{"id":7575,"date":"2014-06-29T11:25:58","date_gmt":"2014-06-29T18:25:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/?p=7575"},"modified":"2014-06-29T11:26:39","modified_gmt":"2014-06-29T18:26:39","slug":"review-majorcrimes-s2-dvd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/2014\/06\/review-majorcrimes-s2-dvd\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Major Crimes: The Complete Second Season DVD"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>\u201cMajor Crimes\u201d: The Complete Second Season<\/strong> is successful more on the ensemble cast, with Mary McDonnell leading the way, more so than the plots and the season-long subplot. The DVD released by Warner Brothers has good audio and video transfers but is a bit limited with the bonus material.<\/p>\n

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“Major Crimes”: The Complete Second Season<\/span>
\n(2013-14)<\/strong><\/p>\n


\nREVIEW NAVIGATION<\/strong><\/span>
\nThe Movie<\/a> | Special Features<\/a> | Video Quality<\/a> | Audio Quality<\/a> | Overall<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Genre(s): <\/strong>Crime, Drama, Comedy
\nWarner Home Video | NR \u2013 800 min. \u2013 $59.98 | June 10, 2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/td>\n <\/b>MOVIE INFO:<\/span>
\nDirected by: <\/strong>Various
\nWriter(s): <\/strong>James Duff (created by)
\nCast: <\/strong>Mary McDonnell, G.W. Bailey, Tony Denison, Michael Paul Chan, Raymond Cruz, Phillip P. Keene, Kearan Giovanni, Graham Patrick Martin, Nadine Valezquez, Jonathan Del Arco, Robert Gossett<\/p>\n

DISC INFO:<\/span>
\nFeatures: <\/strong>Featurettes, Deleted Scenes
\nNumber of Discs: <\/strong>4<\/p>\n

Audio: <\/strong>English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
\nVideo: <\/strong>Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78
\nSubtitles: <\/strong>English SDH
\nRegion(s): <\/strong>1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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THE MOVIE<\/strong> \u2013 4.0\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In its sophomore season, \u201cMajor Crimes\u201d<\/strong> continues its procedural crime drama (with bouts of comedy) ways while also advancing a side-story seemingly not very popular amongst some viewers, though this one didn\u2019t mind it at all as it provided some decent mystery element.<\/p>\n

Season two finds the squad \u2014 Captain Sharon Raydor (MARY MCDONNELL), Lieutenant Provenza (G.W. BAILEY), Lieutenant Flynn (TONY DENISON), Lieutenant Tao (MICHAEL PAUL CHAN), Detective Sanchez (RAYMOND CRUZ), Detective Sykes (KEARRAN GIOVANNI), videographer Buzz Watson (PHILLIP P. KEENE) and Assistant Chief Taylor (ROBERT GOSSETT) \u2014 most of whom, save for Sykes, were holdovers from \u201cThe Closer\u201d, investigating a variety of crimes, mostly murder, like the pregnant wife of a film director; a seemingly gang-related drive-by shooting; the murder of a property manager housing former TV stars; and some personal cases as well as a serial killer. In addition, we are introduced to D.D.A. Emma Rios (NADINE VELAZQUEZ) serving as a minor catalyst with the team, though by season\u2019s end seems to be more of a team player.<\/p>\n

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Also a part of the season, as mentioned, was a season-long B-plotline where Rusty, as he prepares to testify against attorney-turned-serial killer Phillip Stroh (though actor Billy Burke, who played the character on \u201cThe Closer\u201d does not make an appearance) and in the process begins receiving anonymous and threatening letters, most of which he keeps hidden from guardian Raydor, who herself develops a deeper motherly relationship with Rusty. Thankfully this storyline does have a conclusion at the end of the season rather than a drawn out cliffhanger that writers today love to employ.<\/p>\n

But more than story, it\u2019s the characters that are the reason why \u201cMajor Crimes\u201d<\/strong> succeeds as well as it does. Of course, it helps that the majority were already established in a previous series but most surprisingly, and a bit unexpected, Mary McDonnell is a fine replacement for the once thought indispensible Kyra Sedgewick and they turned a character who was previously an obnoxious antagonist into something far more relatable and likeable, this tradition continues into its second season as we learn more about her and meeting Raydor\u2019s estranged husband played brilliantly by Tom Berenger.<\/p>\n

Outside of McDonnell, the chemistry between the ensemble cast is still strong and provide a nice balance of action, drama with a smidge of truly funny comedy primarily at the hands of the curmudgeon Provenza played by G.W. Bailey. The others help further oft times predictable single episode stories, without whom I feel the series would quickly get stale.<\/p>\n

This season also finds Jon Tenney guest appearing on a few episodes as FBI Agent Fritz Howard who himself will be starring in a yet untitled spin-off with a backdoor pilot set to premiere during the third season… We\u2019ll see how that goes.<\/p>\n

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In any case (no pun intended), \u201cMajor Crimes\u201d<\/strong> is an enjoyable series that succeeds thanks to the ensemble cast more so than the storylines and\/or crimes, though there are a few that do stand out. It\u2019s also a show that\u2019s not too hard to get into even if you missed some or all of the first season or even \u201cThe Closer\u201d, though you\u2019ll find more satisfaction already knowing these characters.<\/p>\n

Episodes:
\n<\/strong>1. Final Cut
\n2. False Pretenses
\n3. Under the Influence
\n4. I, Witness
\n5. D.O.A.
\n6. Boys Will Be Boys
\n7. Rules of Engagement
\n8. The Deep End
\n9. There\u2019s No Place Like Home
\n10. Backfire
\n11. Poster Boy
\n12. Pick Your Poison
\n13. Jailbait
\n14. All In
\n15. Curve Ball
\n16. Risk Assessment
\n17. Year-End Blowout
\n18. Return to Sender
\n19. Return to Sender \u2013 Part 2<\/p>\n

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SPECIAL FEATURES \u2013 2.5\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The 4-disc set comes in a standard DVD case which is housed in a side-sliding slip cover<\/strong>. There is an episode guide included inside the case.<\/p>\n

Disc 1:
\nDeleted Scene (1:17)<\/span><\/strong> on \u2018False Pretenses\u2019<\/p>\n

Disc 2:
\nDeleted Scenes (3:41)<\/span><\/strong> on \u2018The Deep End\u2019 and \u2018There\u2019s No Place Like Home\u2019<\/p>\n

Disc 3:
\nDeleted Scenes (2:17)<\/span><\/strong> on \u2018Poster Boy\u2019<\/p>\n

Disc 4:
\n\u201cMajor Crimes\u201d: Personal Conviction (23:55)<\/span><\/strong> examines the second season and the characters\u2019 identities and the progression throughout the year and has some on-set interviews with the cast and crew.<\/p>\n

Behind the Scenes: A Look Forward (4:33)<\/strong><\/span> is a sneak peek at the third season.<\/p>\n

Deleted Scenes (10:25)<\/strong><\/span> on \u2018Risk Assessment\u2019 and \u2018Return to Sender \u2013 Part 2\u2019<\/p>\n

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VIDEO \u2013 4.0\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cMajor Crimes\u201d: The Complete Second Season<\/strong> arrives to the scene on DVD with each episode presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.78 AR) and for the most part matches what aired with bright colors throughout and minimal pixilation and artifacts, in fact it\u2019s a fairly clean video.
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AUDIO \u2013 4.25\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The Dolby Digital 5.1 track offered up is solid with crisp and clear dialogue levels while any effects or action elements tend to be up front rather than spread through every channel. The front and rear speakers are mostly relegated for the episodic score and some ambient noises.<\/p>\n

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OVERALL \u2013 3.5\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Overall, \u201cMajor Crimes\u201d: The Complete Second Season<\/strong> is successful more on the ensemble cast, with Mary McDonnell leading the way, more so than the plots and the season-long subplot. The DVD released by Warner Brothers has good audio and video transfers but is a bit limited with the bonus material.<\/p>\n


\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
\n<\/em>Published: <\/strong>06\/29\/2014<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cMajor Crimes\u201d: The Complete Second Season is successful more on the ensemble cast, with Mary McDonnell leading the way, more so than the plots and the season-long subplot. The DVD released by Warner Brothers has good audio and video transfers but is a bit limited with the bonus material.    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[2136,3000,3002,2999,2134,2135,2140,3001,2141,2137,2142,2138],"class_list":["post-7575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dvd-reviews","tag-g-w-bailey","tag-graham-patrick-martin","tag-jonathan-del-arco","tag-kearan-giovanni","tag-major-crimes","tag-mary-mcdonnell","tag-michael-paul-chan","tag-nadine-valezquez","tag-phillip-p-keene","tag-raymond-cruz","tag-robert-gossett","tag-tony-denison"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7575"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7577,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7575\/revisions\/7577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}