Featured TV on DVD Review: Adventure Time: Season Four
October 5, 2014
Adventure Time: Season Four - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
This is going to be a shorter review than normal, the third shorter review in a row. The reason for this is simple. I've previously reviewed the Jake the Dad DVD and many of the shorts on that DVD are included on this Blu-ray. There's no need to repeat myself here, so instead I will concentrate on the few episodes that are new to me and that were highlights or lowlights. Is this Blu-ray better than the mixed DVD release in terms of quality? Is it worth picking even if you already own many of these shorts?
Many of the best episodes from this season were on the DVD I previously reviewed and I won't talk about them here. These include Burning Low, Sons of Mars, BMO Noire, The Hard Easy, I Remember You, but the DVD also included Gotcha!, which is one of the weaker episodes for the season.
Some of the highlights that are new to the home market include...
Every episode has an audio commentary track, while there is also a 20-minute featurette on the music in the series.
Like with season three, the technical presentation is as good as one would expect given the nature of the show. There are not a lot of details in the animation, but the Blu-ray shows off what the show presents. The colors are vivid, while the blacks are very deep. The audio is limited to a 2.0 track, but the dialogue is always clear and that's what matters the most.
The Blu-ray costs $25, which is close to 40% more than the DVD. This isn't a great deal, but it is not a deal-breaker either.
Adventure Time: Season Four is arguably better than season three, or at the very least close enough that it you liked one, you will like the other. The DVD and Blu-ray have enough extras that they are worth buying, but neither is an obviously better deal over the other.
The Show
The only bad episodes are Web Weirdos, Dream of Love, and Hug Wolf, as well as the aforementioned Gotcha!, all of which are in the first half of the season.
Finn falls in love with Flame Princess. However, she's made of fire, so touching her hurts. Also, she might be evil.
A two-part episode involving Marceline, which is my favorite character in the show.
This episode features The Ice King, who steals a bunch of body parts from the various princesses to build his own wife. It's sad, but in a good way. The cartoon has more emotional punch than most live action shows do.
I play Magic the Gathering quite a bit, so I really liked this episode. On a side note, they made a game based on the game shown on the show.
Finn has a nightmare from which he can't wake up.
Princess Bubblegum and Lady Rainicorn (Niki Yang) have to rescue Finn and Jake. It also features a guest appearance by George Takei.
Jake and Finn go to the Fire Kingdom and learn a little more about where Flame Princess is from.
Gunter is the Ice King's pet penguin, but he is also one of the most powerful and evil beings in the cartoon. We rarely see that side of him, but in this episode we do.
Finn and Jake help Billy, but as you can tell from the name, The Lich features prominently in this episode. The Extras
The Verdict
- Submitted by: C.S.Strowbridge
Filed under: Video Review, Lou Ferrigno, Tom Kenny, Ron Perlman, George Takei, John DiMaggio, Jeremy Shada, Olivia Olson, Hynden Walch, Jessica DiCicco