Saturday, March 06, 2010

Blog Blu-ray Review: South Park - The Complete Thirteenth Season (3/16)

It is Saturday, so that must mean it is time for the weekly Blog DVD review! BUT wait! We are doing our very first Blu-ray review! We have finally gotten into the Blu-ray game and we will provide some Blu-ray reviews here and there from now on (both in blog and full reviews). So welcome to a special edition of Blog Blu-ray reviews! Today we take a look at Comedy Central/Paramount's South Park - The Complete Thirteenth Season. South Park of course is the popular cable animated series that is full of laughs for all ages...but kids under 16 really shouldn't be watching. See skees53's blog Blu-ray review of South Park - The Complete Thirteenth Season:

South Park - The Complete Thirteenth Season (Comedy Central, $57.99 Blu-ray/$49.99 DVD) brings everybody's favorite group of animated foul-mouthed fourth graders together for fourteen more episodes of life in their small Colorado town. The thirteenth season is more of the same show that we are all used to, but in the typical style of South Park, it becomes even more hilarious than before and pushes the envelope on every single event in popular culture. The Complete Thirteenth Season is available in a three-disc DVD set as well as a two-disc Blu-ray set, which will be the focus of our coverage (for the first time ever!).

The season begins with "The Ring," where Kenny has a new girlfriend and thinks that he may finally get a chance to lose his virginity (yes, a fourth grader thinking about that), but life isn't so fun for him when his new girlfriend has an obsession with the Jonas Brothers and inspires him to wear a chastity ring. Cartman brings vigilante justice to South Park in "The Coon." It is a battle of the sexes in the incredibly raucous episode "Eat, Pray, Queef." Kanye West is incredibly confused about a joke that Jimmy (but Cartman attempts to take credit for) invented in "Fishsticks," and is out for revenge. Cartman dreams of living the pirate life when he hears news reports of piracy in Somoalia in "Fatbeard," so he decides to travel to Africa to partake in the pirate life, which leads to an international crisis.
Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Billy Mays, and several others are alive again (if only for 22 minutes) in "Dead Celebrities," where Ike starts seeing dead people. Youth prostitution becomes big in South Park in "Butters' Bottom Bitch," and Butters is behind it all. In "W.T.F.," the boys are interested in joining the wrestling team at school after watching professional wrestling on TV, but when they find out that real wrestling is "lame," they decide to start their own wrestling federation, complete with all of the soap opera drama of WWE. In "The F Word," a certain word becomes the talk of the town when the boys spray paint it all over town, but it happens to offend the gay community of South Park. Move over, Rush Limbaugh, here comes Eric Cartman when he takes over the morning announcements and uses it as a forum to talk about whatever he wants in "Dances with Smurfs." The season ends with "Pee," where the kids go to a water park that is in a crisis mode--too many people are peeing in the water, which will cause the world to end--although Cartman's biggest concern is that there are too many minorities in the wave pool.

The episodes as presented on the set are completely unedited and uncensored, which means that it provides more than what aired on Comedy Central. Anything that could be seen as slightly controversial is included in the episodes, and there are no censors at all in this set, so don't be surprised to hear a few f-words (not including the one that was the focus of the twelfth episode of the season) here and there. Runtimes are as follows.

Blu-ray Disc 1:
1. The Ring (22:16)
2. The Coon (22:15)
3. Margaritaville (22:15)
4. Eat, Pray, Queef (22:16)
5. Fishsticks (22:15)
6. Pinewood Derby (22:16)
7. Fatbeard (22:17)

Blu-ray Disc 2:
8. Dead Celebrities (22:16)
9. Butters' Bottom Bitch (22:15)
10. W.T.F. (22:15)
11. Whale Whores (22:15)
12. The F Word (22:15)
13. Dances with Smurfs (22:16)
14. Pee (22:16)

The Blu-ray version of the set comes in a two-disc set that is contained in a digipak, as has been the case for all of the previous releases. The front of the package has a picture of all of the boys, with Cartman holding a piece of paper that is somewhat similar to his pirate map in the episode "Fatbeard" with a yellow background. The back of the package has another picture of all of the boys (though it is missing Kenny for some reason) along with the basic information about the set. Inside, there is a four-panel digipak. The outside of the digipak has full panel pictures of scenes from the episodes on the set. Inside the digipak, the far left and far right panels have episode information, and the two interior panels have snapshots from the episodes "Fishsticks" and "Dances with Smurfs." These two snapshots are also depicted on the disc artwork, with Disc 1 containing the snapshot from "Fishsticks" and Disc 2 containing the snapshot from "Dances with Smurfs." Disc 1 contains episodes 1-7, and Disc 2 contains episodes 8-14. The DVD version of the set, which was not available for review, contains three discs.

The main menu on each disc on the Blu-ray version contains video scenes from the episodes contained on the disc with the South Park "doomsday" music playing in the background. The options on the main menu include Play All, Episode Selection, Bonus Features, and Setup. Episode Selection shows all of the episodes on the disc, which pops up over part of the screen on the main menu (while the video continues to play), and Bonus Features (only on Disc 1) does the same thing. Setup allows you to adjust the audio (either Dolby TrueHD or Dolby Digital Stereo) and also allows you to turn on commentary and subtitles. The pop-up menus (available only in the Blu-ray version) provide all of the same options with a slightly different appearance. Chapters are placed appropriately throughout each episode.

The video and audio quality of the Blu-ray version of this set is spectacular. There are virtually no flaws at all to be found in the video, and everything is crystal clear and incredibly sharp. As for the audio, it is available in Dolby TrueHD as well as Dolby Digital Stereo. Unfortunately, as I do not have an elaborate home theater system, I was unable to experience the Dolby TrueHD version of the audio as it was intended to be, but I found that the Dolby Digital Stereo version was still spectacular, and was a lot better on my less low-tech setup. Each episode on the set contains English subtitles.

There are a few nice special features on the set (all of them are the same on both the Blu-ray and DVD version), though the set still falls somewhat short in the special features arena. The special features can be found on Disc 1 on the Blu-ray version. "Inside X-Box: A Behind-the-Scenes Tour of South Park Studios" (4:35) is just a short behind-the-scenes tour of the production of the series. It is interesting to watch, but way too short. The set also contains several deleted scenes (7:14) that encompass the entire season. I don't believe that any of the previous releases have ever included any deleted scenes, so this is definitely a nice feature to see this time. Finally, the set contains brief audio commentaries from Matt Stone and Trey Parker on each episode, but as has been the case on the previous releases, these are way too short and not nearly insightful enough. Basically, they just come in for a few minutes at the beginning of the episode, then leave, which doesn't provide full insight into the episode, as a commentary should do.

This set is the very first Blu-ray that I have ever owned and watched. In fact, I purchased my very first Blu-ray player specifically for this review, and I have to say that this series was a great place to start on Blu-ray. I've never seen the episodes of the series in high definition (my cable company doesn't provide Comedy Central in high definition for some reason), and I have never before seen this series look so great. The set is virtually flawless (aside from the somewhat dismal special features), and really demonstrates the true glory of what Blu-ray is all about. I haven't seen the DVD version of this, but if past releases are an indicator, the episodes on that version should look great as well, although I would strongly recommend the Blu-ray version if you have a Blu-ray player. Head on up to South Park and meet these friends of mine!

-- Reviewed by skees53
(4.5/5 stars)

To purchase the Blu-ray set, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

To purchase the DVD version, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
South Park TV.com Page


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Friday, October 10

Vampirina: Teenage Vampire - "First Final" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Vee leaves Transylvania for boarding school to chase her musical dreams. As she keeps her vampire identity a secret, unexpected obstacles threaten to return her to the shadows.

Vampirina: Teenage Vampire - "First Holiday" (Disney Channel, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Vee leaves Transylvania for boarding school to chase her musical dreams. As she keeps her vampire identity a secret, unexpected obstacles threaten to return her to the shadows.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 6)

Friday, October 10

  • Seth Rogen (The Studio/Platonic/Undeclared) and Aziz Ansari (Master of None/Parks and Recreation) - Watch Seth and Aziz on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Carrie Preston (Crowded/Happyish/Emeril) - Carrie is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
  • Rose Byrne (Platonic/Physical) - Rose appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. She also chats about If I Had Legs I’d Kick You with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
  • Bill Bellamy (Mr. Box Office/Men, Women & Dogs/Cousin Skeeter) - Bill is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Michael J. Fox (Family Ties/Spin City/The Michael J. Fox Show) - Michael discusses his new book Future Boy: Back to the Future and My Journey Through the Space-Time Continuum on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
  • Kenzi Richardson (Vampirina: Teenage Vampire) - Kenzi talks about Vampirina: Teenage Vampire on ABC's The View at 11am ET/10am CT-PT and on GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - Morris sits down for a DAYTIME EXCLUSIVE to chat about the Season 2 premiere of Watson on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
  • Maya Rudolph (Loot/Bless the Harts/Forever/Up All Night) - Maya stops by the studio to discuss Loot on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
  • Greta Lee (HouseBroken/Russian Doll) - Greta talks about Disney's Tron: Ares on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
  • Dermot Mulroney (The Righteous Gemstones/Four Weddings and a Funeral) - Dermot is a guest on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
  • Idris Elba (Turn Up Charlie) - Idris and Rebecca Ferguson talk about A House of Dynamite on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
  • Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) - Aubrey talks about her new book Luna and the Witch Throw a Halloween Party on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary/Fam/Instant Mom/Moesha/It's a Living) - Sheryl stops by to chat with Sherri about the new season of Abbott Elementary on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - TV legend Henry shares details about his 40th book, Detective Duck: The Mystery at Emerald Pond, on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Cafe Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie appears on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Teri Hatcher (The Odd Couple/Sunday Dinner/Karen's Song/The Love Boat) - Teri and her daughter Emerson Tenney talk about the Desperately Devoted podcast on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Jeremy Piven (Entourage/Ellen/Pride & Joy/The Larry Sanders Show) - Jeremy is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

Frasier (2023) - Season Two Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered) Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray) Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season

01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season

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