Every Tuesday, I review the newest Blu-ray releases and let you know whether they’re worth buying, renting or skipping, along with a breakdown of the included extras. If you see something you like, click on the cover art to purchase the Blu-ray from Amazon, and be sure to share each week’s column on social media with your friends.
WHAT: When the people of Alexandria are forced to deal with a number of dangerous threats from both the living and the dead, Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) gains the trust of his new community by transforming its residents into survivors. But not everyone agrees with Rick’s shoot-first approach to diplomacy, particularly the newly passive Morgan (Lennie James).
WHY: A lot of the attention surrounding the sixth season of “The Walking Dead” focused on the arrival of fan favorite villain Negan, a character who doesn’t even appear until the closing minutes of the finale and caused just as much backlash as excitement. But whether or not you’re happy with the way Season Six ended, there’s so much great stuff in the lead up to the inevitable faceoff with Negan (a fantastic Jeffrey Dean Morgan) that it’s easily one of the best seasons to date. Glen Mazzara continues to prove why he’s the perfect showrunner for this series, because as a fan of Robert Kirkman’s original comic, he’s able to deliver all the classic moments (the zombie invasion of Alexandria, Carl getting shot in the face, Negan’s thrilling introduction) without feeling slavish to the source material. Not every episode is a resounding success, but even those that caused controversy with their frustrating storytelling tactics (namely “Thank You” and “Last Day on Earth”) exude excellence in one way or another, and it’s for that reason why “The Walking Dead” remains among the best shows on TV.
EXTRAS: In addition to cast and crew audio commentaries on seven episodes, there’s an extended cut of the season finale (including an alternate, expletive-filled version of the Negan speech), five behind-the-scenes featurettes, deleted scenes and more.
FINAL VERDICT: BUY
