Batman: Year One appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.78:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Expect a high-quality image.
Sharpness worked well. Hardly a sliver of softness interfered, so we wound up with a tight, precise presentation.
No instances of shimmering and jaggies appeared, and I noticed no edge haloes. Source flaws remained absent.
Year One came with a subdued semi-sepia palette, which is what I would expect from a Batman story. Nonetheless, the colors were fine, as all seemed full and clear within design choices.
Blacks were dark and deep, while shadows became smooth and concise. Everything about the picture satisfied.
In addition, the DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Year One opened up the comic book material well. This wasn’t a tremendously ambitious piece, but it added pizzazz to the program.
The forward channels brought out the majority of the material. Music presented strong stereo imaging, while effects cropped up in logical spots and blended well.
The surrounds also contributed good information. For the most part, these reinforced the forward channels, but they also contributed a fair amount of unique material.
These instances mainly occurred during bigger action scenes and some weather-related elements. The back speakers brought out a nice sense of space and environment.
Audio quality always satisfied. Speech was warm and natural, without edginess or other issues.
Music sounded lively and full, while effects displayed good definition. Those elements seemed accurate and dynamic. All of this led to a positive presentation that deserved a “B+”.
How did the Blu-ray compare to the DVD version? The BD’s lossless audio showed stronger range and clarity.
Visuals demonstrated a nice upgrade, as the BD seemed better defined. It also showed superior colors and blacks to become an obvious step up in quality.
The Blu-ray replicates the DVD’s extras and adds others, and we start with an audio commentary from co-director Sam Liu, casting director Andrea Romano, DC Creative Director Mike Carlin and co-producer Alan Burnett. All four sit together for a running, screen-specific look at story/characters, cast and performances, art and animation.
Of the participants, Romano proves most informative, as she gets into aspects of her work well. Overall, however, the commentary lacks a lot of insights, as it gives us basics, praise and not much more.
DC Showcase: Catwoman offers a 14-minute, 50-second animated short. itshows Catwoman (voiced by Eliza Dushku) as she goes after a diamond smuggling thug named Rough Cut (John DiMaggio). It’s not a deep story, but it packs a lot of good action and turns into a fun piece.
Three previews follow. We get these for Justice League: Doom (10:17), All-Star Superman (10:47) and Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (11:38).
Across these, we hear from a mix of personnel. Doom provides remarks from co-producer Alan Burnett, executive producer Bruce Timm, voice director Andrea Romano, director Lauren Montgomery, lead character designer Phil Bourassa, storyboard artist Mel Zwyer, and actors Tim Daly, Susan Eisenberg, Carlos Alazraqui, Carl Lumbly, Nathan Fillion, and Michael Rosenbaum.
Superman provides comments from Romano, Timm, director Sam Liu, DCE SVP Creative Affairs Gregory Noveck, and actors James Denton, Anthony LaPaglia, and Christina Hendricks.
Finally, Knights features Burnett, Montgomery, Romano, Timm, Fillion, DC Comics co-publisher Dan DiDio, animation director Jay Oliva, and actor Henry Rollins.
All three exist as little more than promotion, and they’re fairly effective in that regard. Nonetheless, they remain long ads, so don’t expect more from them.
Next we find a featurette called Heart of Vengeance: Returning Batman to His Roots. In this 23-minute, 25-second program, we hear from Alan Burnett, Detective Comics writer Greg Rucka, writer/former editor Denny O’Neil, Dark Knight Rises executive producer Michael Uslan, Detective Comics writer/former editor Len Wein, and DC Entertainment Creative Director Mike Carlin.
The piece looks at Batman’s development over the years and what Frank Miller brought to the character in the 1980s. We get a decent overview here, but much of the show feels like little more than a love letter to Miller, so don’t expect much from it.
Under Bruce Timm’s Top Picks, we locate two TV episodes. These include “Catwalk” from Batman: The Animated Series (21:16) and “Cult of the Cat” from The New Batman Adventures (21:21).
Since she straddles the line between hero and villain - and also seeks to straddle Batman - the Catwoman remains arguably Batman’s most intriguing nemesis. She shows both sides well in the entertaining “Catwalk”.
A good use of the Ventriloquist helps make this episode solid. He works better in a secondary position than in the starring role, which allows him to be effective here.
As for “Cult”, it suffers from a weak villain and overall plot, as the notion of the gang that worships felines feels pretty lame. However, the interactions between Batman and Catwoman crackle. Those add more than enough pizzazz to turn this into an enjoyable show.
Conversations with DC Comics spans 39 minutes, 27 seconds. It involves Dennis O’Neil, Michael Uslan, Dan DiDio, and comics writer Scott Snyder.
They discuss what introduced them to Batman, aspects of the character’s continuity and evolution, and aspects of Year One. This turns into a solid examination of various Bat-topics.
The disc opens with ads for Smallville: The Complete Series, Green Lantern: The Animated Series and Aim High. Trailers adds promos for Thundercats, Mad, and Young Justice.
Adapted from a much praised comic book, Batman: Year One has its moments, but it doesn’t provide a lot of satisfaction. At a mere 64 minutes, it simply lacks the breathing room to develop its characters and give us a vivid tale. The Blu-ray offers very good picture and audio along a nice array of supplements. Bat-fans will want to give this one a look, but they shouldn’t expect greatness from it.
To rate this film, visit the prior review of BATMAN: YEAR ONE