The Following Season Three is also known as its final season. The series starring Kevin Bacon as on-and-off FBI agent Ryan Hardy was formally cancelled by Fox and has yet to be saved by the likes of Hulu, Netflix or even Amazon as The Mindy Show, Justified and a few other series have been. That’s a shame as the third season picks up momentum in its second half and leaves the door cracked for Hardy to return should a studio be willing to roll the dice on him.
Fox and Warner Bros. television no doubt saw the writing on the wall as the Hardy and jailed Joe Carroll (James Purefoy) story line arching over the entire series finally came to a close. That alone makes Season Three on Blu-ray a must-own closing bookend set if you already purchased the previous two.
I personally wasn’t a huge fan of Season Two and felt it went off the rails a bit following an engaging freshman run. Season Three starts calm and then quickly descends into madness with Mark and his new troop of followers deciding that Ryan must pay for his unethical actions the previous season and sets out to make Ryan’s life miserable in the public eye.
As this story wraps up, Theo Noble (Michael Ealy) comes onto the scene and breathes new life into every frame he touches. He’s every bit Ryan’s equal only far colder and more calculating, willing to do whatever it takes and hurt whoever he must in order to get what he wants. His tech skills make him especially formidable as he’s able to temporarily become the follower while outwitted Ryan becomes the followed.
Noble is so compelling and wonderfully portrayed by Ealy that I wonder if a Season Three premiere introduction might have built buzz and saved the show.
Fitting a series finale, Warner Home Video has included a full selection of bonus features to compliment all 15 episodes in high definition on Blu-ray and Digital HD combo, highlighted by the hilarious Funny or Die skit starring Kevin Bacon mocking his own show. In total there’s a little over an hour’s worth of extras for series fans to soak up.
- Evil Has Many Faces
- Ryan and Romance
- The Art of the Crime Scene Photo
- The Following: Funny AND Die
- Severed Scenes
- Gag Reel
- 2014 New York Comic-Con Panel (in its entirety!)
Fox has a dubious history of cancelling shows just when they’re starting to find their legs and The Following fits that pattern to a tee. Season Three found its Benjamin Linus in Theo Noble, and unfortunately his time on the scene was cut short.
To Warner and Fox’s credit, The Following Season Three on Blu-ray is a fitting sendoff with numerous informative extras. Closing the book on Hardy and Carroll’s big stakes chess game was a definite must before cancellation and thankfully it’s not only present but fulfilling as well.
The Following Season Three on Blu-ray and Digital HD combo is now available at stores everywhere.
