AMC’s supernatural horror series, NOS4A2, is back for it’s second (and final) season on Blu-ray. Let’s dive in and take a peek!
NOS4A2 is based on a book of the same name by Joe Hill, the son of prolific writer Stephen King. Hill is himself a very well established writer with a unique and interesting voice in the supernatural horror genre.
The series follows Vic McQueen, a young artist who has discovered that she has a supernatural talent that allows her to find lost or missing things. This talent also allows her to track and find Charlie Manx – an immortal being who siphons the life force from young children and then stashes them in Christmasland, his own private limbo.
Season two continues the story eight years after we left it off – with Manx having learned that he may not be as immortal as he believes, and wanting revenge. Manx’s new target, however, isn’t Vic herself, but her eight year old child.
While the second season of this show was certainly entertaining with its own fair share of unnerving situations, it fell short of delivering the same level of storytelling as its first season. It is important to note that the show was not picked up for a third season, which is in part due to poor ratings, but to be honest I thought that this show was perfectly fine. The acting is quite good and the supernatural spin to things is intriguing to say the least. Some things are just not meant to drag on, which is often for the best. I can say this, there is a satisfying ending to the main storyline here, which is important when recommending a canceled series.
On the whole, NOS4A2 is a perfectly fine supernatural horror series that completes its arc in an interesting way, but never quite lived up to its potential. I’d still say that this series is worth a watch, Zachary Quinto is really fun to watch as Manx, and there just isn’t enough horror series these days.
PQ/AQ:
For a show that spends so much time at night, NOS4A2 looks quite good on blu-ray. The black levels and dark scenes maintain their color exceptionally well and even when the series sort of dipped in excitement, it was still a pretty watch.
The sound quality is similarly well done. The DTS-Master Audio 5.1 channel track is perfectly suitable and I had no issues with distortion or dialogue in loud scenes.
Special Features:
Spree is a three disc release in an amaray case and a nice looking slipcover. The special features are as follows:
- A Look at Season 2
- Catching Up with the Characters
- The Origin of Charlie Manx
- Comic-Con@Home Panel
Packaging
Our Recommendation for NOS4A2 Season Two:
While NOS4A2 likely had more potential than was established in its two seasons, the show is still entertaining to watch. Fans of supernatural horror shows get a criminally low amount of series to watch, so I would say that if that’s an itch you have, give this show a watch.
