The Americas

I'm sure I'm in the minority here but the narration from Tom Hank's is just not right for this kind of programme, maybe I've been spoilt with the Goat Mr Attenborough for too long but this is so disconnected and clunky its really put me off watching it. Shame. It's so scripted which I know is how it works but the trick is to make it sound like it isn't scripted. You want the narrator to say things from an experts POV and that they are telling you things from knowledge not a rigid script. I love Toms acting work and rarely see a bad performance in anything he does but I think he needs to stick to the big screen sorry.

This series is amazing. The photography is sensational. I hope there is a sequel showing how it was produced. The production values are amazing. Was all the photography done from a helicopter? Did they scout the locations a long time before the producers and director put it together? I am amazed by the quality of the film, the graphics and the narration. Over how many years was it produced? How did they find that snowshoe rabbit or the dead polar bear? How did they get such marvelous closeups? It looks like it took a long time to put this together. When did they start filming? It is certainly worth watching. Give us more.

Having been brought up on BBC wildlife programs narrated by the incomparable Sir David Attenborough, I was curious to see if this American made program showed anything new and if it was any good, well there wasn't much that I haven't seen before, but the camera work was glorious and Tom Hanks have it a good go, although I do find his voice a bit irritating, over all the program probably would have been great, but found I the music and background sounds too invasive, could hardly hear the poor Tom and he wouldn't have been cheap. Anyway this was so distracting from the visuals I gave up with it.

The content, visuals, and narration are OUTSTANDING!!!! But, everything would be perfect if the music didn't drowned out Mr. Hanks wonderful narrative!! The music is lovely but too loud!!!! I want to hear the narrative as well! The visuals are so full of color and expressive action! The narrative tells an impressive tale giving the viewer background stories and remarkable details. I could watch these over and over catching new details each time. Mr. Hanks is absolutely amazing the way he delivers the information!! The production is thoughtful but not forced. There is humor, emotion, excitement, and danger. All the elements are presented in perfect balance, except the music level.

The stunning visuals for this series are exemplary. This is a mind-blowing, informative experience. As with most nature programs, this puts our humanity into perspective. The script takes a traditional approach: it's a blend of intriguing facts, anthropomorphism, and humorous quips to keep the viewers coming back.

Here's my main disappointment: the audio mix is frequently imbalanced. As others have mentioned, there are moments when the narration is gobbled up by the heavy-handed music. This is a common occurrence nowadays. They want the viewers to feel a certain way, so they attempt to sway us by either increasing the volume or using songs which trigger heightened emotions. It's an old trick that doesn't work for some of us.

Aside from the above, I still recommend this series. Here's a workaround which I prefer. I turn the volume off and tweak the Caption settings to my liking. When an animal sound comes on, I temporarily turn up the volume.