HEROES Season 1
DVD Review by David Blackwell
DETAILS: (23 episodes on 7 discs), audio commentaries, deleted scenes, unaired extended pilot, featurettes
VIDEO: 1.78:1 (anamorphic Widescreen)
AUDIO: English 5.1 Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
STUDIO: Universal/ NBC
RELEASE DATE: 8-28-2007
DISC 1- GENESIS/ DON'T LOOK BACK
DISC 2- ONE GIANT LEAP/ COLLISION/ HIROS/ BETTER HALVES
DISC 3- NOTHING TO HIDE/ SEVEN MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT/ HOMECOMING/ SIX MONTHS AGO
DISC 4- FALLOUT/ GODSEND/ THE FIX/ DISTRACTIONS
DISC 5- RUN!/ UNEXPECTED/ PARASITE/ COMPANY MAN
DISC 6- .07%/ FIVE YEARS GONE/ THE HARD PART/LANDSLIDE
DISC 7- HOW TO STOP AN EXPLODING MAN, featurettes
HEROES is one of those shows that capture the audience. It's instant buzz creates a fanbase just like LOST or THE X-FILES.
It is the show that creates characters that people fall in love with or love to hate: the cheerleader who can't recover from
any injury, the cop who can read thoughts, the politician who can fly, his brother who can asorb powers, the stripper trying
to make ends meet as a single mom (who also has a split personality), the Japanese office worker who can bend time and space,
the comic book artist who can see the future, the scientist who wants tyo finish his father's work, and the company man (who
want to protect his daughter aka the cheerleader). HEROES made superpowered people gorounded by presnting them with ordinary
situations in addition to the extreme circumstances they find themselves in. They must band together to stop New York City
from being destroyed a month from now.
HEROES captivated me. It is one of the few shows that want me to watch the next episode now instead of waiting next week
for it. The bad guys are chilling and the discovery of superpowers is a journey I enjoyed taking with the characters. Each
character makes their decisions on what they must do (even if the choice is wrong). Great guest stars like Eric Roberts, Richard
Roundtree, Christopher Eccelston, and George Takei appear during the first volume of HEROES (aka season one). I loved the
characters of Hiro (the Japanese man), Claire (the cheerleader, and the company man the best. I just wonder what creator
Tim Kring has cooked up for season 2 which starts this week.
SPECIAL FEATURES: Audio commentaries (with cats and crew) have been recorded for several episodes including the unaired
72 minute version of the pilot episode. Many episodes have one or more deleted scenes. The big extra is the 72 unaired
pilot. It shows plotlines that were dropped or altered as HEROES was shaped into what it is now. It is intriguing to see
how HEROES could have wnet if they stuck to the 72 minute pilot instead of reshaping a couple of elements to two other characters
and changing another character (and introduce him in another epiosde).
The featurettes are on disc 7. They range from 9 to 11 minutes each. Many featurettes show behind-the-scenes footage from
episodes early and late into the season:
THE MAKING OF HEROES- promo fluff piece. interviews with cats and crew.
THE SPECIAL EFFECTS- A look at a few of the special effects in HEROES.
THE STUNTS- The stunt coordinator gives an inside look at the stuntwork of HEROES.
PROFILE ON ARTIST TIME SALE- a look at the comic book artist behind the paintings of future events that Isaac creates in
the series and a look at the set of Isaac's studio apartment.
THE SCORE- The two composers of HEROES show how they creat music for each episode of the show. About 30 minutes of music
is done for each episode and thhey are provided notes on where the music starts (and stops) during the episode.
FINAL ANALYSIS: HEROES Season 1 provies an experience for any new or old fan. Plenty of extras, but I do wish they would
offer more a behind-the-scenes look in the way of more featurettes.
this DVD review is (c)9-23-2007 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. send all comments to lord_pragmagtic@hotmail.com
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