For reasons unknown, I never watched 21 Jump Street on TV back in the 80s. So why’d I go to see the 2012 big-screen adaptation? Ehh, I had nothing better to do, so why not?

I was pretty glad I did, as the 2012 Jump Street provided a surprisingly entertaining experience. In a prologue set in 2005, we meet high school seniors Morton Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Greg Jenko (Channing Tatum). Schmidt is the nerd and Jenko’s the popular jock who bullies him.

Seven years later, they re-encounter each other in police academy and become unlikely friends. Jenko needs Schmidt to help him with the class work, while Schmidt requires Jenko’s assistance with physical training.

The former foes find themselves teamed together as rookies and run into trouble when they encounter a gang of drug dealers called “The One Percenters”. Schmidt and Jenko notice the presence of illegal substances, so they pounce to make the bust and hopefully get themselves off of their crummy assignment at a public park and into something juicier.

Although they catch one of the thugs, Jenko botches the reading of the Miranda Rights, so the cops need to drop the charges. Their boss Deputy Chief Hardy (Nick Offerman) reassigns them to a program that uses young-seeming officers to go undercover in high schools. Schmidt and Jenko find themselves in an investigation stop the distribution of a dangerous new drug called HFS – and a revival of their old high school feelings, albeit with a variety of twists.

When dramatic TV series get turned into comedies, the results can be dicey. For instance, I recall that the 1987 Dragnet with Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks was a dud, and the recent reworking of Dark Shadows was weak.

Add Jump to the list of hits, however, as it provides a pretty terrific comedic take on the property. To be sure, it opts for laughs over action. While it throws in some chases, gunfire and explosions, these function as gags and don’t attempt thrills.

The movie embraces/mocks the action genre. This isn’t anything new, so don’t expect something particularly fresh from Jump. Heck, even the “return to high school” theme in which the hero’s old “coolness” no longer works feels lifted from Billy Madison.

None of this harms Jump. It doesn’t aspire to be a reinvention of anything; it simply wants to deliver a good time, and it does. Granted, it does fade as it goes, partly due to plot issues. As the movie progresses, it gets a bit bogged down in the action themes, whereas it works best when it stays simple.

Still, even with some drag along the way, Jump boasts more than enough clever jokes/sequences to keep the viewer with it. A good cast certainly helps, as all involved provide nice work. In particular, Tatum seems like a revelation, as he handles the comedy much better than expected. All of the performers get laughs, but Tatum ends up as the most enjoyable aspect of the film.

Jump never aspires to be anything more than what it is: a comedy spoof of an old TV series. Along the way, it delivers consistent laughs, as it has a great time with its premise and conveys that sensibility to the audience. This is a fun romp.

21 Jump Street appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-Ray Disc. Though not stellar, the image usually satisfied.

Only a smidgen of softness occurred, as a few wide shots displayed a little lack of definition. Those were minor, though, and the majority of the flick offered nice clarity and accuracy. I saw no issues with jaggies or shimmering, and edge enhancement failed to appear. The movie also suffered from no discernible print flaws.

In terms of palette, the movie opted for a fairly golden tone. Some scenes went with stylized tints, but most of the film used fairly warm tones. These looked full and rich throughout the movie. Blacks were deep and dense, but shadows were a little erratic, as some low-light shots could be somewhat dark. Overall, this ended up as a solid “B” presentation.

I felt pleased with the involving DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack. The mix used the side and rear channels in a satisfying manner that created good action when appropriate. The “drug trip” scene blasted the speakers in a lively manner, and other elements of that sort opened up the room well. Music also was active and created good stereo presence, with nice usage of the back channels as well. The soundscape seemed natural and engrossing.

Audio quality was also mostly positive. Music sounded lively and full, and effects followed suit; those elements came across as accurate and dynamic. Speech was concise and clear, though some lines from Ice Cube tended to be edgy. I thought the soundtrack was an impressive package overall.

When we shift to the set’s extras, we launch with an audio commentary from directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord, co-writer/actor Jonah Hill and actor Channing Tatum. All four sit together for this running, screen-specific look at score and songs, cast, characters and performances, sets, locations and production design, connections to the TV series, effects and stunts, and a few other thoughts about the flick.

While we get a few good notes, most of the track lacks substance. We hear an awful lot of praise for the movie and comments about how funny various scenes/bits are. There’s a modicum of useful material here, but it’s buried beneath the joking and happy talk.

20 Deleted Scenes fill a total of 29 minutes, 32 seconds. In these, we see more of Schmidt and Jenko in high school (the first time), and we also get to know the other Jump Street cops a little better. We get quite a few extensions to existing sequences, and we discover some new moments such as a piece in which Schmidt and Jenko try to justify the prospect of sex with high school girls. A few of these drag, but most are pretty good. I don’t think they should’ve been in the final film – at 109 minutes, it’s already a little long – but the cut scenes offer nice comedy. (Look for a reprise of the movie’s biggest cameo actor, too.)

A Gag Reel lasts four minutes, 58 seconds. I hoped it’d include a bunch of alternate lines, but it only throws in a few. Instead, it provides the usual mix of mistakes and crack-ups. It’s fine if you dig this kind of material.

More material of that sort comes with Cube-O-Rama. In this one-minute, 53-second collection, we see alternate lines and goofs from Ice Cube. It’s reasonably amusing.

The seven-minute, 43-second Back to School gives us a behind the scenes featurette. We hear from Hill, Tatum, Lord, Miller, producer Neal Moritz, Phil Lord’s father Wally, and actors Jake Johnson, Rob Riggle, and Johnny Pemberton. We learn a little about the film’s roots and story, cast, characters and performances. This doesn’t become a substantial piece, but it’s entertaining for what it is.

With Brothers in Arms, we get a six-minute, 24-second clip with Tatum, Hill, Moritz, and actor Brie Larson. “Arms” looks at the movie’s two lead actors, their characters and their performances. Like the last reel, this one’s pretty fluffy, but it throws in enough fun outtakes to make it worth a look.

Next comes the four-minute, 42-second Johnny Depp on Set. It features Lord, Miller, Hill, Riggle, Tatum, Larson, producer Tania Landau, and actors Peter DeLuise and Dave Franco. We hear about how the TV series’ most famous cast member came back for the movie. As usual, it’s on the promotional side, but it has some interesting elements.

Another look at an actor shows up with The Rob Riggle Show. It goes for nine minutes, 24 seconds and offers notes from Riggle, Larson, Hill, Lord, Miller, Tatum, and actor Ellie Kemper. We get an appreciation for Riggle’s work and some additional outtakes. Again, the latter help turn this into a fairly enjoyable show.

Finally, Peter Pan on the Freeway runs four minutes, 12 seconds and delivers notes from Hill as we visit the set. We see the shoot of the sequence in question, without a lot of commentary. It offers some decent footage.

The disc opens with ads for Safety Not Guaranteed, Lockout, Ghost Rider: The Spirit of Vengeance and That’s My Boy. These also appear under Previews along with clips for Underworld: Awakening and The Raid: Redemption. No trailer for Jump pops up here.

I went into 21 Jump Street with skepticism, as the concept of a comedic remake of an old dramatic TV series didn’t sound promising. However, the end result works quite well, as the film delivers consistent laughs. The Blu-ray brings us pretty good picture and audio as well as a decent roster of supplements. Both as a Blu-ray and a movie, this one deserves my recommendation.