- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: English, English SDH, Spanish
- Region: A (B? C?)
- Rating: TV-MA
- Discs: 4
- Studio: HBO Home Video
- Blu-ray Release Date: March 29, 2011
- List Price: $79.98
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BestBuy.com:
Purchase Treme: The Complete First Season on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4.5/5]
The Series
[Rating:4.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:4/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
The Series
[Rating:4.5/5]
The cable network HBO’s latest original drama, Treme, immediately reminds you how immense a disaster hurricane Katrina was and just how much it has been embedded in our country’s psyche. The very first episode begins with stark white text set against a black background that simply states “New Orleans, Louisiana…Three Months After.” There’s no need to mention after what, we already know.
The series revolves around one of the city’s oldest neighborhoods, the one from which it takes its name, Treme. It’s been an important center of black, creole, and musical culture. Through the interconnected stories of musicians (Rob Brown as Delmonnd Lambreaux; Wendell Pierce as Antoine Batiste; Lucia Micarelli as Annie; et. al.) restaurateurs (Kim Dickens as Chef Janette Desautel; Khandi Alexander as Ladonna Batiste-Williams) college professors (John Goodman as the irascible college professor Creighton Bernette), lawyers (Melissa Leo as Creighton’s wife Toni Bernette) and other community leaders, Treme tells the story of the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina, with the city’s music and food at its heart.
With the wreckage, mud, lack of power, and family members still missing, Treme‘s characters begin the process of rebuilding their homes as well as their lives as some neighborhoods fare better than others. Anger is pointed everywhere, at each other, at the government, and at the rest of the country for debating whether or not the city should be rebuilt.
Filled with soulful musical performances and stellar acting all around, Treme is a series that is slow to build, but it will suck you in like a perfect plate of jambalaya.
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Treme has an excellent film-like quality, its 35mm production arriving in a 1.78:1 AVC/MPEG-4 1080p encodement from HBO. There’s lots of detail to be found in this purposely gritty production. High frequency information is sharp, but not noisy and flesh tones are pretty spot on. There’s also no sign of the artifacts typical of the broadcasts of this series (or any series, for that matter).
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Treme‘s DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit) soundtrack sounds superb. It is big with the sounds of New Orlean’s jazz. Smooth high frequencies, deep, tight bass and a musical midrange inform the musical performances, while dialogue is full and clean. The surrounds are used nicely for lots of atmospherics from the streets, restaurants and nightclubs of the Treme.
Supplemental Material
[Rating:4/5]
This set is loaded with audio commentaries and two interactive, in-episode features that allow viewers to delve deeper into the world of the series, its locales, music, and cuisine.
The supplements provided with this release are:
Disc 1:
- Down in the Treme: A Look at the Music and Culture of New Orleans – An in-episode viewing mode that lets viewers dig deeper into the world of Treme and New Orleans, offering information on the music, bios on the characters, a lexicon for the New Orleans vernacular, info on the different locales, and the famous cuisine.
- The Music of Treme –This in-episode viewing mode is supposed to pop-up information on the music currently playing, and then allow you to select the “red” button on your remote to get more information on the artists, etc., which actually just sends you back to the same menu the the Down in the Treme: A Look at the Music and Culture of New Orleans feature uses. The problem, on my player at least, is the feature often popped up information randomly, such as showing Edith Piaf’s “La vie en rose” was playing when there was no music to be heard.
- Audio Commentary on Episode 1 with Creators/Executive Producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer
- Audio Commentary on Episode 1 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 2 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
Disc 2:
- Down in the Treme
- The Music of Treme
- Audio Commentary on Episode 3 with Wendell Pierce, Khandi Alexander, and Alan Sepinwal (TV Critic, HitFix)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 3 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 4 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
- Audio Commnetary on Episode 5 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
Disc 3:
- Down in the Treme
- The Music of Treme
- Audio Commentary on Episode on Episode 6 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 7 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 8 with Creator/Executive Producer Eric Overmyer and Producer/Director Anthony Hemingway
- Audio Commentary Episode 8 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
Disc 4:
- Down in the Treme
- The Music of Treme
- Treme: Beyond Bourbon St. (1.78:1; 1080i/60; 0:29.05)
- The Making of Treme (1.78:1; 1080i/60; 0:14.10)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 9 with Writer George Pelecanos and John Goodman
- Audio Commentary on Episode on Episode 9 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
- Audio Commentary on Episode 10 with Creator/Executive Producer David Simon and Executive Nina Noble
- Audio Commentary on Episode on Episode 10 with Josh Jackson (WBGO) and Patrick Jarenwattananon (NPR Music)
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4.5/5]
It looks like HBO has another winner on there hands with this new drama about New Orleans, three months after. The Blu-ray does the series justice with a great transfer and excellent sound.
Additional Screen Captures
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[amazon-product align=”right”]B003UD7JA8[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase Treme: The Complete First Season on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4.5/5]
The Series
[Rating:4.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:4/5]
