The Walking Dead: Season One [Blu-ray]


Customer Rating :
Rating: 4.5

List Price : $49.99 Price : $21.24
The Walking Dead:  Season One [Blu-ray]

Product Description

After waking from a coma in an abandoned hospital, police officer Rick Grimes finds the world he knew gone - ravaged by a zombie epidemic of apocalyptic proportions. Nearby, on the outskirts of Atlanta, a small encampment struggles to survive as 'the dead' stalk them at every turn. Can Rick and the others hold onto their humanity as they fight to live in this terrifying new world? And, amidst dire conditions and personal rivalries, will they ultimately survive one another? AMC’s The Walking Dead is an epic, survival adventure series from the director of The Shawshank Redemption and the producer of The Terminator and Aliens.

Amazon.com

Arguably the biggest hit of the 2010 television season, the apocalypse drama The Walking Dead pulls the zombie subgenre out of its overexposed doldrums and finds, ironically enough, the humanity and emotion beneath its rotting shell. Produced by Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption) and Gale Anne Hurd (Aliens) and based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Robert Kirkman, The Walking Dead follows a band of Atlanta-based survivors of a viral outbreak that has caused the dead to rise up and consume the living. The group's nominal leader is a sheriff's deputy (Andrew Lincoln) who wakes from a gunshot-induced coma to find the world in disarray and his wife (Sarah Wayne Callies, Prison Break) and son missing. His search for his family and the survivors' attempts to make sense of their lives in the wake of the outbreak is handled with intelligence and sensitivity, which helps to elevate the show beyond the grindhouse take on zombies, which favors spilled guts over character development. That's not to say that the blood doesn't flow plentifully here: the special effects are on par with zombie-movie mayhem, but again, they aren't the show's raison d'ĂȘtre. Solid performances, including Jon Bernthal as Lincoln's partner, Jeffrey DeMunn as the group's leading rationalist, and Michael Rooker and Norman Reedus as a pair of trouble-making rednecks, and gripping suspense make each of the first season's six episodes compelling from start to finish for both horror fans and those who dislike the genre as a whole.

The two-disc set of Walking Dead's first season includes all six episodes, as well as a number of making-of extras, including the show's conception and production, a talk with Robert Kirkman (he's a fan), a look at the makeup by KNB Studios, and the show's panel at the 2010 ComicCon. All of the principal players on both sides of the camera are given adequate screen time to discuss their vision for the show, its influences (George Romero, naturally), and the challenges of depicting the end of civilization on a budget. --Paul Gaita




    The Walking Dead: Season One [Blu-ray] Reviews


    Amazon.com
    Customer Reviews
    Average Customer Review
    445 Reviews
    5 star:
     (326)
    4 star:
     (73)
    3 star:
     (21)
    2 star:
     (13)
    1 star:
     (12)
     
     
     

    80 of 86 people found the following review helpful:
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Zombie Epic Takes a Double Dip--Great For Newbies, But Probably An Essential Upgrade Only For Fervent Fans, August 2, 2011
    By 
    K. Harris "Film aficionado" (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews
    (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
    Amazon Verified Purchase( What's this?)
    So now that all The Walking Dead TV fans have purchased Season One, here comes the inevitable double dip for the 3-Disc Special edition. I always find this a dubious way to reward fans, by making them regret buying your initial product. It does, however, seem to be a commercial reality that continues to disappoint and exploit consumers. Whether or not you will indulge in the new version will depend on how appealing its additional material strikes you. Here is a run down of the new features with the old features (also included) to help you decide.

    5 Stars for the show itself, 1 Star for the repeated practice of double dipping.

    NEW Material for this re-issue:

    Pilot Episode: The B&W Version
    Audio Commentaries On All 6 episodes
    We Are The Walking Dead
    Bring Out The Dead: KNB And The Art of Making Zombies
    Digital Decay: The VFX of The Walking Dead
    No More Room in Hell: The Walking Dead Phenomenon
    Adapting... Read more
    Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
    Was this review helpful to you?  Yes No


    185 of 218 people found the following review helpful:
    5.0 out of 5 stars Zombie Mayhem Takes A Back Seat To Searing Human Drama In This Near Perfect Adaptation Of An Undead Classic, November 16, 2010
    By 
    K. Harris "Film aficionado" (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews
    (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
    Amazon Verified Purchase( What's this?)
    This review is from: The Walking Dead: Season One (DVD)
    When I heard that AMC was going to produce a television series based on the zombie epic "The Walking Dead," I was both concerned and delighted. A bona fide classic in undead lore, Robert Kirkman's "The Walking Dead" graphic novels are brutal and surprising--not really what I would picture for a basic cable TV show (the first season is only 6 episodes, we'll see where it goes from there). But AMC has produced terrific and prestigious shows like "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad," so I was pretty stoked to see what they do with this. Add Frank Darabont of "Shawshank Redemption" fame as the creative force behind the show, and I'm pleased to report that we've got a winner!

    For years, I've maintained that the principle themes of Kirkman's vision have little to do with actual monsters. This is a story of human survival, of morality, of loyalty, of sacrifice--of doing anything necessary to carry on without losing the basics of what makes life worth living. The fact that this is... Read more
    Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
    Was this review helpful to you?  Yes No


    25 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
    5.0 out of 5 stars Too scary to watch, and too good not to!, May 18, 2011
    By 
    Susan Tunis (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
    This review is from: The Walking Dead: Season One (DVD)
    Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program ( What's this?)
    I would not describe myself as a zombie fan. That doesn't mean I don't occasionally get lured over to that territory through popular culture or a particularly irresistible bit of story-telling. I have no cable television in my home, but even I'd heard enough buzz on The Walking Dead to be intrigued. After all, it's the same network that brought us Mad Men, and I've been hooked on those DVDs for years. Still, as scary as 60's-era advertising execs are, I wasn't sure I was prepared for zombies. I called my buddy Jimbo and asked, "Will The Walking Dead be too scary for me?" His answer: "Yes. But you have to watch it anyway for the story-telling." As usual, Jimbo was right on both counts.

    In the extended pilot episode, a Georgia sheriff's deputy is shot in the line of duty. He eventually awakens, scruffily bearded, in the hospital after an unknown period of time. He is still weak, bandaged, and disoriented. Is he really awake at all? Because he's awoken alone in a... Read more
    Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
    Was this review helpful to you?  Yes No


    Share your thoughts with other customers:
      See all 445 customer reviews...

    The Walking Dead:  Season One [Blu-ray]