Official Synopsis
As Original vampire-werewolf hybrid Klaus Mikaelson returned to the vibrant, supernaturally charged city of New Orleans in season one, he was stunned to learn — along with his siblings Elijah and Rebekah — that Hayley, a werewolf, was pregnant with his child, and his vampire protégé, Marcel, whom the Original siblings had thought long dead, was ruling the French Quarter. Soon, a bloody war escalated between vampires and witches — the stakes raised by powerful teenage witch Davina and by Klaus’s bond with Cami, a student with a painful past — and a ruthless pack of wolves seized the opportunity to stage a violent coup. Now, in season two, a new status quo must be adjusted to, as the newly empowered werewolves control the city. Klaus struggles with weaknesses as Elijah desperately tries to save Hayley — now a hybrid — from a vicious spiral of self-destruction. Meanwhile, with the re-emergence of several Mikaelsons, “family is power” takes on new meaning.
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Ah, a little drama and supernatural-ness never hurt nobody. Okay, it hurt quite a few people in this season of The Originals, which points towards a more family affair set of plot points that have parents saving, and attempting to kill, their kids. What more could you want from a dysfunctional set of families?
Let’s get right to it.
Act one does a good job of recapping what is at stake for the Mikaelsons, which is Klaus’ daughter, Hope, survival. After losing New Orleans to the wolves, a new threat is rising in the background, a powerful witch named Esther, who is the mother of the Mikaelsons. She is a warped witch that wants to bring her kids back from the dark side of the tracks by any means possible — including pulling their souls out of their bodies. The first third of the season has the group plotting to find a way to stop Esther before it’s too late, which they do…sorta…kinda…ya know how these shows go. Anyway, the threat of the witches becomes evident quickly through Esther, which is a theme carried through the rest of the season.
The beginning of the season did a great job with building the intensity up for the rest of the season. The focus on the witches is well-placed, as they are set up as a vicious bunch. Starting with Esther trying to bring back her children was pretty impressive, though the stretch of the plot point was tiresome towards the end. The end result of Esther sprang forth a creepy, American Horror Story-esque scenario for one of the Mikaelsons, though I won’t say who (don’t want to ruin it). Once the Esther storyline is concluded , or at least brought down a bit, the second act starts fumbling a bit trying to find the next big problem for the group.
Act two begins with the witches causing more problems and scrambling. Hope is still the important piece of the puzzle in the overall arc, with newcomer Finn (Yusuf Gatewood — talented actor), half-brother of the Mikaelsons, and a witch, seeking revenge for the disposal of Esther (assumed). Things quickly turn and Finn finds himself helping out Marcel and sorta helping out the main family against impending doom, which is the arrival of Dahlia onto the scene.
The second act of the season is a bit flustered. It travels quickly around a rather large group of characters in search of the starting point for the climax of act three. It’s a bit lost in some areas, messy in others, but by the end of the second act it finds its footing and the real terror of the witch, Dahlia, comes to fruition, which includes the elimination of a very important Mikaelson (I know, right?).
As act three begins, the family, friends and sorta foes are in complete focus with how they need to take care of the Dahlia issue, though some road bumps occur along the way (okay, huge road bumps). I will stop there to avoid giving any of the finale away. It ends well…sorta…kinda.
Overall, the second season of The Originals seems a bit more grounded and focused with what it wants to do. It’s slow to introduce new players into the storyline, it takes its time to develop connections between plot points and it isn’t shy with the viciousness/violence. It definitely seems to have found its way to intriguing entertainment when compared to the first season, and it does its best to separate itself from other similar CW shows. Anyway, certainly worth a go.
On the Blu-ray side of the tracks, the transfer is another WB success, with only minor graininess here and there with some of the light/dark contrasting scenes. For the most part, this CW show does a good job of keeping the visuals together and beautiful. Surprisingly, much like in the first season, there is no color banding, which is surprising for a show that sports so many darker scenes. It’s a well-lit show that does a good job of balancing things out visually, which probably is most of the reason that color banding doesn’t rear its head.
Overall, a really great HD transfer to Blu-ray.
In terms of special features, here’s what you’re looking at:
– The Originals: Always and Forever
– The Originals: The Awakening Web Series
– The Originals: Comic-Con Panel 2014
– Gag Reel
– Unaired Scenes
– Georgia PSA
A lot of nice fan service here that is capped off with a nice gag reel. A decent delivery in the special features department.