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Friday, 24 July 2015 15:38

Blu-ray News – Avengers: Age of Ultron official for 10/2, plus Entourage, Airwolf (UK only), UHD BD 3D follow-up & more

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The big news today is that Disney and Marvel have now officially set Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron for Blu-ray 3D Combo, Blu-ray Combo and DVD release on 10/2, with the digital release expected on 9/8. Extras on the Blu-ray seem to still be TBA, but are expected to include audio commentary, deleted scenes, a series or “making of” featurettes, and a gag reel. You can see the regular Blu-ray cover artwork to the left and also below. Blu-ray 3D cover artwork is still TBA.  [Read on here…]

In other news, Warner Home Video has announced Entourage: The Movie for Blu-ray and DVD release on 9/26. Extras will include audio commentary, 6 featurettes (The Gang: Still Rockin’ It, Hollywood, Baby!, The Making of Hyde, TMZ “Raw Emotions”, The Newest Member of Entourage, and Lucas Ellin piece), plus deleted scenes, and a gag reel.

Warner has also set Big Bang Theory: The Complete Eighth Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 9/8.

Shout! Factory has set Pee-Wee’s Playhouse: The Christmas Special for Blu-ray release on 10/6.

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I think we’ve mentioned these titles before, but Kino Lorber is releasing Slam Dance, The Oblong Box, and Modern Girls on Blu-ray and DVD on 10/20, followed by Heart of Midnight on 10/27.

A.D. Vision will release Gatchaman: The Movie on Blu-ray on 11/17.

Funimation has set Ghost in the Shell: Arise: Borders 3 & 4 for Blu-ray and DVD release on 10/13.

And PBS has set Masterpiece: Home Fires for Blu-ray and DVD release on 10/27.

In other news, it looks like Universal’s Airwolf: The Complete Collection – Seasons 1-3 has been released on Blu-ray Disc in the UK by Fabulous Films (back on 4/11 – SRP £44.99). Word is these are true HD masters, like classic Battlestar. The set includes 11 discs, but it is Region B coded and any SD material is in PAL format. No word yet whether Universal here in the States has any plans to release the series on Blu-ray. My guess is that it will depend on sales. Anyway, here’s what it looks like (with a purchase link that goes to Amazon.co.uk)...

Airwolf: The Complete Series (Region B UK Blu-ray)

Also today, I wanted to post a quick follow-up on our Ultra HD Blu-ray post from yesterday. There’s been a lot of speculation to suggest that 3D is being somehow abandoned in the 4K space, but that’s not the right read of the Q&A. Essentially, the BDA is making sure to get the base layer of the spec right, and then any add-ons like 1080p BD3D or 4K 3D support will be added later, probably a decision driven by the individual player and display manufacturers. My personal guess is that many of the early 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray players will include backwards support for Blu-ray 3D and all the other stuff (DVD, CD, SACD, DVD-Audio, etc). Then as those manufacturers begin getting into the true 4K 3D display business (right now any 4K displays that do 3D do so in 1080p), that feature will get added to players. And I suspect the next big push for that will happen when autostereoscopic displays are ready. Anyway, the point is, don’t assume that current Blu-ray 3D is going to simply be abandoned by the manufacturers, or that future 4K 3D isn’t still possible at some point.

Finally today, as many of you know, I’m involved in the Star Trek: Axanar independent film project with my friends Alec Peters (exec producer) and Robert Meyer Burnett (director) – you can see the first scene here. Specifically, I’m co-writing the screenplay with Alec. Well, it turns out that veteran Original Series cast member (and social media wizard) George Takei is a fan of the project and gave Axanar a big plug on his Twitter and Facebook pages yesterday. You can see it here. Go give it a look and support the IndieGoGo campaign if you’re interested in seeing the film happen. By the way, we’ll have a review of the Prelude to Axanar Blu-ray next week.

All right, here’s a look at some new Blu-ray Disc cover artwork, with Amazon.com pre-order links if available...

Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron (Blu-ray Disc)    Outlander: Season One, Volume Two (Blu-ray Disc)    Airwolf: The Complete Series (Region B Blu-ray)

The Big Bang Theory: Season 8 (Blu-ray Disc)    The Blacklist: Season Two (Blu-ray Disc)    Heroes: The Complete Series (Blu-ray Disc)

The Epic of Everest (Blu-ray Disc)    Pee-Wee's Playhouse: Christmas Special (Blu-ray Disc)    The Return of Count Yorga (Blu-ray Disc)

Have a great weekend and stay tuned!

Bill Hunt