DVD Review: Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos

Writers: Various
Directors: Various
Cast: Sam Vincent, Chiara Zanni, Matt Hill, Scott McNeil, Colin Murdock
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Sony Pictures
Release Date: January 15, 2008

If you like Storm Hawks, the original, Cartoon Network show about a group of teenage defenders of the sky and the mountain top communities that are located within their realm, then you will want to purchase a copy of Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos. These are actual episodes from the first season of the series. While this isn’t my favorite cartoon, I was impressed by this series. I can see myself turning it on if nothing else seems to strike my fancy, but I won’t say that I’m going to go out of my way to watch the show. It’s good, but not addictive.

Release Information:
Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos is going to be released by Sony Pictures on January 15, 2008. This set of Storm Hawks cartoons features five episodes from Season One of the popular television show, which airs on Cartoon Network. Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos has episodes that aired from June 25, 2007 to July 23, 2007.

Released together with the very first five episodes of the series, which were included on Storm Hawks: Hawks Rise Again, Sony has offered the first ten episodes of Season One, with the series now in its third season. I can already hear fans complaining about the series being split up in five episode chunks. However, the price for one disc is somewhat reasonable. On Amazon both DVDs are selling for $14.99 a piece.

The Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos Plot
Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos picks up where its predecessor DVD, Storm Hawks: Hawks Rise Again left off. This DVD features episodes 1.6-1.10. These episodes are named, “Best Friends Forever”, “The Black Gorge”, “Absolute Power”, “Velocity” and “Fire and Ice”. While I won’t go into too much detail concerning the actual plot of the series, you can check out my review of Storm Hawks: Hawks Rise Again for that, I will say that the show revolves around a group of teenagers called the Storm Hawks. Finn, Piper, Stork, Radarr, and Junko are led by the last descendant of the original Storm Hawks squadron and the newly appointed Sky Knight, Aerrow. Together they will defend the kingdom of a thousand mountaintops, Atmos from its enemies, in particular, the evil Cyclonians.

On the Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos DVD, the second set of five episodes begins when Piper quickly befriends Lark, a mysterious stranger who seems anxious to get to know Piper and the rest of the Storm Hawks. With Lark, looks can be deceiving and when Piper finds out Lark’s true identity, she must defend herself and the other Storm Hawks in order to survive the battle. From there, the Storm Hawks are stranded in the Black Gorge. No one has ever escaped the Black Gorge so it is up to Stork to guide them out of what seems like a situation they cannot win. After escaping the Gorge, Aerrow must head out with Starling, an ally Sky Knight, to battle Repton and his cronies of Raptors. As a result, he leaves Finn in charge of the Storm Hawks ship. With all the power going to his head, the Storm Hawks may be in more danger than Aerrow and Starling.

The last two episodes on the disc feature Aerrow, who finally has the chance to show off his skills with his transforming motorcycle. As he enters the big motorcycle race on Terra Samharr he must not only beat the usual cast of characters, he also must beat a mystery man clad in a mask, who certainly doesn’t play fair. Once the race has ended, Repton is back for some additional action. He’s taking over Terra Blizzaris. The icy terrain really heats up, to the point where the Storm Hawks must team up with the Absolute Zeroes to cool things down.

I found this set of five episodes nearly as engaging as the last four. If you have a Storm Hawks fan in your house, both DVDs are a necessity. At this time, it isn’t clear whether a season one disc with all of the episodes will be made available. Unfortunately, you’re going to have to buy them in these sets if you wish to own the episodes at this time. Luckily, they aren’t too expensive, but waiting for additional episodes to be released does seem like a pain for fans of the show. I am of the belief that DVD Box Sets should be released in seasons, but that’s just me. Ultimately, you’ll need to decide if paying for the episodes five at a time is worth it to you.

Storyline/Plot:
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:

Audio/Visual:
As I mentioned in the review for the Storm Hawks: Hawks Rise Again, the quality of the DVD is decent. The colors are vibrant and the drawing is quite intensive. Some of the animation does seem to have the occasional error in pixelation and some soft spots in the transfer. Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos was transferred at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. This full fame presentation is good enough that you won’t be distracted by any slight animation or visual errors.

The audio is great. It’s presented in English and has English and Spanish Subtitles as well as Closed Captioning. The sound comes through crystal clear. There is no need to play with audio options on your television and no sound adjustment is needed between episodes.

Visual:
Audio:

Bonus Features:
There is only one bonus feature included on the Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos disc. This bonus, which is called “The Cyclonians” takes a quick look at, yep, you guessed it…the Cyclonians. These are the enemies of the Storm Hawks squadron and all of Atmos. While this isn’t an in depth look and doesn’t run for more than 1-2 minutes, if you aren’t exactly sure of who each character is, each Cyclonians name is listed then a few seconds of animation shows the character in action. It’s not much, but it is more than what most cartoon DVDs seem to offer.

Bonus Features:

Bottom Line:
Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos is enjoyable. This is the type of show that young boys and girls are going to enjoy. It’s perfect for what you would assume to be a Cartoon Network audience. While some adults, particularly a male audience, are going to get into Storm Hawks, this show won’t be for everyone. With its unique concept, it’s worth giving Storm Hawks a try. You should be able to catch it on Cartoon Network (check local listings) before purchasing Storm Hawks: Tales from the Atmos. If you like it though, I recommend buying this disc so you can watch your favorite episodes any time you want.

Overall Rating:

Technorati Tags: Storm Hawks, Tales from the Atmos, Cyclonians, Master Cyclonis, Aerrow, Piper, Junko, Lark, Radarr, Starling, Finn, Stork

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