Riverdale: The Complete First Season actually was far better than I expected even if some of the teen angst clichés are present, but the cast is mostly likeable with Camila Mendes probably being the standout of the bunch. I commend the writers for this compelling freshman season.
Riverdale: The Complete First Season
(2017)
Genre(s): Drama, Suspense, Crime
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment | NR – 555 min. – $39.99 | August 15, 2017
Date Published: 10/13/2017 | Author: The Movieman
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THE MOVIE — 3.75/5 |
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Season Synopsis: As the school year begins, Riverdale’s residents are reeling from the news of golden boy Jason Blossom’s shocking death – an event that reveals many secrets bubbling just beneath the surface of this once-idyllic town. All-American teen Archie Andrews (K.J. APA) grapples with whether to come forward with scandalous information about the day Jason disappeared. Girl-next-door Betty Cooper (LILI REINHART) carries a hopeless torch for Archie, while fallen-from-grace socialite Veronica Lodge (CAMILA MENDES) instantly sparks with him. Cheryl Blossom (MADELAINE PETSCH) reacts to the death of her twin brother by tightening her grip on the River Vixens, while neo-beatnik Jughdead Jones (COLE SPROUSE) sits in a booth at Pop’s Chock’lit Shoppe, trying to make sense of his darkening town.
Quick Hit Review: I don’t ever remember reading an Archie comic book but knew of the character and the age old debate of Betty or Veronica (FWIW, I always liked Veronica). So when there was word the CW was developing a modern day update, to go along with the updated version of the comic series, I can’t say I was all that interested. And while this first season does contain some of the typical ‘teen angst, Riverdale actually is a pretty good series with an all-too-good-looking cast but still interesting characters. The performances weren’t bad with Camila Mendes being the standout of the main cast, and while I didn’t mind K.J. Apa as Archie, he did have a striking similarity to Robert Pattinson in the Twilight Saga… that’s not a best comparison. In any case, between some interesting storylines surrounding the death of one of their own, with a whodunit encapsulating the entire season (seems akin to the first season of Pretty Little Liars), and little character moments such as Archie’s affair with a teacher, Riverdale is very much a teen soap opera, so go in with that in mind. You’ll either dig it or you won’t.
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SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.75/5 |
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This 3-disc set comes housed in a standard Blu-ray case. Deleted Scenes (TRT 14:18; HD) – There are scenes available on 11 out of the 13 episodes. Featurettes:
There are also a couple short music pieces: I Got You (0:45; HD) and These Are the Moments I Remember (1:49; HD). Riverdale: 2016 Comic-Con Panel (8:04; HD) is one of the shorter of these panels with the cast discussing the first season. Gag Reel (4:45; HD) |
VIDEO – 4.0/5 |
| Warner Bros. Entertainment, via their Archive Collection, releases Riverdale: The Complete First Season onto Blu-ray presented with a 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio as originally televised, and a 1080p high-definition transfer. Like some of these other TV on Blu-rays out there, this probably more or less matches how it aired with good detail levels and colors are generally bright and skin tones appear natural. The only drawback is there was some banding but otherwise it’s pretty clean. |
AUDIO – 3.75/5 |
| Each episode comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which does sound decent enough with some clean dialogue levels through the center speaker and there is some good depth with some life with the LFE channel and some ambient noises and pop music coming through the front and rear channels as well. |
OVERALL – 3.5/5 |
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Overall, Riverdale: The Complete First Season actually was far better than I expected even if some of the teen angst clichés are present, but the cast is mostly likeable with Camila Mendes probably being the standout of the bunch. I commend the writers for this compelling freshman season. The Blu-ray meanwhile looks and sounds good though the features could’ve been more in depth… |
Check out some more 1080p screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.