are now on the run. When Captain Howard is unjustly accused of a lifetime of drug-related crimes, the Bad Boys vow to clear his name.

SPECIAL FEATURES
4K UHD and Blu-ray™ Exclusive Bonus Features:
Outtakes & Bloopers
Deleted Scenes
Also includes:
Will & Martin Chemistry, Legacy & Laughs
The Bruckheimer Legacy: Crafting Bad Boys & Beyond
Fights, Camera, Action
Partners in Crime
DVD Exclusive Bonus Features:
Will & Martin Chemistry, Legacy & Laughs
The Bruckheimer Legacy: Crafting Bad Boys & Beyond
Fights, Camera, Action
Partners in Crime
PLUS AN ALL-NEW POST CREDIT SCENE

4K, Blu-ray™ & DVD include a digital code for movie and bonus materials as listed above, redeemable via Movies Anywhere for a limited time. Movies Anywhere is open to U.S. residents age 13+. Visit MoviesAnywhere.com for terms and conditions.

CAST AND CREW
Directed by: Adil & Bilall
Written by: Chris Bremner and Will Beall
Produced by: Jerry Bruckheimer, Will Smith, Chad Oman, Doug Belgrad
Executive Producers: Barry Waldman, Mike Stenson, James Lassiter, Jon Mone, Chris Bremner,
Martin Lawrence
Cast: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Nuñez, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffudd, Melanie Liburd, Tasha Smith, with Tiffany Haddish and Joe Pantoliano

SPECS
Run Time: Approx. 101 minutes
Rating: PG for action/peril and mild thematic elements.

Run Time: Approx. 115 minutes
Rating: R for strong violence, language throughout, and some sexual references. Under 17 requires an accompanying parent or adult guardian
4K UHD: 2160p Ultra High Definition / 2.39:1 • Audio: English Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible), English French (Doublé au Québec), Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English & French (Doublé au Québec) • Audio Description Tracks 5.1 Dolby Digital • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish • Color
Blu-ray™: 1080p High Definition / 2.39:1 • Audio: English, French (Doublé au Québec) 5.1 DTS-HD MA, Spanish, English & French (Doublé au Québec) Audio Description Tracks 5.1 Dolby Digital • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish • Mastered in High Definition • Approx. 115 Mins. • Color
DVD: 2.39:1 Anamorphic Widescreen • Audio: English, French (Doublé au Québec), Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, English & French (Doublé au Québec) Audio Description Tracks Stereo • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish • Color

Elektra Earns Red-Banded Mini-Series

New York, NY— September 18, 2024 — Elektra’s the deadliest assassin in the Marvel Universe, and this January, her vicious talents will be on full display in DAREDEVIL: UNLEASH HELL – RED BAND! The five-issue limited series will be written by Erica Schultz, continuing her work on the character after hit titles like Daredevil: Gang War and Daredevil: Woman Without Fear. Joining her on this blood-soaked saga will be artist Valentina Pinti (Blade, Immortal Thor).

DAREDEVIL: UNLEASH HELL – RED BAND is the latest Marvel Red Band comic series, following the likes of Blood Hunt, Blade: Red Band, Werewolf by Night, and Wolverine: Revenge. Labeled with a Parental Advisory and polybagged to keep those faint of heart for experiencing its intensity, the series allows Elektra to unleash unrestricted bloodshed against her targets as she continues to protect the streets of Hell’s Kitchen as the Woman Without Fear!

MURDER IS AN ART!                                                                

The violence and the occult swirling across the Marvel Universe find their way to Hell’s Kitchen! As grisly crime scenes start manifesting across the city, all signs point to an impossible perpetrator! Estranged from Matt Murdock, it’s up to Elektra to get to the grisly truth, if she can stomach it!

“It’s been such a pleasure to continue writing Elektra, especially donning the horns,” Schultz shared. “In this new series, we have the opportunity to show that just because she doesn’t kill doesn’t mean she won’t make you wish she had. Elektra has been known for her brutality, and we’ll see that on display here. Also, with a Red Band rating, that means we can get real nasty with stuff. Don’t know what I mean? You will. Valentina Pinti and I are very excited to show you this new direction.”

At Last! The West Wing Debuts on Blu-Ray

BURBANK, CA (September 17, 2024) – Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment will be releasing The West Wing: The Complete Series for the first time ever on Blu-ray in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the critically acclaimed series. Get ready to binge all 156 episodes from NBC/WBTV’sEmmy® Award-winning original series, along with hours of special features, including over 20 commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurettes, unaired scenes, gag reels, and more. The brilliant political drama, following an extraordinarily intimate look at an American President and the inner workings of the White House, will be available to own on Blu-ray on October 1. Pre-order your copy today.

Created by Aaron Sorkin, who executive produced with Thomas Schlamme and John Wells, The West Wing stars Rob Lowe, Dulé Hill, Allison Janney, Janel Moloney, Richard Schiff, John Spencer, Bradley Whitford, and Martin Sheen. The series was produced by John Wells Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.

The West Wing, which originally aired on NBC from 1999 to 2006, garnered widespread acclaim with three Golden Globe Awards, two Peabody Awards, and 26 Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Drama Series for four consecutive seasons (2000-2003). This year, the groundbreaking series celebrates its 25th anniversary.

SYNOPSIS:

Widely considered one of the best series of all time, The West Wing remains a landmark achievement in television, earning 26 Emmys, including four for Outstanding Drama Series. With its sharp writing and memorable ensemble cast, the show continues to inspire audiences with its intimate look at the triumphs, sacrifices, and inner politics of the White House.

Series information:

The West Wing: The Complete Series

Includes all 156 episodes from all seven seasons on 28 discs, plus over 20 commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurettes, unaired scenes, gag reels, and more

PRODUCT
Blu-ray                             
Audio: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Running Time: 6,716 minutes
Not Rated

The Crow now on VOD

SANTA MONICA, CA (September 10, 2024) – Fall into a new world when The Crow arrives on Premium Video, on Demand, and Premium Electronic Sell-Through on September 13 from Lionsgate. Based on the iconic graphic novel, The Crow tells the dark love story of Eric and Shelly, and the lengths one will go to for someone they love. Directed by Rupert Sanders (Snow White and the Huntsman, Ghost in the Shell), The Crow stars Bill Skarsgård (It), FKA twigs (award-winning singer-songwriter), and Danny Huston (The Constant Gardener).
 
Bill Skarsgård takes on the iconic role of THE CROW in this modern reimagining of the original graphic novel by James O’Barr. Soulmates Eric (Skarsgård) and Shelly (FKA Twigs) are brutally murdered when the demons of her dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right.
 
Learn more about Bill Skarsgård becoming The Crow, building the environment, designing the costumes, and other behind-the-scenes special features with this talented cast and crew, available on participating platforms.
 
On September 13, The Crow will be available to buy for $24.99 and to rent for $19.99 (for a 48-hour period) on participating digital platforms from which movies are purchased, including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, Fandango at Home, and more.
 
Based on the comic book series & comic strip by James O’Barr. Screenplay by Zach Baylin and William Schneider. Directed by Rupert Sanders.
CAST:
Bill Skarsgård                It, Barbarian, John Wick: Chapter 4
FKA twigs                      Singer-Songwriter
Danny Huston               The Constant Gardener, 21 Grams, Children of Men
Josette Simon               Wonder Woman, Pokémon: Detective Pikachu
Laura Birn                     Void, A Walk Among the Tombstones, Purge
Sami Bouajila                The Siege, The Adventures of Felix, A Son
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The Cat from the Kimono by Nancy Peña

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This graphic novel says it’s based on a folktale, and I have no reason to doubt that. Whether it’s an ancient, well-known folktale or one made up by creator Nancy Peña to fit the story she wants to tell…there I do wonder a bit.

It’s such a wonderfully visual story, one perfectly aligned with Peña’s illustrative, pattern-filled pages. It’s open-ended, with a clear beginning that turns into multiple possibilities – which also feeds the style she uses to tell this story, switching from storybook-style big images with captions for the pure folktale into comics-style grids (mostly three tiers) with speech balloons for the complications, the portions that are clearly and entirely Peña’s.

It doesn’t really matter whether she found a folktale she could adapt so well or made it up, but it does make me think about the creative impulse, and wonder which of the two it was.

The Cat from the Kimono  was published in 2020 in France – Peña is French; she works in that language – and translated into English by Montana Kane for this 2023 edition.

The legend goes that, sometime long ago in Japan – I would guess after unification, during the Edo period, but time is rarely specific in folktales – there was a beautiful young woman, the daughter of the owner of a silk mill. The best weaver in the mill was in love with her; she did not reciprocate. He made her various beautiful kimonos to show his love; she only loved the very first one he made, printed all over with cats. He got angry; things went bad, somewhat supernaturally, on the kimonos. And one cat from that first kimono ran off the silk and out into the real world.

This is the story of that cat’s adventures – perhaps somewhat later in time, perhaps meant to be right after running away. Again: folktales don’t say “and then, three days later, on the fifth of March” or anything like that.

In Peña’s story, the cat stowed away on a ship and made its way to London, where he weaved through the stories of a few Victorian-era people – a girl named Alice, a brilliant consulting detective, and a few less-obvious characters. Peña tells her story in alternating sections – first the folktale, then some comics pages, then usually a blackout page, and back to the folktale. Sometimes we get multiple comics scenes, with one set of characters and then another, and sometimes we just get one group, and then back to the folktale.

Peña tells the main folktale in full at the beginning – up to the cat running away. When she returns to it, it’s for a series of variations and questions: where could the cat have gone? what are the versions of the story? how many endings does this story have? And she closes with the folktale as well, giving – in that very fabulistic manner – mostly questions and options, before ending with a slender thread of “well, there is one version of the story that says thus.”

Peña’s folktale pages are lush and ornate; her comics pages are precise and detailed. She moves from one format into the other effortlessly, back and forth, to tell one story in both modes. Cat from the Kimono is a wonderful expansion of a fable, no matter its origins.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

Marvel Introduces the New Champions

New York, NY— September 17, 2024 — This January, writer Steve Foxe (Spider-Woman, Timeslide) and artist Ivan Fiorelli (Daredevil: Woman Without Fear, Timeslide) team up to reinvent what it means to be a teen hero in the Marvel Universe in NEW CHAMPIONS!

Last year, fans were introduced to all-new heroes inspired by Marvel icons in the hit New Champions Variant cover series. Since then, readers have been eager for them to make their in-universe debuts, and after a few popped up in various titles over the last few months, they’ll explode onto the page in their very own ongoing series.

The group begins with Liberty, Hellrune, Moon Squire, and Cadet Marvel but will expand quickly over the first arc of the series as more New Champions answer the call! But not all are destined to be heroes and some have dark connections to established Marvel lore that could spell disaster for the fledging team before they can get off the ground. Each New Champion has a story to tell, and together, they have a world to change! Mystery, action, and drama await as Marvel Comics’ next beloved teen superhero team assembles!

WHO ARE THE NEW CHAMPIONS?

What do four kids whose lives were derailed by Hydra, Scarlet Witch’s mysterious protégé, a cursed roller derby jammer, and a Wakandan runaway have in common? Not much! But when Hellrune’s mysterious powers activate to bring them together, they’ll have to learn how to work as a team quickly—or face the wrath of the Cult of Hela!

“As soon as I saw the New Champions variants, my mind started racing, dreaming up possible origins, powers, and codenames for these imagined sidekicks,” Foxe explained. “Reverse-engineering the cast from the covers was unlike any other creative process I’ve ever been involved in, and I’m beyond stoked to debut a whole new class of Marvel heroes (and a few villains!) in NEW CHAMPIONS alongside Ivan Fiorelli, who makes each and every one of these new additions feel like they’ve been part of the fabric of the universe all along.”

“I’m really looking forward to diving into New Champions!” Fiorelli said. “What really excites me about this project is the opportunity to bring fresh faces into the Marvel Universe and explore something completely new. These young heroes have their own stories to tell, and I’m looking forward to seeing how they’ll grow and evolve visually as the series unfolds. I hope readers will enjoy reading our pages as much as I will enjoy illustrating them!”

“I’ve been dying to write a teen hero team my whole career—it’s the time in everyone’s life when we’re figuring out who we really are, and adding Norse magic or jet-powered punches or accidental hell portals to that search for identity is a recipe for storytelling gold,” Foxe added.

REVIEW: SuperFriends: The Complete Collection

From 1973-1985, two generations of Saturday morning television were raised on the exploits of DC Comics’ stellar array of heroes on ABC’s Super Friends. While the exact title changed through the years, the Hanna-Barbera series continued to display heroes and heroines as models of truth, justice, and the American Way. There are many who, having grown up on the show, revere it. Others, those of us outgrowing that weekend ritual, found it a pale comparison to the four0-cloro source material.

I admit, I had a disdain for the series, what with its limited animation and prohibition against the good guys subduing the bad guys with their fists. As a result, you must be a fan of a certain age to find the arrival of the Super Friends complete series DVD box set a welcome treat.

There were 93 actual episodes over the dozen years, and it was a launch pad for The New Scooby-Doo Movies. Over the years, the core superheroes supported one another as they tackled terrestrial and inter-dimensional threats in the form of invading aliens and unearthed creatures.

Initially, Wendy and Marvin (and Wonder Dog) supported them for audience identification purposes, but they were quickly replaced by the teen aliens Zan and Jayna, and their pet monkey, Gleek, who had powers. They gave us the cry, “Wonder Twin powers, activate!” which caught on decades after the show ended.

Picking up where the Filmation DC cartoons left off, Ted Knight provided the initial bombastic narration, replaced by Bill Woodson. Much of the Filmation voice talent moved to the Hall of Justice. They were accomplished by the stellar array of voice artists from the day, from Frank Welker to Casey Kasem. We even got Adam West back as Batman for a season.

Most Saturday morning animated action was hamstrung by parent groups and overly worried networks, inhibiting the among of imitative action that could be depicted. You can watch the strictures loosen as we get to the end of the 1970s. By the 1980s, the series fully embraced the source material as the Legion of Doom as supplanted by the arrival of Darkseid and his Apokoliptian emissaries. (Of course, that supported the Kenner Super Powers action figures, but don’t tell ABC)

In the 1978–1979 season, we had your typical adventure coupled with Challenge of the Superfriends, introducing the Legion of Doom (Bizarro, Black Manta, Brainiac, Captain Cold, Cheetah, Giganta, Gorilla Grodd, Solomon Grundy, Lex Luthor, The Riddler, The Scarecrow, Sinestro,  and Toyman). We were also introduced to multicultural heroic additions: Black Vulcan, Apache Chief, and Samurai.

Building on the newspaper comic strip of a similar name, the series morphed into The World’s Greatest SuperFriends. Another original character, El Dorado, was introduced in 1980. These newer heroes could also be found in the E. Nelson Bridwell and Ramona Fradon Super Friends comic. After a year off, the series was back as SuperFriends: The Legendary Super Powers Show with a limited number of familiar heroes and villains.

The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians incarnation arrived in 1985, with Cyborg and Firestorm now in the mix. On the opposing side, we were introduced to The Joker, The Penguin, the Royal Flush Gang, and Felix Faust. This season produced its finest episode, the first televised origin for Batman.

Watching these all these years later, you can occasionally wince but also feel the same thrill kids must have felt seeing their favorite heroes band together. The episodes look fine on a DVD (a Blu-ray edition also exists).

The episodes stand alone, without any Special Features.

REVIEW: Succession: The Complete Series

Across 39 episodes, HBO’s Succession deftly explored familial dysfunction and corporate malfeasance, drawing inspiration from numerous sources, notably the Murdoch empire and its aging patriarch, Rupert. But the show went beyond that with side trips into egotism, child rearing, negotiating communication post-divorce, and the consequences of decisions, both those made and those avoided. As a result, it earned 75 Emmy nominations and 19 wins, raising the bar of television achievement.

For those who missed out, the entire series is now available in Succession: The Complete Series. You can revel in the strong performances of a wonderful ensemble, one that earned a Screen Actos Guild award for their combined work.

Where previous dramas about the ultra-wealthy dwelt in soap opera antics, here, the stakes were far more serious as the fortunes and control of Waystar RoyCo hung in the balance. Logan Roy (Brian Cox) was slow to adapt to changing fortunes but wasn’t ready to give it all up and enjoy retirement, so instead, he played one child against the other for the title of successor, as much for his amusement as to audition them for the job.

The problem was that the siblings in contention—Roman (Kieran Culkin), Kendall (Jeremy Strong), and Shiv (Sarah Snook)—wanted the chair but lacked the strong vision to keep the company viable. And what vision they offered was usually myopic or overly ambitious. As they bickered and maneuvered, Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård) came, representing the future and existential threat to the company’s survival.

Apart from the family, we also saw the obsequious inner circle, each allying or betraying one of the siblings to remain relevant, out of fear their cushy way of life might vanish. Add in wives, ex-wives, girlfriends, friends, and acquaintances you have a rich bouillabaisse to work from.

More was said between the lines than most shows that had aired previously. Kendall, in particular, couldn’t string together  a coherent paragraph but managed to convey his thoughts regardless. The writing for the series was excellent, and Strong’ s performance effectively communicated the unsaid.

Some of the best scenes are when the three siblings unite. Their teasing and torturing felt natural, and they melded well together. Their casual dismissal of their half-brother Connor (Alan Ruck), who deliriously considered a run for president.

These episodes were dramatic and, at times, over-the-top until the final decision had to be made, as Shiv needed to choose between her brothers for the center seat. Ultimately, her choice was a harsh truth but also served her well, given her uneasy relationship with her husband Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen).

This is eminently rewatchable, as subsequent viewings let you catch foreshadowing while still delighting in the performances.

The 1080p high-definition transfer is crisp and well-balanced, so it looks great at home. It is well paired with the DVD lossy Dolby Digital track, the 5.1 DTS-HD MA

Unfortunately, all we get for Special Features are previously aired Inside the episode Featurettes, Character Recaps, and Cast and Crew Interviews.

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