Sonic the Hedgehog 2 appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.35:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. Expect a solid Dolby Vision presentation for a native 4K film.
Sharpness excelled. At all times, the movie remained crisp and distinctive, without a hint of softness on display.
No signs of jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and I saw no edge haloes. Print flaws failed to appear.
Inevitably, colors oriented toward orange and teal, though some other hues cropped up along the way. These looked bright and vivid, and HDR added range and impact to the tones.
Blacks felt deep and dense, while low-light shots appeared smooth and concise. HDR brought vivacity and power to whites and contrast. This became a consistently excellent image.
Though not quite as good, the movie’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack also satisfied. Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the mix used its many action scenes to good advantage.
All the channels boasted vivid usage during those sequences, and elements felt well-placed and immersive. Music featured appealing spread as well, and the whole package combined to add punch to the proceedings.
Audio quality worked fine, with speech that seemed natural and concise. Music seemed vivid and full.
Effects came across as accurate and precise, without distortion or other concerns, and low-end appeared deep and firm. The movie came with a top-notch soundtrack.
A mix of extras fill out the disc, and we start with an audio commentary from director Jeff Fowler and actor Ben Schwartz. Both sit together for this running, screen-specific look at story and characters, deleted scenes, cast and performances, sets and locations, various visual effects, music, Easter eggs and related domains. Tails voice actor Colleen O'Shaughnessey pops up briefly during the end credits as well.
If you listened to the Fowler/Schwartz track for the first movie, you'll find a clear sibling here, as the Sonic 2 track works in a very similar way. That means we get another breezy, reasonably informative and engaging chat here.
A new animated short called Sonic Drone Home lasts five minutes, 19 seconds and shows Sonic, Knuckles and Tails as they battle one of Robotnik’s machines.
“Home” offers more entertainment than anticipated, though it loses some points because only Schwartz reprises his role. Alicyn Packard offers a credible sub for O'Shaughnessey, but Fred Tatasciore sounds nothing like Idris Elba, and that disconnect becomes a distraction.
Seven Deleted and Extended Scenes occupy a total of 17 minutes, 17 seconds. These tend to add a bit to existing concepts. They come with some value but don’t offer anything truly substantial.
A collection of Bloopers runs three minutes, 18 seconds and displays some of the usual goofs and giggles. However, Jim Carrey’s improv moments add value.
Next comes a music video for Kid Cudi’s “Stars In the Sky”. KC interacts with Sonic in this fairly likable video.
Five featurettes follow, and Finding Your Team runs six minutes, 31 seconds. It includes comments from Fowler, producers Neil H. Moritz and Toby Ascher, and actors Jim Carrey, Lee Majdoub, James Marsden, Natasha Rothwell, Tika Sumpter, Adam Pally and Shemar Moore.
“Team” looks at acting with Sonic, Fowler’s impact on the set, cast and performances, and general thoughts. A handful of decent notes emerge, but “Team” mostly offers praise for those involved.
The Powerful Puncher lasts five minutes, 43 seconds and features Schwartz, Fowler, Carrey, Ascher, Moritz, and actor Idris Elba.
With “Puncher”, we look at the Knuckles character and Elba’s performance. Expect another superficial reel.
After this we get Rapid Fire Responses, a three-minute, 20-second chat with Schwartz. He goes through a mix of simple questions connected to the movie. This becomes superficial but fun.
Robotnik Reimagined goes for five minutes, 37 seconds and involves Carrey, Fowler, Moritz, and Ascher.
As expected, we get notes about this movie’s version of Robotnik as well as connected domains. The featurette seems mediocre at best.
Finally, A Sibling for Sonic spans four minutes, 46 seconds and conveys remarks from Schwartz, O'Shaughnessey, Fowler, Ascher, Moritz, and Schwartz.
We find a few notes related to the Tails character as well as O'Shaughnessey’s performance. It becomes another spotty show.
Although the first film managed to offer a fairly fun and charming affair, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 falters. The sequel feels like the contrived piece of soulless cinematic product we expected in 2020. The 4K UHD offers excellent picture and audio as well as an erratic mix of bonus materials. Don’t expect much from this forgettable adventure.