From Disney and Pixar comes an animated sci-fi action-adventure — the definitive origin story of Buzz Lightyear (voice of Chris Evans), the hero who inspired the toy. Lightyear follows the legendary Space Ranger on an intergalactic adventure alongside ambitious recruits, Izzy, Mo and Darby, and his robot companion Sox. As this motley crew embark on their toughest mission yet, they must learn to work as a team to escape the evil Zurg and his dutiful robot army who are never far behind.

For in-depth thoughts on Lightyear, please see my colleague Brandon Lewis’ review from its original theatrical release here.

Video Quality

Lightyear comes to 4K UHD Blu-Ray with a sumptuous and nuanced 2160p HDR transfer. The real standout of this particular presentation is the color output. The hues present in this transfer are not as candy colored as some animated offerings, but it captures the natural majesty better than you could ever hope. The almost photorealistic environments present the crisp colors of Buzz’s iconic space suit just as precisely as it shows off the deep browns of the planet on which they find themselves stranded. You do have moments that leap off the screen when it comes to pops of lighting such as laser beams, and Sox is presented with a lovely orange color. With this film in particular, it is important to have deep black levels with all of the shadows and content in space. Luckily, they are incredibly strong with no hint of compression artifacts or digital anomalies of the sort.

When it comes to the characters, all of the individual facets of their design are given a terrific immediacy. The textures, from these designs to the environments, are extremely impressive and give the film a real sense of depth. Pixar continues to top themselves in exciting ways to make their animation stand out as some of the most detailed in the business. The subtle characteristics these animators put into each environment shines through here. Disney has reached virtual perfection with this transfer that stands among the strongest on the format.

Audio Quality

This 4K UHD Blu-Ray utilizes a Dolby Atmos track that gives this adventure quite a jolt. The soaring score from Michael Giacchino brings a real dynamic quality to the proceedings as it flows through with flawless fidelity. Dialogue comes through clearly without ever getting overwhelmed by the score or sound effects. The low end effects from the subwoofer give the action-oriented moments a bit of extra weight, although it is not as substantial as it could be. Atmospheric sound effects are presented deftly within the mix so that directionality is never an issue. Front channels get the lion’s share of the support for many of the sounds, but activity kicks into the surrounds and rears during the various kinetic and action-oriented bits. The height channels really show their might as they create a three dimensional world with ships flying overhead and explosions filling the soundscape. Lightyear has been provided with a healthy soundtrack that does not disappoint. There are optional English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles provided.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director Angus MacLane, writer Jason Headley, and director of photography Jeremy Lasky provide a very fun and informative commentary track in which they discuss the origins of this project, balancing the references to the original series with blazing a new trail, developing the style of the film, the vocal performances and much more that makes for an entertaining listen.
Building the World of Lightyear: A nearly 15-minute featurette which invites you to learn about how the creative figures went about creating the world of this film from the plant life and the characteristics of the land Johnson to the costumes, ship design lighting and much more that shows you how much care and preparation was put into each decision.
The Zap Patrol: A nine-minute piece which gets closer with the actors who gave voice to Izzy, Mo and Darby, the untrained, unprepared rangers who join Buzz on the adventure of a lifetime. The subjects discuss the different facets of the characters, the quality of the voice performances, the designs and more.
Toyetic: A ten-minute exploration of what makes Lightyear such a great candidate to produce toys to complement. Director Angus MacLane and others journey through different elements of the film practically made for toys such as the ship, the characters and more. There are some great personal moments shared concerning what roles toys play in the lives of these creatives.

Deleted Scenes: Six unused scenes with introductions from Angus MacLane all totaling 27 minutes are provided here which shows an alternate opening, a reflection on a childhood memory, Buzz meeting a character cut for time and more. Not only are the scenes pretty entertaining, the insights provided by MacLane help put things into perspective even more.

Final Thoughts

Lightyear has been an easy target for skeptics ever since it was first announced. In recent years, Disney has seemed a little bit lazy in their approach to filmmaking with reboots, remakes and spinoffs leading the way as they attempt to capitalize on nostalgia. That fair point aside, Lightyear in actuality is not the failure that certain segments of the internet would have you believe. While not a high point from Pixar, it is a solidly enjoyable space adventure which does a nice job of world-building even if some narrative issues hinder its overall success. With great voice performances, beautiful animation, and memorable characters, the film stands as a fun time. Disney has provided this one with a 4K UHD Blu-Ray that is top-notch on all accounts from the lovely A/V presentation to the informative special features. If you go in with an open mind, you should have a good time. Recommended

Lightyear will be available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital on September 13, 2022.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Disney Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.