Banshee: The Complete Third Season (2015/Cinemax/HBO 4-Disc Blu-ray Set)

Picture: B+ Sound: B+ Extras: B+ Episodes: B

Packed with exciting extras comes HBO's Blu-ray presentation of the hit Cinemax show Banshee, a crime drama starring Antony Starr, Ivana Milicevic, Ulrich Thomsen, Frankie Faison, Hoon Lee, and Matt Servitto. The show is from the creator of True Blood, so if you are a fan of that show then you will most definitely dig this as it has a similarity in tone.

Banshee centers on Lucas Hood, an ex-con and master thief who assumes the identity of the sheriff of Banshee, Pennsylvania, where he continues his criminal activities, even as he's hunted by the shadowy gangsters he betrayed years earlier.

(Minor spoilers below...)

Season 3 picks up a month after the Season 2 finale (see our coverage of the previous seasons elsewhere on this site) if you were watching it last season, when Carrie's father, gang kingpin Rabbit (Ben Cross), finally met his demise after an intense church shootout. Carrie, now exposed and estranged from her family, remains in Banshee, working as a waitress by day while moonlighting with Lucas, Sugar Bates (Frankie Faison) and Job (Hoon Lee) on a variety of local heists.

As Lucas finds it harder and harder to keep his true identity from his deputies - especially Siobhan Kelly (Trieste Kelly Dunn), he and the Banshee police force become embroiled in a new conflict between Amish gangster Kai Proctor (Ulrich Thomsen) and Chayton Littlestone (Geno Segers), the vicious, vengeance-minded leader of the Redbone wing of the Kinaho tribe. The vengeful Lucas come up with a plan that could make his people rich - by robbing a decommissioned Marine compound that within it lies millions of dollars.

10 episodes span four discs including The Fire Trials, Snakes and Whatnot, A Fixer of Sorts, Real Life Is The Nightmare, Tribal, We Were All Someone Else Yesterday, You Can't Hide From The Dead, All the Wisdom I Got Left, Even God Doesn't Know What To Make Of You and We All Pay Eventually.

Presented in crisp 1080p High Definition with a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and a lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 track, the show looks and sounds far better than it did on its initial broadcast. Also included is a digital copy for Ultraviolet users.

Special Features are vast and include:

- The Heist: Get a unique perspective on "The Heist" from Episode 7 in this multi-camera, interactive feature

- Making of the Episode 2 Title Sequence: View the different layers that went into the making of the second episode's unique title sequence

- Banshee Origins: Find out the story before the story with eight prequel videos featuring the cast of Banshee

- Banshee Origins Saga: Explore the lives of Lucas, Carrie, Job and more before they made their way to Banshee in this two-part feature

- Burton vs Nola Camera Movement: Learn how this epic fight scene was filmed

- Burton vs Nola Stunts: Get a behind the scenes look at how the Banshee action comes together

- Genoa Rehearsal: Watch as the gang runs through this season's final showdown

- Zoomed In, Episodes 1-8 & 10: Go on the set with the cast to see how key, adrenaline filled scenes were created

plus Deleted Scenes, Sins Promo, Episode Recaps and Audio Commentaries with Cast & Crew

If you like crime dramas and aren't watching Banshee, then you may owe it to yourself to start catching up to it!

- James Lockhart

https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/