SANCTUARY: THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON (2009-2010, Blu-ray released June 15, 2010 – MSRP $49.98)
Sanctuary, the hit SyFy/Space Channel series originally created for the web, returns in its second televised season of monsters, mutants and things that go bump in the night, making a splash in gorgeous 1080p on Blu-ray!
I’m not a fan of Canadian television. I know that sounds bad, coming from a Canadian. But we just don’t often produce programs that feel sincere, like they’re not being self-consciously performed on a stage, awaiting some kind of applause. Well, I can’t really fault Sanctuary for any kind of artifice it might employ in its service, as it’s a show about monsters, ‘abnormal’ creatures who don’t really exist, shot against sets that don’t really exist. Yes, that’s right – a good deal of Sanctuary is created in the computer. And it’s a pretty entertaining kind of green-screen show.
Dr. Helen Magnus (Amanda Tapping), a 157-year old scientist runs a secret ‘Sanctuary’ for these ‘abnormals’, keeping creatures, monsters and special people away from the prying eyes of the normal world, safe and sound from those who might do them harm. This second season picks up directly from the first, finding Magnus’ daughter kidnapped and the various Sanctuaries under attack by the evil Cabal. Luckily, fellow members of ‘The Five’ – Nikola Tesla, Nigel Griffin, Dr. James Watson, and John Druitt, all tainted and super-powered by the same vampire blood that endowed Magnus with longevity – are standing by to pull their asses out of the fire. You’ll need a healthy dose of that old suspension-of-disbelief to get you through, but if you can muster it, you’ll most likely get a kick out of the series.
I’m surprised to say that Sanctuary looks pretty great on Blu! Shot in 4K resolution on the awesome RED camera and well encoded, you won’t find much to gripe about here. All 13 episodes in the set exhibit deep blacks and a good amount of detail, with colour only slightly off balance. The DTS HD 5.1 Master Audio sound track is not quite as immersive or expressive as you would hope, offering a very front-biased presentation. Not bad for a television show but nowhere near as great as the best film mixes.
If you’re a fan of the series, or plan to become one, you most certainly will not be disappointing with the ample amount of quality special features in this 4-disc boxed set:
- Episode audio commentaries with Amanda Tapping, Creator Damian Kindler and Director Martin Wood (plus additional members of the cast and crew)
- Five featurettes
- “International Sanctuary”
- “Amanda Tapping Directs ‘Veritas’”
- “Dancing in Mumbai”
- “Sanctuary Visual Effects”
- “Sanctuary Goes to Comic Con”
- “Anatomy of an Episode,” a from script to screen look at the “Next Tuesday” episode
- Robin Dunne’s “Behind-the-Scenes” and “Sanctuary Goes to Japan” video diaries
- “Bloopers and Outtakes” reel
- Production stills photo gallery
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