“Once Upon a Time”: The Complete Fifth Season is another success for ABC/Disney and although I’m getting a bit tired of the stunt “casting” of these fictional characters, I will admit I did like the inclusion of Merida who, in her few episodes, was a breath of fresh air. Even for casual fans, this will not disappoint.
“Once Upon a Time”: The Complete Fifth Season
(2015-16)
Genre(s): Fantasy, Adventure, Drama
Buena Vista | TVPG – 989 min. – $79.99 | August 16, 2016
Date Published: 08/11/2016 | Author: The Movieman
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THE MOVIE — 3.75/5 |
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Season Synopsis: When the Savior becomes the “Dark Swan,” the lines between good and evil blur as Emma (JENNIFER MORRISON) begins to relish the intoxicating taste of absolute power, with an extra push by Rumplestiltskin (ROBERT CARLYLE). Terrified she’ll succumb, Emma and Hook (COLIN O’DONOGHUE) visit Camelot to find the one person who may be able to aid them: Merlin. Unfortunately, King Arthur (LIAM GARRIGAN) proves treacherous, and when he joins forces with a vengeful Zelena (REBECCA MADER), Emma and Hook’s hopes are shattered. Now Emma and her entire Storybrooke family must embark on a chilling descent to the Underworld of Hades, where they’ll try to rescue Hook from a fate worse than death… with “help” from Rumplestiltskin. But will any of them survive the journey? Quick Hit Review: I’ve never been the biggest fan of “Once Upon a Time” but have found past seasons to be quite enjoyable and this fifth one is no different. There’s a decent twist with more focus on villains from the Dark Emma Saga that takes up the first half of the season to re-introductions to the likes of Cruella De Vil (VICTORIA SMIRFIT) and we get to see Zelena transform into the Wicked Witch of the West, green skin and as cruel as ever. Other fictional characters from both Disney and fantasy lore come to life including Merida (AMY MANSON), the red-head young woman from Brave. It’s another strong season for “OUAT” though I am getting a tad weary with each season introducing a new fantasy character, although I did enjoy seeing Amy Manson’s portrayal of Merida, bringing a breath of fresh air when the original cast gets a bit bogged down dealing with the Dark Swan Saga. Still, I guess that’s the hook, so to speak, this series has and no doubt we’ll get more fictional character making their live action debuts in season 6. Episodes:
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SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.5/5 |
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The 5-disc set is housed in an HD Keep Case and comes with an embossed slip cover. Disc 1: Disc 2: Disc 5: Merida in Storybrooke (8:00; HD) – Spirited, independent Merida comes to life in “Once Upon a Time”. This featurette goes behind the scenes with actor Amy Manson and learn what it took to step into the role, how she identifies with her character, and why Merida, Mulan and Ruby work as perfectly together. The Fairest Bloopers of Them All (5:57; HD) is a collection of line flubs and general on-set goofery. Deleted Scenes (23:53; HD) – 18 scenes were left on the cutting room floor, presumably for both pacing and time constraints. Audio Commentary – ‘Only You’ with Executive Producers/Writers David H. Goodman & Andrew Chambliss “Once” Celebrates One Hundred (1:45; HD) is footage from a celebration party for the show’s 100th episode. |
VIDEO – 4.5/5 |
| Buena Vista unleashes “Once Upon a Time” onto Blu-ray presented in its originally televised 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and given a 1080p high-definition transfer. For the most part, as with the other seasons, it’s a nice looking transfer. Colors are well balanced and have a decent pop to them due to the fantasy elements and detail looks sharp and well defined throughout. There were no major instances of banding and everything else looked clean. |
AUDIO – 4.5/5 |
| The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track offers crisp and clear dialogue while giving some nice depth in each episode whenever the action picks up. Those action sequences make the most of the front and rear channels while the center picks up the main action or dialogue. It’s not an entirely vigorous track but with the LFE channel coming to life from time to time, it does have decent enough depth compared with how it original aired (standard Dolby Digital 5.1 audio). (Copied from my Season 4 review) |
OVERALL – 4.0/5 |
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Overall, “Once Upon a Time”: The Complete Fifth Season is another success for ABC/Disney and although I’m getting a bit tired of the stunt “casting” of these fictional characters, I will admit I did like the inclusion of Merida who, in her few episodes, was a breath of fresh air. Even for casual fans, this will not disappoint. The video and audio transfers are both solid however the features weren’t as plentiful compared with previous seasons. |