# Quantico: Season 1 - DVD Review



## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=79650[/img] 
*Title: Quantico: Season 1* 

*Movie:* :3.5stars:
*Video:* :4stars:
*Audio:* :4stars: 
*Extras:* :2.5stars: 

*HTS Overall Score:*75




[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=79658[/img]*Summary*
There are two staples of shows that work for ABC. Spy/thrillers and fantasy. With a name like “Quantico”, I’m betting you can tell which angle of the spectrum this one falls on. However, “Quantico” manages to be a much different type of spy/police show being that it is from the creative minds who brought us “How to get away with Murder” and “Scandal” and put it in a blender with a pinch of “Homeland”. The conspiracies are layered three to four deep at a time (and this is just per episode) and the romantic interludes and interpersonal drama is right at the forefront of the drama. To put it succinctly, “Quantico” is what happens when you have the drama of a middle school or high school prom blended in super-secret spies that are constantly stabbing each other in the back as they cover up lie after lie after lie. It’s a fun show, but one that feels a bit like a roller coaster due to the amount of pouty drama going on with the more mature national security issues.

Alex Parrish (Priyanka Chopra in her American debut) is one of many young recruits who have made it into the FBI training program at Quantico. However, she soon finds out that life at the FBI is not as easy as she had thought it would be. She’s carrying a deadly secret behind that innocent 20 something face. Her father was an FBI agent that was killed in a family squabble, and Alex is out to find out what exactly he was, or more accurately, WHO exactly he was. Inside the FBI training facility everyone is out to get ahead and not get kicked out. Which means there are a dozen or so young FBI recruits who are salivating at the thought of tearing each other apart for the chance to be head of the class. 

The story is actually told in two different time periods and will flash back and forth at will. The plot that the show starts out with is the training scenario, but the other half of the show deals with 9 months down the road when Alex is a fully fledged FBI agent. Only she has been framed for blowing up a building and the entire FBI is breathing down her neck. Now Alex only has the friends she has made in Quantico, as well as some enemies, to try and clear her name before it’s too late.

[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=79666[/img]The thing about “Quantico” that keeps the audience coming back for more is the fact that there is ALWAYS something going on under the surface. No matter the episode, no matter the character, there is ALWAYS a secondary plot or subplot of secrets that unveils something new each week. As Alex is first uncovered as person of interest we start to get a grasp on why, but after each new reveal there are 3 more questions and sub plots opened up. This is both a blessing and a curse as that keeps the audience engaged, and certainly less hung up on filler episodes. However the show can get REALLY complicated as a result. So many competing storylines and so much subterfuge that by the time we’re halfway through the story we have enough information to keep 3 seasons busy.

The only downside to all of this is the fact that the creative minds behind “Quantico” are also the creative minds behind “Scandal” and other ABC melodramas. As a result there is a LOOOOOOOOT of interpersonal backstabbing and petty jealousy. People sleeping with each other behind their backs. People getting angry and falling in love with someone who’s in love with someone else and the pouting that invariably ensures. Vicious backstabbing as people try to climb the FBI ladder, willing to sacrifice friends at a moment’s notice to get ahead to the point where I wondered if these guys were in the FBI or in middle school. The more mature elements of the show tend to be more focuses and less petty, with sub plots of terrorist and betrayal, but the more sophomoric elements of the show tend to stretch ones patience at the same time. At least they don’t have a sex scene every 30 minutes like “How to get away with Murder” or “Scandal” though. 




*Rating:* 

Not Rated by the MPAA



*Video* :4stars:
[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=79674[/img]“Quantico: Season 1” enjoys a very nice looking digital image that is par for the course with modern ABC shows. Nice and shiny with lots of colors and bright environments. Colors are richly saturated with a strong variation in color schemes. From bright white and blue of the FBI, to greens and subtle reds and golds outside of Quantico itself. Black levels remain strong with great shadow detail, but there is some persistent digital noise that crops up now and again, not only in the shadows but in some of the daylight sequences as well. Overall clarity and detail is phenomenal, showing off only some minor smoothness in the faces and the standard 480p resolution of detail. It’s a solid looking transfer, and the only COMPLAINT is just me grumbling that we can’t see in in HD Blu-ray vs. the 5 DVD-9’s that we have to enjoy today. 











*Audio* :4stars:
[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=79682[/img]The 5.1 Dolby Digital track is impressive and quite aggressive in actuality. The show is a heavy drama, but there’s also quite a bit of action with the training montages where gunfire and explosions can rock the sound stage quite frequently. Dialog is always strong and clearly anchored in the center channel, while the rest of the speakers get a hefty workout when the action heats up. However, the show can also be very mellow for long stretches of time, with nothing in the surrounds except for a creaking door, or the sound of car traffic in the background while the dialog takes over. LFE is tight and punchy, adding some very nice umph to the action sequences and accompanying the theme song mostly. It’s a solid track, and well done for an ABC show, so I have no complaints.













*Extras* :2.5stars: 
[img]http://www.hometheatershack.com/gallery/file.php?n=79690[/img]
• "Run" Video Commentery 
• Welcome To Quantico 
• Who Did it? 
• Bloopers 
• Deleted Scenes













*Overall:* :3.5stars:

“Quantico: Season 1” is an interesting mix of action and soap opera drama, reminiscent of the producers of “Scandal” and “How to Get Away with Murder”. Think super spy drama mixed with back stabbing, multiple double blinds and a lots and lots of interpersonal drama. It’s a different feel for a spy show, and while it’s certainly fun and highly kinetic, I felt that the interpersonal drama of the “Scandal” variety made the show feel a little sophomoric at times. Priyanka Chopra is the real saving grace of the show, and she makes her American debut with STYLE. Audio and video are certainly very solid for the show’s DVD presentation and there’s a decent array of extras, making it a solid rental if you’re interested in the genre. 



*Additional Information:*

Starring: Josh Hopkins, Yasmine Al Masri, Priyanka Chopra
Created by: Joshua Safran
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 MPEG2
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1
Studio: ABC/Disney
Rated: NR
Runtime: 924 minutes
DVD Release Date: September 16th 2016



*Buy Quantico: Season 1 DVD on Amazon*


*Recommendation: Rental​*







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## tripplej (Oct 23, 2011)

Thanks for the review. I am a fan of the series. I agree that having Priyanka Chopra as the main character is the main plus for this series. Actually, I should say that she is the one reason that makes this series watchable for me at least. The back and forth with time, I am good with but the sophomoric subplots can go away but I guess they keep that so that ladies like the show for the "social drama". lol.


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

tripplej said:


> Thanks for the review. I am a fan of the series. I agree that having Priyanka Chopra as the main character is the main plus for this series. Actually, I should say that she is the one reason that makes this series watchable for me at least. The back and forth with time, I am good with but the sophomoric subplots can go away but I guess they keep that so that ladies like the show for the "social drama". lol.


I actually didn't realize the connection to "Scandal" etc until after I started watching. the infighting was wayyyyyyyyy too familiar though and had me double check the producers etc.... made sense afterwards lol


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

and thanks to ABC we have some fun little behind the scenes and bloopers videos to enjoy today now that it's been released


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