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Blu-Ray : Recommended
Ranking:
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Release Date: November 6th, 2012 Movie Release Year: 2002

Entourage: The Compete Series

Overview -

The Emmy -winning hit comedy series created by Doug Ellin, and based (at least in part) on the experiences of his good friend, Oscar nominated actor Mark Wahlberg (who’s among the series’ executive producers). The series takes a none-too-serious look at the day-to-day life of Vincent Chase(Adrian Grenier), an incandescent young Hollywood actor, and the three buddies he’s brought from their hometown in Queens, NY: manager Eric (Kevin Connolly), half brother/actor Drama (Kevin Dillon), and pal Turtle (Jerry Ferrara). Also starring Golden Globe and three-time Emmy -winner Jeremy Piven as Ari Gold – now heading an entertainment –agency behemoth–Entourage draws on the experiences of industry insiders to illustrate the excesses of today’s celebrity lifestyle, as well as the difficulty of maintaining relationships and artistic fulfillment in the show biz fast track.

OVERALL:
Recommended
Rating Breakdown
STORY
VIDEO
AUDIO
SPECIAL FEATURES
Tech Specs & Release Details
Technical Specs:
18 Disc Set
Video Resolution/Codec:
1080p/AVC MPEG-4
Length:
2640
Aspect Ratio(s):
1.78:1
Audio Formats:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles/Captions:
English SDH, French, Spanish
Special Features:
Museum of Television & Radio panel
Release Date:
November 6th, 2012

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

Ranking:

For eight seasons we followed the ups and downs of Vincent Chase's career as he and his small band of friends navigated the cutthroat world of Hollywood. From humble beginnings in Brooklyn, Vinnie Chase (Adrian Grenier) built up his acting career to become one of the biggest stars in 'Entourage's semi-fictional version of Tinsel Town. Along for the ride were his big brother, and lesser-known actor, Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon), childhood confidant and business manager Eric Murphy (Kevin Connolly), and smart ass New Yorker Turtle (Jerry Ferrara). Together they led us through Hollywood's "live in the now" lifestyle.

You have to hand it to HBO here. It's true that they've already released seasons six, seven, and eight on Blu-ray. Some people wondered if they'd even bother going back and bringing the earlier seasons to Blu-ray. As we've seen with many TV shows, studios just aren't willing to put the time and energy into past seasons, routinely dropping Blu-ray production on shows, leaving fans with an incomplete collection. The reason I want to commend HBO is not only did they go back and get the earlier seasons ready for a high-def release; they also didn't try to bleed fans dry with individual season releases. Some may be reluctant to buy a complete series collector's set, but it seems much more palatable than forking over the dough as each separate season is released only to find out they're releasing a complete series set anyway. HBO simply decided to release the complete series set, which seems like a fan-friendly move on their part.

I've personally enjoyed riding along with the 'Entourage' crew. There was something so effortless about the way showrunner Doug Ellin crafted each episode. I'll admit, at first, it appeared that we were going to be following around a group of entitled brats looking to live the high life. As the seasons progressed we soon realized that not only do these characters have hopes and aspirations, it also became apparent that 'Entourage' had something to say about the whole Hollywood dynamic. It poked fun at the obvious façade of stardom as Vinnie encountered everything from super-star status to substance abuse.


Perhaps 'Entourage's most notable achievement was giving the world Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven). The foul-mouthed agent who would sell his soul to the devil if it meant signing a big client was routinely a bright spot in the show. Even when the show started to falter in the later seasons, Piven's portrayal of Gold kept getting better and better. It was a joy watching him morph into the most powerful agent in Hollywood and then watch him try desperately to maintain his stranglehold by any means necessary.

I will be the first to admit that when the inevitable series finale rolled around, Ellin and company took the easy way out. The final episode of the show had far too many happy endings with the crew, who had gone through so many ups and downs, receiving convenient endings across the board. Is that reason not to watch the show? Absolutely not. Seasons one through four offer some of the most satisfying half-hour premium cable comedy that you'll ever find. The later seasons weren't as strong, but they certainly had their moments.

It's still hard to imagine a world without E, Vince, Johnny, Turtle, and Ari. That's why this set feels like a welcome guest in my house. 'Entourage' remains a very rewatchable show. There's something to like and laugh at in each episode. Now that the show is done and over with, this set provides a perfect opportunity to revisit the show. An opportunity that I've relished over the past week.


The Blu-ray: Vital Disc Stats

This is a beefy, well-packaged set. People who dislike slide-in disc hubs will be disappointed though. This 'Entourage' set is a lot like the Digi-book type of packaging that accompanied 'Rome: The Complete Series.' This is an 18-disc set. Each section in the book folds out to reveal to slide-in disc hubs, along with an episode list, a list of writing credits, and a mention of what special features are included in that season.

The book is pretty well-constructed, but it seems that with heavy use the cover will get easily worn around the binding area. The whole book slides nicely into a sleek outer case, which features some simplistic art work and provides a nicely compact series set. Below is a picture of what one of the season sections inside the book looks like, along with an overhead picture of the book, and a picture of what the book looks like slipping into the outer sleeve.

When all is said and done you're looking at eight seasons, made up of 96 episodes spread across 18 50GB Blu-ray Discs. The set is region free.






Video Review

Ranking:

So we know how seasons six, seven, and eight turned out on Blu-ray when HBO released them in standalone season sets. The question here is how do the first five seasons of the show look in high definition? I'm pleased to say that HBO has conscientiously put together very solid presentations for seasons one through five in this set.

Each season has been provided a 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer that presents unwavering clarity and rather surprising definition from earlier seasons. I was fully expecting a gradual uptick in quality as the seasons progressed, but it was nice to see that from the first episode, all the way to the 96th, the video presentation of the show remained consistently good.

Colors, from the very beginning, are bold. The sun-drenched visuals offer up a variety of strong primaries. California skies are usually picturesque shades of blue. Sandy beaches provide a nice contrast of tans and earth tones. Fine detail, whether it be the three-day stubble that Vinnie is always sporting or the small strands of pot smoke wafting through the air, remains strong throughout the series' run.

There is some minor banding in spots, usually in night skies. There are a few scenes, as the camera looks out over L.A. from the hills above, which feature some pretty noisy horizons at times. White backgrounds have always hampered the look of these seasons with crawling noise, and that persists as a main theme. This is something that was evident in the standalone releases and it remains an annoyance here. Other than that grumble, the rest of this set looks really well done. Aliasing, blocking, shimmering, and other artifacting, isn't seen much at all. Fans will be pleased with the way this entire set turned out.


Audio Review

Ranking:

Each season has been afforded a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix, which is just as strong as the visual presentation. Across the eight seasons the mix works extremely well working with the strengths of the show: dialogue and soundtrack.

Doug Ellin's quick-paced dialogue is tough to get a handle on when you first start watching the show. It's fast and furious and it takes a pin-point audio presentation to deliver it all with minimal softness. That's what is done here. Even with the quick banter, and with characters routinely talking over one another, voices come across clearly and evenly throughout every season.

The show's varied soundtrack, which seems to rely heavily on songs with heavy bass, fulfill the requirement of the subwoofer to be involved as much as possible. It doesn't matter if the guys are partying at a downtown club or if Turtle is pulling up in his car with the sound system pumping, the low-end sonics of this set have energy and thump.

Rear channels are sparse at times, but that's just because most of the show is front-centric in nature. There are times where they kick in when needed, mostly during visits to clubs, parties, and movie sets. However, emphasis is definitely placed in the front and center channels where most of the action in the show takes place.

HBO has done a great job with all eight seasons here. I didn't run into any egregious missteps on their part. It feels like they thoughtfully went through each season producing an accurate audio presentation for fans that are excited to own this set.


Special Features

Ranking:

For the seasons that haven't been released on the format yet, the special features included are features that can be found on the DVD releases of each particular season. As a general note, I didn't have time to listen to all the commentaries on this set, because I was trying to get this review out in a timely manner.

Season 1 – Disc 1 and 2

  • Audio Commentaries - There are three commentaries provided here. Doug Ellin and executive producer Larry Charles are the commentators for commentaries on the pilot, "Busey and the Beach," and "New York."
  • Behind the Scenes of 'Entourage' (HD, 10 min.) - This promotional featurette feels like a long commercial for the series as Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillion, Adrian Grenier, and Jeremy Piven, along with executive producer Mark Wahlberg talk about how great the show is and how much fun it is to make.

Season 2 – Disc 3 and 4

  • The Mark Wahlberg Sessions (HD, 23 min.) - This is the lone extra for the second season. While most of it feels as EPK-ish as the first season behind the scenes featurette, it is long enough to cover some of what makes the series so compelling. Wahlberg talks with Ellin, and executive producer Stephen Levinson to shed some light on the show's evolution and how it got to where it was at this point in time. They also take time to talk to the actors who have been able to get more of a handle on their own characters to talk about the show and where they think it's going.

Season 3: Part 1 – Disc 5 and 6

  • Audio Commentaries - The actors finally get in the mix with the commentaries. There are three commentaries included in this season. Ellin talks with Kevin Dillon and Jerry Ferrara on commentaries for "One Day in the Valley," "Vegas Baby, Vegas!" and "Sorry, Ari."
  • Vegas Baby, Vegas! (HD, 12 min.) - This is a featurette about the cast and crew shooting on-location in Las Vegas for the Vegas-centric episode.

Season 3: Part 2 – Disc 7 and 8

  • Audio Commentaries - There are three more commentaries included here where Ellin is joined again by Ferrara and Dillon on commentaries for "Manic Monday," "The Resurrection," and "Adios Amigos," which also includes Kevin Connolly.
  • Museum of Television and Radio Panel (HD, 51 min.) - With the show starting to really become popular the cast does a Q&A session at the Museum of Television and Radio. There Ellin, Connolly, Grenier, Ferrara, Piven, Dillon, and co-executive producer Julian Farino spend a good amount of time covering the show and its intricacies in depth. If you find the commentaries a little too anecdotal for their own good try out this feature. It's well worth watching if you're a fan of the show.
  • Anatomy of 'Entourage' (HD, 12 min.) - This is a short, but decent look at what it takes to create an episode of the show. Here we see what went into creating the season finale, "Adios Amigos."

Season 4 – Disc 9 and 10

  • Audio Commentaries - There are three more commentaries included here. The cast of commentators grows again this time around with Ellin, Dillon, Ferrara, and Connolly now being joined by Grenier. They provide commentaries for "Welcome to the Jungle," "The Day F*ckers," and "The Cannes Kids."
  • US Comedy Arts Festival Panel (HD, 48 min.) - Much like the Q&A from the Museum of Television & Radio, this panel covers the show in some nice depth. They discuss the series' evolution. How they feel about character development, specifically with Ari. Participants include Ellin, Levinson, Grenier, Piven, and Connolly.
  • The Making of "Medellin" (HD, 7 min.) - A quick look at the inside makings of the fictitious star-vehicle for Vince.
  • "Medellin" Trailer (HD, 2 min.) - A trailer for the fictitious film that most of us were pretty sick of hearing about by the time it was done.
  • Meet the Neweest Member of 'Entourage' (HD, 2 min.) - This is a short featurette about the child actor Lucas Ellin who plays Ari's son Jonah.

Season 5 – Disc 11 and 12

  • Audio Commentaries - Three more commentaries are included here. Producer Ally Musika joins in on the commentaries this time with Ellin, Grenier, Connolly, and Ferrara making reappearances. The commentaries are provided for "Tree Trippers," "Play'n with Fire," and "Return to Queens Blvd."

Season 6 – Disc 13 and 14

  • Audio Commentaries - Even though there are only three, I really liked the commentaries on season six. The episodes are "No More Drama," "Scared Straight," and "Give a Little Bit"). The thing that's nice about these commentaries is that it's not just one person giving a lonely diatribe about what's happening on screen. Most of the stars join in on the party, and even some guest stars like Bob Saget get in on the action. Other commentators include creator/producer Doug Ellin, executive producer Ally Musika, Jeremy Piven, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, and Adrian Grenier.
  • Life on Top (HD, 15 min.) - This is the making-of season six feature, but it isn't the promo fluff stuff that you would expect. It actually goes in-depth on what story arcs are happening, what changes are taking place with each character, and what the actors think about it all. A great little making-of featurette that will give fans of the show a taste of what to expect and a look at what actually goes on during the writing and filming of the show.
  • A Day at the Speedway (HD, 3 min.) - Focusing on the episode "One Car, Two Car, Red Car, Blue Car" this featurette shows us the gang as they race Ferraris at the Auto Club Speedway. It must be really fun making this show.
  • ONEXONE PSA (HD, 3 min.) - The best special feature on this set for sure. Matt Damon (playing himself) is directing a PSA about the real-life ONEXONE charity that he champions. Vince is supposed to say five lines, but he just can't get it right and Damon freaks out. Ari can't help but steal the entire scene with a hilarious 'Good Will Hunting' reference as Damon storms off. It's got to be said though, for some reason part of this is recorded on what looks like a camera phone as you can see it in some of the better HD shots. When it cuts to the camera phone footage the sound is off a tad and blocking is horrendous. Still, this is just really, really funny.

Season 7 – Disc 15 and 16

  • Audio Commentaries - Like season six, there are only three commentaries contained on this set. The episodes "Hair," "Porn Scenes in an Italian Restaurant," and "Lose Yourself" are the episodes with commentary. All three of the commentaries pretty much have the same set of main cast and crew from the show. Creator Doug Ellin, Executive Producer Ally Musika, and actors Kevin Connolly, Adrian Grenier, Jeremy Piven and Jerry Ferrara all appear on these commentaries. It's nice to have commentaries where most of the series regulars appear with frequency. Love having Piven on these commentaries, even though he's a bit more reserved than his character of Ari. These are anecdotal commentaries. It shows that this group of people have been working together for quite a while now. They're nice and congenial. Fans will want to give these commentaries a listen, even though they don't ever really get that deep into the show's inner workings. It's still fun to hear what they have to say.
  • Inside the Hollywood High Life (HD, 14 min.) - This is a simple EPK featurette that has interviews from the cast talking about the seventh season and how much they love their character arcs and how this is the best most interesting season ever. You know, the stuff that they're supposed to say.
  • The Shades of Sasha Grey (HD, 6 min.) - A short featurette with adult film star Sasha Grey talking about her career.

Season 8 – Disc 17 and 18

  • Hollywood Sunset: A Farewell to 'Entourage' (HD, 29 min.) - This is the one and only feature on this season. I would've really enjoyed a few audio commentaries talking about the episodes leading up to the show's finale, but that didn't happen. Instead this feature amounts to a "Let's all get together and reminisce," which they do. Creator Doug Ellin is joined by executive producer Ally Musika, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, and Adrian Grenier as they talk about how the show grew, their characters, and what it was like working together. Mark Wahlberg comes in and talks about the show also. Basically everyone who was really involved in the show has a chance to discuss where the show came from and where it went and the fun they had along the way. It's a fitting back-patting tribute, which caps off the happy-endings-for-everyone feel of the season as a whole.

Again I'm very pleased that HBO decided to go the complete series route instead of trying to get all the money they could out of standalone releases only to release a complete series set after the fact. While there aren't any new special features provided for this set, the mere fact that HBO decided to go this route shows that they're keen to please fans of the series. They've also gone through and provided a consistently decent video presentation and a solid audio presentation to accompany it. This is a set that all 'Entourage' fans should be pleased about owning. It comes recommended.