Lovecraft Country: The Complete First Season Blu Ray Review (Warner Bros)
Lovecraft Country is an 2020 horror drama television series developed by Misha Green (Tomb Raider 2, Sons of Anarchy, Underground, Helix, and Heroes) who also wrote, produced, and directed episodes for the show. It’s based on the 2016 novel of the same name by author Matt Ruff (Bad Monkeys). It was also directed by Daniel Sackheim (The X-Files), Yann Demange (White Boy Rick), Cheryl Dunye (The Owls), Victoria Mahoney (Yelling to the Sky), Nelson McCormick (The Stepfather and Prom Night), Jeffrey Nachmanoff (Replicas and Traitor), Helen Shaver (The Outer Limits and Westworld), and Charlotte Sieling (Better Times). It was produced by J.J. Abrams (Lost, Star Trek franchise, Star Wars franchise, Westworld, Castle Rock, Overlord, 10 Cloverfield Lane, and Mission: Impossible franchise) and Jordan Peele (Get Out, US, The Twilight Zone, Candyman, Hunters, BlacKkKlansman, and Keanu). They are developing and working on a season two right now at HBO!!!!
War veteran Atticus Freeman (played by: Jonathan Majors from Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Da 5 Bloods, Jungleland, and White Boy Rick) with his friend Letitia Lewis (played by: Jurnee Smollett from Birds of Prey, Hands of Stone, True Blood, and Eve’s Bayou) and his Uncle George (played by: Courtney B. Vance from The Hunt for Red October, Hamburger Hill, Eye See You, and Terminator Genisys) must embark on a dangerous road trip across 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father Montrose (played by: Michael Kenneth Williams from The Wire, Boardwalk Empire, Motherless Brooklyn, and The Purge: Anarchy). Segregated from most people, they have find a way to solve this bizarre disappearance. As they dig deeper, things get stranger. This begins a struggle to survive and overcome both the racist terrors of white America and the terrifying monsters that could be ripped from a H.P. Lovecraft paperback!!!!
Lovecraft Country plays out more like a horror anthology rather than straight forward television series for it’s 10 episodes. That has it’s strong points and it’s weakness at the same time. Lovecraft Country has some top notch and great horror television moments during it’s first season but this series is not consistent at all when it comes to quality. I will say that the pilot episode started out with a bang and it was the best thing about the show. There;s a few episodes that feel more like filler to me and they are very random at times. Lovecraft Country has an interesting concept but don’t expect H.P. Lovecraft material here all the time because they kinda space it out here for this first season but when they do it’s awesome! The special and visual fx are some of the best on TV right now. The monsters and gore will please any horror fan, they tease some of it but it pays off when they go crazy with it. Jonathan Majors is a great lead here, he carries the show. 
Jurnee Smollett is excellent eye candy and she also very talented. These two have solid chemistry together. Veteran character actors Courtney B. Vance and Michael Kenneth Williams bring their experience to Lovecraft Country. Both of them make everyone better when they are on the screen with them. It has a solid supporting cast that includes Aunjanue Ellis (Men of Honor), Wunmi Mosaku (Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), Abbey Lee (Mad Max: Fury Road), Jamie Chung (Sorority Row), Jordan Patrick Smith (The Ruins), and Tony Goldwyn (The Last House on the Left). The writing is hit or miss here, some of the sub-plots come out of no where in this but most of the material is very entertaining. Lovecraft Country has potential to be so much better but it still was a good premier especially when it comes to horror on TV. You have to be patient with this but it’s worth it. I am looking forward to the next season, RECOMMENDED!!!!
Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Warner Bros! This 1080p (1.78:1) transfer looks stunning on blu ray. It’s one of the best looking shows on television right now. It has a variety of audio options which includes English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, and German: Dolby Digital 5.1 on this home video release. The audio here definitely packs a nice punch especially all the chaos kicks in, the horror elements are elevated here. All of the dialogue is crystal clear and the music has a killer boost to it. It also has English SDH, French, German, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish subtitles.
Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Warner Bros! This 1080p (1.78:1) transfer looks stunning on blu ray. It’s one of the best looking shows on television right now. It has a variety of audio options which includes English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, and German: Dolby Digital 5.1 on this home video release. The audio here definitely packs a nice punch especially all the chaos kicks in, the horror elements are elevated here. All of the dialogue is crystal clear and the music has a killer boost to it. It also has English SDH, French, German, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish subtitles.Let’s discuss the special features from Warner Bros! “Orithyia Blue and the Imagination of Diana Freeman” is a little over 11 minutes. It has interviews with artists, crew, and some of the cast. This one mainly focuses on Diana Freeman plus her mother Aunjanue Ellis. They chat about covering subjects and skills usually not talked about in black culture. They talk about artists and their work in comics which is displayed on the show from the Diana Freeman character. “Lovecraft Country: Compendium of Horrors” is a little over 12 minutes.It has interviews with show runner Misha Green, author Matt Ruff, actors Jurnee Smollett, Wunmi Mosaku, Courtney B. Vance, Jonathan Majors, and several members of the crew. They chat a little about the characters and developing the show from the original source material. They talk about the various different monsters and horror situations from the series. They go over the look of the monsters and H.P. Lovecraft influence to them. It has behind the scenes footage from the set. “Crafting Lovecraft Country” is a little over 28 minutes. It has interviews with the same people above plus a few new ones. Matt Ruff says that he originally planned to make this a show but it didn’t work out when he first wrote the material. Misha Green goes on about Jordan Peele introducing her to this and that she knew it would be a great television project after reading it. They chat about the story, concept, and monsters. They talk about some black history and locations on the show. It has behind the scenes footage from the show here. “Exploring Lovecraft Country” is a little over 8 minutes of interviews with the cast that includes Aujanue Ellis, Abbey Lee, Courtney B. Vance, Jada Harris, Jonathan Majors, Jurnee Smollett, Michael Kenneth Williams, and Wunmi Mosaku. “Lovecraft Country The Craft” has a little over 7 minutes of interviews with the crew which includes Afua Richardson, Eric Yamamoto, Carey Jones, and JP Jones. Both of these go over the main characters and the overall show for the people that worked on it. It comes with a slipbox and a digital code. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!! 
