Princess Jellyfish: The Complete Collection (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

“Princess Jellyfish” is a crazy, fun but also captivating anime series that I enjoyed from beginning to end.  You rarely see an anime with an odd storyline like this but that’s what makes “Princess Jellyfish” so enjoyable and addictive.  It’s definitely one of the better anime series to be released on Blu-ray in America in 2012 and an anime series I highly recommend!

Image courtesy of © Akiko Higashimura/Kodansha/Kuragihime Production. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Princess Jellyfish: The Complete Collection

DURATION: 11 Episodes (275 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (4:3), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV PG

Release Date: February 28, 2012

Originally created by Akiko Higashimura

Directed by Takahiro Omori

Series Composition by Jukki Hanada

Music by Makoto Yoshimori

Character Design by Kenji Hayama

Art Director: Mio Isshiki

Anime Production: Brains Base

Featuring the following voice talent:

Kana Hanazawa/Maxey Whitehead as Tsukimi Kurashita

Mitsuki Saiga/Josh Grelle as Kuranosuke Koibuchi

Akemi Okamura/Monica Rial as Mayaya

Junichi Suwabe/Ian Sinclair as Shū Koibuchi

Junko Kitanishi/Jamie Marchi as Shōko Inari

Kentarou Itou/Cris George as Sugimotchan

Kimiko Saito/Cynthia Cranz as Chieko

Mamiko Noto/Leah Clark as Jiji-sama

Motoko Kumai/Mariela Ortiz as Banba-san

Mugihito/Charles Campbell as Keiichirō Koibuchi

Shigeru Chiba/Jerry Russell as Prime Minister Saburōta Negishi

Sumire Morohoshi/Lara Woodhull as Kurara (Clara)

Takehito Koyasu/Christopher Bevins as Hanamori-san

Yasuhiko Kawazu/Christopher R. Sabat as Mr. Popo

Plain, timid and obsessed with jellyfish, Tsukimi is a far cry from her idea of a princess. Her tepid life as a jobless illustrator comes complete with roommates who harbor diehard hobbies that solidify their status as hopeless social rejects. These wallflowers run a tight, nun-like ship, but their no-men-allowed-not-no-one-not-no-how bubble is unwittingly burst after Tsukimi brings home a rescued sea jelly and a beauty queen… who’s actually a guy.

When the threat of losing their cozy convent inspires this glamour boy to turn the neurotic entourage into a portrait of success, will Tsukimi take her chance to bloom, or will she end up a hot mess?

In Nov. 2008, Akiko Higashimura’s josei manga “Princess Jellyfish” was serialized in Kodansha manga magazine “Kiss”.  Two years later, an 11-episode anime TV series was produced by Brain’s Base and aired on television as part of Fuji TV’s “Noitamina” programming block.

To test the market in the United States, FUNimation Entertainment simulcast the series online as part of a deal with Fuji TV and received positive feedback from viewers on Facebook and sure enough, “Princess Jellyfish: The  Complete Collection”, the Blu-ray/DVD collection was released in Feb. 2012.

The series was directed by Takahiro Omori (“Gakuen Alice”, “Fancy Lala”, “Hell Girl”), screenplay by Jukki Hanada (“CODE-E”, “Chobits”, “Gakuen Alice”, “K-ON!”), music by Makoto Yoshimori (“Baccano!”, “Durara!!”, “Gakuen Alice”), character designs by Kenji Hayama (“MazinKaiser”, “Nghtmare Campus”, “Getter Robo: Armageddon”) and art direction by Mio Isshiki (“Death Note”, “Dragon Ball Z”, “Kaze no Yojimbo”).

“Princess Jellyfish” is a series that revolves around an otaku 18-year-old girl named Tsukimi Kurashita who moved to Tokyo to become an illustrator.

When she was younger, her late mother would take her to see jellyfish at an aquarium and tell her that when she gets older, she will blossom and become beautiful like the jellyfish.

But Tsukimi didn’t blossom into a beautiful young woman, she’s just an otaku girl, who knows nothing about style, constantly wearing sweats and not wearing any makeup.

Tsukimi lives with four other women otaku at the Amamizukan:

• Chieko – Chieko is the manager and an otaku obsessed with dolls dressed in traditional Japanese clothes.  She runs Amamizukan in place of her mother who owns the building and is a groupie of Korean actor Bae Yong Joon.
• Mayaya – A woman always wearing track clothes and is obsessed with the “Record of Three Kingdoms”.
• Banba – A young woman with a large natural afro who is obsessed with trains and has the ability to spot good meat at the grocery store.
• Jiji – A woman who is obsessed with mature, old men.

Together these five women form the Sisterhood of Amamizukan and they are currently looking for a roommate.  But no matter who applies, the women vote against applicants because they are too pretty or cool and wouldn’t blend with the otaku women.

One day while walking to the pet store, Tsukimi spots two different kind of jellyfish that are not supposed to be put in the tank together.  Unfortunately, because Tsukimi is not used to talking to men, part of her is too shy to tell the manager the problem but another side tells her that if she doesn’t do anything, the jelly fish will die.

So, Tsukimi tries to talk to the store employee during closing hours and thinking that she is a weirdo, the store employee pushes her down.  And out of nowhere, a beautiful and stylish woman comes to defend her and goes as far as to save the jellyfish and buy it as a present for Tsukimi.  Tsukimi names the jellyfish, “Clara”.

The woman walks with Tsukimi to her home at Amamizukan but Tsukimi knows bringing in a “beautiful woman” is something her roommate will not allow.  So, she tries to kick the woman out but instead, the woman crashes in Tsukimi’s bedroom.

The following morning Tsukimi finds out the stylish woman is actually a guy named Kuranosuke Koibuchi and from that moment, the two develop a friendship and Tsukimi tries to hide his secret that he is a crossdresser.

We learn that Kuranosuke Koibuchi (aka “Kurako”) enjoys cross-dressing despite being a son of a rich and popular political family. We learn that Kuranosuke’s mother had introduce him to fashion at a young age and his life long dream is to work in the fashion industry.  And despite having many girlfriends and any girl that he has wanted, he is drawn by challenges and his current challenge in life is to make Tsukimi (and her roommates) into beautiful princesses.

But while hanging out with the odd otaku’s, Kuranosuke finds himself possibly attracted to Tsukimi, who is unlike the beautiful women he has already been with.  What is it about Tsukimi that makes him care about her?

VIDEO:

“Princess Jellyfish” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1).  The anime series is vibrant and what I enjoyed the most about this series is that despite it being a TV anime series, there are a lot of scenery as we see Tsukimi and others entering various stylish parts of Tokyo.  So, we get to see various shops and locations, something that most anime series tend to stay away from for TV series.  Also, the character designs tend to showcase a lot of emotion, may it be Tsukimi’s various emotional moods to the wild and crazy faces that her roommates tend to give.

If anything, there is a beautiful look that “Princess Jellyfish” has and it’s a series that does look gorgeous on Blu-ray.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Princess Jellyfish” is presented in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 with English subtitles.    As one would expect, the English 5.1 lossless track has a bit more of a dynamic range than the 2.0 Japanese lossless track.  But with that being said, there was something about the voice acting of the Japanese version that I enjoyed more.  Perhaps mainly because I understood the Japanese jokes for example, when Tsukimi reacts and sings when Mayaya refers himself to a boy.  But the English 5.1 lossless track does have better dynamic range but whichever version you prefer, I can easily say that both soundtracks are well-done.    The English version for the most part is very good but it does try to add some jokes that may go over the heads of younger audiences such as a reference made by Mayaya about a situation being like the women of “Facts of Life” (an ’80s TV series).

It’s important to note that I couldn’t select audio or subtitles on my Blu-ray remote, I would have to bring up the menu and select Japanese with English subtitles.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Princess Jellyfish: The Complete Collection” comes with the following special features:

• EPISODE 1 – Audio Commentary:  Featuring voice director Christopher Bevins (voice of Hanamori) with Maxey Whtiehead (Tsukimi) and Josh Grelle (Kuranosuke).
  
• EPISODE 11 – Audio Commentary: Featuring voice director Christopher Bevins with Cynthia Cranz (voice of Chieko), Monica Rial (vice of Mayaya), Leah Clark (voice of Jiji) and Mariela Ortiz (voice of Banba).
  
• Princess Jellyfish Heroes  – Featuring the following shorts: Part 1: Mayaya Chapter (5:05), Part 2: Banba and Jiji Chapter (6:01), Part 3: Chieko Chapter (5:21) and Part 4: Shu-Shu and Mr. Hanamori Chapter (6:01).
• Go, Sisterhood Explorers! – More six shorts (about thirty seconds each) featuring the Sisterhood Expeditionary Party.
• Tsukimi and Jiji’s Jellyfish Tour – (21:33) Voice actresses Kana Hanazawa (voice of Tsukimi) and Mamiko Noto (voice of Jiji) go to the Enoshima Aquarium for the jellyfish tour.
• The Princess Jellyfish Field Guide – A text based feature about jellyfish and the characters of the series.
• Promotional Video – (:34) The Japanese promotional video for “Princess Jellyfish”.
• U.S. Trailer – (1:47) The FUNimation Entertainment “Princess Jellyfish” trailer.
• Textless Opening Song “Kokodake no Hanashi” by CHATMONCHY
• Textless Closing Song “Kimino Kireini Kizuiteokure” by SAMBOMASTER.
• FUNimation Entertainment Trailers

EXTRAS:

“Princess Jellyfish: The Complete Collection” comes with a slipcase plus a DVD version of the series.

Once in awhile, you encounter anime series that are unique and unlike any other anime series that you have watched before.    Anime series that when you watch one episode, you can’t help but watch all of them in a row.

That’s how I feel about “Princess Jellyfish”, an anime series that contains a lot of humor but also a lot of heart.

Afterall, who doesn’t enjoy a storyline about underdogs.  In this case, a young woman who never knew her true beauty until she meets the son of a wealth and popular politician who happens to be a cross-dresser.

It’s definitely an odd storyline but it works!  You can’t help but laugh and enjoy “Princess Jellyfish” because of it’s otaku characters but also root for them because they are usually seen as outsiders and fear the “pretty people”.  But when they are befriended by one (and aren’t aware that “she” is actually a “he”), and the main protagonist Tsukimi trying to keep Kuranosuke’s secret is fun!

“Princess Jellyfish” has a lot going for it, despite it only being an 11-episode series.  Fun characters, enjoyable storyline but also a storyline that may lead to a possible love triangle?  Needless to say, after the series ended, I went online and hoping to see that there was a second season in the works.    I enjoyed this series that much!

As for the Blu-ray release, the animation and art backgrounds for “Princess Jellyfish” is artistic, creative and just beautiful too look at.  I love the character designs and the emotional expressions on the character’s faces, especially the use of colors.  The voice acting was also well-done for both Japanese and English soundtracks.  And fortunately, this is a series that does contain a good amount of special features as well.

Overall, “Princess Jellyfish” is a crazy, fun but also captivating anime series that I enjoyed from beginning to end.  You rarely see an anime with an odd storyline like this but that’s what makes “Princess Jellyfish” so enjoyable and addictive.  It’s definitely one of the better anime series to be released on Blu-ray in America in 2012 and an anime series I highly recommend!

Okami-san and Her Seven Companions: The Complete Series (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

A lot of fun, original and outright addictive!  “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” has become one of my favorite anime series on Blu-ray for 2012.  Highly recommended!

Image courtesy of © 2012 FUNimation Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Okami-san and Her Seven Companions: The Complete Series

DURATION: 12 Episodes (300 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV PG

Release Date: April 3, 2012

Originally created by Masashi Okita

Directed by Yoshiaki Iwasaki

Series Composition by Michiko Itou

Music by Megumi Oohashi

Original Character Design: Haruko Iizuka

Art Director: Teruhiko Niida

Cheif Animation Director: Haruko Iizuka

Sound Director: Jin Aketagawa

Director of Photography: Tomokazu Nakanish

Anime Production: J.C. Staff

Featuring the following voice talent:

Miyu Irino/Joel McDonald as Ryōshi Morino

Shizuka Itou/Brina Palencia as Ryōko Ōkami

Kanae Itō/Monica Rial as Ringo Akai

Aki Toyosaki/Caitlin Glass as Otohime Ryūgū

Ayako Kawasumi/Colleen Clinkebeard as Otsuu Tsurugaya

Hirofumi Nojima/Micah Solusod as Liszt Kiriki

Junichi Suwabe/Ian Sinclair as Shirō Hitsujikai

Kimiko Koyama/Lindsay Seidel as Majolica le Fay

Rie Kugimiya/Jad Saxton as Mimi Usami

Satomi Arai/Luci Christian as Narrator

Shintarō Asanuma/Todd Haberkorn as Tarō Urashima

Yui Horie/Terri Doty as Alice Kiriki

Yuko Kaida/Stephanie Young as Momoko Kibitsu

Ryoko Okami, the “wolf,” and her BFF Ringo, also known as Little Red Riding Hood, are members of Otogi Bank – a high school club that helps classmates out of grim situations. One day, a meek young man proclaims his love to Ryoko, who does nothing but bite him in return. “You’re much too weak for me,” she huffs. So the boy joins Otogi Bank to prove he has the stuff to protect his beloved – even if it means taking a blow to the head with a lead pipe. He’s no Prince Charming, but will Ryoko allow herself to have her own happily ever after?

Pleasantly original and outright addictive!  “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” has become one of my favorite anime series on Blu-ray for 2012.  Highly recommended!

“Okami-San and her Seven Companions” is the title of the anime series based on the Japanese light novels “Okami-san” by Masashi Okita (feat. illustrations by Unaji).  Released in 2006 and published by ASCII Media Works, the sereis received a TV series anime adaptation in 2010 courtesy of J.C. Staff.

The anime series was directed by Yoshiaki Iwasaki (“Best Student Council”, “Hayate the Combat Butler!!”, “Love Hina”), a screenplay by Michiko Itou (“Queen’s Blade 2: The Evil Eye”, “Bodacious Space Pirates”), music by Megumi Oohashi (“Blue Dragon”, “Transformers: Cybertron”, “Uta~Kata”), character designs by Haruko Iizuka (“Karin”, “Love Hina”, “Black Butler”) and art direction by Teruhiko Niida (“Doki Doki School Hours”, “Hayate the Combat Butler”, “Toaru Kagaku no Railgun”).

And now the 12-episode anime series will be released in the U.S. as a complete series on Blu-ray and DVD courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment in April 2012.

“Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” is a series that revolves primarily around two characters, Ryo Okami and Ryoshi Morino.  Both are high school students at Otogi High School and a member of the trading club in high school known as the “Otogi High School Bank”.

The club which begins with seven people are known for taking on projects in which students request for their help and hire the club, after completion, the student is not indebted by money but must pay the favor back when the club requests for it.

Ryoko Okami is the fierce and violent fighter, but the truth is that it’s all a facade.  Deep inside, Ryoko is scared but due to something bad that happened to her earlier as a teenager, it changed her life forever and she went from innocent and happy to not so happy and always willing to fight kind of person.  She carries two Neko Neko Knuckles made by club member Majolica that function as boxing gloves and a stun gun.  Her best friend and roommate is Ringo Akai.

The other character Ryoshi Morino is Ryoko’s secret admirer.  He is from the country and has always admired Ryoko from a distance. Unfortunately, Ryoshi is very shy and he has a phobia of people staring at him.   But Ryoshi has declared his love for Ryoko and promised to be by her side no matter what.  So, Ringo brings Ryoshi to the members of Otogi High School Bank to become a new member and prove his love to Ryoko and prove he can be strong enough to be his girlfriend.

The two are joined by Otogi Bank Club members Ringo Akai (petite and short and dresses like red riding hood), Liszt Kiriki (the president of Otogi bank who is great at research and cross dressing), Alice Kiriki (Liszt’s cousin and club secretary, equally good at obtaining research), Otsu Tsurugaya (the maid), Taro Urashima (the playboy), Otohime Ryugu (the girl that has a crush on Taro) and Majolica le Fay (the mad scientist).

The series focuses on the Otogi Bank Club members taking on various missions but we find out that a lot of the trouble is caused by a rival school, Onigashima High School which is led by their student council president Shiro Hitsujikai.  And Shiro is tied to Okami through an incident that changed her life forever.

And throughout each episode and through different missions, we see how the shy Ryoshi Morino has a lot of positive features within him and how he eventually gains the respect of the Otogi Bank club members but also starting to capture the heart of the one girl he loves the most, Ryoko Okami.  But because Okami is not good with her emotions and because of her past, can she ever fall in love with anyone ever again?

VIDEO:

“Okami-san and Her Seven Companions: The Complete Series” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1) and is what one would expect from a TV anime series in terms of softness.  The series also features a colorful palette as well as vibrant and detailed art backgrounds.  This is a series that focuses on a lot of closeups but also action sequences.  I didn’t notice any banding or artifact issues with this anime series.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Okami-san and Her Seven Companions: The Complete Series” is presented in Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 and English Dolby TrueHD 5.1.  I watched the series in both Japanese and English and felt that there was good use of surround through the English 5.1 soundtrack but in terms of voice acting, both are well done. But although there is quite a bit of action in this series, for the most part, a lot of the series is focused around dialogue.  Dialogue is crystal clear and heard no problems on both soundtracks whatsoever.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Okami-san and Her Seven Companions: The Complete Series” comes with the following special features:

• Episode 1 Commentary - Featuring Colleen Clinkenbeard (director) and Chuck Huber (writer) for the English dub.
  
• Episode 6 Commentary - Featuring voice actresses Brina Polencia (Ryoko) and Monica Rial (Ringo).
  
• Tokyo International Anime Fair Promotional Video  – (2:47) Specialized TIAF promo for “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions”.
• Promotional Video – (1:44) Promotional video for “”Okami-san and Her Seven Companions”.
• Original TV Commercials – (1:08) The Japanese commercials for “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions”.
• U.S. Trailer – (:59) FUNimation Entertainment theatrical trailer.
• Textless Opening Song
• Textless Closing Song
• Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment trailers.

EXTRAS:

“Okami-san and Her Seven Companions: The Complete Series” comes with a DVD version of the series.

I have to admit that when I first began watching “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions”, I was thinking that this anime series was going to be the usual banal anime series about a club of friends kicking the butt of other rival high schools, etc.  But it turns out I was wrong.  In fact, “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” features an original storyline that you just don’t find in other anime series and I found myself quite addicted to this anime series to the point that I couldn’t stop watching.  I wanted more when it was all done!

You can’t help but want to support the underdog Ryoshi and hoping he can capture the heart of Ryoko Okami!  And the anime series is so captivating because you have a group of characters that are just so odd, crazy and unusual but for this anime series, it somehow works in the overall efficacy of the series.

Yes, you get action, you get drama, you get a lot of comedy and you get a little fan service but the series is focuses on the dramatic portion of the series between Ryoshi and Ryoko but also the action/comedy segments as the group take on various missions to help these individuals with their requests.  But what happens when a rival school of delinquents tries to get involved with Otogi Bank’s business.

So, while the series tends to focus on both Ryoko and Ryoshi, because of the involvement of the other bank members, you get to learn about each of them as there is a storyline-centric episode involving each or all of them.

Also, unlike other anime series, “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” features an interesting type of narration that usually explains a scene, a character or just pokes fun of the characters in general.  It was rather interesting, especially to see how things differ between the Japanese and English dub.

If there was one thing about “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” that I was not expecting was how deep things got near the second half of the series as it is revealed to Ryoshi of what happened to Ryoko and why she changed long ago from this happy student to this colder, violent person (which both Ringo and Ryoshi can tell its a facade).

While the first half of the series can be seen as fun and more character development building episodes, the last four episodes alone are quite deep and action-packed.  But most of all, the series focuses on its characters and builds a solid storyline around them.  Too often these days, we see beautiful looking animation and backgrounds but the storyline is so-so.

“Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” was quite a surprise and was much better than I expected.  In fact, I would go as far to say that the series is possibly one of the best anime series on Blu-ray in 2012 that I have seen so far!

While picture quality is what is expected from a TV series, the overall anime series does look good and the voice acting is also well-done in Japan and English.  You also get two audio commentary tracks for the English dub and also promotional videos and original commercials in Japanese (with English subtitles).

Overall, If you are looking for an anime series that has it all…drama, action, cool characters, cool animation and a captivating and entertaining storyline, you definitely want to give “Okami-san and Her Seven Companions” a try!  Especially for those who don’t want a long series, this is only 12-episodes long, so it’ll be easy to follow!

Definitely recommended!

Fairy Tail Vol. 4 (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Review)

The most intense, action-packed volume of “Fairy Tail” yet, volume 4 of this awesome series is highly recommended!

Image courtesy of © 2012 FUNimation Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Fairy Tail Vol. 4

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2009

DURATION: (Episodes 37-48) 300 Minutes

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), DolbyTrue HD 5.1, Japanese DolbyTrue HD 2.0, English subtitles

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

Release Date: March 20, 2012

Originally created by Hiro Mashima

Directed by Shinji Ishihara

Script by Atsuhiro Tomikoa, Fumihiko Shimo, Masashi Sogo, Shoji Yonemura

Music by Yasuharu Takanashi

Character Design by Aoi Yamamoto

Art Director: Junko Shimizu

Chief Animation Director: Takao Sano

Anime Production: A-1 Pictures, Satelight

Featuring the following voice talent:

Aya Hirano/Cherami Leigh as Lucy Heartfilia

Tetsuya Kakihara/Todd Haberkorn as Natsu Dragneel

Rie Kugimiya/Tia Ballard as Happy

Sayaka Ohara/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Erza Scarlet

Yūichi Nakamura/Newton Pittman as Gray Fullbuster

Shinichi Kotani/R. Bruce Elliot as Makarov

Akira Ishida as Zeref

Daisuke Kishio/Eric Vale as Loki/Loke

Daisuke Namikawa as Jeral/Mystogan

Eri Kitamura/Jamie Marchi as Kana Alberona

Hiroki Touchi as Pantherlily

Hiroki Yasumoto as Elfman

Kazuhiko Inoue as Gildarts Clive

Mai Nakahara as Juvia Loxar

Mariya Ise as Levi Macgarden

Miyuki Sawashiro/Lydia Mackay as Ultear Milkovich

Ryoko Ono/Monica Rial as Mirajane

Satomi Satou as Wendy

Sayaka Narita as Aries

Wataru Hatano as Gajeel Redfox

Yui Horie as Charle

 

Forced to face her demons at the Tower of Heaven, Erza is in real danger of becoming a live sacrifice in Jellal’s demented plan – which spells disaster for Fairy Tail’s strongest team! As the Council prepares to wipe out the island with the Etherion beam, Erza’s allies endure a heart-wrenching battle to get her back!

Big surprises await the comrades as they return for Magnolia’s annual Harvest Festival. But the celebrations are cut short when Master Makarov’s grandson hotwires a contest to determine who’s the fiercest wizard in a supercharged scheme to take over the guild!

The past of Erza Scarlet revealed and what happens when several members of Fairy Tail try to assemble a coup in order for Makarov’s grandson, Laxus Dreyar to become the new leader of the Fairy Tail guild?

Plenty of action and kick ass battles await you in the latest volume 4 of  the popular anime series “Fairy Tail”!

For those who are not familiar with “Fairy Tail”, let’s just say that it’s one of the most exciting, long running anime magic/adventure series to be released in the U.S. on Blu-ray and DVD courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

In Japan, “Fairy Tail” is a manga series which began in 2006 and was created by mangaka Hiro Mashima (known for his manga series “Rave Master”). Featured in Weekly Shonen Magazine, the manga series is still ongoing, meanwhile an anime adaptation of the manga series was created in 2009 produced by A-Pictures and Satelight. And similar to the manga series, is also ongoing!

With the fourth Blu-ray release of “Fairy Tail”, this latest volume features episodes 37-48.

The anime series is directed by Shinji Ishihara (“Aoi Kokuhaku”, “Tenbatsu Angel Rabbie”, “Tokyo Majin” and is written by Masashi Sogo (“Bleach”, “Yukikaze”, “Hunter x Hunter”). The anime series features character design by Aoi Yamamoto, art direction by Junko Shimizu (“Midori Days, “Blue Dragon”, “Trinity Blood”) and music by Yasuharu Takanashi (“Naruto Shippuden”, “Hell Girl”, “Gantz”, Ikki Tosen”).

A Quick Summary of what has taken place in “Fairy Tail” thus far:

“Fairy Tail” revolves around a 17-year-old celestial wizard named Lucy Heartfilia who dreams of joining a sorcerer guild known as Fairy Tail, a group known and feared for the destruction they cause. One day, she runs into Natsu Dragneel, a guy who is traveling to the land of Fiore along with his partner Happy (a talking blue cat with wings) who is searching for his foster parent, a dragon named Igneel who has disappeared.

While traveling to Fiore, both Lucy and Natsu encounter a sorcerer claiming to be the famous Salamander of Fairy Tail. Natsu is the first to object that the man is a phony but the fans of Salamander are dismayed by Natsu’s comments and beat him up, meanwhile Lucy finds out that this fake Salamander is using his sorcerer abilities to make young women fall for him.

As Lucy tries to show her gratitude to Natsu for breaking the spell that would have otherwise have hypnotized Lucy, the two become friends.

But when the fake Salamander tells Lucy that he would get her into Fairy Tail, she knows he is a fake but any chance of getting to join the guild would make her dream come true, so she decides to visit him.

But it’s all a ruse and the fake Salamander is just trying to find female slaves and because he is so powerful, Lucy does not have the magic necessary to beat him. But coming to Lucy’s rescue is Natsu, who is revealed to be a true member of Fairy Tail and also revealed to be the true “Salamander”. And he easily beats the fake Salamander up.

When Natsu discovers that Lucy’s dream is to become a Fairy Tail member, he asks her to join him and he can help her get into the guild and from that moment on, Lucy becomes Natsu’s partner in various Fairy Tail guild missions and for each mission they beat, the more income they make.

And more money means more keys to gain more powers, which would help Lucy become a powerful celestial wizard!

In “Fairy Tail Vol. 4″, the storyline of Erza’s past continues as the revolt against Jellal continues.  Siegrain plans to resurrect Zeref in order to gain the Magic Council’s support in firing Etherion.  But can Erza stop him?  Meanwhile, Juvia has been possessed by Vidaldus and is being controlled against her will to fight against Lucy.  Meanwhile, did the Fairy Tail guild lose a major member through tragic circumstances?

For the final storyline arc for season one of “Fairy Tail”, as the group is celebrating Magnolia’s annual harvest festival, the festival is interrupted by Laxus and his bodyguards of the Raijin Tribe.  This pits members of Fairy Tail who support Laxus becoming the new leader of Fairy Tail versus those who are still loyal to their longtime leader Makarov (the grandfather of Laxus).

In the end, who shall be victorious?

“Fairy Tail” Vol. 4 features the following characters:

• Natsu Dragneel – Also known as “Salamander”, Natsu is a kindhearted, always hungry wizard who travels with his partner Happy in search of Igneel, a dragon who raised Natsu but is now missing. Natsu is a dragon slayer and a wizard who can perform “Lost Magic and can have physical properties of a dragon. He specializes in Fire Dragon Slayer Magic which allows him to breath fire and ingest fire as a form of nourishment. He is also gifted with other powers not yet revealed in the first volume of “Fairy Tail”.
• Lucy Heartfilia – A celestial wizard who can summon contracted spirits (with special abilities) through a set of keys known as Gatekeys. She treats these spirits as friends. Her dream is to join Fairy Tail and through meeting Natsu, now her dream can come true.
• Happy – A blue cat with wings and a best friend to Natsu. He can fly and can carry a person while flying. He is also known to irritate Lucy.
• Gray Fullbuster – A powerful wizard of Fairy Tail and the opposite of Natsu, in that he has control of ice. Gray has the power of Ice Make which can make him create weapons or anything out of ice. He was raised by the wizard Ur. He also has a bad habit of taking of all his clothes without realizing it.
• Erza Scarlet – An S-Class wizard (high-ranked) and is the most powerful member of the Fairy Tail guild. She has magic known as “The Knight” which allows her to summon and equip weapons and armor and also has the ability to resist magic attacks. She is feared by others because of her lack of compassion.
• Mirajane – A 19-year-old S-Class wizard who is the cover girl of Sorcerer’s Weekly magazine and helps Lucy understand what is happening with the members of the Fairy Tail guild. She has the ability to change her appearance to something she previously encountered.
• Cana Alberona – A short-tempered heaving drinking woman. She uses card magic to cast her spells.
• Elfman – Mirajane’s younger brother who is known for his physical strength. He can absorb the power of any monster he defeats.
• Loke – A flirtatious wizard who is often seen in the company of many women.
• Makarov Dreyer – The elder master of Fairy Tail. He is constantly busy because of his guild members becoming too violent.
• Juvia Lockser – Originally a member of the Phantom Lord Guild and now a member of Fairy Tail and is obsessed with Gray.  She becomes great friends of Lucy but also her rival (thinking that Lucy is interested in Gray).
• Gajeel Redfox – Originally a member of the Phantom Lord Guild, Gajeel is similar to Natsu in the fact that he is a Dragon Slayer raised by the dragon Metalicana.  He can transform his body into metal weapons.

VIDEO:

“Fairy Tail” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1). It’s important to note that this is a anime TV series, not a film or an OVA and is a weekly anime series. What that means is A-1 Pictures and Satelight, have their hands full, especially if they have other TV series to work on that week. Typically a lot of anime series are quickly done in order to make it by their weekly deadline and sometimes, they are done the day of deadline. So, production values for TV series are typically not that high if they are working on multiple series.

Fortunately A-1 Pictures has become one of the newer studios that have been doing production for quite a number of popular hit series such as “Blue Exorcist” and “Big Windup!” and Satelight does a lot of the in-between animation. So, while they are a smaller, growing company, they are not overburdened as other studios and that means, more time dedicated to the anime series.

“Fairy Tail” features cool production value. A lot of detailed artwork, because of the many adventures, you get so many locations and not the typical regurgitated scenery.

There is a lot of detail featured in the art backgrounds, a lot of characters featured and these characters have great detail and shadowing. Colors are absolutely vibrant, black levels are deep. I found no compression artifacts or any problematic issues with this Blu-ray release. If anything, the Blu-ray really brings out the details and colors of the series and looks fantastic!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Fairy Tail” is presented in English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0. Dialogue and music is clear through the front channels for the lossless stereo soundtrack but because the English is 5.1, there is better use of the surround channels.

In fact, I found myself listening to the English dub track for “Fairy Tail” much more than the Japanese soundtrack because of the 5.1 but also, FUNimation did a magnificent job with the casting of this series. I was very pleased especially with the casting of Lucy, Natsu, Happy, Grey and Erza and for the most part, I think whichever you prefer, you will be pleased with Japanese and English audio tracks.

But for the most part, for a TV series, lossless audio is crystal clear and while not the most immersive soundtrack (which I typically don’t expect TV series to boast incredible immersive lossless soundtracks, unlike a film or OVA series), “Fairy Tail” does sound very good on Blu-ray!

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Fairy Tail Vol. 4″ features the following special features:

DISC 1:

• Episode 39 Audio Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Tyler Walker (Director/Line Producer/Adapted Script Writer) with Rob McCollum (voice of Seagrain, Jalal and Mystigen).

DISC 2:

• Episode 45 Audio Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Tyler Walker (ADR Director/Line Producer/Adapted Script Writer) with John Burgmeier (head writer/voice actor) and Monica Rial (lead writer/voice actress).
• Textless Opening Songs: “R.P.G. ~Rockin’ Playing Game”
• Textless Closing Songs: “Kimi Ga Iru Kara”
• Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Fairy Tail” vol. 4 Blu-ray also comes with the DVD version.

The most intense and action-packed volume of “Fairy Tail” yet!

For those who have invested their time in watching this anime series, the series has been building its character development around Lucy, Grey and now Erza.  But Erza’s past is still a mystery and with this latest volume, we learn about her past and what kind of woman and person she was before she became a member of Fairy Tail.

Suffice to say, there are some major surprises in store for viewers because there were situations where, you just don’t know who will live and who will survive.

The latest volume also features the addition of former Phantom Lord members Juvia Lockser and Gajeel Redfox, who are now becoming part of the core group that the series is focusing on.  Juvia as the girl who never had friends, discovering new friends who believe in her in Fairy Tail and the same can be said about the hardened Dragon Slayer Gajeel Redfox.  Who like Gray is somewhat a friend/rival to Natsu, and the same can be said about Juvia and Lucy.  So, their differences tend to be a bit hilarious at times, but with the addition of these two members, Fairy Tail no doubt has added two powerhouse characters to the guild.

And they are definitely going to need it as the final storyline arc for the first season concludes with a coup attempt by Fairy Tail guild members loyal to Laxus Dreyar, the arrogant grandson of current leader Makarov.    And like his grandfather, for a 23-year-old guy, he’s very powerful and together with the other members of Fairy Tail loyal to him, will Natsu, Erza, Gray and friends be able to defeat them and prevent the coup attempt?

And despite the guild’s members going at each other, this battle is intense!  There is no taking it easy just because they were friends now rivals.

“Fairy Tail” is an anime series that manages to have a lot of fun through the adventures of Natsu and Lucy and it has similarities to the action/adventure anime series “One Piece” and “The Slayers”.

For one, the adventure and action is big part of this series as the characters take on various rival wizard guilds, the problem is that they tend to get into so much trouble that they end up creating a lot of damage. And the object of these adventures are working guild jobs as the characters have bills to pay and each time they destroy something, it comes out of their paycheck.

With this fourth volume, you really get to see how these characters have grown since the first episode but also how dedicate they are to each other and think of each other as family members.  In fact, this is probably one of the more dramatic episodes featured in a volume as one of the major members of Fairy Tail may or may not have died?  You’ll have to watch and see for yourself.

With that being said, this series has over 100 episodes and is still ongoing in Japan. Next to “Dragon Ball Z” and “Yu Yu Hakusho” (which are older anime series), “Fairy Tail” is the most recent, longer anime series from Japan to be released on Blu-ray by FUNimation Entertainment. So, if you want a series to watch for the long haul, “Fairy Tail” is a series worth considering.

As for the Blu-ray release, picture quality is very good for a TV series and features a good solid lossless soundtrack. It’s important to emphasize that this is a TV series and not a film or OVA, thus the production quality of animated TV shows tend to be lower (and created in a short time) than a film/OVA, so there is a bit of softness and shadowing and detail are not utilized a lot for this series.

As for special features, you do get the English voice actors providing commentary for two episodes and the opening and ending theme song.

Overall, the fourth volume of “Fairy Tail” was intense, exciting and this series just continues to get  better and better.  If you are looking for a series on Blu-ray to watching in the long-run, definitely give “Fairy Tail” a try.  Highly recommended!

Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” is a dark, violent but yet captivating anime series.  For those who have been wanting more deeper, darker anime series on Blu-ray will enjoy the twist and turns and violent nature of this series!

Image courtesy of © 2012 FUNimation Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2009

DURATION: 26 Episodes: (650 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0, English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Directed by Koichi Mashimo

Series Composition by Yousuke Kuroda

Music by Hikaru Nanase, Tatsuya Katou

Original Character Design by Kimi Yanguchi

Character Design by Minako Shiba, Mutsumi Sasaki, Tomaki Kado, Yoko Kikuchi, Yoshiaki Tsubata, Yoshimitsu Yamashita

Art Director: Yoshimi Umino

Mechanical Design: Kenji Teraoka

3D Director: Eiji Inomoto

Anime Production by Bee Train

Featuring the following voice talent:

Ayahi Takagaki/Lindsay Seidel as Ein

Miyu Irino/Newton Pittman as Zwei

Akeno Watanabe/Shay Moore as Lizzy Garland

Aya Hisakawa/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Claudia McCunnen

Hideo Ishikawa/Rick Keeling as Issac Wisemel

Isshin Chiba/Kent Williams as Scythe Master

Miyuki Sawashiro/Brittney Karbowsky as Cal Devens

Sōichiro Hoshi/Christopher Bevins as Toru Shiga

Susumu Chiba/J. Michael Tatum as Raymond McGuire

Tomoyuki Shimura/Phil Parsons as Daisuke Godo

A young man with no memories fights to salvage his humanity when he’s forced into a life of murder by a dangerous crime syndicate called Inferno. The organization gives him a new name, Zwei, and molds him into a perfect killing machine, a meticulous instrument of death created to obey his masters’ every deadly command.

Zwei’s not the only puppet controlled by Inferno; Ein is a girl as beautiful as she is brutal and as lethal as she is lost. While mafia violence escalates around them, the two assassins grow closer, and Zwei begins the struggle to reclaim his past and save Ein from a blood-soaked future.

Back in 2000, the visual novel game from Nitroplus known as “Phantom of Inferno” was a big hit and it was a video game that was dark in nature but allowed the player to have the two characters get involved in a romantic drama.

In 2004, a three-episode OVA was created by Earth Create and KSS titled “Phantom: The Animation” and in 2009, the 26-episode TV anime series “Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~” featuring anime production by Bee Train began airing in Japan.   The series was directed by Koichi Mashimo (“.Hack//” series, “Sorcerer Hunters”, “Tsubasa: RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE”) and series composition by Yousuke Kuroda (“Infinite Ryvius”, “Honey and Clover”, “Mobile Suit Gundam 00″, “Gungrave”).

And now, the complete series will be released on Blu-ray and DVD courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom” begins with a young man named Reiji Azuma, a Japanese tourist in America meeting up with a journalist.   Unfortunately,when Reiji arrives to meet with the journalist, he is assassinated by an Inferno assassin.

Reiji tries to elude his pursuer and is able to show his survival instinct to the pursuer and is shot and captured by Inferno.

Having no memory of the assassination that he witnessed, he is given a choice by Inferno.  To join them and become an assassin or be killed.  Wanting to live, he agrees and his new life by the name of Zwei begins.

Zwei goes through a strict training program with Ein, a female assassin who goes by the codename “Phantom”, a codename designated only for the best killer within Inferno.

Zwei was found by a man who goes by the name of Scythe Master and was a test subject for an assassin-processing treatment.  While training Zwei, Zwei tries to ask her about why she kills, what memory she has of the past but for Ein, she has no recollection of her past and doesn’t care.  All she cares is completing her missions which Scythe Master has assigned to her.

While training, the two have to pose as a couple and surely, Zwei’s training goes extremely well, to the point that Ein fears that the abilities he developed in months, took her years and is worried that he may surpass her.

Eventually, Zwei must prove his worth to Inferno, so he is sent on missions to assassinate a man, include a wife and her young child.  Zwei hates the fact that he must kill, but in order to survive, he must do what Inferno tells him.

But behind the scenes of Inferno, Scythe Master appears to be working behind-the-scenes without informing Inferno and because of that, Inferno executive Clauda McCunnen begins getting closer to Zwei in order for him to keep a watch on Ein but also, to make sure she can depend on him in the future.

She also goes as far as giving Zwei information on his true identity and immediately, Zwei finds out that he is Reiji Azuma and that he was formerly a killer from Japan.

Eventually, Inferno finds out about the double cross by Scythe Master and because they know that Ein only follows Scythe Master, they want Zwei to kill her.  While Inferno tries to kill both Ein and Scythe Master, Inferno assassin Lizzie Garland (who is also Claudia’s bodyguard), manages to wound her in a gunfight.

As Scythe Master has escaped, Ein has nowhere to go to but to Zwei’s apartment.  Inferno wants him to kill Ein, but because Zwei has developed feelings for Ein, he makes the decision to protect her and to escape the control of Inferno.

So, Reiji and Ein (who he now has renamed “Elen”) try to escape from Inferno, but because Ein’s programming with Scythe Master is too hard to break, no matter how much Reiji tries to stop Ein from working with Scythe Master, she is unable to break the programming and reunites with him.

Reiji is captured by Inferno and finds out that Scythe Master once again has possession of Ein and now Reiji is determined to break that control by killing Scythe Master.  But can he?

VIDEO:

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1).  It’s important to note that this is a TV series and not an OVA or film and thus, the series is not too vibrant or colorful and leans more towards the soft side.  With that being said, the series is quite sharp and character designs and objects are well-shaded.  While the art backgrounds tend to be banal with the usual trees, clouds and walls, there are some scenes that are well-designed.

But the animation does tie in nicely with the darker overtones of the entire anime series.  There is definitely a much better level of sharpness and clarity (which one can compare with the accompanying DVD version of the TV series).  But for the most part, picture quality is good.  Didn’t see any artifacts, banding or edge enhancement while watching the series.  Nothing distracting at all.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” is presented in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0.  Because I wanted a better dynamic range while watching this anime series, I went with the English dub as it is in 5.1 lossless.  While I do prefer the original Japanese vocal track, the English dub track is well-done and also has an edge because of its use of the surround channels and LFE.

For an action-based anime series with a lot of gunfire, you want to hear surround usage and thus the English dub soundtrack is where you hear it utilized.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” comes with the following special features:

• Picture Dramas – (1:17:33) Featuring hilarious and fun animated (and also live puppet) shorts.  There are 12 picture dramas included.
• Textless Opening Songs for “Karma” and “Senritsu no Kodomotachi”
• Textless Closing Songs “Jigoku no Mon” and “Transparent”.
• Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment Trailers

EXTRAS:

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD version of the TV series.

“Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” is a dark, violent but yet captivating anime series.  An anime series about the underworld and the use of programmed assassins, what I enjoyed about “Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” is the fact that its protagonist, no matter how deadly (or how crazy) he can become, he just wants to find a way out and live a normal life.

But because he’s stuck within an underworld that relies on assassins, leaving on one’s free will is not going to be easy.  And while the video games allowed the viewer to choose several paths, for the anime series, you never know what’s going to happen because there are so many twists, so much backstabbing that people who you think are friends are actually enemies and truthfully, aside from the viewer following Zwei/Reiji, you just never know about the intentions of any of the other characters.

I suppose, because this is the underworld that these characters live in, it’s life full of violence and deceit and for this anime series, what makes this different from other similar anime series is that these series are typically made to show various levels the protagonist has to go through and taking on various “bosses” or killers.  It’s the banality that you often find in underworld/crime-based anime series.  But for “Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series”, each time you think something good is about to happen, something terrible goes wrong.  Each time you want to see some sort of closure or resolution, something bad happens.  Each time you want to find good in the dark hearts of a character, they end up doing something audacious and unfortunately, it backfires on them.

So, I don’t want to classify this series as too dark that it’s depressing because it’s not.  But it is a drama series that reminds me of Korean dramas in the fact that the writers would like to rip your heart out when you think things are going good.  In the case of “Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series”, you wonder if these characters will ever find any peace before they are killed.

As for the Blu-ray release, considering this is an anime series from a few years ago, art backgrounds are good with the usual trees, clouds and walls that are detailed.  If anything, character designs and object shading are well-done but it’s the storyline and its dark characters that are the showcase of this series.

There are several special features included, while not long, considering many anime titles on Blu-ray sometimes don’t carry any special features outside of the opening and ending themes, I’m sure anime fans will take what they can get.

Overall, “Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” was a captivating, dark and violent series which will satisfy anime fans who have been clamoring for more darker and violent anime on Blu!  It’s a really twisted anime series but nothing to psychological or creepy, just more frantic, chaotic with its full share of twists and turns.

If you are an anime fan who is wanting a more deeper and darker anime series on Blu-ray, definitely give “Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ – The Complete Series” a try!

Xam’d: Lost Memories – Complete Collection (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

If you are looking for one of the best anime series to come out on Blu-ray in the USA, know that “Xam’d: Lost Memories – Complete Collection” is one of those titles.  Wonderful production quality, a captivating, deep storyline and an anime series on Blu-ray that I highly recommend!

Image courtesy of © BONES/Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Aniplex. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: XAM’D: Lost Memories – Complete Collection

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2008-2009

DURATION: 26 Episodes: (650 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (16×9), Japanese and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English subtitles

COMPANY: Aniplex/Sentai Filmworks

Release Date: February 7, 2012

Directed by Masayuki Miyaji

Script by Megumi Shimizu, Yuuichi Nomura

Music by Michiru Oshima

Original Character Design by Kenichi Yoshida

Character Design by Ayumi Kurashima

Art Director: Takashi Aoi

Anime Production: BONES

Featuring the following voice talent:

Atsushi Abe/Blake Shepard as Akiyuki Takehara

Fumiko Orikasa/Monica Rial as Haru Nishimura

Yuko Sanpei/Luci Christian as Nakiami

Ayumi Fujimura/Hilary Haag as Midori Nishimura

Keiji Fujiwara/Andrew Love as Raigyo Tsunomata

Michiko Neya/Maggie Flecknoe as Prois Sukakki

Motomu Kiyokawa/Andy McAvin as Reizo Kanba

Risa Hayamizu/Kaytha Coker as Fusa Takehara

Romi Park/Jessica Boone as Kujireika

Shinnosuke Tachibana/David Matranga as Furuichi Teraoka

Unshou Ishizuka/T. Postlewaite as Ryuuzou Takehara

Yasunori Matsumoto/Chris Hutchison as Toujirou Kagisu

Yumi Tamai/Shelley Calene-Black as Ishuu Benikawa

Set on a peaceful island during a violent terrorist attack, a young boy is suddenly transformed into a metal-cased mercenary. But with this great power comes even greater danger. Aiyuki must discover how to master this remarkable new power – or risk having this mysterious fusion of rock, metal and magic destroy him!

In 2008, anime studio BONES, Sony Computer Entertainment and Aniplex collaborated on a project known as “Xam’d: Lost Memories”.

The series would be featured on the PlayStation Network (PSN) at E3 (and also feature Sony Music Japan music artist KYLIE) and would air later in the fall on Japanese television. The series was directed by Masayuki Miyaji (“Eureka Seven”, “Scrapped Princess”, “Ghost Slayers Ayashi”), a screenplay by Megumi Shimizu (“Heroman”, “Soul Eater”, “Eureka Seven”) and Yuuichi Nomura (“Darker than Black”, “Overman King Gainer”, “Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion”).  The music for the series is by Michiru OShima (“Arc the Lad”, “Gokusen”, “Fancy Lala”, “Le Chevalier D’Eon”), character designs by Ayumi Kurashima (“Eureka Seven”, “RahXephon”, “Wolf’s Rain”) and art backgrounds by Takashi Aoi (“Ergo Proxy”, “RahXephon”, “Samurai Champloo”, “Darker than Black”).

A total of 26-episodes were created and was released on Blu-ray and DVD (in two volumes) in the United States courtesy of Sentai Filmworks.

In Feb. 2012, Sentai Filmworks will be re-releasing “XAM’D: Lost Memories” as a complete collection.

“Xam’d: Lost Memories” is set in Sentan Island, a small island surrounded by the Yuden Sea and is cut off from the war between the Northern Government and the Southern Continent Free Zone.

We are introduced to teenager Akiyuki Takehara who lives with his mother Fusa in Sentan Island but is also dealing with the separation between his mother Fusa and his father, the town doctor, Ryuzo.  While going to school and joining with his best friends Haru and Furuichi, he sees a girl (not knowing that she is from the religious cult of Ruikonism) who doesn’t have her armband (to show that they are students).  So, Akiyuki comes up with a clever plan to get the girl into the bus.

As they arrive to school, while everyone is departing the bus to get to school, the mysterious girl that Akiyuki had helped get into the bus, detonates a bomb and killing and injuring people nearby.  One of the lights which had extended from the bomb, hits Akiyuki in his right arm.

As he goes to check on the mysterious girl, she makes Akiyuki transformer.  Immediately, Akiyuki’s right arm stars to change and then his whole body has turned into a creature known as Xam’d (an endosymbiotic organism known as Hiruko which merges with a human).

While soldiers are thinking that Akiyuki may be responsible for the blast, Haru can hear Akiyuki inside the beast, saying that he wants to live.

Akiyuki is then pursued by a monster and the two fight each other.    And out of nowhere, a girl named Nakiami seems to know about his transformation and gives him a choice.  If he comes with her, he will live.  If he decides to say, he will turn to stone and die.

Wanting to live, Akiyuki joins Nakiami and a group of travelers who are members of the International Postal Ship Zanbani and while traveling to new lands on the  airship Beat Kayak, Akiyuki is trained by Nakiami on how to control the beast within him and retain his humanity and also trained for postal work for the Zanbani crew.

Meanwhile, back on Sentan Island, Akiyuki’s parents worry that their son may be dead, but with inspiring words from Haru (who made a promise to Fusa that she would watch over Akiyuki), the three believe that Akiyuki is alive and will do what they can to find him.  As for Furuichi, he continually becomes fueled by jealousy when he sees that Haru is constantly thinking about Akiyuki.

As for Akiyuki’s best friends, because the tranquility of Sentan Island is no more, his friend Furuichi and also Haru join the military in orders to stop any more of these Xam’d monsters from killing and hurting people.  Meanwhile, a strange mad doctor is trying to develop more and monsters.

The main characters of “Xam’d: Lost Memories” are:

• Akiyuki Takehara – The main protagonist of the series.  A high school student who cares about his family and friends.  But now that his body can easily change to a Xam’d and wipe away his human existence, through training by Nakiami and Raigyo, he hopes that he can be strong enough in order to stay human and co-exist with the “hiruko”.  He also works for the International Postal Ship Zanbani after leaving Sentan Island behind in order to train with Nakiami.
• Nakiami – A mysterious and serious person who has familiarity with Xam’d and quite knowledge about it.  She trains Akiyuki on how to control the hiruko and also  a member of the International Postal Ship Zanbani.
• Haru Nishimura – Akiyuki’s childhood friend who cares deeply for him.  She is great at martial arts and joins the Mainsoul military in hopes it will give her a chance to meet with Akiyuki once again.
• Furuichi Teraoka – Akiyuki’s friend and also a martial artist.  Since the destruction in Sentan Island, he has developed a hatred towards the Xam’d but also unleashing emotions such as jealousy towards Haru as she is constantly thinking about Akiyuki.  He joins Mainsoul military in order to eliminate Xam’d.
• Fusa Takehara – Akiyuki’s mother who is searching for her son and hopes he is still alive.  She is separated from Ryuuzou Takehara.
• Ryuuzou Takehara – Akiyuki’s father who is separated from Fusa. He is the town’s doctor but also a former military researcher who worked on Northern Continent to develop humanform weaponisation projects.
• Ishuu Benikawa – The captain of the International Postal ship Zanbani.  Always wearing a crop top and is strong-willed.
• Raigyo Tsunomata – A Xam’d who left the Zanbani to work as a photographer but has now returned back to the group two-years later.  He has control over his human and Xam’d form and tries to help Akiyuki.
• Akushiba – Akiyuki’s roommate on the Zanbani and has a crush on Nakiami.
• Yunbo – The cook of the Zanbai and mother of Hinokimaru but also a guardian to Kobako.
• Ahm – The pilot of Zanbani.
• Kisei – The mechanic for Zanbani.
• Tenshin-Sama – An old sage who is a guide for Nakiami, Raigyo and Akiyuki.

VIDEO:

“Xam’d: Lost Memories” is presented in 1080p High Definition.  BONES has done a fantastic job on this series and what is amazing is that for a TV series, it doesn’t look like a low-budget production, nor does it look like it was quickly made as the art backgrounds, mecha design are well-detailed.  Character designs almost have a Ghibli style to them, especially for the character of  Nakiami who has almost a “Nausicaa” style to her.

But overall, the picture quality is vibrant, clear and sharp.  And while I usually put Production I.G. animated series to on top for their dedication of making their TV series look great and separate themselves from other anime series when it comes to detail, for “Xam’d: Lost Memories”, BONES did a fantastic job in creating this look and feel for the series.

“Xam’d: Lost Memories” is a beautiful anime series!  And looks absolutely awesome on Blu-ray!  No sign of softness, edge enhancement, artifacts,  etc.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Xam’d: Lost Memories is presented in Japanese and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1.  I tested both soundtracks and audio from front channel to surround channels are exact on both soundtracks.  There is a decent amount of surround channel usage during the action sequences and also some LFE.

Considering that viewers are getting two DTS-HD Master Audio lossless tracks instead of the typical 2.0 soundtrack that many TV series offer, for me, that’s pretty awesome!  As for which I prefer, English or Japanese, I watched both but I have to say that although I’m quite biased towards the original Japanese soundtrack, the casting was well-done for this series and the English dub is very well-done!

Overall, whichever soundtrack you prefer, “Xam’d: Lost Memories” definitely outshines many anime series for its 5.1 lossless track and the fact there was good use of surround channels and LFE in trying to make the series much more immersive.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Xam’d: Lost Memories – Complete Collection” comes with the clean opening and closing animation and also the on-air opening and closing animations.

It’s true that many anime series tend to have a banality when it comes to storytelling and while there many kitschy titles released every year, there are TV series that stand out for its storytelling and production quality.

In 2009, that anime series was “Xam’d: Lost Memories”.

While the high school/terrorism storyline is nothing new, as anime fans have seen it before with “Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion”, this series is not about alien occupation but it’s about the state of war, terrible experimentation that go wrong and stopping that experimentation.

While there are many characters featured throughout the anime series, the writers do make things easy by focusing on Akiyuki, Nakiami and Haru.  The other characters are more of providing the lightheartedness of the series but also to show a parent’s agony of having lost their child and hopes that he is still alive.

So, there are many adventures, battles and military/political intrigue that will keep anime fans glued to the TV series as it is one of the better, deeper anime storylines to come out to the U.S.

I can easily remember the buzz that surrounded “Xam’d: Lost Memories”.  In fact, I was among the very few outside of Japan to interview the music duo BOOM BOOM SATELLITES who performed the opening theme and Kylee who sung the ending theme for “Xam’d: Lost Memories”.

But what I remember the most was how stunning the animation and art backgrounds especially the storyline was for this TV series.  Bare in mind, BONES is one of the most well-known anime studios in Japan and one of the busiest, but for many anime studios, for a TV series, not many studios go all out in production because of budget and time constraints.

But for “Xam’d: Lost Memories”, this anime series featured a wonderful collaboration between BONES, Aniplex and Sony Computer Entertainment and it was one of the first earlier experiments of attempting at bringing an anime to an international audience.

It was indeed a breakthrough anime series that really took a TV series to greater heights by its production and was well-received both in Japan and with its Blu-ray and DVD release in the United States.

And as many people are now moving from DVD to Blu-ray, this re-release of “Xam’d: Lost Memories – Complete Collection” is a chance for many new anime fans to watch one of the better well-rounded anime series to come out in the last decade.  And this is the complete collection, not the previous Blu-ray release which was split up into two volumes.

And this is great news for anime fans who have wanted to see Sentai Filmworks move towards full-season anime releases on Blu-ray!  And this is a remarkable deal consider that in Japan, they broke these apart into eight Blu-ray volumes and one volume still costs significantly more than this US complete collection.

As for the Blu-ray release, while the picture quality is fantastic, the lossless soundtrack was very good (considering this anime TV series does provide a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack), special features are mostly the clean opening and ending animation.  For an anime series of this caliber, you would hope for more special features but even in Japan, the Blu-ray releases were barebone releases.

Overall, “Xam’d: Lost Memories” is one of those rare, quality-based anime TV series that you don’t see often.  The storyline is captivating, deep and a series that features higher production value when it comes to both animation, art background design and also sports a DTS-HD 5.1 lossless Japanese and English soundtrack.

If you are new to anime or just upgraded from DVD to Blu-ray and are looking for an anime series, “Xam’d: Lost Memories – Complete Collection” is one of the better anime on Blu-ray releases available in the U.S.

Highly recommended!

 

.hack//Quantum: The Complete 3 OVA Series (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

“.hack//Quantum” will entertain longtime “.hack” fans but also will be enjoyed by anime on Blu-ray fans for its slick anime production which looks fantastic and vibrant on Blu-ray but also sporting one of the best lossless soundtracks for an anime title on Blu!

Image courtesy of © 2012 FUNimation Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: .hack//Quantum: The Complete 3 OVA Series

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2011

DURATION: 3 Episodes: (75 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), Japanese and English DolbyTrue HD 5.1, English subtitles

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

Release Date: February 14, 2012

Directed by Masaki Tachibana

Written by Tatsuya Hamazaki

Music by Ko Otani

Original Character Design: Atsushi Hasebe

Art Director: Yusuke Takeda

Mechanical Design: Takeshi Takakura

3D Director: Eiji Inomoto

Sound Director: Kazuya Tanaka

Director of Photography: Toshiya Kimura

Anime Production: Kinema Citrus

Featuring the following voice talent:

Kana Hanazawa/Trina Nishimura as Sakuya

Miyuki Sawashiro/Anastasia Munoz as Tobias

Ayumi Fujimura/Lara Woodhull as Mary

Masami Iwasaki/J. Michael Tatum as Smith

Sanae Kobayashi/Stephanie Young as Shamrock

Yui Ogura/Lindsay Seidel as Hermit

Daisuke Namikawa/Brandon Potter as Iyoten

Youko Honna/Kara Edwards as Asta

Tobias, Mary, and Sakuya are way into the The World. Together, they form an inseparable group, grinding toward the break of day and running dungeons in search of the artifacts of adventure. But when the trio becomes lost in this virtual labyrinth, a chance encounter with the mysterious entity known only as Hermit will change their lives forever. There’s an eerie darkness spreading across The World, and once you stumble in, you may never make it out.

In January 2012, “.hack//The Movie” will be released in theaters in Japan and in America, the three-part OVA series “.hack//Quantum” will be released on Blu-ray+DVD courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

This long running multimedia series has its dedicated fanbase and it’s amazing how far it has come.

In the early 2000′s, a collaboration between media company CyberConnect 2 and Bandai would result in an anime, manga and video game multimedia franchise known as “.hack”.  The series began with the anime series “.hack//Sign” in 2002 and then led to four video game releases “.hack//(Infection/Mutation/Outbreak/Quarantine) which would contain the OVA series “.hack//Liminality”.

The series wold follow with a manga and anime series known as “.hack//Legend of the Twilight”  (2004), “.hack//Roots” (2006) and in 2008,  a new three-part video game series titled “.hack/G.U.” featuring “Resurrection”, “Reminisce” and “Redemption” were released.

To give people some background on what “.hack” is…

The series takes place during a time where people are hooked on a fictional MMORPG known as “The World” which is maintained by CyberConnect Corporation. “The World” was released two years after the virus known as “Pluto’s Kiss” caused a massive Internet shutdown which proved to be catastrophic worldwide.

As many people have partaken in “The World” online game, the game gives a chance for people to interact with each other through their virtual reality headsets (HMD) and a gamepad and can take on a character they have created and take part in adventures and battles monsters alongside friends or other people they meet online.

But unbeknown to people is that “The World” creator Harald Hoerwick designed the game to be a virtual womb to create the ultimate artificial intelligence known as “Aura” which literally receives emotional and psychological data from those playing the game.  “Aura” was created to be the daughter that Hoerwick and German poet, Emma Wielant have never had.

The first series “.hack//Sign” featured a person named Tsukasa who was mind-trapped inside the game, while players try to find out who and what happened to the person that is using Tsukasa in the real world and what connection the player had on Aura.

“.hack//Liminality” was a four-part OVA Series which focused on players who have been hospitalized and are in a coma after playing “The World”.  The first “.hack” video game series features two hackers Kite and BlackRose tring to find out what caused the coma of Kite’s friend Orca and BlackRose’s brother Kazu.

“.hack//Legend of the Twilight” focuses on two twins, Shugo and Rena who won a contest and are given the avatars of legendary .hackers “Kite” and “Blackrose” (both were introduced in the first video game series).  But Aura gives Shugo a “Twilight Bracelet” and both embark on a mission to unravel the mystery of the bracelet.  Meanwhile, CC Corp executives are displeased and want to know how Shugo has brought an illegal item into the game.

For “.hack//Roots”, the story takes place in 2015 and CC Corporation’s building has been burned down and a lot of the data of the “World” was lost.  So, the corporation spliced data used for another game with the current data to created “The World R:2″ in 2016 and allowed for player vs. player (PVP) play. The story features on a person named Haseo who logs into “The World R:2″ for the first time and his character is nearly killed by PKers (player killers) but is saved.  He jouns a group of online friends to find the “Key of the Twilight”.

The second video game series “hack//G.I.” features Haseo (of “.hack//Roots”) trying to find a cure after his friend was attacked online by a player known as Tri-edge and led to Haseo’s involvement with Project G.U.

Which leads us now to “.hack//Quantum”, a three part-OVA series by Kinema Citrus Studio (“Eureka Seven – good night, sleep tight,  young lovers” movie, “Tokyo Magnitude 8.0″) and a tie-in to the video game and manga series “.hack//Link” (the final chapter to the “.hack” series) which is currently ongoing in Japan.

“.hack//Quantum” is an OVA series directed by Masaki Tachibana (“The King of Fighters: Another Day”, “Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex”) and features a screenplay by Tatsuya Hamazaki (“.hack” related manga series, “Digimon Next”).  Character designs are by Atsushi Hasebe (“Darker than Black”, “Ouran High School Host Club”, “Fighting Spirit”), art direction by Yusuke Takeda (“Eden of the East”, “Neon Genesis Evangelion”, “Giant Robo”) and music by Ko Otani (“Ghost Slayers Ayashi”, “Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino”, “Eyeshield 21″).

The OVA series focuses on three players: Sakuya, Tobias and Mary who play the world’s largest MMORPG, “The World R:X” created by CyberConnect Corporation. The series showcases the characters in-game and out-of-game.

One day, the three go on an adventure together online and Sakuya tends to pick up anything she can find and one day, she picks up a glowing item not thinking much of it.

Meanwhile, a difficult boss fight take place between a guild and large dragon monsters and somehow Sakuya and friends get caught in the battle.  Meanwhile, watching them from afar is a cat character known as Hermit.

While Sakuya and friends literally survived the battle, unfortunately a bounty is placed on Sakuya’s character for interfering in a guild match and causing the death of 16 guild members in the game.

But as Sakuya’s friends are busy with their own personal life, she continues to visit the World (despite a bounty on her head) and encounters the mysterious cat character known as Hermit and become friends.

With Sakuya has a bounty on her head, she and Hermit are captured by one guild but each manage to escape thanks to her friends.

And as they try to escape from these guild members, somehow their activity inside the game including the injuries they suffer starts to affect them in reality.  Meanwhile, the mysterious Hermit appears to have special abilities in “The World” but also the ability to hack into the software and doing so for some apparent reason.

VIDEO:

“.hack//Quantum” is presented in 1080p High Definition and is presented in 1:78:1.  The OVA looks absolutely fantastic on Blu-ray with vibrant colors, amazing detail and for those who have seen the work of Yusuke Takeda on “Eden of the East”, you know that you’re going to get amazing detail with his work on “.hack//Quantum”.  He’s one of the best art directors when it comes to anime series in Japan and because this series was produced by newer anime studio Kinema Citrus, there is less worry about a studio being busy with too many projects.

If anything, the production of “.hack//Quantum” is quite impressive for its character designs and art backgrounds.  Not only is this the best “.hack” anime I have seen to date, it’s one of the better look anime OVA series to appear on Blu-ray thus far.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“.hack//Quantum” is presented in Japanese and English Dolby TrueHD 5.1.  And I have to say that the Blu-ray release of “.hack//Quantum” and its lossless soundtrack is phenomenal, specifically for the English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD soundtrack.

The Japanese soundtrack is good, but the audio engineers at FUNimation Entertainment have amazed me of what they were able to accomplish with this OVA series.  The soundtrack is immersive with a lot of LFE during the eruptions and booms.  Depending on your setup, I can tell you that while I was watching, I had this smile on my face as my two subwoofers began to shake the floor.  Wow!    I was absolutely impressed.

You also get a good amount of audio coming from the surround channels and all I can say to FUNimation Entertainment audio engineers is that you have spoiled me with this release, I hope you continue to deliver lossless audio for anime on Blu-ray fans on these upcoming anime releases from here on in.  Once again, the lossless audio for “.hack//Quantum” via the English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 is fantastic!

And which leaves me to the Japanese lossless soundtrack.  As many know, I am biased to the original Japanese soundtrack, but with the acting of the FUNimation Entertainment releases and better audio quality with the English soundtrack is now making me want to listen to the English dub track even more.  The Japanese lossless soundtrack was good, the voice acting was very good but with the English dub soundtrack so much more immersive and obviously much better for those with a good home theater setup, it’s hard to listen to a soundtrack that is not as pronounced.

But the good news is that fans get the best of both worlds with the choice of two lossless soundtracks.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“.Hack//Quantum” features the following special features:

• Go, Our Chim Chims!! Part 1 – (3:04) Purple creatures talk about quantum physics.
• Go, Our Chim Chims!! Part 2 – (2:08) Purple creatures talk bout psi and phi waves.
• Go, Our Chim Chims!! Part 3 – (2:02) Purple creatures and Hermit talking about Schrodinger’s cat.
• Yui Ogura’s “Yui-Yui Cooking” – (17:59) Featuring Hermit voice actress Yui Ogura making charaben.
• Yui Ogura’s “Yui-Yui Club” – (11:12) Featuring voice actress Yui Ogura and Hamazoe visit Kinema Citrus studio talking to Yamamoto-san about flipbooks.
• Yui Ogura’s “Yui-Yui Cult Quiz” – (8:21) Featuring voice actress Yui Ogura giving the answers to the Cult Quiz.
• Promotional Videos – (3:12) Promotional videos for “.Hack//Quantum”.
• Original Commercial – (:17) Original TV commercial “.Hack//Quantum”.
• Pre-Release Promotional Video
• U.S. Trailer – (1:02) US trailer for “.Hack//Quantum”.
• Trailers – FUnimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“.Hack//Quantum: The Complete 3 OVA Series” Blu-ray releases also come with the DVD version of the release.

For long time followers of “.hack”, as we near the end of the series, more anime episodes for fans is always welcomed.

While the OVA series for “.hack” tend to not have the overall deep storylines that their TV anime series counterparts have, “.hack//Quantum” still manages to incorporate as much action and character development into this three episode OVA-series but perhaps what separates this title from the others is its production quality.

“.hack//Quantum” is the best looking and best sounding “.Hack” series TV or OVA that I have seen or heard.

With newer anime studio Kinema Citrus handling the series, more time was put into the actual detail of the art backgrounds and character design.  And with Yusuke Takeda as art director for this OVA series, and many know of his work recently with “Eden of the East”, you know there is going to be amazing detail and that is what anime on Blu-ray fans will want to see.

Everything from character design to art backgrounds are detailed and sketched amazingly well.  From the dragon beats featured in the opening episode, to the detail of the villages that the characters visit, I was quite impressed with the overall look of this series.

And also equally impressive is its lossless soundtrack, specifically the English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD soundtrack by FUNimation Entertainment.  Kudos to the engineers for what they were able to accomplish and I hope they keep it up because this OVA series sounds fantastic!

While many anime soundtracks on Blu-ray are good and some are great, “.hack//Quantum” is amazing!  The soundtrack is absolute immersive and utilizes the LFE and surround channels with amazing efficacy and this is what audiophiles have been wanting to hear more of on their action-driven anime series on Blu-ray.  More rumble, more ambiance, more immersive sound and “.hack//Quantum” definitely delivers!

And along with the fantastic picture quality and lossless audio, the voice acting via Japanese and English is well-done.  And there are also a good amount of special features were included.

The series may seem simplistic but that’s because it’s an OVA series, not a 26-episode TV series.  There are only three episodes but for the most part, Tatsuya Yamazaki was able to create a pretty involving storyline within three episodes.  The characters are intriguing and fun to watch.  And I have to say that Kinema Citrus and the crew’s work on this series and how things look visually and how awesome the series sounds, made me appreciate the OVA series much more.  But I enjoyed watching “.hack//Quantum”.

As for those who are wondering if they can watch “.hack//Quantum” without watching any of the previous anime related releases or have not played the video games.  My answer is yes. If anything, the most important thing that people should know is that “The World” is the world’s largest online MMORPG and that with every video game, anime or manga release, the storylines focus on some unusual occurrence inside the game.

With this OVA series, the storyline is easily accessible.  For those who played an MMORPG and are familiar with it, can understand what is taking place.  For those who are familiar with the series will notice the upgrades to the overall MMORPG experience and the characters featured.  But other than that, anyone really can pick this series up and enjoy it.  No need to watch or play every video game.

And for anime on Blu-ray fans, this is probably one of the most immersive anime soundtracks on Blu-ray  for an OVA and is not an original movie (which typically gets the better production and better lossless soundtrack).

Overall, “.hack//Quantum” will entertain longtime “.hack” fans but also will be enjoyed by anime on Blu-ray fans for its slick anime production which looks fantastic on Blu-ray but also sporting one an awesome immersive HD soundtrack.

Fairy Tail Vol. 3 (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Review)

More action! More devastation! More characters!  Wow!  The third volume of “Fairy Tail” was very exciting and from these episodes alone, it was definitely a major step up in the quality of the writing and also the amount of action featured.  So, for any fan who wants to stay with this long anime TV series for the long haul, all I can say is that things have just gotten even better and I can’t wait to see what happens next in the fourth volume of “Fairy Tail”.  Definitely recommended!

Image courtesy of © 2011 FUNimation Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Fairy Tail Vol. 3

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2009

DURATION: (Episodes 25-36) 300 Minutes

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), DolbyTrue HD 5.1, Japanese DolbyTrue HD 2.0, English subtitles

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Originally created by Hiro Mashima

Directed by Shinji Ishihara

Script by Atsuhiro Tomikoa, Fumihiko Shimo, Masashi Sogo, Shoji Yonemura

Music by Yasuharu Takanashi

Character Design by Aoi Yamamoto

Art Director: Junko Shimizu

Chief Animation Director: Takao Sano

Anime Production: A-1 Pictures, Satelight

Featuring the following voice talent:

Aya Hirano/Cherami Leigh as Lucy Heartfilia

Tetsuya Kakihara/Todd Haberkorn as Natsu Dragneel

Rie Kugimiya/Tia Ballard as Happy

Sayaka Ohara/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Erza Scarlet

Yūichi Nakamura/Newton Pittman as Gray Fullbuster

Shinichi Kotani/R. Bruce Elliot as Makarov

Akira Ishida as Zeref

Daisuke Kishio/Eric Vale as Loki/Loke

Daisuke Namikawa as Jeral/Mystogan

Eri Kitamura/Jamie Marchi as Kana Alberona

Hiroki Touchi as Pantherlily

Hiroki Yasumoto as Elfman

Kazuhiko Inoue as Gildarts Clive

Mai Nakahara as Juvia Loxar

Mariya Ise as Levi Macgarden

Miyuki Sawashiro/Lydia Mackay as Ultear Milkovich

Ryoko Ono/Monica Rial as Mirajane

Satomi Satou as Wendy

Sayaka Narita as Aries

Wataru Hatano as Gajeel Redfox

Yui Horie as Charle

The guild-on-guild mayhem continues as Fairy Tail struggles to fend off Phantom Lord – whose Element 4 must be defeated in order to disable a massive magic cannon aimed at guild headquarters! With a never-surrender attitude, Natsu and his friends push their powers to the limit to protect Lucy and save Magnolia from total annihilation!

Then, Erza’s tortured past returns to haunt her when estranged friends ambush a well-deserved vacation. Her team tracks them down to a looming tower where a possessed wizard close to Erza’s heart puts them in a sinister game of life or death!

A hilarious, action adventure magical anime series based on the popular Weekly Shonen Magazine manga series!

“Fairy Tail” is a manga series which began in 2006 and was created by mangaka Hiro Mashima (known for his manga series “Rave Master”). Featured in Weekly Shonen Magazine, the manga series is still ongoing, meanwhile an anime adaptation of the manga series was created in 2009 produced by A-Pictures and Satelight. And similar to the manga series, is also ongoing!

And here we are with the third Blu-ray release of “Fairy Tail” featuring episodes 25-36 courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

The anime series is directed by Shinji Ishihara (“Aoi Kokuhaku”, “Tenbatsu Angel Rabbie”, “Tokyo Majin” and is written by Masashi Sogo (“Bleach”, “Yukikaze”, “Hunter x Hunter”). The anime series features character design by Aoi Yamamoto, art direction by Junko Shimizu (“Midori Days, “Blue Dragon”, “Trinity Blood”) and music by Yasuharu Takanashi (“Naruto Shippuden”, “Hell Girl”, “Gantz”, Ikki Tosen”).

A Quick Summary of what has taken place in “Fairy Tail” thus far:

“Fairy Tail” revolves around a 17-year-old celestial wizard named Lucy Heartfilia who dreams of joining a sorcerer guild known as Fairy Tail, a group known and feared for the destruction they cause. One day, she runs into Natsu Dragneel, a guy who is traveling to the land of Fiore along with his partner Happy (a talking blue cat with wings) who is searching for his foster parent, a dragon named Igneel who has disappeared.

While traveling to Fiore, both Lucy and Natsu encounter a sorcerer claiming to be the famous Salamander of Fairy Tail. Natsu is the first to object that the man is a phony but the fans of Salamander are dismayed by Natsu’s comments and beat him up, meanwhile Lucy finds out that this fake Salamander is using his sorcerer abilities to make young women fall for him.

As Lucy tries to show her gratitude to Natsu for breaking the spell that would have otherwise have hypnotized Lucy, the two become friends.

But when the fake Salamander tells Lucy that he would get her into Fairy Tail, she knows he is a fake but any chance of getting to join the guild would make her dream come true, so she decides to visit him.

But it’s all a ruse and the fake Salamander is just trying to find female slaves and because he is so powerful, Lucy does not have the magic necessary to beat him. But coming to Lucy’s rescue is Natsu, who is revealed to be a true member of Fairy Tail and also revealed to be the true “Salamander”. And he easily beats the fake Salamander up.

When Natsu discovers that Lucy’s dream is to become a Fairy Tail member, he asks her to join him and he can help her get into the guild and from that moment on, Lucy becomes Natsu’s partner in various Fairy Tail guild missions and for each mission they beat, the more income they make.

And more money means more keys to gain more powers, which would help Lucy become a powerful celestial wizard!

Meanwhile, as both Natsu, Lucy and Gray have gotten better (and more destructive) at handling missions, they begin to team up with the elite warrior Erza, who had to go after the three because they took on an S-Class Ranked Mission without approval from the Fairy Tail Guild.  Meanwhile, the Guild was unexpectedly attacked by their long time rival, the Phantom Lord Guild led by Jose.

In “Fairy Tail Vol. 3″,  Jose and the Phantom Lord continues their attack on Fairy Tail, but will the members be strong enough to defend their area and respond to their attacks.  And why are they attacking and who is responsible?  The episodes of volume 3 also explore the history of characters of Loke and Erza.

“Fairy Tail” Vol. 3 features the following characters:

• Natsu Dragneel – Also known as “Salamander”, Natsu is a kindhearted, always hungry wizard who travels with his partner Happy in search of Igneel, a dragon who raised Natsu but is now missing. Natsu is a dragon slayer and a wizard who can perform “Lost Magic and can have physical properties of a dragon. He specializes in Fire Dragon Slayer Magic which allows him to breath fire and ingest fire as a form of nourishment. He is also gifted with other powers not yet revealed in the first volume of “Fairy Tail”.
• Lucy Heartfilia – A celestial wizard who can summon contracted spirits (with special abilities) through a set of keys known as Gatekeys. She treats these spirits as friends. Her dream is to join Fairy Tail and through meeting Natsu, now her dream can come true.
• Happy – A blue cat with wings and a best friend to Natsu. He can fly and can carry a person while flying. He is also known to irritate Lucy.
• Gray Fullbuster – A powerful wizard of Fairy Tail and the opposite of Natsu, in that he has control of ice. Gray has the power of Ice Make which can make him create weapons or anything out of ice. He was raised by the wizard Ur. He also has a bad habit of taking of all his clothes without realizing it.
• Erza Scarlet – An S-Class wizard (high-ranked) and is the most powerful member of the Fairy Tail guild. She has magic known as “The Knight” which allows her to summon and equip weapons and armor and also has the ability to resist magic attacks. She is feared by others because of her lack of compassion.
• Mirajane – A 19-year-old S-Class wizard who is the cover girl of Sorcerer’s Weekly magazine and helps Lucy understand what is happening with the members of the Fairy Tail guild. She has the ability to change her appearance to something she previously encountered.
• Cana Alberona – A short-tempered heaving drinking woman. She uses card magic to cast her spells.
• Elfman – Mirajane’s younger brother who is known for his physical strength. He can absorb the power of any monster he defeats.
• Loke – A flirtatious wizard who is often seen in the company of many women.
• Makarov Dreyer – The elder master of Fairy Tail. He is constantly busy because of his guild members becoming too violent.

The third volume of “Fairy Tail” comes with 12 episodes on two Blu-rays (and also includes two DVD’s):

DISC 1:

• EPISODE 25 – Gray vs. Juvia, who can control the element of water, but also a woman who finds herself falling in love with Gray.
• EPISODE 26 – Lucy is kidnappd by Gajeel, Erza vs. Aria.
• EPISODE 27 – Natsu vs. Gajeel
• EPISODE 28 – Gray vs. Lion Round 2.
• EPISODE 29 – Erza vs. Jose, Makarov comes to the rescue.
• EPISODE 30 – The Magic Council is not pleased with the aftermat of the fight between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord and Makarov may receive jailtime.
• EPISODE 31 – Lucy suspects something is wrong with Loke and investigates his past.
  
• EPISODE 32 – Loke reveals his past to Lucy and Lucy decides to fight for him and return him back to the Spirit World.

DISC 2:

• EPISODE 33 – Lucy and friends receive passports to the Fiore Kingdom resorts for some R&R.
• EPISODE 34 – Erza’s past is revealed.
• EPISODE 35 – What is the connection between Erza and Jellal and why did Erza become a wizard?
• EPISODE 36 - Lucy and Juvia take on Jellal’s mercenary Vidaldus Taka, while Natsu takes on the mercenary Fukuro.

VIDEO:

“Fairy Tail” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1). It’s important to note that this is a anime TV series, not a film or an OVA and is a weekly anime series. What that means is A-1 Pictures and Satelight, have their hands full, especially if they have other TV series to work on that week. Typically a lot of anime series are quickly done in order to make it by their weekly deadline and sometimes, they are done the day of deadline. So, production values for TV series are typically not that high if they are working on multiple series.

Fortunately A-1 Pictures has become one of the newer studios that have been doing production for quite a number of popular hit series such as “Blue Exorcist” and “Big Windup!” and Satelight does a lot of the in-between animation. So, while they are a smaller, growing company, they are not overburdened as other studios and that means, more time dedicated to the anime series.

“Fairy Tail” features cool production value. A lot of detailed artwork, because of the many adventures, you get so many locations and not the typical regurgitated scenery.

There is a lot of detail featured in the art backgrounds, a lot of characters featured and these characters have great detail and shadowing. Colors are absolutely vibrant, black levels are deep. I found no compression artifacts or any problematic issues with this Blu-ray release. If anything, the Blu-ray really brings out the details and colors of the series and looks fantastic!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Fairy Tail” is presented in English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0. Dialogue and music is clear through the front channels for the lossless stereo soundtrack but because the English is 5.1, there is better use of the surround channels.

In fact, I found myself listening to the English dub track for “Fairy Tail” much more than the Japanese soundtrack because of the 5.1 but also, FUNimation did a magnificent job with the casting of this series. I was very pleased especially with the casting of Lucy, Natsu, Happy, Grey and Erza and for the most part, I think whichever you prefer, you will be pleased with Japanese and English audio tracks.

But for the most part, for a TV series, lossless audio is crystal clear and while not the most immersive soundtrack (which I typically don’t expect TV series to boast incredible immersive lossless soundtracks, unlike a film or OVA series), “Fairy Tail” does sound very good on Blu-ray!

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Fairy Tail Vol. 3″ features the following special features:

DISC 1:

• Episode 26 Audio Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Tyler Walker (Director/Line Producer/Adapted Script Writer) with Andrew Tipps (Mix Engineer) discussing various techniques of mixing “Fairy Tail” and the audio plug-ins used.  A very insightful commentary!

DISC 2:

• Episode 32 Audio Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Tyler Walker (ADR Director/Line Producer/Adapted Script Writer) with Cherami Leigh (voice of Lucy) and Eric Vale (voice of Loke).
• Textless Opening Songs: “ft.” and “R.P.G. ~Rockin’ Playing Game”
• Textless Closing Songs: “I’m Sorry” and “Kimi Ga Iru Kara”
• Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Fairy Tail” Blu-ray releases also come with the DVD version of that volume.

Fun, action-packed adventures featuring the most destructive wizard guild in the planet!  The third volume of “Fairy Tail” features possibly my favorite episodes yet!

For one, there is intense action in this volume a members of the Fairy Tail Guild take on the Phantom Lord and we see a major transformation in the power of Natsu but also we are introduced to a new character named Juvia who may/may not become a love interest to Gray.  But that story arc alone was quite impressive as we get to see everyone in the guild in battle.

Volume three also explores the history of Loke and what he actually is but also exploring the history of Erza which has been quite private and mysterious and her storyline actually leads to another major battle.  So, needless to say, while “Fairy Tail” has its many humorous moments, the episodes really take the action up a notch as it is continuous and makes everything quite exciting!

“Fairy Tail” is an anime series that manages to have a lot of fun through the adventures of Natsu and Lucy and it has similarities to the action/adventure anime series “One Piece” and “The Slayers”.

For one, the adventure and action is big part of this series as the characters take on various rival wizard guilds, the problem is that they tend to get into so much trouble that they end up creating a lot of damage. And the object of these adventures are working guild jobs as the characters have bills to pay and each time they destroy something, it comes out of their paycheck.

With this third volume, you really get to see how these characters have grown since the first episode.  Natsu and Gray are growing in their powers but also Lucy also has some major revelations featured in this latest volume as well, but also to see her involved in the battles, especially during the Loke storying.

With that being said, this series has over 100 episodes and is still ongoing in Japan. Next to “Dragon Ball Z” and “Yu Yu Hakusho” (which are older anime series), “Fairy Tail” is the most recent, longer anime series from Japan to be released on Blu-ray by FUNimation Entertainment. So, if you want a series to watch for the long haul, “Fairy Tail” is a series worth considering.

As for the Blu-ray release, picture quality is very good for a TV series and features a good solid lossless soundtrack. It’s important to emphasize that this is a TV series and not a film or OVA, thus the production quality of animated TV shows tend to be lower (and created in a short time) than a film/OVA, so there is a bit of softness and shadowing and detail are not utilized a lot for this series.

As for special features, you do get the English voice actors providing commentary for one episode, while the other was pretty awesome as it really went in-depth on the mixing for the series and the various plug-ins and effects.  Rarely do audio commentaries from FUNimation Entertainment go into the more technical side of their production, especially towards sound.  So, I thought it was very awesome to hear this commentary on “Fairy Tail”.

Overall, the third volume of “Fairy Tail” was very exciting and from these episodes alone, it was definitely a major step up in the quality of the writing and also the amount of action featured.  So, for any fan who wants to stay with this long anime TV series for the long haul, all I can say is that things have just gotten even better and I can’t wait to see what happens next in the fourth volume of “Fairy Tail”.

Definitely recommended!

Star Driver Vol. 2 (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

An anime series featuring all-out mecha action!   The conclusion of “Star Driver” ends literally with a bang and I can only hope that Bones considers a second season.  Exciting and overall an awesome mecha anime series on Blu-ray!  Definitely recommended!

Images courtesy of ©BONES/STAR DRIVER COMMITTEE, MBS. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Star Driver Vol. 2

DURATION: Episodes 14-25 (300 Minutes)

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (16:9 Widescreen), Japanese Linear PCM 2.0, English Subtitles

RATED: Suggested 13 and Up

COMPANY: Aniplex/Bandai Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: January 17, 2012

Directed by Takuya Igarashi

Series Composition by Yoji Enokido

Music by monaca, Satoru Kousaki

Original Character Design by Hiroka Mizuya, Misa Mizuya

Character Design by Yoshiyuki Ito

Art Director by Takeshi Waki

Anime Production by BONES

Featuring the voices of:

Jun Fukuyama as Sugata Shindou

Mamoru Miyano as Takuto Tsunashi

Saori Hayami as Wako Agemaki

Akira Ishida as Head

Ami Koshimizu as Keito Nichi

Ayana Taketatsu as Aragon Simone

Ayano Niina as Kanako Watanabe

Chiemi Chiba as Benio Shinada

Emiri Katou as Ruri Makina

Fumiko Orikasa as Sora

Haruka Tomatsu as Keta no Miko/Sakana-chan

Hiroko Ushida as Jaguar Yamasugata

Houko Kuwashima as Midori Okamoto

Kenichi Suzumura as Tsukihiko Bou/Stick Star

Kenji Akabane as Takashi Dai

Maaya Sakamoto as Sarina Endou

Mitsuki Saiga as Kou Atari

Nao Tōyama as Tiger Sugatame

Ooki Sugiyama as Tetsuya Gouda

Rina Hidaka as Mizuno You

Ryohei Kimura as Ginta Ryou/Camel Star

Ryou Hirohashi as Marino You/Manticore

Shinichiro Miki as Ryousuke Katashiro

Shun Takagi as George Honda

Yukana as Madoka Kei

Yuuki Kaji as Takeo Takumi/Sword Star

The Kiraboshi Order of Cross continues to search for the other shrine maidens using the cybody Ayingott’s special ability. One by one, the Western and Eastern Shrine Maidens are revealed and their seals are unlocked, bringing Vanishing Age closer to their ultimate goal, unleashing the king Cybody, Samekh, from zero time into the real world. In order to stop them, Takuto will have to finally confront his father and battle his own best friend!

The truth about the Kiraboshi is revealed and to save the planet, Takuto must continue to fight until the very end in this final second volume of “Star Driver”!

In Oct. 2010, the anime “Star Driver: Kagayaki no Takuto” began airing on Japanese television. Directed by Takuya Igarashi (“Ojamajo Doremi”, “Ashita no Nadia”, “Darker than Black”) and a screenplay by Yoji Enokido (“Neon Genesis Evangelion”, “Revolutionary Girl Utena”, “Ouran High School Host Club”), a total of 25 episodes were aired on TBS and now the second volume of the anime series will be released on Blu-ray in the United States courtesy of Bandai Entertainment.

“Star Driver” vol. 2 on Blu-ray features episodes 14-25 of the sci-fi action anime TV series.

A brief summary of what “Star Driver” is all about:

The story is set in Southern Cross Isle, an island in which Wako Agemaki and Sugata Shindo were on the beach one day. While talking to each other one night, they spot a teenager named Takuto who has washed up ashore.

Takuto happened to swim from the mainland to Southern Cross Isle to attend Southern Cross Island High School and all seems to be going well for the teenager as he makes new friends, especially with Wako and Sugata and is revealed to be the son of a famous painter (paintings which are featured throughout Sugata Shindo’s mansion).

Meanwhile, beneath the school is where Cybodies exist. These Cybodies are mecha that can be controlled by humans in an alternate dimension known as “Zero Time” and a mysterious group known as the “Kiraboshi Order of Cross” are currently trying to take possession of the island’s Cybodies for their own persona purposes and break the seal of the island’s four shrine maidens.

One day, as Takuto is trying to enter a private area (illegally), he notices that his friend Wako Agemaki has been taken hostage by the mysterious group. He tries to fight back but it appears that this group’s members are experienced fighters and it is revealed that some of these mysterious individuals are actual classmates and students of Southern Cross High School, people that Takuto have met and some he has befriended.

It is revealed that Wako is a one of the Shrine Maidens and she has the power to create the South Maiden Seal.

And as one of the members takes control of one of the Cybodies, the group is shocked that Takuto has managed to enter Zero Time and enter the seal. And he calls upon a Cybody known as Tauburn and reveals himself as a Star Driver or “Ginga Bishounen” (Galactic Pretty Boy).

He easily defeats one of the members of the Order of Glittering Stars and with each loss, each member must give up their badge and are literally lose their position of becoming leader of the Order. But they also realize that Takuto is not only a Star Driver with amazing power, he is also the biggest threat that stands in their way.

Now each member is willing to take on Takuto in order to see if they can defeat him with their special ability, while Takuto has dedicated himself into destroying every Cybody piloted by the Kiraboshi Order of Cross.

In the second volume of “Star Driver”, the Kiraboshi continue their quest to find the maidens in order to resurrect Samekh, meanwhile the fight continutes as the Vanishing Age and Glittering Star members of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross challenge Takuto.

Meanwhile, Marino Yo, a member of the Glittering Crux of the Kiraboshi Order is trying to hide her comrades that her sister Mizuno is the Western Maiden.  And the Kiraboshi try to enlist Sugata as their leader to go against Takuto.  Will they be successful?  Will Takuto stand a chance against the more powerful members of the Kiraboshi Order?

The main characters of “Star Driver” (featured in Volume 2) are:

• Takuto Tsunashi – The main character who is good friends with Wako Agemaki and Sugata Shindo. He is a member of the Night Flight drama club at Southern Cross Island High School and is also a pilot of the Cybody known as Tauburn and a Star Driver who plans to destroy every Cybody he fights against. He’s also popular among the ladies and many start to fall for him. He also loves to say words in English, is highly intelligent and has great athletic/fighting skills.
• Wako Agemaki – A shrine maiden and her powers and existence creates the South Maiden Seal. If the seal was to break, all Cybodies would be able to leave the island. She is forbidden to leave the island and is engaged to Sugata out of family tradition. She is often hungry and takes care of a yellow fox known as Vice. She is also a member of the Midnight Flight drama club at Southern Cross Island High School.
• Sugata Shindo – A member of the Midnight Flight drama club at Southern Cross Island High School, Sugata is from a very wealthy family and is engaged to Wako. He is calm, intelligent and a great fighter. He is able to use his First Phase powers to assist Takuto in battles. He has a mysterious side to him and an interest in Takuto for some reason.
• Benio Shimada – A Pink-haired girl who is the kendo champ and the Resident Advisor of the school dorms. She is also a member of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross and likes to control people, but has interest in those who are stronger than her. Her code name is Scarlett Kiss and leads the Filament Squad and pilots the Cybody known as Peshent.
• Kanako Watanabe – The green-haired promiscuous married student. Kanako is married to a 65-year-old tycoon named Leon Watanabe and lives in a a luxury cruise ship. She is a member of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross and wants her husband’s company to own all Cybodies on the island. She is an excellent fighter, but a very bored wife. Her code name is “The President and leads the fourth section, “Adult Bank” squad. Her Cybody is Betreida.
• Simone Aragon – Kanako’s assistant who despises her. She is also a member of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross and a Cybody pilot. She is actually named Pamela Watanabe, the daughter of Kanako’s husband and Kanako’s step-daughter who lost her memory after an accident. A member of the “Adult Bank” squad, her Cybody is Daletos.
• Takashi Dai – Kanako’s employee and a member of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross. A member of the “Adult Bank” squad, he is also a very good kendo swordsman and among the first to challenge Takuto via his Cybody Tzadikt.
• Mizuno Yo – The twin sister of Marino and is known as the “witch girl” because she is always talking about magical spells. She is able to talk to birds and falls for Takuto because he saves a bird for her. She is also the West Maiden of the island.
  
• Marino Yo – The twin sister of Mizuno. She is a member of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross and goes by the name of Manticore. But she uses her position to secretly hide the fact that her twin sister is the Western Maiden. She also has feelings for Takuto.
• Keito Nichi – A childhood friend of Wako and Sugata and is known for wearing eyeglasses. She is Ivrogne, a member of the Kiraboshi Order of Cross and leads the third section, “Bougainvilleae” squad and likes Sugata.  Unbeknown to the Kiraboshi, she is also the East Maiden.
• Reiji Miyabi – Leader of the Glittering Star’s second section “Vanishing Age” squad and had kept the North Maiden locked in a cage. He proposes that anyone in the group who can beat Takuto can be the order’s main leader. He pilots the Cybody, Reshbal.
• Tiger Sugatame – A student at Southern Cross High School who is a maid for Sugata (and secretly likes him) but she is also hired to keep watch on Sugata and kill him if he ever flees the island or joins the Kiraboshi Order.
• Jaguar Yamasugata – A student at Southern Cross High School and a maid for Sugata.  She is also hired to keep watch on Sugata and kill him if he ever flees the island or joins the Kiraboshi Order.

“Star Driver Vol. 2″ features the following episodes:

DISC 1:

• EPISODE 14: Ayingot’s Eyes – The Kirboshi order tries to repair Manticore’s cybody with hopes to find out who the West maiden is.
  
• EPISODE 15: Shrine Maidens of the Seals – When Mizuno and Marino’s mother returns back to the island, since Mizuno is a maiden, will she be able to leave the island?  Meanwhile, Marino’s true identity is revealed.
• EPISODE 16: Takuto’s Emblem – The Kiraboshi Order has captured Mizuno and break her seal to begin the Third Phase.
• EPISODE 17: Vanishing Age – Head becomes the leader of Glittering Star and the Kiraboshi try to break the remaining two seals.  Takuto takes on Madoka Kei.
• EPISODE 18: Kate’s Morning & Night – Takuto get sa job at the karaoke bar that Keito Nich works, unaware she is the Eastern maiden and a member of the Kiraboshi.
• EPISODE 19: The Trio’s Sunday – It’s Wako’s birthday and both Sugata and Takuto try to enjoy the day with her.  Meanwhile, Kou Atari of the Kiraboshi intervenes.

DISC 2:

• EPISODE 20: The Rainbow Painted That Day -Ryousuke Katashiro, Vanishing Age’s second in command reminisces about his past with Reiji and his former fiance Sora.  Takuto vs. Ginta Ryo.
• EPISODE 21: The Libidinal Age – Madoka volunteers herself to be an experiment for the Kiraboshi.  But Takuto can’t fight back without hurting her.
• EPISODE 22: On the Eve of the Legend – The drama club’s big day, meanwhile Keito reveals her powers to Sugata.
• EPISODE 23: Emperor – Takuto must take on three members of the Kiraboshi.
• EPISODE 24: Easter Shrine Maiden – Takuto and Wako are shocked to find out that both Keito and Sugata are members of teh Kiraboshi and that Samekh has broken free.
• EPISODE 25: Our Apprivoiser  – Takuto, Wako and the Kiraboshi Order learn the true reason of why Reiji needed Samekh freed.

VIDEO:

“Star Driver” is presented in 1080p High Definition (16:9 widescreen). What I love about this series is the fact that it’s vibrant and full of colors. A lot of orange and reds are used and the anime series looks fantastic on Blu-ray. While it is a TV series and not an OVA and film, still…the character designs are well-done (especially for a series that incorporates many characters) and painted backgrounds are also well-done and very detailed.

The mech design is also pretty cool to look at but I did notice that they do reuse Takuto and Tauburn’s introduction before each battle in every episode (reminiscent of the magical girl transformations in older anime series) but for the most part, for an action-packed series, I enjoyed the character and mechanical designs. Colors are vibrant and didn’t notice any banding or compression artifacts during my viewing of the series.

AUDIO:

“Star Driver” is presented in Japanese Linear PCM 2.0 and is a front channel-driven lossless soundtrack. Dialogue and sound effects and music are clear, but it would have been great to hear this TV series as a more immersive 5.1 soundtrack (since there is so much action featured) but since it’s a TV series, not many anime series straight from Japan are created in 5.1.

But overall, the 2.0 lossless track is good but if you have a receiver that can play stereo on all channels, choosing that setting may be to your liking.

It’s important to note that this anime release on Blu-ray does not come with an English dub track.

Subtitles are in English and are easy to read.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Star Driver Vol. 2″ comes with the following special features:

• Textless Opening and Ending Themes – Featuring the opening plus two endings via “Mizuno” and “Kate” versions.
• Bandai Previews – Bandai Entertainment trailers

The release of “Star Driver Vol. 2″ is an exciting conclusion to the anime series but also is quite bittersweet as Bandai Entertainment has announced that they are no longer releasing anime on Blu-ray and DVD (or manga) after February and will remained focused on licensing rights, especially in digital distribution and merchandising.

So, in essence, “Star Driver” will be the final mecha anime series and final TV anime series released on Blu-ray from Bandai Entertaiment in the United States.

But I suppose, if you have to go out in a bang, I will say that “Star Driver” was an anime series I have wanted to come to the United States and now that it’s over, I can easily let mecha fans know that this 25-episode series was definitely worth watching on Blu!

An anime series featuring all-out mecha action, “Star Driver” has a little bit of everything.  Mecha action, a little harem plot but one teenager’s quest to defeat a mysterious group! “Star Driver” is an exciting anime TV series on Blu-ray.

My first introduction to “Star Driver” was through an iPhone app on iTunes Japan and because because it was being promoted along with a Gundam app, I looked at a few trailers online to learn more about the series and noticed the mecha action involved and also learning that the series has a pretty significant following Japan. Needless to say, I was hoping someday the series would be released in the U.S. and now it’s here on Blu-ray courtesy of Bandai Entertainment!

What’s cool about this Blu-ray release of “Star Driver” is that Bandai Entertainment included 12 episodes, which is definitely a major plus as their Blu-ray releases tend to have only 4-5 episodes per volume. So, that’s definitely great for anime fans who have been wanting Bandai Blu-ray releases with more episodes included!

The second volume has now gone past the introductory phase for its characters and now focuses on storyline arcs, specifically with the Yo sisters and also the Kiraboshi’s quest to revive Samekh.  While the harem aspect is not as evident as it was in the first half of the series, this time around it focuses on Wako being confused if she likes her long-time friend and fiance Sugata or Takuto.  And if anything, there was this sense that Sugata would emerge from his shell.  We know the guy’s powerful and the writers would unleash him by the second half of the series.

What I enjoyed about “Star Driver” thus far, is the characters. A good variety of them with their own style and presentation.  But most importantly, it’s a mecha anime series that tends to distinguish itself from various “Gundam” series, especially “Code Geass Lelouch” which deals with the student life but is far more darker than “Star Driver”.  If anything, “Star Driver” is an easily accessible anime series that doesn’t try to become too deep or violent.  It’s a bit free flowing and focuses a lot more on character development for the primary characters and then the action.  So, writers typically had to divide the episode from focusing on the student life of Takuto, Sugata and Wako in the beginning and then the final half on the actual battle.

But definitely, “Star Driver” has a fresh storyline that distinguishes itself from the many mecha anime series that have been released in Japan within the last two decades.

So, overall… I’m quite content with the way the series had ended but it does leave things open for a second season which wouldn’t surprise me if “Star Driver” continues.

The Blu-ray release is beautiful as the animation is well-done, especially the character designs and also the painted backgrounds are full of detail. If anything, colors are vibrant and look great on Blu-ray. While the audio is only Japanese linear PCM 2.0, I wish it was 5.1 but most anime TV series are typically stereo straight from Japan. As for special features, you get the textless opening and endings along with Bandai Entertainment trailers.

Overall, “Star Driver” is an anime series full of mecha action, cool characters and vibrant presentation, “Star Driver” is definitely recommended!

B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time – Complete Series (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

A sexually-charged, sexual comedy anime series with plenty of  fan service, perverted humor and all out fun!   Trust me…you’re not going to find anime series like “B Gata H Kei”.  Typically, sexual teen comedy anime series tend to focus on a male character, but what happens when the roles are reversed?  I absolutely enjoyed this series and”B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” is definitely recommended!

Image courtesy of © Yoko Sanri/SHUEISHA INC. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time – Complete Series

DURATION: EPISODES 1-12 (300 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (16×9), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV PG

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Originally created by Yoko Sanri

Directed by Yusuke Yamamoto

Series Composition by Satoru Nishizono

Character Design by Yuuko Yahiro

Art Director: Michiyo Miki

Chief Animation Director: Yuuko Yahiro

Anime Production: Hal Film Maker

Featuring the following voice talent:

Atsushi Abe/Scott Freeman as Takashi Kosuda

Yukari Tamura/Brittney Karbowski as Yamada

Asami Shimoda/Emerick Jade as Chika Yamada

Kana Hanazawa/Jad Saxton as Mayu Miyano

Mamiko Noto/Martha Harms as Kazuki Kosuda

Rumi Shishido/Alexis Tipton as Erogamisama

Tomoaki Maeno as Keiichi Kanejō

Yu Kobayashi/Kristi Kang as Kyōka Kanejō

Yui Horie/Cherami Leigh as Miharu Takeshita

OMG! There’s this girl at school, Yamada, who wants to make like a hundred sex friends. She totally thinks she can devirginize one hundred different boys! Can you believe that? That’s like every boy in the school. Who does she think she is? I heard from my friend’s neighbor’s cousin’s lab partner that Yamada’s never even been kissed. Oh. My. God. I would totally die. That’s like burn all your makeup and shave off your eyebrows embarrassing. I can’t even think about it.

Today at lunch I saw Yamada flirting, like for reals flirting, with that geek Kosuda. You know the guy. Photography club, no muscles, boring face, kind of reminds you of a black-and-white movie. Super lame. If Yamada can’t even make the sex with him, she’ll never score a hundred cherry boys. She needs to take like Sex Ed or something because I heard she can’t give it away!

 

In 2004, Yoko Sanri created a four-panel sexual teen comedy manga series known as “B Gata H Kei” which was published by Shueisha and in 2010, given an anime adaptation courtesy of Hal Film Maker (“Angels Sanctuary”, “Macross 7 the Movie”, “Princess Tutu”).

And now, “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” receives its HD release on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment in Jan. 2012.

The series is directed by Yusuke Yamamoto (“Aquarion Evol”, “Masquerade” “Ranma 1/2″, “Sakura Taisen”), screenplay by Satoru Nishizono (“.hack//Legend Twilight”, “Dr. Slump”, “IDOLM@STER: Live For you!”), character designs by Yuuko Yahiro (“Battle Girls – Time Paradox”, “Basilisk”, “Is This a Zombie?”) and art direction by Michiyo Miki (“Kamisama Kazoku”, “Halo Legends”, “Shining Tears x Wind”).

Continuing FUNimation Entertainment’s month grown-up comedy releases (ie. a lot of fan service and sexual humor) with “Sekirei: Pure Engagement”, “Rosario+Vampire”, “Sora no OToshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property”, “B Gata H Kei” this time focuses on a female 15-year-old teen who’s goal is to have sex with an honest guy, in order to accomplish a goal of having sex with 100 guys.

The series focuses on Yamada, a popular high school teenager who is now entering high school and all she can think about is having sex.  She has decided that she wants to have sex with 100 different men but she first she must lose her virginity (an idea that she may have picked up from reading women’s sex magazines).  And so, Yamada decides that she wants to lose it to someone who doesn’t have experience and while at the bookstore with her friend Miharu, while looking for a dictionary (that describes sexual acts), she spots a teenager who looks very innocent – Takashi Kosuda.

Immediately, Yamada becomes fixated on him because of his pureness and the fact that she can sense he is a virgin.  So, while at the bookstore, while trying to retrieve the dictionary, she accidentally falls on top of Kosuda and in her mind, she tries to think up ways of how to initiate contact.

While at her new class, she realizes that sitting next to her is Kosuda and immediately, she begins to think of ways to get him interested in her.  May it be going out with him on dates, to even doing risky things while they are alone in order to get him to notice her and her body and want him to have sex with her.  But being the inexperienced good guy, while Kosuda is thrilled that a beautiful girl such as Yamada acknowledges him, he can’t interpret the signals that she is sending him and is not sure what to do when around her.

And because Yamada is just as inexperienced as Kosuda, the fact that it’s a challenge, she wonders if he’s not interested in her and tries all that she can do get him to notice her…may it be to show her cleavage, wear no panties around him, etc.

But the longer that Yamada tries to get Kosuda to have sex with her in order to advance on her goal of having 100 sexual encounters, she begins to realize that perhaps…she may be developing feelings for him.

Here is a brief  non-spoiler synopsis of “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time – Complete Series”:

• EPISODE 1 - “Boy Meets Girl.  Let Me Have your “First Time!” – Yamada has decided that Kosuda will be the first guy she must have sex with because of his inexperience.
• EPISODE 2 – “Oh, yeah! Let’s go to a pool! You wanna see me in a swimsuit, right?!” – Yamada asks Kosuda to join her and go with her friend Miharu and her boyfriend Daisuke.  Yamada hopes that wearing a sexy swimsuit may entice Kosuda to have sex with her.
• EPISODE 3 – “Suddenly so close in the darkroom! Kinda dangerous club activities?!” – Yamada learns that Kosuda is in the photography club, so she comes up with a plan to seduce him in the dark room.
• EPISODE 4 – “Romantic Christmas Eve! What does the first kiss taste like?” – Yamada is jealous of her younger sister Chika (who is good at bringing home guys), so Yamada tries to get Kosuda to ask her out on a date on Christmas Eve.
• EPISODE 5 – “Yamada’s level increased! She learned how to deep kiss!” – Kosuda’s childhood friend Mayu Miyano wants to give Kosuda the perfect Valentine’s Date, jealous…Yamada tries to entice Kosuda by not wearing any panties.
• EPISODE 6 – “Kanejo is coming! I can’t stand that sparkle!” – It’s a new school year and this time Yamada feels that she has a new rival when Kyouka Kanejo, the girl who nearly beat her in last year’s beauty contest has transferred to her school.  And Kyouka has caught every guy’s interest, perhaps even Kosuda.
• EPISODE 7 – “Major duel in school swimsuits! I’m not gonna lose against you!” – Yamada declares war on Kanejo and both compete in a battle of swimsuits.  Meanwhile, Yamada is jealous when she finds out that Kosuda  is going on vacation with Mayu Miyano and her family.
• EPISODE 8 – “Yay! It’s a school trip! No chance to be alone…” – Class 2 H goes on vacation to Kyoto and both Yamada and Kosuda want to confess their feelings for each other.
• EPISODE 9 – “Oh no! In front of everyone…I Never said I don’t like you…Autumn” – Kosuda acidentally declares his love for Yamada in front of the whole class.  Meanwhile, Kanejo’s brother shows up and falls for Yamada.
• EPISODE 10  – “The Kanejo Family! Richy brother’s sparkling secret!”- Yamada and Kosuda are planning to go on a date but Keiichi ends up joining them and also confesses to Yamada that he is a virgin.  Does that mean she will bypass Kosuda for him?
• EPISODE 11 – “Year 2 Class H’s Christmas Eve! Take me to Bed!” – It’s Christmas time and Kanejo is holding a Christmas party at her mansion and Keiichi sees it as a chance to get close to Yamada, meanwhile, Yamada ooks at it as a chance to have sex with Kosuda.
• EPISODE 12 - “The World Revolves for us! Goodbye…B Gata H Kei” – What happens when Kosuda and Yamada enter a love hotel?

VIDEO:

“B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time – Complete Series” is presented in 1080p High Definition.  It’s important to note that this is a TV series and not an OVA or film, so hardcore videophiles should know that TV series tend to not have the same production budget as an OVA or film.  But in the case of “B Gata H Kei, the series is not uber-vibrant (although there are some colorful scenes with hot pinks, reds, blues, purples and greens) and at times, may look a bit saturated but that is typically expected from an anime TV series.  But there is good use of colors, especially the emphasis on eye color, hair and other colors that can bring out the vibrancy of this series.

While the backgrounds are not as varied or super-detailed, it’s the close-ups and the emotions that probably become more evident in this series.  From the emotions displayed, sadness, jealousy, anger or both Yamada or Kosuda looking horny, it’s probably what the animators focused on the most.  I didn’t see any artifacting, banding or any major problems while watching this series.

For an anime on Blu-ray release, “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” is a colorful anime series which does look good on HD.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time – Complete Series” is presented in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0.  I did watch a few episodes in Japanese (which is typically my preference) but with a series that delves into sexual comedy, especially in the case of “B Gata H Kei”, I had to hear what FUNimation Entertainment had planned for the English dub and how far they would go in making this series appealing but also fun for the American viewers.  And sure enough, the director and the writers die a fantastic job.  Casting was spot on and the writing for the English dub was absolutely hilarious!  Suffice to say, they hit a home run with the English dub!

Overall, the series is dialogue-driven but there moments when ambiance plays a part in surround channel use.  But for the most part, this is a center and front-channel driven series, dialogue is crystal clear and hear no audio problems

Subtitles are in English!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time – Complete Series” features the following special features:

DISC 1

• EPISODE 1 COMMENTARY – Featuring a hilarious commentary by ADR Director Zach Bolton and Brittany Karbowski (voice of Yamada) and Scott Freeman (voice of Kosuda).

DISC 2

• EPISODE 11 COMMENTARY – Featuring commentary by writers (and voice talent) Jami Marchi and Leah Clark who talk about writing for the show and more.
• Outtakes - (2:55) Featuring outtakes featuring the English dub voice actors.
  
• Textless Opening Song – “Oshiete A to Z”
• Textless Closing Song – “Hadashi No Princess”
• Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment Trailers

EXTRAS:

“B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” comes with a slipcase and also the DVD version of the series.

Sure, we know there are plenty of anime series focusing on guys who are perverted and are always looking for ways to hook up with a girl or see them nude.  But what happens when the roles are reversed and the main female character is the one wanting to get laid?

I have to admit that this is the first TV anime series, a sexual comedy, that I have seen in which the protagonist is a horny female character and the first thing that came to my mind was… “This has to be written by some guy with major fantasy issues!” but surprisingly, the series is by a female manga writer/artist Yoko Sanri and to help define these female emotions, FUNimation Entertainment went with two female writers Jami Marchi and Leah Clark to continue that female perspective of a female character wanting to lose their virginity and  doing whatever she can to get laid.

I have to admit that part of me was a bit shocked about the series because anime storylines never ever feature a female character like this, unless it’s hentai.  But no… this is not anime porn, this is a teenager who has read too many Japanese women’s magazines (having dated Japanese women and having many Japanese female friends and discussing sex, I can easily say that the women’s magazines are just as sexually-driven as the male magazines) and suffice to say, for anyone who has been to Japan, sex is something that is not usually hidden as you are sure to see something while walking by a bookstore, used manga shop to vending machines.

And from my experience alone, it really doesn’t take too long for the topics of sex to come up with new Japanese friends.  But still… anime series to variety shows shown in Japan, it’s always the guys who are showcased as the perverts wanting to have sexual encounters or some perverted thought going through their mind.  So, I’m not easy easily phased when it comes to sexual comedies but in this case, I really did not know what to expect from “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” because the roles were reversed.

Granted, even back in the early ’90s, there are glimpses of female sexual flirting with a Cherry Boy (ie. virgin) in anime series such as “Video Girl Ai” and even DNA2″ (both created by Masakazu Katsura) but it was never the main focus, these were just scenes added for comedy purposes.  In this case, every episode is about Yamada wanting to lose her virginity and the ways of going about it are surprising.

From locking herself in a photo developing room with Kosuda and taking off her clothes, to not wearing panties at school in hopes that he will get the hint and want to have sex with her, to another scene where the two go into the park and she sits on is lap and puts his hand on her breasts.  Problem is that both are virgins, inexperienced and not sure what to do in those moments.

The awkwardness of Kosuda when his hand is on Yamada’s breast and not knowing if she should squeeze it or just leave his hand there and many times where you know that Kosuda has the opportunity to score but since he is not too familiar with sex or the act of it, I wouldn’t be surprised if male viewers would pull their hair out and knowing how the opportunity is presented to him but yet, he doesn’t know what to do or actually doesn’t have a clue.  But in a way, that’s what I liked about Kosuda’s character is the fact that despite him being a guy with typical fears of losing his virginity, he is respectful and kind.

There are also some interesting things that are featured in the series that some may find a bit taboo.  For example, Kosuda’s sister Kazuki walks around the house with no clothes.  Granted, Kosuda doesn’t want to look at his sister in such a manner but then you have a character such as Kyoka Kanejo who has a brother complex and is infatuated with her brother, despite her being popular and beautiful.

But because of how awkward and quarky “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” is, I found it to be quite enjoyable and fun!  It’s not going to be for everyone, especially those who may throw fits about Yamada’s quest to have sex with 100 different guys, but bare in mind, that is her virgin mind speaking…and what she has been influenced from reading women’s magazines.   The story is about Yamada wanting to have sex and finding a kind virgin to lose her virginity too, but it’s also a story about maturity and how she falls in love for the first time, vice versa with Kosuda as the longer they have this sexual chemistry or sexual craving for each other, they are too innocent to know what it is…and what it is…it’s love.

As for this Blu-ray release, I have to say that there are two things that I enjoyed about this series.  One, I loved the fact that the American side, for the English dubbing, made this series to be much more crazier but yet respectful to the original Japanese version.  As mentioned, I typically watch the Japanese versions of these series but when it comes to storylines that are best adapted for the West because of its sexual comedy, in the case of “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time”, the writers and the director have done a wonderful job in adapting this series for American viewers.

The second thing that I loved about this release is the fact that even the people who took part in this series were shocked by the content.  Listening to the audio commentary, even the voice actress Brittney Karbowski was shocked about the things that she had to say that she had to take a picture of the script.  But the fact is because these voice talents have done something so different in their voice acting career, especially in this point of time of working on many series, it’s great to hear the voice talent being shocked by the content but yet having fun with it.  And hearing their performance, you can sense that enthusiasm!  I dig that!

And last, what I loved about this series and it’s what I mentioned before…it goes beyond the typical banality of anime series with the perverted male character wanting to get laid.  This time, it’s the female character who wants to lose her virginity and just to see how far she will go is quite intriguing.

Overall, I had such a wonderful time watching this series and while I know the subject matter may be a bit touchy for some viewers, for those who are looking for something different, something fun and crazy and yes, something a bit raunchy in sexual humor will enjoy “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time”.

I don’t think you will find many anime series like this and for that…I definitely recommend this anime series!

Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1 (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

Funny, perverse and just all out crazy!  “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ is an anime series for fans who love harem anime with a sci-fi element and a dose of raunchiness.  If you want to spice up your anime Blu-ray collection, this anime series is for you!

Image courtesy of © Yoko Sanri/SHUEISHA INC. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1

DURATION: EPISODES 1-14 (350 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (16×9), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV-MA

Release Date: December 20, 2011

Originally created by Suu Minazuki

Directed by Hisashi Saito

Series Composition by Yuuko Kakihara

Character Design by Yoshihiro Watanabe

Art Director: Hiromasa Ogura

Chief Animation Director: Hiromasa Ogura

Anime Production: AIC A.S.T.A.

Featuring the following voice talent:

Saori Hayami/Brittney Karbowski as Ikaros

Souichiro Hoshi/Greg Ayres as Tomoki Sakurai

Ayahi Takagaki/Jamie Marchi as Mikako Satsukitane

Iori Nomizu/Kara Edwards as Nymph

Mina/Trina Nishimura as Sohara Mitsuki

Tatsuhisa Suzuki/Eric Vale as Eishirō Sugata

Tomoki’s life was normal until a wish-granting angelic android named Ikaros fell from the sky and started calling him master! Of course, thanks to his raging teenage hormones, most of Tomoki’s wishes have something to do with panties. And that makes things pretty complicated, because one simple wish can lead to a rampaging robot made out of frilly undergarments or turn bloomers into bombs capable of blowing up entire neighborhoods!

If Tomoki doesn’t learn to control his impulses around Ikaros and be more careful with his wishes, the chaos will only get crazier. Luckily, even with such a dirty mind, Tomoki’s heart is in the right place. His hands, however, are a completely different story.

In 2007, mangaka Suu Minazuki created teh manga series “Sora no Otoshimono” (Heaven’s Lost Property) which was published in the manga magazine “Shonen Ace” and is still ongoing in Japan.

With the popularity of the manga series, an anime adaptation by AIC was produced and aired on television on Oct. through Dec. 2009, with a second season that continued in Winter 2010 and a film that was released in June 2011.

Now, “Sora no Otoshimono” has received its anime debut in the U.S. courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with a hybrid Blu-ray/DVD release in Dec. 2011.

Directing the anime series is Hisashi Saito (“Bamboo Blade”, “Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai”), screenplay by Yuuko Kakihara (“Fairy Musketeers”, “Kage Kara Mamoru!, “Persona 4: The Animation”), music by Motoyoshi Iwasaki (“Hamtaro”, “Geobreeders 2″, “Panyo Panyo Di Gi Charat”), character design by Yoshiro Watanabe (“Bamboo Blade”, “Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai”, “Onegai Teacher!”) and art direction by Hiromasa Ogura (“Jin-Roh – The Wolf Brigade”, “Ashita no Joe 2″, “Spirited Away”).

The series continues with FUNimation’s more mature-themed anime series along with “Sekirei: Pure Engagement”, “Rosario+Vampire”, “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” featuring perverse humor, fan service and sexual themes.

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property” focuses on a young high school teenager named Tomoki Sakurai, a perverted young man (who was influenced by his equally perverted grandfather) who has panties and sexual things that are constantly on his mind.  And if there is one girl he occasionally likes to check out, it’s his neighbor and childhood friend Sohara Mitsuki.  Who is aware of Tomoki’s perverseness and is unafraid to give him her special karate shop and knock some sense into him.

Despite how she tends to dislike his perverseness and constantly beats him up, she knows deep inside that she is in love with him. Sohara is also aware that for some reason, Tomoki has had some unusual dreams involving an angel which tends to awaken him like a nightmare since he was young.

Meanwhile, with the start of a new school year… Tomoki meets Eishiro Sugata, a scientist who is trying to discover a “New World” and his friend Mikako Satsukitane, a buxom sadist who has a mafia background and is also the Student Body President.

One day, while Tomoki was outside, he sees something in the sky, a UMA (Unidentified Mysterious Animal) and she happens to crash land on Earth.  The UMA reveals herself as Ikaros, a “Pet-Class Angeloid, Type Alpha” and together, the two are bonded by an invisible chain and Tomoki becomes her master.

In the beginning, Ikaros is an emotionless individual and because she is bonded to him and goes wherever he goes, it becomes somewhat of an annoyance for Tomoki, but at the same time, he realizes that with her abilities, it can help him make his perverted dreams come true.

Eventually, Sohara, Eishiro and Mikako learn about Ikaros and the two young women try to help Ikaros learn about how humans behave, while Eishiro tries to learn more about her programming and why she was sent to Earth, especially why she chose Tomoki.  And in order to keep the activities of Ikaros private, they join Eishiro’s “New World Discovery Club” to see if Ikaros may have some tie to this new world of Angeloids and Synapse that Eishiro is currently researching.

Meanwhile, another Angeloid has appeared on Earth, and her name is Nymph, an “Electronic Warfare Angeloid, Type Beta” who can’t stand humans and is sent to Earth to confront Ikaros. But similar to Ikaros, the more time she spends with Tomoki and friends, she gets to learn about human-kindness and what a nice master that Ikaros has.  Unlike Nymph, her master  (Master of Synapse) is abusive, maniacal and evil…but because she is tied to him, she will do as he wishes.

It is then revealed after a confrontation between Ikaros and Nymph that she was sent by the sadistic leader “Master of Synapse” to possibly destroy human-kind, something Ikaros does not want to do…especially now that she has started to discover newfound emotions…love for Tomoki.  But not just Ikaros, but also Nymph as she wishes more and more each day that she had someone like Tomoki as her master.

As the Master of Synapse plans his scheme against humanity, will Ikaros and Nymph follow his evil orders?  Or will they follow their heart and emotions which they have become aware of because of Tomoki?

VIDEO:

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ is presented in 1:78:1 and one has to remember that this is a TV series not an OVA or film, so production is standard for what you would expected for a television anime series.  But I have to admit that this series does offer a bit more when it comes to detail and shading.  The fact that there are so many locations featured, the characters are featured in various outfits, hanging out all over town and the artistic backgrounds are well-painted.  For the most part, this anime series is well-animated.

Also, there is a good amount of lighting effects, especially when featuring the Angeloid’s in battle or Ikaros wings come out.  If anything, I found “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ to be a series that looks better than most anime TV series and AIC A.S.T.A. did a pretty good job with it!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ is presented in Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese DolbyTrue HD 2.0.  It’s important to note that despite me typically watching anime series in Japanese, I chose to watch this series with an English dub, primarily for the dynamic range of the lossless 5.1 soundtrack but mostly because FUNimation Entertainment really enhanced the perverseness of the series through its dialogue.  From Tomoki’s lyrics for his hard nips song to Nohara joking around with Tomoki of sniffing her underwear, there is this boldness when it comes to perverse dialogue than the Japanese version.  It’s much calmer than extreme and because of that, it worked for the English dub.

Dialogue for the most part was crystal clear as was special effects, but I didn’t notice too many use of the surround channels until you reach the confrontation between Ikaros and Nymph and what takes place at the end of the first season.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

It’s important to note that while “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ does not sport the FUNimation Entertainment dub voice actors audio commentary (which I was hoping to hear), we do get many of the textless ending theme songs.  But this is probably what I enjoyed with every episode, the voice talent singing songs via anime theme songs from the ’70s, ’80′s and modern-style themes.  For anyone who has watched classic anime, will definitely enjoy the different ending themes featured in this series.

• Textless Opening Song: “Ring My Bell”
• Textless Closing Song: “Soba Ni Irareru Dake De”
• Textless Closing Song: “Misaki Meguri”
• Textless Closing Song: “Taiyou Ga Kureta Kisetsu”
• Textless Closing Song: “Senshi No Kyusoku”
• Textless Closing Song: “Yukei Yukei Kawaguchi Hiroshi”
• Textless Closing Song: “Natsuiro No Nanshii”
• Textless Closing Song: “Furimuku Na Kimi Wa Utsukishii”
• Textless Closing Song: “Wild Seven”
• Textless Closing Song: “Hatsukoi”
• Textless Closing Song: “Bokura No Daiarii”
• Textless Closing Song “Champion”
• Textless Closing Song “Akai Hana Shiroi Hana”
• Textless Closing Song: “Haru Ichiban”
• Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment trailers
  

Intriguingly perverse, reminiscent of “Urusei Yatsura” and “Chobits”, “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property” is an anime series that will appeal to harem anime series fans, especially those who love fan service.

It’s actually an interesting month for FUNimation Entertainment as there have been quite a few of these mature anime series with sexual themes, but with series such as “Sekirei: Pure Engagement” and even “Rosario + Vampire”, the male protagonist is typically reserved and not much of a pervert.  But with “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property”, the character of Tomoki is a total pervert constantly thinking about panties and what FUNimation Entertainment has done, especially with the English dub is further enhance the perversion.

While the series tends to focus on Ikaros trying to become more human and obviously developing feelings towards her master, part of the absurdity and perverted comedy is Tomoki’s way of using both Ikaros and Nymph to make his perverted dreams come true.

For example, when Tomoki wishes that Nohara would stop wearing her teddy bear panties, Ikaros uses her magic to make Nohara wear no panties at all (when panties are rejected, they fly out the window like a bird) because she wants to make her master’s dreams come true.  So, one episode focuses on the group trying to find panties that Tomoki can wear, while Nohara tries her best not to let Tomoki see her naked.

Another episode features Tomoki using the angeloid’s magical cards by changing his physical form to a woman, so he can enter the public baths and give Sohara and Mikako a scrub while they are naked.

And of course, being the perverted guy he is, when Ikaros and Nymph discover his stash of naughty videos, they start wondering if that is how women should be acting towards men.

So, make no doubt about it, this sci-fi harem anime series is perverted and full of sexual themes but its important to note that there is no full frontal nudity or intercourse or anything like that.  Private parts are covered by hair (or some cloud) and if anything, the series is more comedy-driven through Tomoki’s behavior and of course, the harem element as we know that Nohara, Ikaros and Nymph are falling for Tomoki.

As mentioned, the series does have some of that “Urusei Yatsura” craziness but also the “Chobits” style of an angeloid who acts almost like an emotionless android but overtime, her emotions start to come into play through more exposure to Tomoki and friends.

So, while the majority of the series does feature more lighthearted to crazy, wacky plots…it does get a bit serious and emotional towards the end.

As for the Blu-ray release, picture quality is good but it’s a TV Series and one should not expect anything near OVA or film quality.  The lossless audio is good but it’s the English dub that actually makes this series even more perverse and for special features, while no audio commentary, you do get plenty of ending themes.

Overall, “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ was a fun, perverse anime series.  There is no doubt that this will surely entertain anime fans who enjoy harem anime series especially with that sci-fi element with a bit of raunchiness as well.

If you are into that… then “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property – Season 1″ is for you!

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