With tons of shooting, explosions, and people running after their shooting causes something to explode, the TV show The Last Ship has always felt like a really long action movie that’s been broken into smaller parts. Which is just one of the reasons why the best way to watch the latest episodes of this gripping action show is on the The Last Ship The Complete Third Season, which is out now on Blu-ray and DVD.
For those unfamiliar with The Last Ship, this series was originally about how the crew of the navy destroyer the U.S.S. Nathan James were tasked with helping some scientists avert a global plague. Then, having failed that mission, they had to help one of the scientists create a cure for what remained of humanity. But while this makes The Last Ship sound like a prequel to The Walking Dead, it actually puts a different and interesting spin on this biological apocalypse tale by centering on the military and, to a lesser extent, the government more than civilians.
Which brings us to the thirteen episodes in The Last Ship The Complete Third Season. With a cure available, and the nations of the world trying to rebuild, you’d think the crew of the U.S.S. Nathan James would just spend the next dozen hours kicking back and basking in the glory of being heroes. No such luck. When the new U.S. government learns that the leader of China is not distributing the cure, and that the cure might be deadly to some people, the U.S.S. Nathan James heads out to see to do what they can, only to get caught in a massive conspiracy that could threaten the stability of America’s new government.
All of which might make The Last Ship sound like a really long Michael Bay movie. And you wouldn’t be far off. Though the show was co-created by former Without A Trace executive producer and show runner Hank Steinberg, and ex-Closer co-executive producer Steven L Kane, the show also lists Bay as one of its executive producers (well, along with Kane, Steinberg, Terminator 3 director Jonathan Mostow, and a couple other guys).
Though having seen every episode, it’s hard not to think Bay might be taking more of a hands-off approach to this show. While it does have his penchant for military heroics, it doesn’t have any impossibly beautiful women, slo-mo action, or power ballads by old rock bands that have become de rigueur for “A Michael Bay Film.”
Which isn’t to say The Last Ship is a lean, cleverly written action show like Game Of Thrones or The Walking Dead. Just that it’s not as silly or cheesy as, say, The Island. Or Pearl Harbor. Or the third and fourth Transformers movies.
Regardless, if you are someone who enjoys a bit of mindless but tense and action-packed TV, The Last Ship The Complete Third Season Blu-ray and DVD are the best way to enjoy this show. Not only do they present the thirteen episodes with crisp, clean sound and picture, especially on Blu-ray, but they do so without commercials and, more importantly, the constant reminders of what show is coming up next on TNT.
In addition, The Last Ship The Complete Third Season Blu-ray and DVD also includes a number of helpful extras. First, there’s the self-explanatory “Seasons 1 And 2 Recap,” though it’s so vague that it’s clearly not for those who haven’t seen those episodes already. This disc also has short recaps for every episode on this collection, ones that have the actors and producers discussing their respective plots and what went into making them.
Next, The Last Ship The Complete Third Season Blu-ray and DVD presents “From America’s First Fighting Ship To The Last Ship,” a half-hour-long look at real-life Navy destroyers, and how they use real Navy ships to make the show. And while it does come across as a bit of an infomercial for both destroyers and the Navy, especially when they talk to real Naval officers about their ship’s capabilities, it still manages to be rather interesting given how the U.S.S. Nathan James is as much a character in this show as its captain or anyone else in its crew.
Finally, the The Last Ship The Complete Third Season Blu-ray and DVD has “Behind The Curtain,” a series of six featurettes that include a making-of one called “The Last Ship: Behind The Curtain”; a second titled “Women Of The Last Ship” that’s about the show’s female cast members; and four character- and actor-specific featurettes on Eric Dane (who plays Captain Tom Chandler), Adam Baldwin (XO Mike Slattery), Bren Foster (Chief Petty Officer Wolf Taylor), and Bridget Regan (Sasha Cooper). All of which are typical for this kind of thing, though, like the other extras, they’re still informative and entertaining.
Even with all of these extras, though, anyone who likes The Last Ship enough to buy The Last Ship The Complete Third Season on Blu-ray or DVD might find it to be a little lacking. But just a little. For starters, there are no running commentaries by the cast or crew. It’s also glaring that this doesn’t include something, even just a trailer, for the upcoming fourth season (though it does, oddly, have a note on the cover of an included episode guide that says, “The Last Ship Returns Summer 2017”). There’s also no gag reel, nor any deleted or extended scenes. Though, admittedly, there may actually not be any deleted or extended scenes. Or shots of the cast breaking character or cursing when they flub a line.
Still, with every episode in a convenient, take home container, and no pop-up ads reminding you to watch some other show, The Last Ship The Complete Third Season on Blu-ray or DVD remains the best way to enjoy this post-apocalyptic military show. Even if you do watch it as one long action movie.
SCORE: 8.0/10
