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Ben 10: The Complete Season 2 (TV)
R1 - America - Warner Home Video Review written by and copyright: Pat Pilon (27th January 2008). |
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The Show
 I think most people would agree that some shows (like 'Oz' and 'The Sopranos') shouldn't be viewed by children. By the same token, I believe that some kids' shows shouldn't be viewed by adults. 'Pokemon' might have been ridiculously popular, but I don't think any sane adult could ever make any sense out of it. 'Ben 10' isn't as extreme, but in the first couple of episodes of the season I was lost. Maybe I couldn't figure everything out because I hadn't seen the first season, but at least now I know what's going on. The show has Ben, his cousin Gwen and their Grandfather Max fighting various aliens and monsters on Earth, with the help of Ben's Omnitrix, a watch-type gadget he found in the woods one day after it crash-landed on Earth in a meteorite. This gadget gives Ben the ability to change into whatever alien form that's trapped inside the Omnitrix. As you can gather from one of the deleted scenes on the set, there are ten forms Ben can take (that we know of), though sometimes he can't seem to control which one he transforms into. When things go right, the action is pretty constant. Indeed, every episode has a lot of speed and action, especially 'Ultimate Weapon' and 'Back With a Vengeance'. On the other hand, characters are pretty thin and villains pretty one-dimensional. This is, however, a kids' show and I shouldn't be too hard on it. I'll assume that the first season took care of these problems. The show also has some continuity, which is nice to see. Vilgax, the ultimate baddie, is seen throughout the season, and Gwen and Ben always refer to things that happened before, though whether they happened in season one, I can't tell. Regardless, I enjoy seeing shows that have thought put into them, and this season sees some subplots. Scattered here and there are also lessons to be learned. Though they're never the focus of the episode, the episode usually ends up proving the point made. 'The Big Tick', for example, has no real lesson, but 'Ghostfreaked Out' and 'Back With a Vengeance' have some nice things to say about family and oneself. The lessons are never very complex and the episodes sometimes pass over these things, but this is an action-adventure show, not a morality play. The season may be short, but it's very nice. With lots of action, some funny lines (though probably funnier for the younger viewers) and fun bad guys, this is quite enjoyable. It's fast and offers up some nice escapist fantasy. Surely kids who watch this will go to bed at night, imagining what they'd do if they ever found a strange gadget in the dark of the woods. You can't really ask more than that. Here is a rundown of the episodes by disc. 1. Truth (22:59) Grandpa has a secret about his past, and comes clean about the old friend they meet. 2. The Big Tick (22:59) A big tick comes to Earth via a meteorite and starts to suck the life out of Earth. 3. Framed (22:55) An alien bearing striking resemblances to Ben's Omnitrix's beasts goes on a robbing spree, and Ben gets blamed. It's up to him to figure out who this alien is. 4. Gwen 10 (22:34) Ben wakes up and he discovers he's in the past, on the day he originally discovered the Omnitrix. However, Gwen finds the gadget before him instead. 5. Grudge Match (22:58) In a semi-continuation of 'Framed', the culprit of the robberies and Ben get sucked into a mad alien's ship, where they compete in an 'Enter the Dragon'-type tournament. 6. The Galactic Enforcers (22:58) Trouble brews, and Ben gets help in the shape of the Galactic Enforcers, who are running after some aliens trying to steal a strange element. 7. Camp Fear (23:01) While at camp, a new giant killer mushroom species is unleashed and they take Grandpa away. 8. Ultimate Weapon (22:59) When the ultimate weapon is unleashed in mask form, Grandpa gets really serious and really doesn't want the wrong people to get their hands on it. This is one of the better episodes of the season. disc 2: 9. Touch Luck (22:59) A powerful magician escapes from prison with the help of his niece. 10. They Lurk Below (22:58) While visiting Max's billionaire friend, the trio find a bit of trouble. 11. Ghostfreaked Out (22:55) One of the aliens inside the Omnitrix wants out, and will do anything to make that happen. 12.Dr. Animo and the Mutant Ray (22:48) Ben wants to find out if his Omnitrix has more aliens hidden inside it, but ends up messing up the gadget by jarring a piece loose, which then gets stolen by baddie Dr. Animo. 13. Back with a Vengeance (22:48) Vilgax and Kevin (from 'Framed' and 'Grudge Match') team up to fight Ben. This is a very nice ending to the season.
Video
1.33:1 full frame. I find this picture to be a bit soft. Black lines that shape everything aren't as sharp as they could be. Granted, this isn't Pixar-grade animation, but the lines and edges could have been a bit more defined. The colours are bright and accurate to the animation. Grain, specks and scratches would be wasted words, so I'll move on. Pixelation and edge enhancement also don't seem to be a problem, as I didn't find any. Overall it's a strong picture.
Audio
There are Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo tracks in English, French and Spanish. I listened to the original English one and was quite happy. The range is pretty good, though quiet moments are few and far between. The dialogue was never drowned out by whatever action or music also in the sequence. The various sound effects are also very loud and clear. There's not much movement across the front and the separation could be better, but as far as stereo tracks go, this is pretty good. English, French and Spanish subtitles are also provided.
Extras
Warner provided this set with some nice extras, and best of all, there are no start-up trailers! Disc one has a couple of Deleted Scenes from the episode 'The Big Tick. Deleted Scene 1 (1:20) hasBen trying to fight off the Tick with various aliens, and failing every time. In Deleted Scene 2 (0:50), Ben tries with the one alien he didn't try the first time, with better results. This is an extension more than a deleted scene. Some Trailers for 'Ben 10: Protector of Earth' Game Trailer (1:11) and 'Chill Out Scooby-Doo' (0:57) are here. Given the video-game-like nature of the show (picking your alien and all), this game looks kind of nice. Disc two starts off with the How to Draw Heatblast featurette (2:36). It has Tom Perkins showing you how to draw Heatblast. He tells you the basic ideas when drawing the alien (rough outline first, which makes drawing the details later). This is drawn a bit fast and there's no real time for anybody to follow along, especially given Mr. Perkins is a one of the show's character designers. The Secret Alien Info featurette (2:43) is next. Tramm Wigzell talks about Heatblast and gives out some background information about the alien. Wilmutt, XLR8, Grey Matter, Upgrade, Four Arms and Cannonball are discussed in rapid-fire fashion. The aliens' origins and powers are mentioned. This is pretty interesting, but goes by too quickly. The biggest extra of the set is easily the episode audio commentary on 'Ghostfreaked Out', by show co-creator Steve Seagle, supervising producer Alex Soto, executive in charge of production Tram Wigzell, and episode writer Tom Pugsley. These four guys talk a lot about their thoughts on the episode. They enjoy their show and are very proud of it. They give their thoughts on various aspects of the show, and point to several clues in this episode and in prior episodes that tell the audience that Ghostfreak is special as an alien. They talk about the animation and who did the storyboards. The script and writing is also touched on. They narrate a few places, or they explain what's happen, but this isn"t much of a bother because one of them eventually carries on the commentary. It's light and short, but it's an okay commentary. 'Ghostfreaked Out' also has three deleted scenes. Deleted Scene 1 (0:26) is ashort scene of Ben (as Four-Arms) trying to help a scared student. Deleted Scene 2 (1:10) is mostly a fight scene, but explains some rules about Ghostfreak, though the rules are guessed by watching the episode. Deleted Scene 3 (0:34) is a short fight scene between Gwen and a the long-haired demoness thing. I'm not actually sure what the addition is, because it looks mighty similar to what's in the episode. 'Back With a Vengeance' also has deleted scenes, four this time. Deleted Scene 1 (1:22) is simply a longer opening sequence to the episode. Deleted Scene 2 (0:42) is more action from the Null Dimension. Two sequences in the episode are here combined into one. Deleted Scene 3 (0:45) has, again, a (short) extended sequence, this time involving the removal of the Omnitrix. Deleted Scene 4 (0:30) would be right before the climax and shows a bit more of Ben's escape.
Overall
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