“FlashForward” was an amazing and riveting series with so much potential.  If you are a big fan of the series, this DVD box set is awesome in bonus content (including many easter eggs). “FlashForward” features a good balance of sci-fi, action and mystery but unfortunately, the series was canceled by ABC and with no second season, viewers and fans of the series are left with no answers, no closure but only a cliffhanger.  As fans of the series continue their hopes in having another network pick the series up, I will say that this DVD box set is definitely worth it if you are a big fan of the series!
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DVD TITLE: FlashForward – The Complete Series
DURATION: 22 Episodes (989 Minutes)
DVD INFORMATION: Widescreen (1:78:1) – Enhanced for 16×9 Televisions, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, French and Spanish Subtitles, English SDH
COMPANY: abc studios
RELEASE DATE: August 31, 2010
Directed by Nick Gomez, David S. Goyer, Michael Nankin, Bobby Roth, Michael Rymer
Written by Brannon Braga, David S. Goyer, Robert J. Sawyer, Marc Guggenheim, Lisa Zwerling, Scott M. Gimple, Ian B. Goldberg, Barbara Nance, Dawn Prestwich, Nicole Yorkin
Executive Producer: Jessika Borsiczky, Brannon Braga, Vince Gerardis, David S. Goyer, Ralph Vicinanza, Marc Guggenheim
Co-Executive Producer: Lisa Zwerling
Producer: Mark H. Ovitz
Co-Producer: Cathy M. Frank, Cleve Landsberg, Samantha Thomas, Jeff Betancourt,
Consulting Producer: Seth Hoffman, Dawn Prestwich, Nicole Yorkin
Music by Ramin Djawadi
Cinematographer: Nelson Cragg, Jeff Jur
Edited by Julius Ramsay, Avi Youabian, Jeff Betancourt
Casting by Wendy O’Brien
Series Production Design by Wendy O’Brien
Series Production Design by Stephen Storer
Series Art Direction by Mark Zuelzke, Ron Yates
Series Set Decoration by Jennifer M. Gentile
Series Costume Design by Marian Ceo
Starring:
Joseph Fiennes as Mark Benford
John Cho as Demetri Noh
Jack Davenport as Lloyd Simcoe
Zachary Knighton as Dr. Bryce Varley
Peyton List as Nicole Kirby
Brian F. O’Byrne as Aaron Stark
Courtney B. Vance as Stanford Wedeck
Sonya Walger as Dr. Olivia Benford
Christine Woods as Janis Hawk
Lee Thompson Young as Al Gough
Ryan Wynott as Dylan Simcoe
Lennon Wynn as Charlie Benford
Dominic Monaghan as Simon Campos
Genevieve Cortese as Tracy Stark
Barry Shabaka Henley as Agent Vreede
Gabrielle Union as Zoey Andata
Chaos reigns in Los Angeles after a mysterious event causes everyone in the world to lose consciousness at exactly the same moment. Was it an act of nature? Something manâ€made gone wrong, or something even more sinister? Whatever it was, every person on Earth blacks out for two minutes and seventeen seconds and sees a series of events from their own future, taking place on April 29, 2010 at 10:00 p.m. For some the future will be joyous and hopeful; for others, shockingly unexpected; and for a few, it simply doesn’t seem to exist. Knowing their fate will alter each person’s life in one way or another and poses the questions: Can destiny be changed? And by changing just one destiny, what effect would that have on those of others?
In 2009, as the popular drama series “LOST” was on hiatus until Feb. 2010 on ABC, many people were wondering what series ABC would have for viewers in the meantime. Fortunately, the network had a new sci-fi drama series titled “FlashForward” based on the 1999 novel by Canada sci-fi writer Robert J. Sawyer set for debut in Sept. 2009 and a total of ten episodes aired through December and set for a return in March 18th after the 2010 Winter Olympics.
So, in order to get people prepared for the second half of the series, ABC is releasing “Flash Forward – Part One, Season One” on DVD featuring the first ten episodes and will be releasing the complete series on Blu-ray and DVD later in August. Fortunately, abc studios is including a $15 coupon with this DVD release, if people plan to upgrade to the complete series.
The series revolves around a few main characters and what happens to them when every human in the planet loses consciousness for 2 minutes and 17 seconds. During that time, each person was given a glimpse of their future six months later. The FBI are trying to find out the source of why this happened, while everyone is trying to deal with what they learned of their visions of the future (good and bad).
The main characters of “FlashForward” are:
- FBI Special Agent Mark Benford (played by Joseph Fiennes) – The primary character investigating why this global phenomenon has happened. His FlashForward features him in the FBI building alone hiding from masked gunmen.
- Special Agent Demetri Noh (played by John Cho) – A partner of Mark who is also investigating the phenomenon. He didn’t have a FlashForward, thus leading him to believe he will be killed in the future. In fact, he receives a mysterious call that he will be killed on a certain date and was told so he could possibly change his fate from happening. He is engaged to attorney Zoey Andata (played by Gabrielle Union).
- Dr. Olivia Benford (played by Sonya Walger) – Married to FBI Agent Mark Benford. She is the top surgeon at a hospital and mother of a young girl named Charlie (played by Lennon Wynn). Her FlashForward featured her making love to another man who she doesn’t know. She can’t understand why she would do such a thing since she loves her husband and now because of her FlashForward, it’s affecting her relationship with him. Meanwhile, her daughter Charlie’s FlashBack featured her daughter worried about the son of the man she is supposedly to be with in the future.
- Dr. Lloyd Simcoe (played by Jack Davenport) – An academic from Stanford who believes he and his partner Simon were responsible for the blackout. He is the man that Olivia Benford had a FlashForward of. His wife was killed in an accident during the blackout and raises his autistic son Dylan (played by Ryan Wynott). His FlashForward was talking to someone and seeing a woman at his home (not seeing the face).
- Dr. Simon Campos (played by Dominic Monaghan) – A quantum physicist who works with Dr. Lloyd Simcoe. He doesn’t believe they are responsible for the blackout. His FlashForward is fighting with another man and killing him.
- Dr. Bryce Varley (played by Zachary Knighton) – An intern for Dr. Olivia Benford. He was a man who was about to kill himself because he has kidney cancer until the blackout came and now feels that he has been given a second chance.
- FBI Assistant Director Stanford Wedeck (played by Courtney B. Vance) – He runs the FBI Los Angeles office and directs his agents on the case. His FlashForward featured him reading a newspaper on the toilet and later trying to save a man who nearly drowned when his head fell inside a toilet in the restroom.
- Special Agent Janis Hawk (played by Christine Woods) – The technical special agent of the FBI. Her FlashForward featured her pregnant but is in disbelief because she is single and is a lesbian.
- Aaron Stark (played by Brian F. O’Byrne) – A recovering alcoholic and Mark Benford’s sponsor and good friend. His FlashForward features an image of his dead daughter still alive.
- Nicole Kirby (played by Peyton List) – A 19-year-old student and the babysitter of the Benford’s. Her FlashForward featured Nicole being drowned by someone and now is in fear for her life, not knowing why someone would try to kill her.
“FlashForward – Part One, Season One” features a total of ten episodes on two DVD’s. Included are the following episodes (feat. spoilerless summaries):
DISC 1:
- EPISODE 1 – No More Good Days – Everyone experiences a blackout and try to make sense of their FlashForward.
- EPISODE 2 – White to Play – Dr. Benford meets the man who she sees in her FlashForward. Meanwhile, Demitri receives a call from an anonymous person warning him of his death on a certain date.
- EPISODE 3 – 137 Sekunden – Mark and Janis travel to Germany to speak to an imprisoned Nazi who may have knowledge of why the blackouts happened.
- EPISODE 4 – Black Swan – Dr. Benford who tries to believe that the FlashForward’s are not all true, tries to go against another man’s vision and realizes that she’s wrong.
- EPISODE 5 – Gimme Some Truth – A Senate Intelligence Committee wants to know why the LA office are conducting unauthorized investigations. Meanwhile, a shootout takes place and one of the agents is shot.
DISC 2:
- EPISODE 6 – Scary Monsters and Super Creeps – Mark, Demetri and Wedeck try to investigate the connection from the shootout.
- EPISODE 7 – The Gift – An agent who has trouble with his own FlashForward is ridden with guilt, meanwhile the agents investigate the “Blue Hand Club”.
- EPISODE 8 – Playing Cards with Coyote – Aaron learns the truth about Tracy and Mark receives a tip about an assassin.
- EPISODE 9 – Believe – Demetri tries to find his mysterious anonymous caller, meanwhile Mark tries to find out who texted Olivia that he was drunk in his FlashForward.
- EPISODE 10 – A561984 – Mark and Demetri go behind their boss and travel to Hong Kong to find the woman who has details on Demitri’s fate.
DISC 3:
- EPISODE 11-12: Revelation Zero (Part 1 & 2) – Mark goes through therapy to understand what his FlashForward meant. Meanwhile, Simon’s tie to the FlashForward is revealed.
- EPISODE 13: Blowback – Mark questions Lloyd about their conversations the two shared during their FlashForward. Meanwhile, Nicole tries to reach out to a religious man to interpret her FlashForward.
- EPISODE 14 – Better Angels – A few of the agents and Simon go to Somalia to learn about a FlashForward-like event that took place earlier.
DISC 4:
- EPISODE 15 – Queen Sacrifice – There is a mole amongst the agents. Meanwhile, Mark moves out of his house to protect his family.
- EPISODE 16 – Let No Man Put Asunder – Demetri and Zoey’s wedding day is supposed to happen, until he is kidnapped by D. Gibbons/Dyson Frost.
- EPISODE 17 – The Garden of Forking Paths – D. Gibbons plays a game with Mark and sees who will die that day, Demetri or D. Gibbons.
- EPISODE 18 – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – The double agent is revealed. Meanwhile, Aaron leaves to Afghanistan to find his daughter.
- EPISODE 19 – Course Correction – Demetri and Agent Banks search for a murderer. Meanwhile, Mark goes to look for Simon’s missing sister.
DISC 5:
- EPISODE 20 – The Negotiation – Aaron finds his daughter, but could his FlashForward been wrong?
- EPISODE 21 – Countdown – Mark interviews Hellinger in regards to the next Blackout. Meanwhile, Simon goes to Janice for help.
- EPISODE 22 – Future Shock – Mark’s FlashForward is about to come true, on the day of the next global blackout. (The Final Episode)
VIDEO:
“FlashForward” is featured in Widescreen (1:78:1) – Enhanced for 16×9 television. Picture quality is good and the fact that the series is filmed in a variety of locations gives you an idea that how beautiful and vibrant this series would look in HD on Blu-ray. So, for those who want enjoy the series and prefer it on Blu-ray, the complete series will be available on Blu-ray in August. For those who want the series on DVD should be happy that the picture quality is very good. There is little compression artifacting, especially since there are five episodes on each DVD disc.
AUDIO:
As for audio, “FlashForward” is featured in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The series has quite a bit of action in the ten episodes from cars crashing, gun shots, glass breaking, tables being flipped over. As mentioned, “FlashForward” would probably sound much better via lossless on Blu-ray if you are an audiophile. As for the DVD, the series sounds good via Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The series is front and center channel driven. I preferred to watch the series with stereo on all channels set on my receiver for a more immersive soundscape.
Subtitles are in English SDH, French and Spanish.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
“FlashForward – The Complete Series” comes with the following special features:
DISC 5:
- Architects of Destiny – (20:06) The cast and crew talk about their experience on working on the first day of “FlashForward” and talk about how they were cast for their role.
- Flashforward on Set – Featuring five featurettes of “FlashForward” on set: Tempting Fate (5:19) – Featuring the scenes at the Blue Hand Club, When Nature Calls (2:13) – Featuring a reshoot of two scenes from the pilot and the building of a bathroom set, Emergency Operation (3:02) – Filming the scenes from the hospital during the FlashForward, A Day in the Park – The making of the bus crash scene (3:33) and Crash Forward (4:22) – Filming a car chase.
- Meet Yuko – (5:49) An introduction to popular Japanese actress Yuko Takeuchi and her first day on the set and meeting with the cast and executive producers.
- Interviews from the Mosaic Collective – The following features interviews with people about their FlashForward experiences. People are interviewed in Tokyo, Japan (2:01); London, England (2:06); Cocoa Beach, Florida (1:21); and Los Angeles, California (1:58).
- Kangaroo? – (1:59) The cast talk about the kangaroo on the freeway during their FlashForward. The cast and crew talk about the kangaroo’s involvement during the FlashForward.
- Deleted Scenes – Featuring a total of ten deleted scenes.
- Blooper Reel – (3:14) Outtakes from “FlashForward”.
EASTER EGGS:
DISC 3:
- Audio Commentary for “Revelation Zero” (Episode 11-12) with commentary by Actor Dominic Monaghan and Executive Producer Jessika Borsiczky
DISC 5:
- Stories from the Mosaic (Abby) – With your remote, scroll down to “Architects of Destiny” and hit left on your remote and you will see the dot go to the words “Bonus Features”. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:07) – Abby talks about her FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Adam) – With your remote, scroll down to “FlashForward on Set” and hit left on your remote and you will see the dot go far to the left of Deleted Scenes. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:57) – Adam talks about his FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Andy) – With your remote, scroll down to “FlashForward on Set” and hit right on your remote and you will see the dot go to the left. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:50) – Andy talks about his FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Edgar) – With your remote, scroll down to “Meet Yuko” and hit right on your remote and you will see the dot go to the middle of the words “Kangaroo?”. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:44) – Edgar talks about his FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Evelyn) – With your remote, scroll down to “Interviews from the Mosaic Collective” and hit left on your remote and you will see the dot go right under the word “Collective”. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:34) – Evelyn talks about her FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Eliza) – With your remote, scroll down to “Interviews from the Mosaic Collective” and hit right on your remote and you will see the dot go to the middle of the words “Interviews from the Mosaic”. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:42) – Eliza talks about her FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Jorge) – With your remote, scroll down to “Kangaroo?” and hit right on your remote and you will see the dot go to the right, under the video. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:55) – Jorge talks about his FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Josie) – With your remote, scroll down to “Deleted Scenes?” and hit right on your remote and you will see the dot go to the right, over the video. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:25) – Josie talks about her FlashForward Experience.
- Stories from the Mosaic (Nick) – With your remote, scroll down to “Blooper Reel” and hit left on your remote and you will see the dot go to the left of “FlashForward on Set”. Click and you will access the easter egg: Stories from the Mosaic (2:12) – Nick talks about his FlashForward Experience.
EXTRAS:
“FlashForward – The Complete Series” comes with a slip over case.
With the final season of “LOST” now airing on ABC, for quite some time, ABC has been trying to find a drama series that can capture that same magic and so far, every series within the past few years that have aired have not lasted more than a season. I felt that “Lost in Mars” from 2008-2009 had so much potential but ABC ended the series after its first season and here we are with “FlashForward”, a sci-fi drama series which features a few talent from “LOST” with a pretty cool concept and a lot of potential.
I am enjoying the series thus far and have enjoyed the first ten episodes a lot. I like where the series is going but the big question is if this is the type of series that can continue for multiple years. One of the things that “LOST” has been successful is that with each hint given, there is more mystery also added in each episode. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t but nevertheless, it was enough to keep the series going for six years straight. With “FlashForward”, the main premise is the investigations to why these FlashForwards are happening and people having to deal with their own visions from the future, good and bad.
When the first DVD featuring the first 10 episodes was released, I wrote in my original review:
So, far the series has done a good job by drawing the viewer in and I can imagine, if the series during its return followed “Lost” during the 10:00 p.m. Tuesday time slot, the series will do quite well. It’s a very cool series with a good amount of sci-fi, action, mystery and also a series with a lot of potential. I really hope this series lasts more than a single season because it’s very good!
Unfortunately, “FlashForward” received news that it was being canceled and for those of us who did get into this series, knew that this series was planned for a five season run, not one. To make things worst, the last episode was created as a cliffhanger for a second season which would never come and thus, we are left with this major build-up to a series that ends with a cliffhanger and no resolution. I wish ABC would have given the series a better timeslot and for the most part, a chance.
I really hate when this happens. And many were hoping that the series would go to a new network but with other cast members now on other shows and writer and director David Goyer working on the third “Batman” film, it looks like we’re not going to get any closure with this series. But fans are now hoping for the series to be picked up at a new network and many are hoping social media can help find this series a new home.
Let me say that I enjoyed this series. I will have to admit that perhaps there were too many characters that the series tried to focus on that some FlashForward storylines for supporting characters felt out of the blue at times but for the most part, I really enjoyed where this show was heading especially if the writers were able to get a second chance.
The acting was well done and a big kudos to Joseph Fiennes and John Cho who did an awesome job in the series. Also, it was great to see a really cool cast of former LOSTies such as Dominic Monaghan and Sony Walger and even a few “Battlestar Galactic” talents show up on the series as well.   This was a series that had a lot of characters and in many ways, it was very demanding that you had to watch each episode without missing one. But for those who were loyal followers to the series, this first and final season was enjoyable. In fact, I watch this series throughout my whole weekend, nearly non-stop because I enjoyed it so much. I found the series to be compelling, entertaining and once again, a series with so much potential. So, it’s a little bittersweet to know that you enjoy a series so much and there is no closure. I wished ABC would at least have given the series a chance for the writers to tie things up. It’s really unfortunate.
As for the DVD release, fans of the series will like the fact that the series comes loaded with special features and easter eggs (not that hard to find).  Some with scenes that appeared in the last DVD but for the most part, plenty of new special features that will make fans happy with DVD box set.
Also, if you purchased “FlashForward, Season One, Part One”, you get the $15 coupon which can be applied to this set and also a manufacturer’s coupon for $10 off additional if you purchase any other ABC related boxset that has been released in August-September.
Overall, “FlashForward” has turned out to be quite a riveting series and definitely a series worth watching! Many wonder if I can recommend a series box set knowing that at this time, there are no plans for a second season, if you are a fan of the series, then yes. But with the way the series ending on a cliffhanger with an expectancy that a second season would be coming and looks like it won’t be happening ever, it makes it even harder for me to recommend because this is actually an awesome DVD box set.
But if I had to review this DVD based on its overall package and its first season alone, then I will have to say that it’s definitely recommended and you get the bells and whistles that comes with this DVD box set. So, for fans of the series, this DVD box set is recommended. For those who are curious about the series, it’s a great series that had a lot of potential, but a potential that will never be realized due to its cancellation and that is unfortunate.
NOTE: There are reports that Starz is interested in giving “FlashForward” a second season. If you are a fan and want to see a second season, fans are being encouraged to call Starz and let them know that you are wanting a second season. An option is available through the toll-free number 866-888-4010 (provided by the group, “Save FlashForward!“).
