The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review
SteelBook Collector's Edition
Score: 84
from 5 reviewers
Review Date:
The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season delivers top-tier A/V quality in 4K UHD, despite limited extras, making it a must-own for fans.
Disc Release Date
True 4K
HDR10
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
Video: 97
The Mandalorian's 4K UHD Blu-ray offers a superior presentation with an HEVC 2160p transfer, vastly enhancing details from grains of sand to CGI precision. With HDR10, colors are bold and vibrant, shadows deep, and the image free from streaming artifacts—delivering a reference-quality cinematic experience.
Audio: 93
The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season's 4K UHD offers an exceptional Dolby Atmos audio experience, surpassing Disney+'s stream with expansive dynamic range, engaging verticality, and rich low-frequency extension. Dialogue is crystal clear, while Göransson’s nuanced score and immersive atmospherics elevate the soundstage.
Extra: 46
Despite the elegant SteelBook packaging and intriguing concept art cards, the 4K UHD release offers only 17 minutes of exclusive extras across two brief featurettes—'Remnants of the Empire' and 'Forging the Covert: Part One'—with no additional content from the extensive Disney+ material, leaving die-hard fans craving more depth.
Show: 87
"The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" delivers a technically remarkable UHD Blu-ray experience, featuring rich 4K visuals and engaging soundscapes. While rooted in the beloved Star Wars universe with nostalgic callbacks, it introduces an emotional narrative centered on a stoic bounty hunter and an irresistibly adorable Yoda-like creature named Grogu. Directed by celebrated talents like Taika Waititi, this series revitalizes the Star Wars saga with new characters amidst familiar post-Return of the Jedi chaos, blending nostalgia with innovative storytelling.
Video: 97
The 4K UHD Blu-ray presentation of "The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" offers a truly elevated visual experience that surpasses its streaming counterpart on Disney+. Presented in 2160p HEVC/H.265 encoded with an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, this release encapsulates the full potential of digital storytelling, captured originally in ARRIRAW format at 4.5K using Arri Alexa LF cameras. The enhancement to a 4K Digital Intermediate results in greater clarity, with video data rates reaching up to 80 Mbps, which drastically enhances fine detail and minimizes digital artifacts evident in online streams.
The transfer showcases remarkable improvements across several technical facets: fine detail is palpably heightened on costumes, props, and CGI elements, such as sand grains and rust details on Tatooine. The dynamic range provided by HDR10 delivers vibrantly bold color reproduction, particularly enriching blues, oranges, and a spectrum of greens. Shadow detail is significantly improved, fostering a deeper engagement during low-light scenes and sequences set in outer space, where the black levels are immaculately presented without any crushing.
This presentation of "The Mandalorian" significantly benefits from a high bitrate that ensures a cinematic motion experience and strong depth of field. The HDR treatment enhances visual highlights from elements like blaster bolts and spaceship engine flames, further elevating this release as reference-quality material. Colors maintain an authentic yet bold feel, supplementing the show's gritty aesthetic with moments of vivid contrast when necessary. Ultimately, this release on disc solidifies the superiority of physical media, providing a stunning and immersive visual rendition of the celebrated series.
Audio: 93
The 4K UHD Blu-Ray of "The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" delivers an exceptional audio presentation, marked by its lossless Dolby Atmos track which uses a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core. Distinctively superior to its streaming counterpart with lossy Dolby Digital+ Atmos, this version presents a broader dynamic range, enriching the auditory experience significantly. The Atmos mix remarkably enhances spatial dynamics and vertical sound elements, vividly elevating scenes like aerial battles and firefights. Sound effects notably benefit from immersive height channels, offering palpable depth with atmospheric elements while maintaining smooth sound movement throughout the environment.
Dialogue clarity is consistently high, with every line rendered cleanly and precisely, even amid intense action sequences. Ludwig Göransson’s score resonates with impressive dynamic range and fidelity, supporting the drama and the show's themes effectively without overwhelming the viewing experience. The front soundstage is notably expansive, offering excellent stereo separation while engaging the active surrounds and heights for added dimensionality.
The bass extension offers a distinct low-end presence, delivering impactful thuds from explosions, spaceship roars, and atmospheric effects such as crackling ice and falling debris. The surround sound design creates an encompassing auditory landscape that engages listeners with nuanced ambient details and focused directional effects. Additional audio options include English 2.0 Descriptive Audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, accompanied by English SDH, French, and Spanish subtitles, ensuring a comprehensive accessibility suite. Overall, the audio presentation of this release stands as a significant upgrade over the streaming version, capturing the immersive essence of "The Mandalorian" effectively.
Extras: 46
The 4K UHD Blu-ray of "The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" offers a limited yet insightful collection of extras, accentuated by its SteelBook packaging with exclusive concept art cards. While the additional content amounts to just over 16 minutes, it deeply enriches the viewer's understanding of the series. The featurettes explore the show's placement in the Star Wars timeline and delve into its creative inception. These bonus materials, located on Disc Two, provide a concise look at the story's context, production design, and character development through discussions led by creators Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni. Though brief, these extras offer valuable insight into the craftsmanship and creative vision behind "The Mandalorian."
Extras included in this disc:
- Remnants of the Empire: An overview of the series' setting and props within the Star Wars timeline.
- Forging the Covert: Part One: An exploration of the series' conception, design, and character development.
- Concept Art Cards: Includes three themed art cards.
Show: 87
"The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" on 4K UHD Blu-ray delivers a compelling dive into the Star Wars universe, balanced by both nostalgic references and fresh storytelling. Set in the chaotic aftermath of the Galactic Empire's fall, it follows the stoic bounty hunter Din Djarin, aka Mando (Pedro Pascal), whose life takes a turn upon meeting Grogu, affectionately known as "the Child." This unexpected camaraderie with the puppet-like Grogu subtly weaves an emotional depth into the series amidst sequences of intense action. The narrative thrives on its simplicity, focusing on classic themes of good versus evil while artfully expanding the Star Wars mythos.
The series also excels in its treatment of new characters such as Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) and Cara Dune (Gina Carano), enriching the storyline without alienating fans unfamiliar with the broader Star Wars context. Creators Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni ingeniously root "The Mandalorian" within the franchise's history while offering something unique and engaging, uniting old fans and cultivating new ones. The inclusion of famed directors, such as Taika Waititi, allows each episode to bristle with individual flair yet maintain cohesion across the season, leading to dynamic story arcs and visually stunning sequences.
The technical aspects of this 4K UHD Blu-ray edition wrap viewers in visually arresting content and robust soundscapes. The steelbook packaging is enhanced with new artwork, resonant of the series' aesthetic appeal. The high-definition transfer captures every detail meticulously, from the expanse of the Outer Rim to intimate scenes between Mando and Grogu. Despite minor narrative missteps and occasional plot conveniences, "The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" is an exhilarating addition to any Star Wars collection, aligning fine production values with exemplary storytelling.
Total: 84
"The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season" on 4K UHD Blu-ray presents an outstandingly constructed experience, greatly benefiting from remarkable production designs and top-tier CGI. This edition not only pays homage to the original Star Wars trilogy but offers fresh narratives, particularly through the captivating relationship between the Mandalorian and the Child. Combining action with a heartwarming story, performances are consistently engaging, ensuring a satisfying viewing experience. The physical release by Lucasfilm and Disney delivers unparalleled audio-visual quality enhanced by Dolby Atmos, making it a definitive upgrade over streaming options.
The packaging, housed in an attractive Steelbook case, is as commendable as the content within. While some may lament the limited extras in comparison to what Disney+ offers, the inclusion of two new supplements and three art cards adds value to this purchase. Star Wars fans will appreciate how "The Mandalorian" breathes new life into a galaxy far, far away, extending its realms beyond familiar Jedi and Sith territories. The Dolby Atmos track offers uncompressed sound quality that truly stands out, further elevating the immersive nature of the episodes.
In conclusion, this 4K UHD release of "The Mandalorian: Season One" is a must-have for any Star Wars aficionado. It encapsulates a reinvigorated vision for the franchise while offering premium A/V quality for home theaters. Although the added features could have been more encompassing, the new content and exquisite packaging offer significant appeal. This collection not only serves as a robust introduction to the series but also is a testament to its status as a flagship show. Highly recommended for anyone seeking to expand their Star Wars collection with a high-caliber physical media release.
Blu-ray.com review by Jeffrey KauffmanRead review here
Video: 100
There are so many excellent examples of detail precision in this version that it's almost hard to know where to begin, but everything from the countless grains of sand to detritus after an explosion in...
Audio: 100
The fantastic immersion offered on the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks on the 1080 discs is all here, and then some, and virtually all of the space battle material or even just flying sequences attain noticeable...
Extras: 60
Remnants of the Empire (HD; 5:46) offers a brief look at the context of the story in terms of the "demise" of the Empire....
Movie: 90
There are already potential hints and even at least mentions in various outings that might suffice as some kind of "crossover" event involving the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars, something that's...
Total: 90
The relationship between the Mandalorian and the tyke known chiefly as the Child gives this effort an unabashedly sweet underpinning, but that doesn't mean this series shirks at all in the action department....
The Digital Bits review by Bill HuntRead review here
Video: 100
Notably, the HDR experience on disc is more of what you expect from this format (the grade often appeared dim on Disney+), with deeply detailed shadows and more naturally bright and eye-reactive highlights....
Audio: 90
And the good news is, unlike the compromised sound experience on the Disney+ stream, the uncompressed Atmos mix really shines....
Extras: 55
Unfortunately, there are only two special features in this set—Remnants of the Empire and Forging the Covert: Part One—both of them on Disc Two, and they amount to a little over sixteen minutes’ worth...
Movie: 80
The power vacuum left by the Empire is being filled by warlords, gangsters, and surviving Imperial forces—scum and villainy all—and none of them are particularly concerned with law and order....
Total: 81
The Mandalorian represents a breath of fresh air for the Star Wars franchise, depicting corners of the galaxy less populated by Jedi, Sith, and Skywalkers than heretofore imagined (a little in the mold...
High-Def DigestRead review here
Video: 100
The banding and aliasing that was seen in the Disney+ streams are all erased on this physical disc with far better detail....
Audio: 100
Each sound is bigger and better this time around with sound effects opening up on all channels....
Extras: 20
Unfortunately, none of the four hours of extras that are included on the streaming platform are imported to this disc....
Movie: 100
It didn't matter what people thought of the sequel trilogy, The new series for Disney+ that eventually catapulted the streaming service into existence was going to change the course of Star Wars and their...
Total: 100
The series itself has given new life and force power to every fan of Star Wars and has introduced one of the most talked about characters on television....
Home Theater Forum review by Todd ErwinRead review here
Video: 100
This first season of The Mandalorian was captured digitally at 4.5K resolution on Arri Alexa LF cameras and completed as a 4K digital intermediate in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio and graded using Dolby Vision...
Audio: 90
The front soundstage is wide and expansive, with excellent stereo separation and active surrounds and heights that add some dimensionality to the mix....
Extras: 60
Remnants of the Empire (1080p; 5:46): A look at the sets and props and where the series takes place within the Star Wars timeline....
Movie: 90
This sets up Mando’s change of heart from the opening of the first episode to the end of the second, when he is hired to retrieve a mysterious and top secret bounty for The Client (a very creepy Werner...
Total: 90
Many thanks to Disney for releasing this first season on physical media, the best way to experience this fun and exciting series....
Why So Blu? review by Brandon PetersRead review here
Video: 100
Depth: Depth of field is pretty strong with some nice open and big feeling imagery on display....
Audio: 100
The rear and side channels build terrific room ambiance with nice light touches as well as keeping track of offscreen activity and angle changes....
Extras: 40
A brief featurette on the backdrop of where/when the show takes place and the type of characters and attitude it carries....
Movie: 80
Total: 80
Regardless of how much or how little you care for the Star Wars Disney+ television output, it is still a relief to see them getting a physical media release....
Director: N/A
Actors: Pedro Pascal, Chris Bartlett, Katee Sackhoff
PlotIn a time after the fall of the Galactic Empire, a lone Mandalorian bounty hunter traverses the outer reaches of the galaxy. Renowned for his combat skills and adherence to a strict code, he takes on dangerous assignments to collect bounties. Tasked with retrieving a valuable asset, a mysterious and powerful child, the Mandalorian finds himself torn between his professional duties and a burgeoning sense of responsibility toward protecting the innocent. As their bond grows, he becomes determined to protect the child from various factions vying for control, including remnants of the fallen Empire.
Navigating a lawless frontier fraught with mercenaries and marauders, the Mandalorian seeks safe havens among allies new and old while piecing together clues about the child's origins. Along the way, he encounters formidable warriors and forms uneasy alliances to thwart those who pose a threat to his mission. Each planet presents new challenges, whether dealing with ruthless crime syndicates or aiding him in learning more about Mandalorian culture and the child's significance. As he travels across this treacherous landscape, his journey unfolds into a deeper understanding of his identity and an unexpected calling that could alter his place in the galaxy. Bound by honor and survival, he must navigate complex loyalties and hidden dangers to ensure the child remains out of enemy hands.
Writers: Jon Favreau
Release Date: 12 Nov 2019
Runtime: 40 min
Rating: TV-14
Country: United States
Language: English