The Walking Dead Season 3 Blu-ray Review

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After the incident at Hershel’s Farm, the group is moving from place to place scavenging what they can whenever they can. The now nomadic group starts to lose hope as they try to find a place to settle on a long-term basis. That’s when they stumble upon the prison…a place made to keep people in but can the group be sure to keep people out?

Season 3 has picked up the pace incredibly from the previous one and the show’s new direction is welcomed with open arms. AMC has taken the amazing monthly comic book of the same name and turned it into a huge TV success. There are 16 episodes in this season and it was broadcasted in 2 stand-alone halves: a fall and a spring season. It really is an incredible series pulling from horror, drama, and action genres. But what the show accomplished is bringing zombies more mainstream and jump starting a fixation with the undead.

Like with most entertainment from page to screen, some of the characters and stories have changed due to a need keep things rolling as well as maintain interest. Also, the actors that have been cast are, for the most part, spot on in the translation. The talent involved have done a commendable job to help keep true to the story.

The Cast
Andrew Lincoln – Rick Grimes
Sarah Wayne Callies – Lori Grimes
Laurie Holden – Andrea
Norman Reedus – Daryl Dixon
Steven Yeun – Glenn Rhee
Lauren Cohan – Maggie Greene
Chandler Riggs- Carl Grimes
Danai Gurira – Michonne
Michael Rooker – Merle Dixon
David Morrissey -The Governor
Melissa McBride – Carol Peletier
Scott Wilson – Hershel Greene

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The 1080p AVC transfer is amazing. It’s highly detailed images and sharp picture captures every piece of grit on them from the survivors as well as their tattered look. The coloring is never really bright and it maintains the drab or worn out look that is a perfect and natural look for the series. Also, I was floored by the close ups of the zombies with their dead eyes, old blood stains, and torn appendages. Another thing to note is the blacks are solid with excellent contrasting that look very good, especially in the low lighting of some of the scenes. Also maintained in the transfer, there is an accurate amount of grain that’s intended and wasn’t lost encoding it to blu-ray. The only thing to even nitpick about is there is some very minimal crushing in some scenes but they’re so few and far between that it never takes away from the viewing experience.

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Like the video transfer, the audio mix is incredible. Encoded in Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the highs are clear and the bass is thunderous. The sound is never overdriven or feeling too loud but more with pin that range if being perfect. Every channel is constantly being used with the ambient sounds of the wilderness in the south and the echoes in the prison. With that being said, the walkers sound like they’re shuffling behind you because there is distinct movement from one side of the theater to the other. This season also feels like it has the most usage of firearms and each weapon has a distinct, separate sound. I’m very impressed because at times some studio movies don’t put the time and care into making a release as good as this is.

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The release is loaded with extras and it takes the fans deeper into this world. The featurettes are just the right length to keep each segment interesting. All bonus features are in HD.

Supplements
-Audio Commentaries:
Director Guy Ferland and Actor Iron E Singleton for the episode “Killer Within”

Director/Co-Executive Producer/Special Effects Make-Up Artist Greg Nicotero and Actor Danai Gurira for the episode “Say the Word”

Executive Producer/Writer Robert Kirkman, Executive Producers David Alpert and Gale Anne Hurd, and Actor Danai Gurira for the episode “Made to Suffer”

Executive Producer Gale Anne Hurd and Actor Danai Gurira for the episode “The Suicide King”

Director/Co-Executive Producer/Special Effects Make-Up Artist Greg Nicotero and Actor Michael Rooker for episode “This Sorrowful Life”

-Rising Son (6:47): this a look at casting Chandler Riggs as Carl Grimes and how his story is told in season 3.

-Evil Eye (7:54): the new character named “The Governor” played by David Morrissey is dissected, showing Woodbury and its dark underground.

-Gone, But Not Forgotten (8:14): this featurette examines the death of a major character this season and how the cast reacted on and off screen.

-Heart of a Warrior (8:25): this featurette examines the introduction of Michonne and Danai Gurira’s performance of the amazing character.

-Michonne vs. The Governor (5:13): this featurette goes over one of the seasons biggest conflicts between Michonne and the Governor including a pivotal scene with both of them.

-Safety Behind Bars (9:44): this has a few interviews with the cast and crew about shooting on the prison set and what it took to construct it.

-Making the Dead (8:06): this featurette discusses what it takes to put the details into both the living and the dead.

-Guts and Glory (7:42): this feature discuses some of the other deaths of characters this season.

-Deleted Scenes: Scenes from episodes “Walk With Me,” “Say the Word,” “Hounded,” “Home,” “I Ain’t No Judas,” and “Clear.”

Edition Ratings
TV 14

Disc Details
Slipcover comes in the original pressing
5 disc set
Also comes in a limited edition aquarium set created by McFarlane toys.

Video Resolution
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1

Audio
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1
French: Dolby Digital 2.0

Subtitles
English SDH, Spanish

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The Walking Dead has kept the longtime fans and attracted new ones, turning it in to a phenomena of its own. It may not follow the comic book exactly but does an incredible job of translating the existing story and bringing them to screen. As for the blu-ray, they have managed to make an exquisite release with near perfect picture and amazing sound. I highly recommend picking it up in either the regular blu-ray or Limited Edition, you won’t be disappointed.

Order your regular edition copy of from Amazon

Order your Limited Edition copy from Amazon

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About the author

MEDIA JOURNALIST | Michael is a fanatic about all both cinema old and new. He collects anything from 1:6 Scale, 1:12 Scale, and vinyl Collectibles plus Slipcovers and Steelbooks. He loves pop culture, writing, reviewing films & collectibles, and journalism. An avid Batman, The Joker and anything comics junkie, he will also chat it up about pretty much anything. Go ahead and ask...