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Blu-ray Review: BLACK SAILS Season 3

Nov 07, 2016 Posted by in DVD/Blu-ray, Reviews | Comments

As the third season of the Starz pirate drama Black Sails opens, the death of Miranda Barlow has hit Flint (Toby Stephens) hard, but this grief gives the pirate captain a reinvigorated spirit to wage war against all of those who attack the pirate way of life. So he and his men go on a series of raids, massacring the colonial governors who oppose them. His quartermaster John Silver (Luke Arnold) fears that Flint is becoming a too reckless, and it’s not long before those fears come true—Flint steers the ship head-on into an approaching storm in order to evade capture. And this is just the first in the series of unfortunate events to come.

Back in England, Eleanor Guthrie (Hannah New) is preparing to go on trial when she is offered a clemency deal from Woodes Rogers (Luke Roberts), the next governor of New Providence Island. He wants to eliminate piracy from the island once and for all, and seeks Eleanor’s help to do so, since she has detailed knowledge of how things run on the island. Without hesitation, Eleanor immediately takes him up on this offer, providing him with a list of those who can and can’t be trusted. And so they set sail towards the island, armed with a plan to offer complete pardons to any pirate willing to swear allegiance to Britain and swear off piracy…well, to anyone but Captain Charles Vane (Zach McGowan), who is to be hanged as an example.

Meanwhile, on New Providence Island, the fort is still in ruins, which means the island—and the pirates’ gold—is unprotected. As Max (Jessica Parker Kennedy) and Anne Bonny (Clara Paget) pressure Jack Rackham (Toby Schmitz) to honor his pledge to repair the wall, they try to come up with other ways to hide the gold should the Spanish (or British) come looking for it. Meanwhile, Edward Teach (Ray Stevenson)—aka Blackbeard—returns to the island, looking for his old friend to join his crew. However, the reunion is interrupted when Rogers arrives and Vane learns of the bounty on his head, forcing the men to make their quick escape.

Now the pirates must hatch a plan to take back their home, reclaim their treasure, and find a way to convince those who took the pardon why piracy is a better way of life. As they prepare for the major battle to come, the pirates find an ally in an unlikely source.

 

This was easily my favorite season of this series yet. We are introduced to two interesting new characters. Edward Teech is both like a father figure to Captain Vane, but also a member of the old gang who wants his friend to rejoin him. And Woodes Rogers quickly proves that he is quite the resourceful guy under pressure, and that he will stop at nothing to achieve his goals—whether that’s converting the pirates to loyal British subjects, finding the pirates’ cache of jewels, or making an example of of Captain Vane. While the pirates think they are in control, he constantly seems to be a step or two ahead of them. There’s also a lot of development for the existing characters this season—Max, Anne and Rackham come to terms that their love triangle must come to an end; Flint struggles to overcome his inner demons; Silver realizes that Flint may not be the best person in charge of the crew; and Vane is forced to choose between an old pledge and his new friends. There is this definite sense of stakes this season—no one is ever truly safe, and could be killed off at any time. These are rough times and anything could happen. Characters will turn on one another—whether it’s to save their own lives or to better their own positions—but the opposite is also true, as some characters will sacrifice themselves in the name of what is right.

This series is so beautifully shot. In addition to the expansive sea battles, there are some really creative and impressive sequences this season. In the season premiere, Flint and his men are raiding a colonial village. The camera weaves in and out of the action, never cutting away as the men execute the residents as they make their way through the streets towards the governor’s home. It’s a really-impressive single shot that makes you feel like part of the action. And we see this technique again later on in the season as the pirates attempt a fast-paced stagecoach raid/rescue. The storm scene is also very impressive—with Flint on deck, Billy up in the yardarm, and Silver below deck, we get to see all of the intense action as these pirates brave the treacherous sea. And the scenes that follow dealing with the aftermath, while not as action-packed, are just as engaging. The season ultimately builds to, and culminates in, a huge, spectacular battle.

The Blu-ray presentation of this release is amazing. The picture is nearly flawless—whether it’s a night time raid, a stormy sea or a sunny island, all of the picturesque scenery and heart-pounding action is captured in beautiful detail. The soundtrack is especially impressive, making use of all of the audio channels to provide an incredibly-immersive viewing experience. Battles come to life with booming bass, explosions come from all directions, bullets sound like they are flying overhead, and the wind sounds like it is all around you as the pirates enter that deadly storm. The discs contain about 50 minutes of bonus material including a second season recap, inside looks at every episode, behind-the-scenes featurettes, and historical comparisons of some of the season’s new characters.

The packaging is the same as that of the first two seasons. The sturdy outer box includes a really nice 3D lenticular cover, and inside is a 5-page cardboard fold-open digi-pak. The three discs are placed in paper slots within these pages, with each section of the digi-pak adorned with character artwork. I’m not really a fan of the digi-pak packaging as the discs are difficult to remove/re-insert, and always end up with fingerprints on them. I would have preferred a standard keepcase inside the lenticular box, but at least the packaging looks consistent on my shelf with the previous seasons.



What’s Included:

Episodes: (9:09:51)

  • All ten episodes of the third season:
    “XIX.”, “XX.”, “XXI.”, “XXII.”, “XXIII.”, “XXIV.”, “XXV.”, “XXVI.”, “XXVII.”, “XXVIII.”
  • Blu-ray:

    • 1080p / Widescreen 1.78:1
    • Audio: English Dolby TrueHD 7.1, Spanish Dolby Surround 2.0, French Dolby Surround 2.0
    • Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

    Digital Copy (Redemption Deadline 12/31/2018):

    • UltraViolet Digital HD copy redeemable via Vudu or Flixster

Extras:

  • Season 2 Recap (4:30)
    The cast recounts the events of the second season. Participants include executive producer Dan Shotz, co-creator/executive producer Jonathan E. Steinberg, and actors Toby Stephens (“Captain Flint”), Luke Arnold (“John Silver”), Hannah New (“Eleanor Guthrie”), Zach McGowan (“Captain Charles Vane”), Toby Schmitz (“Jack Rackham”) and Jessica Parker Kennedy (“Max”). This is a great refresher, but I wish this had been placed on the first disc instead of the last, to make it more convenient to watch before viewing the episodes.
  • Inside the World of Black Sails (24:03)
    Co-creators/executive producers Robert Levine & Jonathan E. Steinberg break down each episode episode of the season. They talk about the new characters (Edward Teach/Blackbeard and Woodes Rogers), the journeys of the other characters, filming the storm, the Maroon Island set, filming action and fight sequences and more.
  • The Storm (3:43)
    A behind-the-scenes look at what it took to film the massive storm scene. Includes interviews with executive producers Dan Shotz, Chris Symes, Robert Levine and Robert Levine, director Lukas Ettlin, stunt coordinator Franz Spilhaus, and actors Toby Stephens, Luke Arnold and Tom Hopper (“Billy Bones”).
  • A Pirate’s Last Words (4:03)
    The producers and cast discuss the character of Charles Vane. Includes behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with co-creator/executive producer Jonathan E. Steinberg and actors Zach McGowan and Tom Hopper.
  • Blackbeard: An 18th Century Pirate (10:03)
    This narrated featurette takes a look at the historical legend of the pirate Blackbeard, the founding of the pirate colony at Nassau, and how Edward Teach and his relationship with Charles Vane is portrayed in the series. Includes interviews with historian consultant Benerson Little, co-creators/executive producers Robert Levine & Jonathan E. Steinberg, and actors Ray Stevenson (“Edward Teach”), Zach McGowan and Toby Stephens.
  • Woodes Rogers (5:33)
    This narrated featurette takes a look at the historical story of Woodes Rogers and how this man is portrayed in the series. Includes interviews with co-creators/executive producers Robert Levine & Jonathan E. Steinberg, historian consultant Benerson Little, and actors Luke Roberts (“Woodes Rogers”), Toby Schmitz, Toby Stephens and Hannah New.

 


Final Thoughts:

My Rating
Episodes:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Highly Recommended

Black Sails just keeps getting better and better each season. The third season introduces some interesting new characters, shakes up some of the existing relationships, and sends several of the characters on personal journeys. It starts off with three separate stories that ultimately come together by the end for the explosive season finale. The series is a great blend of action and drama with a small dose of humor. The Blu-ray presentation looks and sounds amazing—fans will not be disappointed! This was easily my favorite season yet, and I can’t wait to see what the series brings for its upcoming final season! This release comes highly recommended and is a must own for fans of the series.