Buy it... if you tire of convention and are prepared for one of the most original-sounding, distinctly rendered blends of orchestral force and unique synthetic soundscapes to ever be combined in a film score.

Avoid it... on all albums prior to the 2020 "Complete Edition," because Disney had previously forced listeners to buy it in pieces from four separate sources (some of which lossy) to assemble into a comprehensive presentation.

Tron: Legacy: (Daft Punk) The concept of Tron has always represented all the things that get the juices flowing in teenage boys. It's a fetish for any smart young geek in need of escape or recognition, combining into one glorious package video games, imaginative worlds, sexy ass-kicking chicks, competitive sports, electronic music, and those sleek neon lights that such guys seem to like to install in the undercarriage of their cars so they look really cool to underclassmen on rainy nights. The original 1982 film was not a classic because of its screenplay or its acting, but because it so creatively represented all of the above necessities for a generation of teenage boys. It took much longer than expected for a sequel to be finalized, yet Disney's 2010 reemergence of the novel universe in Tron: Legacy appeals and repulses for the same exact reasons as its predecessor. Intellectuals will complain about the nebulous plot, conservatives will lament the technological debauchery, and stupid people will fail to explore what few interesting metaphors about relationships that do toil in the concept's alternate reality. Dazzling the sequel will be for teenage boys, however, for the money withheld from the editing of the screenplay for Tron: Legacy was clearly redirected (reportedly with some rumored help from Pixar) in the direction of the special effects. Those stunning visuals combine with reprised roles by Jeff Bridges and Bruce Boxleitner to modernize the idea of becoming trapped inside an arcade game that has, for the past twenty years, been evolving into its own universe with two versions of Bridges inside. His son's entry into the game to rescue him gives that aforementioned next generation of teenage boys yet another hero to imagine as themselves. Even before the year of post-production work done on the special effects, the director and producer of Tron: Legacy had long known the style of sound they wished to hear in accordance with those visuals. They were fans of the French techno and electronic duo Daft Punk and asked them (Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo in real life) to not only write music early in the production process, but in turn appear in the film as DJ's. The pair's iconic performance personas, complete with robot costumes and an abundance of flashy lights, were a perfect match for Tron: Legacy.

By their own accounts, Bangalter and De Homem-Christo were huge fans of the concept and Wendy Carlos' music for the 1982 film, but their biggest challenge involved finding the same balance of electronic and organic sound that had made Carlos' score so memorable and effective. Bangalter had minor previous scoring experience, but the duo had never tackled an assignment together, nor had they ever before handled an orchestral ensemble. The key to success for them was to extend as much of their club-worthy techno style as possible without relegating their work for Tron: Legacy to classification as simple fetish music. After all, what appeals as trance and techno dance material in Europe would likely not alone carry a blockbuster motion picture even as well suited to them as this one. Thus, they sought a significant amount of help to acquire the services of a large London orchestral ensemble and several people familiar with those players. The most likely recipients of thanks are Hans Zimmer, John Powell, and Harry Gregson-Williams, whose often shared crews contributed to Tron: Legacy. The meat of the task was handled by Joseph Trapanese, though it is more interesting to note that Bruce Broughton, a longtime veteran with these London symphonic recordings, is credited with some consultation work on the orchestrations. Ultimately, however, with Disney involved, it's no surprise that the score was ultimately assembled at Zimmer's Remote Control back in America, leading to comparisons (both deserved and not) between this score and the mass of anonymous material coming out of that production house nowadays. Despite some familiarity in certain facets of the recording of Tron: Legacy, however, the result of Daft Punk's efforts is far more creative than what you'd usually hear from a Zimmer clone using the Remote Control library alone. Bangalter and De Homem-Christo do reference that library, but they do so as only a background element in a score that proves that fresh perspectives are always a good thing in Hollywood. The duo credits the unlikely combination of Max Steiner, Maurice Jarre, Bernard Herrmann, John Carpenter, and Vangelis when citing their influences for this endeavor. Where Steiner, Jarre, and Herrmann can be heard in the score is anyone's guess; this music has as much to do with Golden and Silver Age sensibilities as penguins have with tanning salons.

You can clearly hear that the composers for Tron: Legacy do channel their affinity for the music of Carpenter and Vangelis, however, and film music collectors will also hear some influence from the works of Brad Fiedel and Basil Poledouris as well. Lost in the equation is a specific reliance upon (or even straight acknowledgement of) the sound of Wendy Carlos for the original; although there have been claims that her music had some kind of impact on Daft Punk, the only carryover is the basic blend of ingredients. Those expecting to hear specific elements from Carlos' cult favorite score will be disappointed, although one cue does fleetingly reference some of her thematic material in a manner that it is barely recognizable. Likewise, those who go to Daft Punk performances will also find less than ten minutes of straight techno material suitable for their sensibilities. Ironically, the score for Tron: Legacy is more likely to appeal to orchestral film score collectors than Daft Punk fanatics. The handling of the ensemble isn't spectacular, with the orchestrations rather simplistic, the progressions predictable, and techniques like counterpoint and dissonance applied without complexity. Fortunately, the orchestration is competent, so the driving harmonic rhythms and the major thematic performances are easy on the ears and will satisfy the masses in theatres. Continuity in the score is maintained by both the balance between electronic and symphonic instrumentation and the score's main theme and rhythmic motifs. The one major theme is quite memorable in its simplicity, barely enhanced by electronics as it is introduced with timpani rolling and cymbal-crashing glory in "Overture." It is transferred to keyboards in Vangelis mode in "The Grid" for a similarly powerful performance, though the idea goes largely unused in much of the middle section of the score. The entire package would undoubtedly have been stronger had it featured more subtle explorations of the idea, as in "Father and Son." But for those who want their bombastic themes to serve as only bookends, Tron: Legacy does revive its main idea with significant repetition in "Flynn Lives" and the "Finale" and "End Titles" cues. The only other significant thematic creation can be heard in "Adagio for Tron," a romantic theme that emulates Carlos' score in very slow tempi. The combination of strings and organ in the first two minutes seem like something of a nod to Carlos, though the idea is beefed up to Zimmer anthem posture in the latter half of that cue, even utilizing a yearning cello solo in the same fashion that the renown composer has preferred through the years.

Aside from their two easily discernable themes for Tron: Legacy, Bangalter and De Homem-Christo maintain continuity with a series of rhythmic devices for the strings as well. Heard first under Jeff Bridges' well-performed narration in "The Grid," the most frequent incarnation of this ostinato takes John Powell mannerisms and gives it an extra dose of Zimmer testosterone in "Recognizer," Tron: Legacy's ode to the ballsy brute force of Inception. The ostinatos merge with the electronics by "The Game Has Changed," sometimes to grating effect. They slow down to get better footing in "Disc Wars," by which point they begin to resemble Steve Jablonsky's work for the Transformers franchise (especially in this score's tendency to build up to a crescendo over several minutes). A singular, more impressive set of string rhythms exists in "Outlands" and "Outlands, Part II," cues that very clearly reflect Poledouris' quirky but likeable Cherry 2000 in its layers of enthusiastic activity. For those seeking the score's best developed orchestral constructs (along with a similarly secondary touch of keyboarded enhancements), the two "Outlands" cues are impressive highlights. There are a handful of cues that feature the London players almost exclusively, the lovely "Adagio for Tron," a sadly underused idea in the score as a whole, followed by the anonymous but pleasant "Nocturne." Also in this category is the more standard orchestral pair of "Overture" and "Finale," which only overlay a slight electronic accent to bolster the bass during their major, closing thematic performances. One of the detractions of Tron: Legacy is that despite all the attempts by its composers to integrate the orchestra with the electronics, few cues actually manage to do it very thoroughly. Low key cues like "Armory" and "Arrival" make little impact compared to the wholesale battles in the mix that erupt in "The Game Has Changed" and "Disc Wars." While the electronic aspects of some of these cues, as in the former, can be quite irritating and actually induce the distortion effects of high gain levels (the same mixing technique nearly ruins "C.L.U."), moments like the latter add the synthetic element very tastefully to otherwise Zimmer-like rhythms of rolling power. Among the best maturations of combined string ostinato and keyboarding comes across the "ENCOM, Part I" and "ENCOM, Part II" tracks. The "End Titles" cue is the best (and overdue) merging of both halves, despite cheesy dance percussion from the 1990's in its first half. The cue's slow transformation from a typical Daft Punk club piece into a mighty orchestral finale is entertaining.