Customer Reviews

The Sopranos - Season 6, Part 1 [HD DVD]

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

As someone who has actually bought this set I thought I might offer some real opinions as opposed to those of some idiot who's only contribution is he hates HD.

(note: at this time I have only watched the first two episodes)

The Audio

Audio is in Dolby Digital Plus and is sublime. As a drama series, dialogue is paramount and every syllable can be clearly discerned. Tony's signature laboured breathing comes through crystal clear. Background dialogue adds atmosphere and sounds like actual conversation, not just noise.

Surround information is not a strong point of this series, however, when needed it is there. In episode 2 the helicopter (of Tony's subconscious) utilizes all channels to great effect.

A strong point in the series is it's use of modern classic music. This is used to great effect and on the HD-DVD release is output evenly through all channels. The music here is better than any SA-CD or DVD-A I have heard and really gets me excited as to the possibility of music through the new format.

The Picture

I am a big fan of television on DVD having collected many series. That said, I am usually disappointed with the transfers afforded television series. Most suffer from artefacts due to over-compression to fit as many episodes on a disc as possible. So with that in mind I'll discuss the bad first.

There is some moiré effect in the background of some scenes. Early in the first episode I had one instance of a freeze which put the audio out of sync. Pausing and un-pausing fixed this and I could not replicate this effect so rather than blame the set, I suspect it is one of those bugs that comes with early technology and Gen 1 machines. There is some grain in the image, however, given the previous season's, this is an intentional decision on the makers part (it will be interesting to see what the advent of HD in the home will do to this practice as it is not very HD friendly). At one stage on the first episode the Picture quality faulted for a period of about ¼ of a second where in a dark scene it became almost SD standard. This was very quick but noticeable.

Now for the good, and boy is it good. The detail is spectacular (almost too good - these guys are getting on in age, and they never were the most attractive people, and that hole in Tony's stomach - I though it looked bad before but this is truly disgusting). I have never seen TV look this good - not even the so called HD broadcasts of these very same episodes on Australian TV came close to this. Most of the action is in the foreground of this series and as such the detail in background shots is not as sharp as some film releases, however, when the background is relevant all that detail comes back. Again I think this is a conscious decision on the makers part to keep the focus up close and on the characters.

Final Thoughts

Is this release perfect - no, it has some slight issues that could be improved upon. Was it worth getting in HD - absolutely. Even at a premium price over the SD release I will happily pick up more of my favourites on HD-DVD. Universal has given a tentative commitment to Battlestar Galactica on HD-DVD, BBC has stated a HD-DVD release of Torchwood is in the works (which means we will probably also see Dr Who as well). MGM has hinted at a release of Stargate: Atlantis on Blu-ray and I would highly suspect the 2 new SG-1 movies (in lieu of Season 11) will be released on Blu-ray around April/May. It is almost inevitable that Paramount will release Star Trek to High Definition (especially the re-mastered and re-worked High Def Original Series).

I collect more Television series than movies these days (well, television and anime) and I gotta say, if this is the future of serialized programming, then I am happy to have a HD-DVD player and should Blu-ray get their format specific series out, I'll be grabbing one of those machines too (you listening on those Stargate movies and series?).

The Sopranos in HD, what could be better? The transfer is great and befitting such a great series.

Now HBO just needs to release the rest of the series on Blu-Ray and it's other great properties as well (please oh please let us see Band of Brothers on Blu-Ray soon!)

This is a truly superb box set. Season 6 part 1 of Sopranos is essential TV, with quality acting and a great story line - shame we have to wait a while for part 2.

This blu-ray box set is outstanding quality. The image looks 3D and almost comes out the screen. Great to see Tony and the gang in hi-def - the sound is also great quality. A few commentary extras.

This is an essential purchase if you love Sopranos and quality.

Good series finally on Blu Ray. hopefully theres more to come soon.
I appreciate the Sopranos Series. I hope theres more to come.
I Want the Complete Series on Blu Ray..... PLEASE

Picture Quality very good for a TV series the series has severeal critics mostly positive I can underline the positive recomentations.

This was an excellent blu-ray disc. Quality is great. Story is great in this final chapter of the sopranos

I note that as of 04/17/2011 Amazon are running low of both part 1 and 2 of Season 6 and Season 1 on Blu Ray. Every fan of the Blu Ray versions knows it is crazy why 2-5 seasons have not come out and there is no mention of them on advance release listings for the whole of 2011. I put it to all you, why would Amazon allow a low stock run of such a significant title???

Fantastic. The Sopranos on Blu-ray with great picturs and sound. What is more, this DVD is actually an "All Region" release and not "Region 1" as stated on the package and the Amazon product details.

Looking forward to Season 6 Part 2 but hope there will be a few more extras.

Normally, I do not review material that has not yet been released. But after seeing the previous review, I felt compelled to. I love the Sopranos. I also really like HD-DVD. If you own a large screen TV, you will see a dramatic difference between regular DVD and HD-DVD. If you have High Definition HBO and regular HBO, you will notice a difference between the two. HD-DVD is better than Hi. Def. HBO.

That being said, I don't care much for having seasons broken up either. They did the same thing with Battlestar Galactica as well. Of course, I still bought both though. :)

First off: season gets FIVE stars

I own a PS3 (blu-ray) and a 46" Samsung 120hz 1080p set.

I own seasons 1-5 on DVD, and all of season 6 on Blu-ray.

To be honest, there is no improvement over the dvd version of the set. Seasons 1-5 (DVD) look exactly the same as season 6 (blu-ray).

Also, there is no reason why this season could not be on 3 blu-ray discs. I own other shows on blu-ray, and the ENTIRE **SEASON** is on ONE disc. FYI, you can fit SIX HD one hour shows on blu-ray (see Weeds on blu-ray, 12+ episodes in 1080p (30mins) on ONE disc))

I love the show, but no one should waste money on the blu-ray set with no improvement in quality. (Luckily, I purchased season 6 on blu-ray cheaper than the dvd version)

I have to agree with everyone that the episodes themselves are great. Bluray is the only way to watch TV on HDTV. My complaint is in the packaging of the Box set.
Why force people to buy TWO BOX sets or 4 disks each to watch what can easily fit on a SINGLE Bluray Disk??? HBO shows complete lack of respect for Consumers, not to mention the enviroment.
The 4 disks are formatted the same as a normal DVD. Wasting 90% of the disk space.
This becomes a huge headache when you actually sit down to watch video. I like to come home from work and sit down and power up the entertainment center and WATCH my programs.
Instead, I get to power up and go to the episode index looking for the next episode. Only to be told I need to change disks.
Sorry for the rant. Over all great material.