Rosario + Vampire Capu2 (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

January 2, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Panties, vampires and monsters…Oh my! If you are into anime harem series that are slightly perverted, full of action and all-out fun…”Rosario + Vampire Capu2″ is for you!

DVD TITLE: Rosario + Vampire Capu2

ANIME SERIES AIR DATE: 2008

DURATION: Episodes 1-13

DVD INFORMATION: 16:9, Bilingual Japanese & English, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: 17+

Release Date: December 20, 2011

Originally created by Akihisa Ikeda

Directed by Hiroshi Yamaguchi

Screenplay by Hiroshi Yamaguchi, Ritsuko Hayasaka

Music by Kouhei Tanaka, Shiroh Hamaguchi

Character Design by Mariko Fujita

Art Director: Shigemi Ikeda

Chief Animation Director: Satoru Kiyomaru

Mechanical Design by Hiroyuki Kanbe

Sound Director: Takeshi Takadera

Director of Photography: Ayumi Ushijima

Anime Production: Gonzo

Featuring the following voice talent

Daisuke Kishio/Todd Haberkorn as Tsukune Aono

Nana Mizuki/Alexis Tipton as Moka Akashiya

Colleen Clinkenbeard as Inner Moka Akashiya

Kikuko Inoue/Jamie Marchi as Shizuka Nekonome

Kimiko Koyama/Monica Rial as Yukari Sendō

Misato Fukuen/Brina Palencia as Kurumu Kurono

Rie Kugimiya/Tia Ballard as Mizore Shirayuki

Saeko Chiba/Leah Clark as Rubi Tōjō

Shuuichi Ikeda/Jason Douglas as Kuyou

Takehito Koyasu as Nazo Koumori

Tomokazu Seki as Ginei Morioka

Tsukune, Moka and the rest of the gang return for another year at Yokai Academy – where the supernatural student body rules the school!

Tsukune’s a real slacker in the human world, but in the monster realm he scores an A+ as a high school heartthrob. Keeping up with a hellacious bunch of hot demon girls has its perks, but Moka’s bratty little sister could burst the love bubble. His pain is her pleasure – and if the tart has her way, Tsukune can kiss Moka’s sweet side goodbye. Family values take new meaning when a MILF fight breaks out on campus, too. So forget what you know about home-economics class, because these ghouls gone wild always cook up trouble!

In 2004, mangaka Akihisa Ikeda (creator of the 2002 fantasy series “Kiruto”) created a new series titled “Rosario to Vampire” published in “Weekly Shonen Jump” and lasted from through 2007, followed by a new series titled “Rosario to Vampire Capu2″ which is currently ongoing in Japan.

With the popularity of the manga series, in 2008 a 13-episode anime series was created and ran from January through March. “Rosario to Vampire Capu 2″ followed and aired in Japan from October through December that same year.

The series features anime production from GONZO and is directed by Takayuki Inagaki (“Desert Punk”, “”Indian Summer”, “Jewelpet Sunshine”), series composition by Hiroshi Yamaguchi (“Bastard!!”, “To Heart”, “Gatekeepers”), character design by Mariko Fujita (“Galaxy Angel”) and art direction by Shigemi Ikeda (“Ikki Tousen”, “Gantz”, “Inuyasha”).

And now both seasons of “Rosario+Vampire” (the American title) will be released by FUNimation Entertainment in Dec. 2011.

“Rosario+Vampire” is a harem anime series which focuses on protagonist Tsukune Aono, a normal high school freshman who is unable to get into any private school because of his bad grades. But his parents enroll him into a private school called “Yokai Academy”.

But when Tsukune arrives at his new school, he realizes that it’s a school for monsters disguised as humans and because it’s a top secret school in which humans are not to know about it, if he reveals that he is human and knows about the school, he will be killed.

One day, while thinking about leaving the school, he accidentally runs into a beautiful pink haired girl named Moka Akashiya. Moka turns out to be a sweet vampire and is attracted to the taste of his blood (she takes small nibbles instead of large bites). Moka had lived in the human world at one time and does not like them for some reason. She also wears cross that is fixed upon a collar and can not be removed.

But because she has made friends with Tsukune, she instantly bonds with him, not knowing he is human. And because this normal teenager is able to catch the attention of a beautiful girl at school, others become jealous and one decides to confront Moka of why she would be with a weakling like Tsukune.

And through circumstances, he reveals to Moka that he is actually a human and she is shocked to find out that someone so kind, is a human being. But one day, while trying to defend Moka from a male monster trying to make her be with him, somehow he is able to remove her cross from her collar which activates during a time of need and Moka transforms to a Class S vampire (the most powerful vampire) and the true inner Moka is revealed.

Needless to say, she defeats the male monster and from that point on, both begin to become great friends and fall for each other.

But along the way, other female students (supernatural) also begin to fall for Tsukune and all start to hang out as a group, but at the same time, each girl knows they are rivals in gaining Tsukune’s affection.

In season two, after finding out Tsukune is human but still cares for them despite these monsters not being human at all, each of them cares for Tsukune and wants him as their husband. But in “Rosario + Vampire Capu 2″, it is quite obvious that Tsukune is falling for Moka, but also the interior Moka. And actually, he cares for all the ladies close to him.

But it’s a new school year and Tsukune can’t wait to see Moka and the others. And while hurrying to school, he accidentally runs into a violent, outspoken girl named Kokoa Shuzen and “accidentally” gropes her breast. Needless to say, the first meeting between Tsukune and Kokoa, doesn’t go quite well.

Meanwhile, Tsukune reunites with Moka, Kurumu, Yukari and Mizore. Including their lecherous newspaper president Ginei Morioka and even Ruby Tojo has found various jobs at Yokai Academy.

But just when everything seems to be going well,suddenly, Moka begins receiving threatening letters that some one is out to kill her.

Scared and devastated by the recurring letters, each wonders who may be after her…and we learn the person responsible is Kokoa Shuzen, the girl that Tsukune accidentally ran into but also the half-sister of Moka (interior Moka). Kokoa has been emotionally scarred since her sister left her and she doesn’t understand why her real sister has been locked inside this other Moka. And now, Kokoa has developed this hatred towards Moka, for not letting her sister be free.

“Rosario + Vampire Capu 2″ is a series that focuses on family. As Moka has to deal with her half-sister Kokoa, what happens when she gives internal Moka the chance to be free?

Tsukune has to deal with his mother who has found out that he has become popular with a few girls at Yokai Academy, his cousin Kyoko who saw Tsukune’s friends fight with their supernatural powers and now wants to find out what kind of school that Tsukune is attending.

Also, we meet Mizore’s mother Tsurara Shirayuki and Kurumu’s mother Ageha Kurono and find out that like their daughters, these two were rivals in high school over a guy (who happens to be Yukari’s father). But this time, both mothers insist in having their daughter win the affections of Tsukune.

The main characters of “Rosario + Vampire” are:

Tsukune Aono – The main protagonist. A normal human teenager who is mistakenly enrolled into Yokai Academy. Because it is illegal for humans to attend a high school for the supernatural/monsters, Tsukune tries to keep his human existence a secret (only Moka knows he is a human). He really cares for Moka, but also cares for his other friends and tries to protect them. And because he is courageous and willing to befriend them, these female characters fall for him.
Moka Akashiya – The first student that Tsukune befriends. She is a sweet and kind vampire with a rosario (cross) attached to her collar. It is sealed and no one can remove it but when things get tough, Tsukune is the only person can break off the rosario and reveal the cold “inner” Moka who is an S-Class monster. She cares for Tsukune deeply and loves the taste of his blood.
Kurumu Kurono – She is a succubus who sees Moka as a rival because of the attention she gets from guys. Kurumu also has G-cup breasts that she tries to seduce Tsukune with and can use her hypnotizing spell on males. She chooses Tsukune to be the guy she will try to win over and marry.
Yukari Sendo – The smartest student of Yokai Academy at young at age 11. She is a witch and because witches are seen as half human, she is discriminated against by her fellow schoolmates and has moved school to school because she didn’t not get along with anyone. But because both Tsukune and Moka accepted her and want to be friends with her, she has interests in both Moka and Tsukune.
Mizora Shirayuki - A depressed girl with freezing supernatural powers. Because Tsukune became friends with her, she became infatuated with him. She is known to be quiet and always sucking a lollipop.
Ginei Morioka – A werewolf and the president of the Newspaper Club. He is also a mega pervert and tried to get Tsukune in trouble at one time. But despite his pervertedness, he has helped the group at times when they are in a bind.
Kokoa Shuzen – Moka Akashiya’s half sister and often angry. She loves her sister to death and despises the current Moka where her sister is sealed inside. She is often seen talking to her pet bats.
Ruby Tojo – Introduced as a rival in the first season, she is now working at Yokai Academy under Mikogami but the truth is that she does so, because of her hidden infatuation with Tsukune.

Here is a basic spoilerless summary of each episode included on the two DVD’s of “Rosario+Vampire Capu2″:

DISC 1

EPISODE 1 – Tsukune returns for his second year at Yokai Academy but finds out someone has been threatening Moka
EPISODE 2 – Moka reveals that the person sending her threatening letters is her sister Kokoa Shuzen.
EPISODE 3 - It’s Parents’ Day at Yokai Academy and both Mizora and Kurumu have lied to their parents that Tsukune is their boyfriend. But the daughters don’t know that their mothers were also friends/rivals back in high school.
EPISODE 4 – Yukari is sad that she doesn’t have big breasts like her friends and goes to the school nurse, to make her an adult.
EPISODE 5 – The young ladies try to win Tsukune’s affection by cooking curry for him.
EPISODE 6 - A school trip to the human world but the “Alliance” takes Tsukune as their hostage and they will only release him if Kurumu, Mizore and Yukari defeat them.
EPISODE 7 – Tsukune pays his mother a visit, but all the other girls secretly pay him a visit at his mom’s place as well.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 8 - Ruby makes a new rule at Yokai Academy requiring the Moka and friends to wear long skirts.
EPISODE 9 – Tsukune and friends visit a ski resort in the human world, and learn that is run by Mizore’s mother Tsurara. And once again, mother tries to get Mizore closer to Tsukune.
EPISODE 10 – A new transfer student named Kotaro Ijuin joins Yokai Academy and uses his hypnotizing charms on all female students including Moka and friends.
EPISODE 11 – Kyoko has decided to investigate Yokai Academy but in the process, she runs into Kokoa and both have identical parcels and Kyoko ends up with the Lilith Mirror that will turn monsters disguised as humans, into their true form.
EPISODE 12 – Moka sacrficies her life by using her seal to stop the human/yokai worlds from crumbling. But now she has gicen her life and is replaced by inner Moka. How will Tsukune deal with the Moka he knew…gone.
EPISODE 13 – With news that Tsukune can help free Outer Moka, he goes to the castle to confront the Dark Lord.

VIDEO:

“Rosario + Vampire Capu2″ is presented in 16:9 widescreen. As one would expect from a TV series, the picture quality on DVD is soft and there is more detail that can be seen on the art backgrounds which are well-painted. Character designs are good at times, while not as detailed for far shots, close-ups look good and there is good shading on the clothes and hair of the characters . But overall, the picture quality looks good on DVD and the fact that locations are constantly changing for the series, there is a good amount of background scenery used.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Rosario + Vampire Capu2″ is presented in English 5.1 surround and Japanese stereo. While the Japanese voice acting is very good, I found myself watching the English dub quite a bit because of the better spatial use of audio. The voice acting for the English dub is well-done and for the most part, fans of the series should enjoy both soundtracks. While those with home theater systems may prefer the English 5.1 for the better use of channels, you can also set your receiver to output stereo on all channels for the Japanese track for a more immersive soundtrack.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Rosario + Vampire Capu2″ comes with the following special features:

DISC 2

Textless Opening Song – DISCOTEQUE
Textless Closing Song – Trinity Cross
Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment trailres

Like the original “Rosario + Vampire”, the second season returns with more crazy fun with this anime series with plenty of panty shots, jiggly boobs and monster action!

This time around, the storyline is more of a family affair as we watch stories that involve Moka’s half-sister Kokoa, Mizore and Kurumu’s parents and also Tsukune’s relatives as well. And this is quite interesting because I mentioned of how the first season, “Rosario + Vampire” didn’t break anything new to the harem anime series aside from its characters going to a monster high school but with Tsukune being the lone human.

But what the second season does is try to show how much more complex things have gotten, now that family members have gotten involved in the lives of Tsukune and his lady friends. With outer Moka, we know that she feels sad for Kokoa because inner Moka is sealed within her. We know that Kurumu and Mizore’s parents want their daughter to win, in an extension of their own rivalry back in high school, both mothers wanting their daughters to become victors in winning Tsukune’s affection.

In some way, I was expecting the typical banal storyline of more female characters falling for Tsukune but instead, Akihisa Ikeda kept the storyline within these main female characters and instead of building problems of additional female admirers, instead…he brings in the family to cause problems. So, that’s a pretty interesting take on this harem anime series.

And as far as fan service, just like the first season…plenty of panty shots for the lonely otaku who loves fan service, including a few scenes of nudity as well. So, older siblings or people with kids, this is not a series to watch around the little ones.

While the majority of all episodes are upbeat, similar to the first season, with the secnd season finale, we do get a somewhat deeper storyline as Tsukune will go out of his way to save outer Moka.

As for DVD release of “Rosario + Vampire Capu2″, I was hoping to listen to audio commentary from FUNimation Entertainment aside from the typical textless opening and closing theme being the sole special feature. And the picture quality for the series, it’s good for DVD but because it is soft at times, not sure if this series would be upgraded and released in the near future on Blu-ray.

Overall, “Rosario + Vampire Capu2″ was an anime series that I enjoyed! I love watching these frienemy/rival type of anime series that are built upon miscommunication or pretty much everyone wanting their moment with Tsukune. Granted, the series is a bit perverted with all the panty shots and as mentioned, there is nudity in this sequel. But if you are an anime fan craving for something a bit perverse, crazy but also a series that is full of action, you can’t go wrong with “Rosario + Vampire Capu2″!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Rosario + Vampire: Season One (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

December 23, 2011 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

If you are an anime fan craving for something a bit perverse, crazy but also a series that is full of action, you can’t go wrong with “Rosario + Vampire”!

DVD TITLE: Rosario + Vampire: Season One

DURATION: Episodes 1-13

DVD INFORMATION: 16:9, Bilingual Japanese & English, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: 17+

Release Date: December 20, 2011

Originally created by Akihisa Ikeda

Directed by Hiroshi Yamaguchi

Screenplay by Hiroshi Yamaguchi, Ritsuko Hayasaka

Music by Kouhei Tanaka, Shiroh Hamaguchi

Character Design by Mariko Fujita

Art Director: Shigemi Ikeda

Chief Animation Director: Satoru Kiyomaru

Mechanical Design by Hiroyuki Kanbe

Sound Director: Takeshi Takadera

Director of Photography: Ayumi Ushijima

Anime Production: Gonzo

Featuring the following voice talent

Daisuke Kishio/Todd Haberkorn as Tsukune Aono

Nana Mizuki/Alexis Tipton as Moka Akashiya

Colleen Clinkenbeard as Inner Moka Akashiya

Kikuko Inoue/Jamie Marchi as Shizuka Nekonome

Kimiko Koyama/Monica Rial as Yukari Sendō

Misato Fukuen/Brina Palencia as Kurumu Kurono

Rie Kugimiya/Tia Ballard as Mizore Shirayuki

Saeko Chiba/Leah Clark as Rubi Tōjō

Shuuichi Ikeda/Jason Douglas as Kuyou

Takehito Koyasu as Nazo Koumori

Tomokazu Seki as Ginei Morioka

Tsukune looks to be a typical high school student, but his grades are bad to the bone. Rejected by school after school, he finally gets accepted by an academy that’s more than a little out of his neighborhood. Unfortunately, it’s a school for monsters and Tsukune is the lone human! While forced to hide his secret, along comes a cute – but hungry – vampire girl named Moka. Beneath her cute and clumsy exterior, she too is not exactly as she seems…

With the popularity of the manga series, in 2008 a 13-episode anime series was created and ran from January through March. A second season followed and aired in Japan from October through December that same year.

And now both seasons of “Rosario+Vampire” (the American title) will be released by FUNimation Entertainment in Dec. 2011.

Needless to say, she defeats the male monster and from that point on, both begin to become great friends and fall for each other.

The main characters of “Rosario + Vampire” are:

Tsukune Aono – The main protagonist. A normal human teenager who is mistakenly enrolled into Yokai Academy. Because it is illegal for humans to attend a high school for the supernatural/monsters, Tsukune tries to keep his human existence a secret (only Moka knows he is a human). He really cares for Moka, but also cares for his other friends and tries to protect them. And because he is courageous and willing to befriend them, these female characters fall for him.
Moka Akashiya – The first student that Tsukune befriends. She is a sweet and kind vampire with a rosario (cross) attached to her collar. It is sealed and no one can remove it but when things get tough, Tsukune is the only person can break off the rosario and reveal the cold “inner” Moka who is an S-Class monster. She cares for Tsukune deeply and loves the taste of his blood.
Kurumu Kurono – She is a succubus who sees Moka as a rival because of the attention she gets from guys. Kurumu also has G-cup breasts that she tries to seduce Tsukune with and can use her hypnotizing spell on males. She chooses Tsukune to be the guy she will try to win over and marry.
Yukari Sendo – The smartest student of Yokai Academy at young at age 11. She is a witch and because witches are seen as half human, she is discriminated against by her fellow schoolmates and has moved school to school because she didn’t not get along with anyone. But because both Tsukune and Moka accepted her and want to be friends with her, she has interests in both Moka and Tsukune.
Mizora Shirayuki - A depressed girl with freezing supernatural powers. Because Tsukune became friends with her, she became infatuated with him. She is known to be quiet and always sucking a lollipop.
Ginei Morioka – A werewolf and the president of the Newspaper Club. He is also a mega pervert and tried to get Tsukune in trouble at one time. But despite his pervertedness, he has helped the group at times when they are in a bind.

Here is a basic spoilerless summary of each episode included on the two DVD’s of “Rosario+Vampire: Season One”:

DISC 1

EPISODE 1 – Tsukune Aono meets Moka Akashiya for the first time.
EPISODE 2 – A succubus named Kurumu Kurono tries to beat her rival Moka by getting close to Tsukune.
EPISODE 3 - Tsukune, Moka and Kurumu meet a troublesome young witch named Yukari Sendo.
EPISODE 4 – Three fanboys are upset that Tsukune is getting all the attention from the hot girls at school and now they want him dead.
EPISODE 5 – The students must choose an activity and Tsukune considers joining the swim club (but water drains the powers of vampires, so Moka is reluctant in joining).
EPISODE 6 - Tsukune along with Moka, Kurumu and Yukari join the Newspaper club and meet the president Ginei Morioka, a high class pervert who tries to pin his pervertedness on Tsukune.
EPISODE 7 – Tsukune and friends meet a depressed girl named Mizore Shirayuki.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 8 - Tsukune is failing in math and his teacher Ririko Kagome tries to take things into her own hands in teaching Tsukune math.
EPISODE 9 – The Newspaper Club takes a field trip to the human world. Meanwhile, Yukari encounters a witch named Ruby Tojo.
EPISODE 10 – Ruby has second thoughts about Tsukune and friends.
EPISODE 11 – The Newspaper Club is working on a story to show the Public Safety Committee’s corruptness at Yokai Academy.
EPISODE 12 – When the attempts by the Newspaper Club to collect evidence on the PSC’s corruption, Tsukune is under arrest for suspicion of being human.
EPISODE 13 – Tsukune is sentenced to execution for being human.

VIDEO:

“Rosario + Vampire” is presented in 16:9 widescreen. As one would expect from a TV series, the picture quality on DVD is soft and there is more detail that can be seen on the art backgrounds which are well-painted. Character designs are good at times, while not as detailed for far shots, close-ups look good and there is good shading on the clothes and hair of the characters . But overall, the picture quality looks good on DVD and the fact that locations are constantly changing for the series, there is a good amount of background scenery used.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Rosario + Vampire” is presented in English 5.1 surround and Japanese stereo. While the Japanese voice acting is very good, I found myself watching the English dub quite a bit because of the better spatial use of audio. The voice acting for the English dub is well-done and for the most part, fans of the series should enjoy both soundtracks. While those with home theater systems may prefer the English 5.1 for the better use of channels, you can also set your receiver to output stereo on all channels for the Japanese track for a more immersive soundtrack.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Rosario + Vampire: Season One” comes with the following special features:

DISC 2

Textless Closing Song – Dancing in the Velvet Moon
Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment trailres

“Rosario + Vampire” is a harem anime series which is fun, a bit perverse and features a good amount of action and fan service!

While “Rosario + Vampire” does fit into the banality of harem anime series, with the world’s fascination towards vampire films and television series, “Rosario + Vampire” being adapted into an anime series was good timing and while the series does feature a female vampire and a human male (which is the opposite of many TV series and movies featuring vampire and human relationships), the positives that I have found of the series is that the characters are fun to watch, each have their own distinct styles (considering one is a vampire, one is a succubus, one is a witch and the other is some snow entity) and also you get the mix of fan service that will surely attract fan who can’t get enough of perverted situations.

And of course, it helps to have fan service and action in perfect balance and “Rosario + Vampire” does provide both.

Despite having a series being featured on the main protagonist attending a school full of monsters and supernatural beings, “Rosario + Vampire”, while not adding anything new to anime harem series, I did enjoy the series because of its underdog mentality. Tsukune is not exactly the bravest of people, but somehow he respects his friendships and in turn, because he does step into to protect those he cares about, we get to see female characters who become attracted to him and thus everyone wanting to be with him.

While the majority of all episodes are upbeat, you do get an emotional season finale which was definitely entertaining!

While I’m not sure if mangaka Akihisa Ikeda provided a final definitive storyline as the manga series is still ongoing in Japan, the first volume does play it safe by focusing on the adventures of Tsukune and friends as they take on various supernatural beings/monsters and eventually get more deep into their newspaper club which leads to a season finale which is to be expected.

As for the first season of “Rosario + Vampire”, I was hoping to listen to audio commentary from FUNimation Entertainment aside from the single textless ending theme being the sole special feature. And the picture quality for the series, it’s good for DVD but because it is soft at times, not sure if this series would be upgraded and released in the near future on Blu-ray.

Overall, “Rosario + Vampire: Season One” was an anime series that I enjoyed! I’m used to watching harem anime series and for the most part, the rivalry and the camaraderie that comes with these anime series is similar what you would find on “Rosario + Vampire”, but I will say that having something take place at a school of monsters is rather intriguing. And once again, those who love fan service and action-themed anime series will definitely enjoy “Rosario + Vampire”.

If you are an anime fan craving for something a bit perverse, crazy but also a series that is full of action, you can’t go wrong with “Rosario + Vampire”!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

November 3, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

This budget-priced OVA set features two episodes which should be watched after you have seen the entire TV series. So, if you enjoyed all 24-episodes of “Linebarrels of Iron”, then definitely pick this DVD up. Otherwise, on its own, it’s an OK release that is more for the fans, especially since it features more fan service.

DVD TITLE: Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection

DURATION: 2 episodes (50 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: Language: English 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound, Japanese Stereo, English Subtitles

COMPANY: Gonzo/FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV MA

Release Date: October 5, 2010

Based on the manga series “Kurogane no Linebarrel” by Eiichi Shimizu, Tomohiro Shimoguchi

Directed by Masayuki Kojima

Series Composition by Kiyoko Yoshimura

Screenplay by Kiyoko Yoshimura, Shigeru Morita

Music by Conisch

Character Design by Hisashi Hirai

Chief Animation Director: Hisashi Hirai

Mecha Design by Tsutomo Suzuki

Sound Director by Masafumi Mitsuma

Featuring the following voice talent:

Mamiko Noto/Alexis Tipton as Emi Kizaki

Tetsuya Kakihara/Josh Grelle as Kōichi Hayase

Aya Hirano/Monica Rial as Miu Kujou

Chiwa Saito/Tia Ballard as Rachel Calvin

Emi Shinohara/Michele Specht as Yurianne Faithful

Gô Shinomiya/Joel McDonald as Hideaki Yajima

Hirofumi Nojima/Ian Sinclair as Sobi Nakajima

Jun Fukuyama/Todd Haberkorn as Hisataka Katō

Jun Konno/Jerry Jewell as Makoto Doumyouji

Kana Ueda/Cherami Leigh as Shizuna Endō

Masako Joh/Cynthia Cranz as Chisato Hayase

Miyuki Sawashiro/Mary Morgan as Satoru Yamashita

Noriko Shitaya/Carrie Savage as Risako Niiyama

Rie Kugimiya/Aaron Dismuke as Izuna Endō

Yoshikazu Sato/Bob Carter as Jack Smith

Yuuichi Nakamura/J. Michael Tatum as Reiji Moritsugu

Rachel Calvin, a young American genius, has a hard time reaching JUDA headquarters after wild animals eat her map and a bulldozer crushes her credit card. Upon finally arriving at her destination, she stumbles upon scenes of debauchery that will leave her glasses foggy for days!

And that’s just the beginning! See more of your favorite characters than ever before as the JUDA crew slips out of their uniforms and into their swimsuits for a trip to the beach!

In 2004, the manga series “Kurogane no Linebarrel” (Linebarrels of Iron) was created by Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shimoguchi. The manga was first serialized in Akita Shoten’s monthly shonen manga magazine “Champion Red” and in 2008, received its anime adaptation featuring a total of 24-episodes which ended in March 2009.

The anime series is directed by Masamitsu Hidaka (known for his directorial work on various “Pokemon” series and films), series composition by Kiyoko Yoshimura (“Chocolate Underground”, “Dogs: Bullets & Carnage”) and Shigeru Morita (“Mobile Suit Gundam Seed”, “Seikon no Qwaser”). Character design for the series is by Hisashi Hirai (“Mobile Suit Gundam Seed”, “Sokyu no Fafner”, “Infinite Ryvius”, “Heroic Age”), mecha design by Tsutomu Suzuki (“Zone of Enders”, Kurokami the Animation”, “Bokurano”) and music by Conisch (“Hitohira”, “Hipira: The Little Vampire”). “Linebarrles of Iron” is animated by Gonzo.

“Linebarrels of Iron” is a story about Kouichi Hayashi, a teenager who is often bullied. He always dreams that his purpose in life is to be an ally of justice but he is often picked on and bullied in front of his childhood friend and the girl he cares about Risako Niyama. Things get so bad that often she tries to defend him and when things get tough, his friend Hideaki Yajima is always there to protect them.

One day, Kouichi is bullied by three people who force him to get their lunch, which Kouichi agrees to and infuriates Risako. He tells her that he believes he has a hidden, latent power to become an ally of justice but of course, his two friends don’t believe it and try to tell him to fight back. Meanwhile, an object called “Linebarrel” is heading towards the planet Earth.

When Kouchi is arriving back to school after getting the bullies their food, he sees the object going straight down on him. When Kouchi awakens, he sees a big giant mecha robot in front of him and right next to him, a naked girl. He brings the girl, who doesn’t remember who she is to his home to get some clothes. But while they are talking, three mecha show up in the area. They belong to the Katou Organization and start destroying parts of the city.

The girl, Emi Kizaki immediately remembers that those mecha are the enemy and the military with their mecha start to protect the city and fight against the enemy. Both Kouichi and Emi are stuck in the neighborhood with no chance to escape but his friend Yajima finds them and tries to save them. Kouichi who has had enough of people trying to protect him, gets upset and punches the wall and ends up breaking the wall. Emi then remembers and tells him that he has power and must call the power of Linebarrel. Immediately a light surrounds both Koichi and Emi and he awakens and calls a huge machina named Linebarrel to appear.

We then see a more confident Kouichi with special abilities and Kouichi believes that this latent power to become the ally of justice has finally awakened, when the truth is that on the day the object fell on him, he died but Emi saved his life by having Linebarrel choose him for a factor. He now has special abilities and has been given a second life which is tied to the life of the mecha. But the problem with Kouichi is that the power has gotten to his head, his idea that he’s the ally of justice makes him feel that he is the most powerful being and doesn’t understand humility. All he cares is people recognizing his power and wanting to exact revenge on those who hurt him.

But eventually, he’ll learn a big lesson when someone close to him dies and knows he has a major responsibility by having this newfound power.

In “Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection”, there are two OVA episodes. One focuses on how Rachel Calvin came to join JUDA and the second episode featuring the group taking a break and being attacked by a group of Linebarrels. Who is behind this mysterious group of Linebarrels?

“Linebarrels of Iron” is a series that pits two organizations against each other. The good guys are known as JUDA while the bad guys are known as the Katou Organization.

JUDA consists of:

Kouichi Hayase - The main character who goes from the weak teenager constantly being bullied to a boy who controls the powerful machina known as Linebarrel. He was killed on the day Linebarrel crashed into him and shares his life with Linebarrel. Linebarrel has now given him power and also power to automatically restore his body. But because Kouichi is somewhat unstable with his emotions and his belief that he is the ally of justice, his ego tends to get into his head at times. But throughout the series, we see him grow as an individual and becomes protective over the people he cares about, including the girls of JUDA who suddenly start taking a liking towards him.
Emi Kizaki – Emi was supposed to be the initial factor (pilot) of Linebarrel. She is a mysterious member of JUDA because she came from another dimension. She tends to be hard on Kouichi but at the same time cares for him. But she gets very angry when she thinks Kouichi is always trying to see her nude.
Reiji Moritsugu – The Chief of the Special Task Force at JUDA. He is a calm but cold person who seems to be impervious of pain. He and Kouchi often get into squabbles because of their sense of dealing with justice.
Satoru Yamashita – (the blonde factor at JUDA) A subordinate of Reiji and also obsessed with him. Also serious but can be cheerful. She pilots the machina known as Hind-Kind.
Shizuna Endo – One of the twins of JUDA, She is very loud and always screaming and hurting Koichi but you can tell she has feelings towards him, especially when Kouichi treats her as a girl and compliments her. She and her brother pilot the machina known as Deceive.
Izuna Endo – One of the twins of JUDA, he is very shy and introverted. His sister Shizuna is more domineering. He pilots the machina Deceive along with his sister.
Miu Kujo – The kindhearted (and well-endowed) member of JUDA. She has a crush on Kouichi after he saved her life. She pilots the machina Painkiller.
Kunio Ishigami - The Chief of JUDA Corporation. A former high-ranking officer of the Katou Organization with many secrets. Also, loves to prank his pilots and have fun.
Yui Ogawa – Ishigami’s secretary and is the more maternal member of JUDA, giving the pilots advice and admonishing her boss for his pranks.
Rachel Calvin – A genius from the US who is the chief of research and development for JUDA. Often gets angry with Kouichi.

The Katou Organization:

Hisataka Katou – The head of the Katou Organization. Cold and calm, his goal is world conquest with bloodshed. He is the pilot of the massive mecha known as Shangri-La.
Masaki Sugwara – The right hand man of Katou. The First Division Captain who is mysterious and sports a cowboy outfit and long hair with no emotions. Pilots the second largest Machina known as Glein-Neidr.
Takuro Sawatari – The Fourth Division Captain of the Katou Organization. Violent and brutal and wants to destroy Linebarrel. He pilots the Arma Idaten.
Dimitri Magarov – Third Division Captain and a creepy looking man who pilots the Arma, Kagutsuchi.
Yurianne Faithful - The Seventh Division Captain. An attractive redhead who pilots the Arma Tsubaki-Hime.
Riku Ousei - The Eighth Division Captain who is very obese and a psychopath. Pilots the Arma Yaoyorozu.
Jack Smith – The Sixth Division Captain – A human with a power of the Arma, doesn’t pilot any mecha and follows the code of honor in combat.

“Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection” comes with a total of 2 OVA episodes on one DVD. Here is a basic, spoilerless summary of each episode:

EPISODE 1 – Pretty Girl Genius Scientist Rachel – There are two parts in this first episode. The first part is a prologue of how the young American genius Rachel Calvert came to join JUDA and become their chief of research and development. The second part features Rachel broadcasting a show on her new co-workers of JUDA.
EPISODE 2 – Shadows of Iron - The JUDA team are on a break but suddenly the are attacked by a group of Linebarrels. Who is responsible for them?

VIDEO:

“Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection” definitely looks better than its TV counterpart. More artistic backgrounds, more lighting, more shading and more detail are featured on the OVA episodes. For the first OVA, we see a Rachel Calvin visiting a variety of locations and the fact that this is an OVA and not a TV episode that has a much more strict deadline, there is more effort put into the overall artistic backgrounds and more locations are featured.

Meanwhile, the second episode features much more mecha action and great battles between Moritsugu and the other Linebarrels. Also, a much more emphasis on the the female characters bosom it seems. So, if anything, its quite evident that the OVA episodes are geared for the men because there is quite a bit of fan-service in these two episodes.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

Audio for “Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection” is presented in English 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound and Japanese Stereo. Both voice acting for the English and Japanese are well done. The English dub is very well done and was quite pleased with the amount of action and sound effects. Good use of surround channels and good punchy bass for booms from the subwoofer. I definitely would love to hear this soundtrack ala lossless audio if brought to Blu-ray. But for the most part, English dub soundtrack is well done and more immersive. Japanese soundtrack is very good but only in stereo but if you have a home theater receiver capable of setting audio on all channels, it definitely makes the soundtrack much more immersive.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection” comes with the following special features:

Textless Opening Song – (1:47) Opening theme song by JAM Project.
Textless Closing Song – (1:35) The ending theme by Maaya Sakamoto.
Trailers - FUNimation Entertainment trailers

“Linebarrels of Iron” is a pretty cool mecha, harem anime TV series and I definitely recommend both DVD volumes currently available from FUNimation Entertainment.

But what makes me scratch my head is the fact that these two episodes were not included in part 2 of the “Linebarrels of Iron” TV series because these are two short episodes that could have easily been put on the part two DVD (which FUNImation Entertainment usually does). But because there are only two episodes on a single DVD, this anime release is budget-priced.

The first episode is Rachel Calvin driven, and while Rachel is known as the feisty young American genius, not really too sure why she got her own episode but for fans of the series, it is a welcome addition since we don’t know too much about her.

But the second episode is where the action’s at and the way it ends, it ends in a cliffhanger and makes you wonder if there will be a continuing TV series or OVA release to continue this storyline.

The only reason why I think that these two OVA’s were not included in PART 2 of the “Linebarrels of Iron” TV series DVD box set was because these are some fan service that may have needed a different type of rating. For example, the opening sequence tries to make the young Rachel Calvin seem quite sexy. But she’s a young girl and personally, she’s the last person you expected the animators trying to make sexy but I suppose the hardcore otaku fans of the series will probably dig that. And of course, the second episode, definitely a fan service episode with Kizaki and Ritsuko in their teeny bikinis. But that is my opinion of why these episodes were not included on the Part 2 DVD box set.

On it’s own, it’s hard to recommend this OVA to people who have never watched the TV series but if you have, then the fact that this release goes for under $10 is quite enticing and I can see fans of the series definitely purchasing this OVA collection.

Overall, “Linebarrels of Iron: OVA Collection” is more for the fans of the series and by no means are these two episodes meant as a starting point for those curious of “Linebarrels of Iron”. Watch both volumes of the TV series first and then watch this OVA collection.

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Linebarrels of Iron: Part 2 (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

November 3, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

A solid continuation of the mecha anime harem series “Linebarrels of Iron”, the second part of the series features more harem-driven storylines but also a more serious tone as there is more suspense, more death and destruction and more mecha action! Definitely recommended!

DVD TITLE: Linebarrels of Iron: Part 2

DURATION: 13-24 episodes (300 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: Language: English 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound, Japanese Stereo, English Subtitles

COMPANY: Gonzo/FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV MA

Release Date: October 5, 2010

Based on the manga series “Kurogane no Linebarrel” by Eiichi Shimizu, Tomohiro Shimoguchi

Directed by Masayuki Kojima

Series Composition by Kiyoko Yoshimura

Screenplay by Kiyoko Yoshimura, Shigeru Morita

Music by Conisch

Character Design by Hisashi Hirai

Chief Animation Director: Hisashi Hirai

Mecha Design by Tsutomo Suzuki

Sound Director by Masafumi Mitsuma

Featuring the following voice talent:

Mamiko Noto/Alexis Tipton as Emi Kizaki

Tetsuya Kakihara/Josh Grelle as Kōichi Hayase

Aya Hirano/Monica Rial as Miu Kujou

Chiwa Saito/Tia Ballard as Rachel Calvin

Emi Shinohara/Michele Specht as Yurianne Faithful

Gô Shinomiya/Joel McDonald as Hideaki Yajima

Hirofumi Nojima/Ian Sinclair as Sobi Nakajima

Jun Fukuyama/Todd Haberkorn as Hisataka Katō

Jun Konno/Jerry Jewell as Makoto Doumyouji

Kana Ueda/Cherami Leigh as Shizuna Endō

Masako Joh/Cynthia Cranz as Chisato Hayase

Miyuki Sawashiro/Mary Morgan as Satoru Yamashita

Noriko Shitaya/Carrie Savage as Risako Niiyama

Rie Kugimiya/Aaron Dismuke as Izuna Endō

Yoshikazu Sato/Bob Carter as Jack Smith

Yuuichi Nakamura/J. Michael Tatum as Reiji Moritsugu

Kouichi Hayase is everything you never wanted in a hero. He’s a cocky flyboy whose bad attitude and reckless antics endanger everyone around him. Sound like a nightmare? Well, it’s even worse. Thanks to Kouichi’s partnership with the revolutionary Linebarrel mecha, he’s the only one who can save humanity from a deadly race of alien invaders.

With his dream girl missing and his best friend back from the dead, Kouichi must join forces with an unlikely ally to prevent the pulverization of his precious planet. The time is now for Kouichi to prove he has what it takes to become a true “Hero of Justice.”

But eventually, he’ll learn a big lesson when someone close to him dies and knows he has a major responsibility by having this newfound power.

In “Linebarrels of Iron: Part 2″ (episodes 13-24), the episodes take an interesting spin as many of the young women of JUDA start to fall for Kouichi and also, something mysterious is going on when Kouchi’s friend Hideaki who was killed earlier, seems to be back and is alive. Meanwhile, more political turmoil takes place within JUDA when one of their own is killed by the Katou Corporation and just when you think that things are becoming much more difficult for the JUDA Corporation, a new threat has arrived.

“Linebarrels of Iron” is a series that pits two organizations against each other. The good guys are known as JUDA while the bad guys are known as the Katou Organization.

JUDA consists of:

Kouichi Hayase - The main character who goes from the weak teenager constantly being bullied to a boy who controls the powerful machina known as Linebarrel. He was killed on the day Linebarrel crashed into him and shares his life with Linebarrel. Linebarrel has now given him power and also power to automatically restore his body. But because Kouichi is somewhat unstable with his emotions and his belief that he is the ally of justice, his ego tends to get into his head at times. But throughout the series, we see him grow as an individual and becomes protective over the people he cares about, including the girls of JUDA who suddenly start taking a liking towards him.
Emi Kizaki – Emi was supposed to be the initial factor (pilot) of Linebarrel. She is a mysterious member of JUDA because she came from another dimension. She tends to be hard on Kouichi but at the same time cares for him. But she gets very angry when she thinks Kouichi is always trying to see her nude.
Reiji Moritsugu – The Chief of the Special Task Force at JUDA. He is a calm but cold person who seems to be impervious of pain. He and Kouchi often get into squabbles because of their sense of dealing with justice.
Satoru Yamashita – (the blonde factor at JUDA) A subordinate of Reiji and also obsessed with him. Also serious but can be cheerful. She pilots the machina known as Hind-Kind.
Shizuna Endo – One of the twins of JUDA, She is very loud and always screaming and hurting Koichi but you can tell she has feelings towards him, especially when Kouichi treats her as a girl and compliments her. She and her brother pilot the machina known as Deceive.
Izuna Endo – One of the twins of JUDA, he is very shy and introverted. His sister Shizuna is more domineering. He pilots the machina Deceive along with his sister.
Miu Kujo – The kindhearted (and well-endowed) member of JUDA. She has a crush on Kouichi after he saved her life. She pilots the machina Painkiller.
Kunio Ishigami - The Chief of JUDA Corporation. A former high-ranking officer of the Katou Organization with many secrets. Also, loves to prank his pilots and have fun.
Yui Ogawa – Ishigami’s secretary and is the more maternal member of JUDA, giving the pilots advice and admonishing her boss for his pranks.
Rachel Calvin – A genius from the US who is the chief of research and development for JUDA. Often gets angry with Kouichi.

The Katou Organization:

Hisataka Katou – The head of the Katou Organization. Cold and calm, his goal is world conquest with bloodshed. He is the pilot of the massive mecha known as Shangri-La.
Masaki Sugwara – The right hand man of Katou. The First Division Captain who is mysterious and sports a cowboy outfit and long hair with no emotions. Pilots the second largest Machina known as Glein-Neidr.
Takuro Sawatari – The Fourth Division Captain of the Katou Organization. Violent and brutal and wants to destroy Linebarrel. He pilots the Arma Idaten.
Dimitri Magarov – Third Division Captain and a creepy looking man who pilots the Arma, Kagutsuchi.
Yurianne Faithful - The Seventh Division Captain. An attractive redhead who pilots the Arma Tsubaki-Hime.
Riku Ousei - The Eighth Division Captain who is very obese and a psychopath. Pilots the Arma Yaoyorozu.
Jack Smith – The Sixth Division Captain – A human with a power of the Arma, doesn’t pilot any mecha and follows the code of honor in combat.

“Linebarrels of Iron: Part 2″ comes with a total of 24 episodes on two DVD’s. Here is a basic, spoilerless summary of each episode:

DISC 1:

EPISODE 13 – Black Executioner – Whatever happened during their vacation, there is a rift between Kouichi and Kizaki.
EPISODE 14 – Shed is Blood, Lost Are Tears – The secrets of LINEBARREL are revealed, meanwhile a trusted friend at JUDA becomes a traitor and joins the Katou Corporation. A member of JUDA is killed.
EPISODE 15 – Vector – Kouichi and Kizaki are on the run. Meanwhile Kizaki starts to remember memories of her deceased father.
EPISODE 16 – Judgment at Dusk – With Kiriyama and Katou Corporation trying to shutdown JUDA, the JUDA members will not give up!
EPISODE 17 – Mechanical Curse – Yajima returns but somehow Kouichi is not sure how his friend is back alive.
EPISODE 18 – Memento Mori – Yajima wants to know Kizaki’s true feelings towards Kouichi, meanwhile Kouichi goes to an abandoned Russian base in which the Katou Corporation are waiting for him.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 19 – Kight Reaches, Shadow Us Incovered – Masaki who is pilotin gthe GLAIN-NEIDR installs the last sphere. Meanwhile, Kouchi must try to rescue Kizaki.
EPISODE 20 – Man of Destiny – Miu has not been doing so well in battle with PAINKILLER which is unable to advance. Meanwhile the Katou Corporation has set up Spheres throughout the world for a multidimensional invasion. Shizuna and Izuna try to convince the UN to take action.
EPISODE 21 – Wings of Madness – Kouchi and JUDA must hold back the launch of the SPHEREs.
EPISODE 22 – That Wich Devours Demons – Kouichi must take on his nemesis Moritsugu Reiji. Who will win?
EPISODE 23 – The Way of Life Determined by Way of Death – The enemy invasion has begun and Kouchi and team try to defend Earth.
EPISODE 24 – Flowers of Steel – Kouchi reflects on his life, meanwhile Linebarrel shows its true form.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

“Linebarrels of Iron: Part 2” features pretty solid animation. The artistic backgrounds are nicely lighted and shaded. Character designs are also well done and feature the character designs with a lot of shading and featuring the character in a variety of emotions. Also, the series features a lot of mecha. Each pilot on both sides with their own machina and abilities definitely brings in this other element to the series. There is a lot of action featured in “Linebarrels of Iron” and a lot of destruction. GONZO did a spectacular job with the animation and a series that I hope receives the Blu-ray treatment.

Audio is in English 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound and Japanese Stereo. Both voice acting for the English and Japanese are well done. The English dub is very well done and was quite pleased with the amount of action and sound effects. Good use of surround channels and good punchy bass for booms from the subwoofer. I definitely would love to hear this soundtrack ala lossless audio if brought to Blu-ray. But for the most part, English dub soundtrack is well done and more immersive. Japanese soundtrack is very good but only in stereo but if you have a home theater receiver capable of setting audio on all channels, it definitely makes the soundtrack much more immersive.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Linebarrels of Iron: Part 2” comes with the following special features:

DISC 2:

Textless Opening Song – (1:47) Opening theme song by JAM Project.
Textless Closing Song – (1:35) The ending theme by Maaya Sakamoto.
Trailers - FUNimation Entertainment trailers

“Linebarrels of Iron” is enjoyable, action-packed, sexy and mecha driven anime series with a twist.

With the first half of the series, I found it interesting on how the main protagonist was literally mentally unstable and egotistical. This time around, Kouichi has developed confidence and the series starts to shift more to a sci-fi harem series as now various women start to care for him and it was one thing to deal with Kizaki or Ritsuko liking Kouichi but this second half throws more romance at you as Miu starts to fall for Kouichi and somehow its starting to have an effect on the group. But interesting enough, Kouichi is quite oblivious to what is going on.

Also, the second half definitely amps up the action and the series definitely becomes more serious as characters die and literally Kouichi and Kizaki are on the run. Meanwhile, a major threat is about to happen on the planet and chaos starts to reign in on both JUDA and the Katou Corporation.

But part of the allure with “Linebarrels of Iron” is how the episodes are structured, there are no filler episodes. With so many characters featured in this series, there is a good amount of character development and a very good balance of humor and action. And that is what makes “Linebarrels of Iron” so addicting and enjoyable. I really enjoyed this second half of the series and it ends in a pretty solid note.

It is important to note that there are two OVA’s and released on the same date of this second part of the series is the OVA’s for “Linebarrels of Iron”.

As for the DVD, this is a pretty solid release that actually has a good number of special features than just the opening and ending theme songs. Character and mecha design especially the artistic backgrounds are well done. The series is also well-acted both in Japanese and English. Personally, this is one series that I hope FUNimation Entertainment considers for a Blu-ray release. It’s a really fun, action-packed series that I can imagine, will look and sound great via HD.

Overall, both volumes of “Linebarrels of Iron” was exciting to watch and a good amount of mecha action, humor, fan service and more. Definitely recommended!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

September 17, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“Full Metal Panic!” is one of the more popular anime series to be released in the US post-2000 and its a series that has been re-released many times as well. But this is the first time the series has been released on Blu-ray and although this is an older series, this Blu-ray release is for those who want to upgrade to Blu-ray or are simply fans of FMP and want it on HD. Otherwise, for those looking for a true anime on Blu-ray HD experience, this release may not be for you.

TITLE: Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series

DURATION: Episodes 1-24 (600 Minutes)

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

RATED: 13+

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: September 7, 2010

Originally Created by Shoji Gatoh

Directed by Koichi Chigira

Script by Fumihiko Shimo, Koichi Chigira, Masashi Sogo

Music by Toshihiko Sahashi

Original Character Design by Shikidouji

Character Designs by Osamu Horiuchi

Art Direction by Masaru Ohta

Mecha Design by Kanetake Ebikawa, Toshiaki Ihara

Anime Production by GONZO

Featuring the voices of:

Satsuki Yukino/Luci Christian as Kaname Chidori

Tomokazu Seki/Chris Patton as Sousuke Sagara

Yukana/Hilary Haag as Teletha “Tessa” Testarossa

Akio Ohtsuka/Mike Kleinhenz as Lt. Cmdr. Andrey Kalinin

Ikue Kimura/Monica Rial as Kyoko Tokiwa

Mamiko Noto/Greg Ayres as Shinji Kazama

Masahiko Tanaka/Mike Macrae as Gauln (Gauron)

Michiko Neya/Allison Keith as Melissa Mao

Shinichiro Miki/Vic Mignogna as Kurz Weber

Tomomichi Nishimura/Andy McAvin as Cmdr. Richard Mardukas

Kaname Chidori’s one of the most popular girls at her high school – unfortunately, it’s her growing popularity off campus she should be worrying about. Unbeknownst to Kaname, terrorists are plotting her abduction, believing she possesses the rare and coveted abilities of “the Whispered.”

That’s where Sousuke Sagara enters the picture. He’s a hotshot soldier from the clandestine counter-terrorist organization known as Mithril – and he’s going undercover at Kaname’s school to try and keep her safe. He may be an ace in the cockpit of an Arm Slave mech, but there’s no training in the world that could prepare him for the warzone of high school.

In 1998, Shoji Gatoh along with illustrator Shiki Douji began work on the “Full Metal Panic!” light novels. The individual chapters were then published on Monthly Dragon Magazine and then were released via paperback compilation.

By 2006, three anime TV series were created “Full Metal Panic!”, “Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu” and “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid” by Kyoto Animation and a total of five different manga series. With FUNimation Entertainment releasing the third TV series “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid” on Blu-ray, FUNimation is now releasing the first two series on Blu-ray (as well as re-releasing the series on DVD) in Sept. 2010.

The first “Full Metal Panic!” first aired on television back in 2002 and was directed by Koichi Chigira (“Gate Keepers”, “Kimagure Orange Road”, “Tokyo Babylon”, “Vandread”), the screenplay adaptation was co-written by Chigira, Fumihiko Shimo (“Burst Angel”, “Gravion”, “Kanon”, “Prince of Tennis”) and Masashi Sogo (“Bleach”, “RurouniKenshin”, “Shadow Skill”). Music for the series is by Toshihiko Sahashi (“Fatal Fury” OVA’s, “Ghost Sweeper Mikami”, “Gunslinger Girl”), character design is by Osamu Horiuchi (“New Cutey Honey”, “Burst Angel”, “Last Exile”, “New Cutey Honey”) and art direction by Masaru Ohta (“The Big O”, “Golden Boy”, “Neon Genesis Evangelion”, “Queen Esmereldas”).

“Fullmetal Panic!” revolves around a covert anti-terrorist private military organization known as Mithril who must protect Kaname Chidori, a teenage girl that happens to have special “Whispered” abilities (abilities that allow these special individuals have knowledge of advanced mathematics, engineering and physics beyond human comprehension) and now the terrorist are after her for her abilities.

But Mithril must keep their identities private and so they assign Sgt. Sousuke Sagara, Melissa Mao and Kurz Weber to watch over her. But the primary duty will be for Sousuke to disguise himself as a school student and to be close to her. The problem is that Sousuke doesn’t have any social experience and didn’t grow up like most people and has been fighting in wars since the age of 8. So, he does find it a bit difficult to fit in at the high school and everyone thinks he is a bit weird.

But somehow, through their time together, Kaname begins to trust Sousuke and starts to become attracted to him but since Sosuke is not a normal guy, he is unaware of her feelings towards him and most of the time, his mind is on battle.

“Full Metal Panic!“ features the following characters:

Sousuke Sagara – A young man who grew up in a war setting. At the age of 8, he has been involved in fighting in a guerrilla movement and is now a member of Mithril, the covert anti-terrorist private military organization. He is the main member assigned to protecting Kaname Chidori’s life.
Kaname Chidori - A popular girl in high school and a girl who speaks her mind. She is also a teen who has “Whispered” abilities and while being protected by Sousuke, starts to become attracted to him.
Teletha “Tessa” Testarosa – Although a 16-year-old, Tessa is the Captain of the Tuatha da Danaan. Because of her young age and bubbly personality, many have a hard time believing she is only 16.
Melissa Mao - She is the superior officer of both Sousuke and Kurz and is also a woman who likes to have fun by drinking and smoking a lot.
Kurz Webber – A lady’s man (who tends to fail in getting close to his superior officer Melissa) and an excellent sniper for Mithril. Kurz tends to give Sousuke love advice since Sousuke has no clue about romance or social activities.
Gauron - The main antagonist of “Full Metal Panic!” who can command the lambda driver and pilots the Venom. He has bought or blackmailed his way to the top.

“Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series” features episodes 1-24 on three Blu-ray discs. Here is a basic, spoiler-less summary of each episode:

DISC 1:

EPISODE 1 – “The Guy I Kinda Like is a Sergeant” – Mithril sends Sousuke Sagara, Kurz Weber and Melissa Mao to protect Kaname Chidori from terrorists.
EPISODE 2 – “I Want to Protect You” - Sousuke has a hard time fitting in high school and begins to irritate Kaname.
EPISODE 3 – “Lingerie Panic” – Sousuke finds some guy sneaking into Kaname’s apartment. Who can he be?
EPISODE 4 – “Kidnap” – Kaname’s class goes on a field trip to Okinawa but a terrorist named Gauron hijacks their plane.
EPISODE 5 – “Whispered” – Sousuke tries to save Kaname, while Mithril launches a rescue operation to save everyone.
EPISODE 6 – “Still Alive” – Sousuke and Kaname survive and are in the woods and they find Kurz who has been inured by Gauron
EPISODE 7 – “Boy Meets Girl” – Sousuke takes on Gauron but has a hard time with the Arbalest’s Lama Driver and Kaname’s Whispered abilities appear.
EPISODE 8 – “Part Time Steady” – A jealous Mizuki Inaba is upset that her boyfriend Shirai has asked Kaname out on a date, now Mizuki wants revenge by pretending to get closer to Sousuke.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 9 – “Dangerous Safe House” – Mimiko and Kelly try to look for Jiro (who is looking for Kotaro). Meanwhile, Kelly’s true identity is revealed.
EPISODE 10 – “Run, Running, Ran” – Tessa checks to see who Takuma Kugayama is and Mithril suspects he pilots a Lamba driver for the terrorists.
EPISODE 11 – “Behemoth Awakening” – The terrorists manage to rescue Takuma and kidnap both Tess and Kaname.
EPISODE 12 – “One Night Stand” – Takuma pilots the Behemoth and takes on Sousuke (inside the Arbalest)
EPISODE 13 – “A Cat and a Kitten’s Rock & Roll” – Melissa challenges Tessa in an AS duel. Tessa goes to Sousuke for assistance.
EPISODE 14 – “Is Narashino Burning?” – Sousuke, Kaname and friends visit the Narashino military festival and learn that Shinji and his father don’t get along too well.
EPISODE 15 – “The Wind Blows at Home, Part 1″ – Sousuke is sent to Helmajistan after news comes to Mithril that Gauron is still alive.
EPISODE 16 – “The Wind Blows at Home, Part 2″ – Sousuke finds out that his old childhood friend is now working with the terrorists and he must fight him.

DISC 3:

EPISODE 17 – “The Wind Blows at Home, Part 3“ – Sousuke vs. his childhood friend Zaied. Meanwhile, Gauron takes on the Mithril team.
EPISODE 18 – “Deep Sea Party” – Kaname is shocked when Sousuke invites her to a secluded island with him. Does that mean that Sousuke is attracted to Kaname too?
EPISODE 19 – “Dangerous Safe House” – Melissa talks about how she recruited Kurz and Sousuke into the SRT (Special Response Team).
EPISODE 20 – “Venom’s Flame” – Tessa explains the nature of resonance of the Whispered to Kaname. Meanwhile, Gauron is captured in battle.
EPISODE 21 – “Deep Trap” – Sousuke takes things hard when Melissa is injured in battle and lashes out on Kaname.
EPISODE 22 – “Jack in the Box” – Gauron manages to escape custody inside Mithril’s Tuatha de Danaan and he and his men have captured Kaname and Tessa and are in control of the submarine.
EPISODE 23 – “Field of Giants” – Sousuke tries to rescue Tessa and the crew from Gauron.
EPISODE 24 – “Is Narashino Burning?” – Sousuke vs. Gauron to the death.

VIDEO:

“Full Metal Panic!” is presented in 1:33:1 1080p High Definition. It’s important to note that FUNimation Entertainment is releasing the three series on Blu-ray and while “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid” was an awesome looking upconvert, because “Full Metal Panic!” was released on television back in 2002, with that being said, one should not expect spectacular, vibrant animation. You are going to see edge enhancement, the PQ is a step up from the previous released DVD series. It’s important to note that the initial opening theme is picture boxed.

For those looking for the true anime HD experience, this title is not one of them. But are for those who are considering upgrading their series to Blu-ray and getting away from the DVD format.

AUDIO:

“Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series” is presented in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and in Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0. And like the video, this is an older series and while you do get a Dolby Digital TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack, for those looking for an immersive lossless audio experience will not find it in “Full Metal Panic!”. It’s an older series and if anything, the soundtrack was good but not fantastic. But with that being said, it’s still a major improvement from the original DVD release. I detected no hissing or anything audio problems.

I did watch the series both in English and Japanese and both are well-done but it’s all subjective to the user. I preferred watching the series in Japanese and setting my receiver on stereo on all channels for a more immersive soundtrack.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series” comes with the following special features on Disc 3:

Koichi Chigira x Shouji Gatou Special Interview – (23:22) A 2008 interview (for the original Japanese Blu-ray release) as director Koichi Chigira and FMP creator Shouji Gatou reminisce of the past of when the two worked on the “Full Metal Panic!”, first impressions and also working together once again for “Tower of Druaga”.
Japanese Piracy Warnings - (8:23) Featuring 12 Japanese piracy warnings from a different character that are from “Full Metal Panic!”.
Original TV Spots – (:34) Featuring the original Japanese commercials promoting the series on television.
Textless Opening Song – Featuring “SIN” by Mikuni Shimokawa
Textless Closing Song – Featuring “Natsumi Kobayashi” by Mikuni Shimokawa
Trailers - Upcoming FUNimation Entertainment Trailers.

Before I get into my review, I just want to say that I loved “Full Metal Panic!” when it first came out and I purchased the DVD when it first came out. I loved the series, its characters and that it was a series that provided us with humor and also mecha action. And when I first reviewed the DVD a long time ago, I scored it pretty high.

Here we are in 2010 and I’m reviewing “Full Metal Panic!” on Blu-ray but at the same time, knowing that those who are purchasing anime via HD are wanting the best video and audio presentation of the anime series but most of all series that take advantage of the technology. And I have always felt that anime TV series released post-2008 are series that benefit in Blu-ray as there are a good number of series created for HD.

With that being said, “Full Metal Panic!” is a 2002 anime TV series. It’s an older anime series that is being re-released once again in the US but for the first time on Blu-ray. But the series is more of an upconvert and simply for those who are wanting to focus on anime on Blu-ray and getting rid of their DVD’s. With FUNimation Entertainment having released the third TV series “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid” on Blu-ray, now we are going to get both “Full Metal Panic!” and “Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu” on Blu-ray in Sept. 2010.

As I do feel this series is still quite enjoyable, this Blu-ray release is for the fans who want to upgrade to a Blu-ray release and for those fans who have the third series and want to complete their release by having the first two TV series on Blu-ray. This is NOT a release for those who are picky about PQ and AQ and the fact that this is an older TV series, is going to push those hardcore video and audiophiles away from “Full Metal Panic!”.

The series is an upconvert and its going to look and sound a lot better than your original DVD series but it’s not going to be an enormous difference that you want to show it off to all your friends of anime on HD. This is not one of those titles.

But what “Full Metal Panic!” does bring to the table is a series with cool characters, a lot of humor and a lot of action. It’s not as bloody or violent as “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid” but it is an enjoyable series. I enjoyed the interesting chemistry that both Kaname and Sousuke have and in some ways, it’s kind of reminiscent of the “Ranma 1/2″ Ranma/Akane relationship. Sousuke is a guy who was geared for war but his introduction to Kaname has brought out emotions he never felt he had. Kaname is a strong-willed individual and despite how she dislikes Sousuke, she grows to appreciate him and even like him. But the problem is, he’s not a normal guy. He never grew up with love and his whole life was about fighting in wars, so its a bit hard for him to comprehend these social activities that Kaname and her friends experience.

The series does have its share of violence, especially towards the end of the series where things get a little bloody and violent but for the most part, much more tamer than “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid”. And just to warn people, the second series “Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu” is a complete 180 from this series as it focuses less on the battles and more on the high school teenage life between Sousuke, Kaname and friends. If anything, the second series is more of a comedy but it does stay within the canon of the FMP series.

Needless to say, if you want to complete your FMP collection on Blu-ray, now is the time. Otherwise, if you are in it because you have heard that this series is awesome, then that’s great. But it is important to know that “Full Metal Panic!” is an upconvert and its an upconvert of an older 2002 TV anime series and so it’s not going to look as vibrant as previously released FUNimation Entertainment anime TV series on Blu-ray. And although I scored the series high when it was released on DVD years ago, it’s hard for me to give this a high rating on Blu-ray. Great series but not a series that takes advantage of Blu-ray technology, but it is a much better version than its DVD counterparts, so if you never owned the DVD, then this is definitely the way to go. And for fans, at least you do get newer special features including the interview with series director Koichi Chigira and creator Shouji Gatou which was cool to watch.

Overall, “Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series” is an awesome series but if you are in it strictly interested in having an anime series that looks fantastic and has awesome, immersive lossless audio, then this release is not for you. But if you are a hardcore “Full Metal Panic!” fan and you are ready to kiss your old DVD’s goodbye or you enjoyed “Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid” and now want to watch the previous two series, then “Full Metal Panic! – The Complete Series” on Blu-ray is definitely for you.

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray, TV BOXSETS: DVD/Blu-ray

My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 2 (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

August 29, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

A hilarious and fitting conclusion to “My Bride is a Mermaid”. I absolutely enjoyed this second part so much, that I re-watched it again. Definitely recommended!

DVD TITLE: My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 2

DURATION: Episodes 14-26 (300 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: 4:3, English Dolby Digital 5.1, Japanese 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: 13+

Release Date: September 7, 2010

Originally created by Tahiko Kimura

Directed by Seiji Kishi

Series Composition by Makoto Uezu

Music by Yasuharu Takanashi

Character Design by Kazuaki Morita

Art Director: Maho Takahashi

Music Director: Satoki Iida

Anime Production: AIC, avex mode, GONZO

Featuring the following voice talent:

Halko Momoi/Alexis Tipton as San Seto (Sun Seto)

Takahiro Mizushima/Todd Haberkorn as Nagasumi Michishio

Daisuke Ono/Eric Vale as Kai Mikawa

Kenta Miyake/John Swasey as Gouzaburou Seto

Rika Morinaga/Caitlin Glass as Mawari Zenigata

Sakura Nogawa/Cherami Leigh as Luna Edomae (Lunar Edomae)

Monica Rial/Natsuko Kuwatani as Maki

Eri Kitamura/Trina Nishimura as Akeno Shiranui

Atsushi Imaruoka/Andy Mullins as Nagasumi’s Father

Noriko Namiki/Lydia Mackay as Nagasumi’s Mother

Eriko Matsushima/Juli Erickson as Nagasumi’s Grandmother

Vanilla Yamazaki/Linda Young as Narrator

Nagasumi’s in hot water after a beautiful young mermaid named Sun saves him from drowning. The deep-sea sweetheart’s dad is a merman yakuza prone to executing anyone who learns his family’s scaly secret! Luckily, there’s a loophole: if Nagasumi agrees to marry Sun, he just might avoid sleeping with the fishes!

He’s doing his best to keep his finned fiancee happy, but a rising flood of rival suitors and gilled gangsters has Nagasumi gasping for air! He’s definitely in over his head, but there’s no denying the mermaid’s allure – Nagasumi’s hooked now that Sun has come ashore!

Since 2002, the manga series “Seto no Hanayome” by Tahiko Kimura has been entertaining readers of Monthly Gangan Wing (published by Square Enix). The popularity of the manga series led to a drama series released in 2004 and in 2007, the manga received a 26-episode anime TV adaptation courtesy of Gonzo and now is being released on DVD in the U.S. courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with the title “My Bride is a Mermaid”.

The anime series was directed by Seiji Kishi (“Galaxy Angel Rune”, “Angel Beats”, “Ragnarok the Animation”) and series composition by Makoto Uezu (“School Days”, “Sola”, “Yumeria”). Character designs were done by Kazuaki Morita (“Nyan Koi!”, “Tentai Senshi Sunred”), art direction by Maho Takahashi (“Bamboo Blade”, “Tokko”, “Cobra the Animation”) and music by Yasuharu Takanashi (“Gantz”, “Hell Girl”, “Eyeshield 21″, “Halo Legends”, “Naruto Shippududen”).

“My Bride is a Mermaid” is an anime series that revolves around Nagasumi Michishino. Nagasumi and his family go on a family vacation near the oceanside where Nagasumi’s grandmother lives. While swimming, Nagasumi drowns but is rescued by a mermaid named Sun.

When Nagasumi comes to, he is found on rocks and when he tells his family that he thinks he was rescued by a mermaid, his mother and father think he is joking around. But his grandmother has heard of the tales of mermaid in the sea and that if a mermaid is seen by a human, the mermaid must die or the human must marry the mermaid.

Of course, Nagasumi and family don’t believe the tale, until Sun makes her appearance and tells him that she wants to be his bride.

Of course, Nagasumi feels that he can’t do it because he’s a young guy but when he meets Sun’s family, he and his family realize that Sun’s family are like the yakuza and if Nagasumi does anything to cause harm to Sun, her father Gozaburo will kill him. Also, her father and the Seto group are not exactly too fond of Nagasumi (because they seem him as a weak person and for Nagasumi taking his daughter away from him).

Nagasumi knows that she saved his life and by doing that, has risked her life by being seen by a human. So, Nagasumi feels that he must do the right thing. To have Sun as his bride.

But of course… life for both Nagasumi and Sun can get a bit complicated as Seto’s father is against the marriage, Sun’s rival wants to marry Nagasumi and the richest boy in Japan wants to marry Sun.

And now in part two of “My Bride is a Mermaid”, a mysterious student named Akeno Shiranui has arrived and her goal…to split Nagasumi and Sun up. Also, other young ladies start to have feelings towards Nagasumi. With all these obstacles, will Nagasumi and Sun ever get married?

“My Bride is a Mermaid” focuses on the following characters:

Nagasumi Michishio – The main character who drowned and was saved by a mermaid named Sun. Because Sun was seen by a human, tradition is that the mermaid must die unless she becomes the bride of that human. So, Nagasumi does all he can to care for his wife. Unfortunately, the majority of the Seto group are against their marriage.

Sun Seto – A mermaid and the bride of Nagasumi. The daughter of Gozaburo Seto, an underwater yakuza boss. She loves Nagasumi with all her heart and although she doesn’t have the same mannerisms like the other yakuza members in the Seto group, she can show off her fighting skills if need be.

The Michishio Family – Nagasumi’s father is a jealous father when his wife starts to show interest in Seto Yakuza member Masa. They are upbeat parents who tend to get on Nagasumi’s nerves.

The Seto Family – Gozaburo Seto is the boss of the Seto Group (an underwater yakuza group). His love is all about his daughter Sun and hates Nagasumi for taking her away. Ren Seto is the mother of Sun and is the family matriarch and Seto group disciplinarian. She is supportive of Sun’s marriage to Nagasumi.

Other Characters:

Akeno Shiranui – A mermaid and mermaid examiner. She deports mer-people who do fail to qualify as mermaids who resemble humans and not arousing any suspicion that they are mermaids. Also, an excellent in swordfighting.

Masa – A member of the Seto Group and helps to keep Gozaburo’s anger in check. He is responsible in watching over Nagasumi and Sun.

Maki – An assassin of the Seto Group that is only a few inches tall and is fond of Sun and despises Nagasumi for taking Sun away.

Lunar Edomae - The childhood friend and rival of Sun. Because Nagasumi also sees Lunar in her mermaid form, Lunar wants to take him away from Sun and also to one up her by wanting him to marry her.

Kai Mikawa – The richest boy in Japan and the son of the head of the multi-million dollar Mikawa Corporation. He is also from the mermaid group and is a killer whale who wants to marry Sun.

Mawari Zenigata – The daughter of the police chief and childhood friend of Nagasumi. She has always had a crush on Nagasumi and wants to become a police chief when she gets older.

Here is a basic summary of each episode on “My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 2″:

DISC 3:

EPISODE 14 – Koneko Monogatari (The Adventures of Chatran) – Nagasumi finds a kitten and realizes how the mer-people are terrified by it.
EPISODE 15 – What’s Your Name?- Nagasumi and Sun, Lunar and Mawari and Saru and Mikawa go on a double date.
EPISODE 16 – Minority Report – Akeno Shiranui joins Nagasumi’s school but she’s not a normal student.
EPISODE 17 – Cops vs. Thugs – Due to Akeno’s strength and great body, the thugs at school start to fall for her.
EPISODE 18 – Gate of Flesh – The whole class goes ona field trip to Kyoto but why did Maki attack Akeno?
EPISODE 19 – There’s No Business Like Show Business – Akeno continues to try to find ways of splitting up Nagasumi and Sun.
EPISODE 20 – A Better Tomorrow – Lunar’s father tries to find a way to express his love for his daughter.

DISC 4:

EPISODE 21 – 10 Things I Hate About You – Nagasumi receives an anyonymos love letter from the class president but to help call him down, Sun’s mother gives him a special drink that has interesting side effects.
EPISODE 22 – Privilege - Lunar is preparing for part in a drama and asks Sun to play her boyfriend.
EPISODE 23 – The Man Without a Past – Akeno believes Masa was an acquaintance of her missing older brother.
EPISODE 24 – Farewell Friend – Kai has a boil in his bottom and Saru accidentally hears wrong information that Kai is dying and spreads the news to everyone.
EPISODE 25 – The Family Game – Sun feels that Nagasumi doesn’t appreciate her and ends up going to a party held by a noble.
EPISODE 26 – Antwone Fisher (The Place You Go Home To) – The noble has drugged Sun and plans to marry her, now Nagasumi and friends try to save her before its too late.

VIDEO:

“My Bride is a Mermaid” is presented in Widescreen 16:9. I have to say that the anime series is pretty cool as it features various styles of animation and artwork plus there is a good amount of detail in the artistic backgrounds. Gonzo did a fantastic job with this series and making the animation and surroundings so vibrant and beautiful to look at.

Although I am not too familiar with Tahiko Kimura’s work, I really dig the character designs by Kazuaki Morita and Gonzo staff just having a wild and crazy time with the various and different styles of designs for the characters. May it be in normal mode, chibi mode, etc. Art direction by Maho Takahashi also brings this series to life with the beautiful art backgrounds.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“My Bride is a Mermaid” is presented in English 5.1 Dolby Digital and Japanese stereo. The series is front and center channel driven. I felt the audio was well-done on both the English dub and the Japanese vocal track. I’m a big fan of Haruko Momoi and it was great to see her play the role of Sun Seto. I enjoyed the Japanese soundtrack but the English dub was done very well!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 2″ comes with the textless opening and ending theme songs (by voice actress Halko Momoi) and FUNimation Entertainment trailers.

“My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 2″ continues the hijinks of Nagasumi, Sun and friends as the plot to split Nagasumi and Sun continues with the arrival of mermaid examiner Akeno Shiranui.

If anything, the series continues it’s crazy humor as Nagasumi tries to scare his father-in-law and other mermaids with a kitten and also hijinks that include Sun pretending to be Lunar’s boyfriend, the school president falling for Nagasumi and quite a few episodes featuring Akeno Shiranui, a mermaid with an awesome body but also a no-nonsense character. And as for Nagasumi, although the women’s feelings towards him are not as pronounced as other harem-based anime series, the number of characters featured in this second part is pretty cool and for the most part, just a fun and enjoyable series to watch.

The series doesn’t get too serious until it reaches the last two episodes but for the most part, I found this series to be a fun, enjoyable and crazy anime series that doesn’t get too dramatic nor does it get too convoluted with all the characters. If anything, the stories are rather enjoyable and you end up getting to know each of the supporting characters this time around.

The character designs showcase the characters in various styles and the artistic backgrounds really do compliment the characters and the voice acting for both English and Japanese soundtracks are well-done. Personally, I love Halko Momoi’s songs and her seiyuu role as Sun, so that was a major plus. But I also watched the whole second part about twice now, in Japanese and English and found myself really enjoying this series a lot. And I think others will as well.

If I had only one major nitpick with the DVD release is the lack of special features and audio commentary but other than that, this is still an anime series for those who enjoy comedy.

If you are looking for a fun, crazy anime series, definitely give “My Bride is a Mermaid” a chance and for those who watched part 1, definitely give part 2 a chance as the episodes do get better and also are much funnier than the first half of the series. As for “My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 2″, definitely a hilarious and fitting conclusion to the series. Definitely recommended!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD, TV BOXSETS: DVD/Blu-ray

My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 1 (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

July 11, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

There have been a few anime/mermaid series throughout the past two decades but “My Bride is a Mermaid” is probably the most humorous of them all. Definitely a fun, vibrant and cool anime series!

DVD TITLE: My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 1

DURATION: Episodes 1-13 (300 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: 4:3, English Dolby Digital 5.1, Japanese 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: 13+

Release Date: July 20, 2010

Originally created by Tahiko Kimura

Directed by Seiji Kishi

Series Composition by Makoto Uezu

Music by Yasuharu Takanashi

Character Design by Kazuaki Morita

Art Director: Maho Takahashi

Music Director: Satoki Iida

Anime Production: AIC, avex mode, GONZO

Featuring the following voice talent:

Halko Momoi/Alexis Tipton as San Seto (Sun Seto)

Takahiro Mizushima/Todd Haberkorn as Nagasumi Michishio

Daisuke Ono/Eric Vale as Kai Mikawa

Kenta Miyake/John Swasey as Gouzaburou Seto

Rika Morinaga/Caitlin Glass as Mawari Zenigata

Sakura Nogawa/Cherami Leigh as Luna Edomae (Lunar Edomae)

Monica Rial/Natsuko Kuwatani as Maki

Atsushi Imaruoka/Andy Mullins as Nagasumi’s Father

Noriko Namiki/Lydia Mackay as Nagasumi’s Mother

Eriko Matsushima/Juli Erickson as Nagasumi’s Grandmother

Vanilla Yamazaki/Linda Young as Narrator

Nagasumi’s in hot water after a beautiful, young mermaid named Sun saves him from drowning. The deep-sea sweetheart’s dad is a merman Yakuza prone to executing anyone who learns his family’s scaly secret! Luckily, there’s a catch – if Nagasumi agrees to marry Sun, he just might avoid sleeping with the fishes!

Of course, the honeymoon ends before it even begins when Nagasumi finds his life flooded with gilled gangsters looking out for their boss’s little girl. The kid’s definitely in over his head, but there’s no denying the mermaid’s allure – Nagasumi’s hooked and Sun’s ready to come ashore!

Of course, Nagasumi and family don’t believe the tale, until Sun makes her appearance and tells him that she wants to be his bride.

Nagasumi knows that she saved his life and by doing that, has risked her life by being seen by a human. So, Nagasumi feels that he must do the right thing. To have Sun as his bride.

“My Bride is a Mermaid” focuses on the following characters:

The Michishio Family – Nagasumi’s father is a jealous father when his wife starts to show interest in Seto Yakuza member Masa. They are upbeat parents who tend to get on Nagasumi’s nerves.

Other Characters:

Masa – A member of the Seto Group and helps to keep Gozaburo’s anger in check. He is responsible in watching over Nagasumi and Sun.

Maki – An assassin of the Seto Group that is only a few inches tall and is fond of Sun and despises Nagasumi for taking Sun away.

Kai Mikawa – The richest boy in Japan and the son of the head of the multi-million dollar Mikawa Corporation. He is also from the mermaid group and is a killer whale who wants to marry Sun.

Mawari Zenigata – The daughter of the police chief and childhood friend of Nagasumi. She has always had a crush on Nagasumi and wants to become a police chief when she gets older.

Here is a basic summary of each episode on “My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 1″:

DISC 1:

EPISODE 1 – The Yakuza Wife – How a teenage boy named Nagasumi became engaged to a mermaid named Sun.
EPISODE 2 – The Lord of the Ring – Nagasumi and Sun go on their first date at the Bon Festival.
EPISODE 3 – The Island Closest to Heaven – Sun and Nagasumi spend a whole day on a deserted island but a Seto assassin named Maki wants to eliminate him.
EPISODE 4 – It’s Tough Being a Man – Sun moves in with Nagasumi and his parents but life away from home underwater becomes a bit challenging for her.
EPISODE 5 – School in the Crosshairs – Sun attends her first day in school with Nagasumi. But school is not easy for Nagasumi as all the teachers are members of the Seto Group.
EPISODE 6 – Faibles Femmes – Mawari sees Sun’s fish tail and believes that she may be a mermaid.
EPISODE 7 – V (The Visitors) – Nagasumi sees another girl named Lunar in her mermaid form and she makes him become her servant. He also learns that Lunar is Sun’s friend/rival.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 8 – Duel – Sun and Lunar compete in a singing competition and the prize is Nagasumi.
EPISODE 9 – The Running Man - A merman named Kai Mikawa wants to marry Sun.
EPISODE 10 – Pumping Iron – An invincible man is stalking Nagasumi.
EPISODE 11 – Armageddon – Sun and Lunar go on a diet and Sun’s father gives her special mer-water. But what happens when Nagasumi drinks it?
EPISODE 12 – A Slave of Love – Because of his predicament with Lunar (and seeing her as a mermaid), somehow Nagasumi ends up engaged to Lunar.
EPISODE 13 – Love Story – Lunar is forcing Nagasumi to marry her immediately. Can Sun stop the wedding in time?

VIDEO:

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 1″ comes with the textless opening and ending theme songs and FUNimation Entertainment trailers.

I have to say that having watched a few anime/mermaid series in Japan, “My Bride is a Mermaid” is probably the most humorous one thus far! I will say the concept is not exactly new. In fact, the concept of this anime series is very similar to the boy meets alien girl type of anime series such as “Urusei Yatsura” or “To Love RU”. Where boy loves aliens and the alien parents (and boy’s female friend or girl’s male friend) who resent the engagement but somehow the main protagonists try to overcome the obstacles.

This time around, the girl is not an alien but a mermaid and instead of aliens who are geared to wipe out the planet, for “My Bride is a Mermaid”, her family happens to be yakuza members. Sure they are mermaid/mermen but the Seto group are not to be screwed with or else… So, despite the main protagonist Nagasumi being a weak character, he does show that he cares for his bride overtime. But of course, with so many obstacles in the way, life for Nagasumi and Sun is not exactly going to be easy.

But what makes “My Bride is a Mermaid” so entertaining is the whole package. The character designs showcase the characters in various styles and the artistic backgrounds really do compliment the characters. Although not exactly a harem-style of anime series just yet (but has the potential to become that way possibly in the second volume), there are a bunch of wild and crazy characters in the series and for those who are looking for a fun and crazy style of series will find “My Bride is a Mermaid” one of the more enjoyable romantic comedy anime series released in 2010 in the US yet and a lot of emphasis on the comedy.

So, we’ll see how the anime series develops in the next volume but for now, for fans looking for a series that is well-rounded when it comes to an enjoyable storyline and characters, definitely give “My Bride is a Mermaid – Part 1″ a chance!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD, TV BOXSETS: DVD/Blu-ray

Vandread: The Ultimate Collection (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

June 4, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

A sci-fi series anime series with a twist. Enjoyable from beginning to end, with a lot of humor and action, you can’t go wrong with “Vandread”! Especially with all 24 TV episodes and both OVA’s in one DVD collection!

DVD TITLE: Vandread: The Ultimate Collection

DURATION: 26 Episodes and OVA’s (760 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: Dolby Digital, 4:3, English/Japanese Stereo, English Subtitles

COMPANY: GONZO/FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV 14

Release Date: May 4, 2010

Director: Takeshi Mori

Original Script by Natsuko Takashi

Screenplay: Atsuhiro Tomioka

Original Character Design: Sora Inoue

Character Design: Kazuya Kuroda

Art Director: Junichi Higashi, Takaharu Fujii

Anime Studio: GONZO

Featuring the following voice talent:

Hiroyuki Yoshino/Rafael Antonio Oliver as Hibiki Tokai

Yumi Kakazu/Julie Maddalena as Dita Liebely

Fumiko Orikasa/Julie Pickering as Meia Gisborn

Hideki Tasaka/David Lucas as Duero Mcfile

Hisako Kyouda/Catherine Luciani as Magno Vivan

Mayumi Asano/Jane Alan as Gascogne Rheingau

Megumi Toyoguchi/Dorothy Melendrez as Parfet Balblair

Michiko Neya/Debra Cunningham as Barnette Orangello

Mitsuo Iwata/David Mallow as Pyoro

Sayaka Ohara/Ellen Wilkinson as Ezra Vieil

Tomokazu Seki/Ron Allen as Bart Garsus

Yoko Soumi/Wendee Lee as Buzam A. “B.C.” Calessa

Yuu Asakawa/Melissa Williamson as Jura Basil Elden

The battle of the sexes may seem bad on Earth, but in a space colony far, far away, things are even worse. Men and women haven’t seen each other for decades, so they don’t just argue in the future – they go straight for each other’s throats. Enter lowly Hibiki, a little guy with big dreams of adventure who finds himself in the middle of a firefight after stowing away in a top-secret mech designed to purge the galaxy of estrogen!

But as the gender war rages on, a mysterious crystal weapon forever links their starships – and their destinies. Time is running out as men and women explore their sexual differences, struggle to suppress raging hormones, and fight to survive the threat of a deadly common foe!

Contains episodes 1-13 of Vandread, episodes 1-13 of Vandread: The Second Stage, and the Turbulence and Integral OVAs.

What if men and women never co-existed with each other? And by chance, one day they were to meet and have to work together to ensure the survival of mankind?

This is the premise of “Vandread”, a Japanese anime series from GONZO directed by Takeshi Mori (“Gunsmith Cats”, “Otaku no Video”, “Stratos 4″, “Kimagure Orange Road”) and a screenplay by Atsuhiro Tomioka (“Glass Fleet”, “Pokemon”, “Pumpkin Scissors”) and a script by Natsuko Takahashi (“Hell Girl”, “Baki the Grappler” and “Bleach”).

The first season of the “Vandread” TV series (13-episodes) aired on Japan’s WOWOW Satellite channel in 2000 and was followed by a second series in 2001 titled “Vandread: The Second Stage”. That same year, the first series was summarized in the OVA titled “Vandread Taidouhen” (Integral) and the second summarized in the second OVA titled “Vandread Gekitouhen” (Turbulence).

The two seasons were released on DVD previously by Geneon but with FUNimation Entertainment acquiring the titles from Geneon and also the rights to the OVA’s, a new Ultimate Collection featuring all TV episodes and OVA’s is now available in a 5-DVD set.

“Vandread” revolves around a third-class laborer named Hibiki Tokai. Very low in the totem pole and is from the planet Taraak (which consists only men). Always head strong and never thinks things through, the impulsive Hibiki takes on a bet to steal the high-tech humanoid robot known as Vanguard from one of their male attack forces. During a skirmish between the male attack force and a group of female pirates (from the planet Mejere), all men evacuate from the battleship but somehow during the battle, Hibiki along with Dr. Duelo McFile and helmsman Bart Garsus (first-class) are captured.

In a last attempt by the male warriors to prevent their ship from being stolen, they send torpedoes to blow up the battleship, a wormhole is created and the female pirate’s vessel fuses with the male battleship and all are sent to a distant part of the galaxy. Also fused was the mecha that Hibiki tried to steal, the Vanguard which has has fused with a Dread and now is known as “Vandread”.

While the female pirates are distrustful towards the men, the ships captain Magno Vivan has ordered the women to co-exist with the men for now, since Hibiki can control the Vandread, Dr. McFile can use his expertise in helping the women and Bart can uses his skills to pilot the newly fused battleship (the Nirvana).

Meanwhile, Dita Liebely (the first woman who found Hibiki) is a woman who has always believed in aliens and now, wants to be close to her alien (Hibiki) and thus addresses shim as “Mr. Alien”.

The first season deals with the women and men working together to get back home but also visiting other planets and discovering areas where men and women co-exist together, while the second season deals with both the three men and the women actually co-existing and fighting together against an enemy that wants to harvest humanity.

“Vandread” features the following characters:

Hibiki Tokai - Headstrong third-classman from the Planet Taraak. Thinks less of women and impulsive. Arrogant, always hungry, often naive and doesn’t know how to deal with his emotions. But is the only person who can control Vandread.
Dita Liebely – The UFO believing crew member who discovered Hibiki. Known for her happiness and making others laugh, Dita wants to be close to the man she named “Mr. Alien”.
Misty Cornwell – The new character for “Vandread: Second Stage” who believes Hibiki rescued her and thinks he is her prince and falls for him. She comes from a planet that has co-existed with men and thus, is upfront with kissing and being near Hibiki which makes Dita jealous.
Meia Gisborn – The squadron commander that leads the Dreads. Always wanting to fight!
Jura Basil Elden – Secondary leader to the Dreads but also vane. She also wants to combine with Hibiki and also wants him to give her a baby. Often squabbles with Dita as both vie for Hibiki’s attention.
Magno Vivan – The captain of the pirates and is knowledgeable of men and women co-existing with one another.
Buzam A. Calessa (BC) – The sub-commander of the cew and has a secret that is revealed in the second season.
Gascogne Rheingau – Runs the Nirvana’s Registry and third-in-command. Often being challenged by Hibiki for a game of poker.
Parfet Balblair – The Chief Engineer, known for her large eye glasses and always cheerful.
Paiway Underberg – The nurse of the ship who works with Duelo. Observant towards the men and writes down notes about them. Often carries a frog hand puppet along with her.
Ezra Vieil - The pregnant crew member who is often giving motherly advice to Dita and Hibiki.
Duelo McFile – The doctor who is curious to be around women (to learn about their health).
Bart Gasarus - The weak helmsman who wants to prove himself and to everyone that he is important.

“Vandread: The Ultimate Collection” consists of 13 episodes per season (total of 26) and two OVA’s. Here is a brief spoiler-less summary of each episode:

DISC 1:

EPISODE 1 – Hibiki, Duelo and Bart are captured by the female pirates.
EPISODE 2 – An unknown enemy attacks the fused ship.
EPISODE 3 – BC assigns duties to the men who become part of the crew. Ezra is pregnant.
EPISODE 4- Hibiki still harbors arrogance towards women which conflicts with Meia’s headstrong Amazon-like behavior.
EPISODE 5 – The team explore a desert planet.
EPISODE 6 - Meia is injured in battle.
EPISODE 7 – Hibiki doesn’t know how to interpret Dita’s kindness and pushes her away.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 8 – The crew come in contact with a man named Rabat. Can they trust him?
EPISODE 9 – The Nirvana orbits the water planet, Anpathos.
EPISODE 10 – The crew celebrates Christmas.
EPISODE 11 – The women become distrustful towards their male crew members.
EPISODE 12 – The women try to fight their enemies without the men (who are imprisoned).
EPISODE 13 – Hibiki learns a big lesson from another planet while the crew of the Nirvana try to ignite a star.

DISC 3:

EPISODE 14 (1) – Hibiki, Dita, Meia and Jura have dreams of a red light destroying Nirvana.
EPISODE 15 (2) – Misty and her pod carry a message from Earth.
EPISODE 16 (3) – The Nirvana tries to give aid to a planet that has been contaminated. Bart goes through a major transformation.
EPISODE 17 (4) – The Nirvana docks in an outpost with a dangerous environment.
EPISODE 18 (5) – The Nirvana encounters a Harvester mothership.
EPISODE 19 (6) – The crew mourns a fallen crew member.
EPISODE 20 (7) – The rivalry between Misty and Dita for Hibiki’s attention intensifies.

DISC 4:

EPISODE 21 (8) – The crew tries to plan a surprise birthday party for Meia.
EPISODE 22 (9) – While fighting in an asteroid field, Hibiki is separated from the others during combat.
EPISODE 23 (10) – The Nirvana gets closer to Mejere and the women celebrate. Meanwhile, Misty feels alienated from everyone.
EPISODE 24 (11) – To the surprise of the crew, both fleets from Taraak and Mejere demand for Nirvana’s crew to surrender.
EPISODE 25 (12) – Hibiki meets with the first generation leaders to discuss working together to fight the Harvesters.
EPISODE 26 (13) – The final battle against the Harvesters.

DISC 5:

OVA 1 – VANDREAD INTEGRAL – A summary of the first season of “Vandread”.
OVA 2 – VANDREAD TURBULENCE – A Summary of the second season of “Vandread”.

VIDEO:

“Vandread” is an older anime series from 2000 and was presented in 4:3 standard format. The TV series was one of the earlier space anime series that combined animation and CG. It was one of the first mecha-based space adventure series that caught a lot of attention over a decade ago and for the most part, over ten years later, both seasons of “Vandread” holds up quite well today. Colors are vibrant and PQ is what one can expect for an anime series on DVD. You do get seven episodes on one disc and there were times I felt the edge enhancement was strong.

GONZO did an awesome job with the animation, CG is well done and there is a good amount of detail and shading on the artistic backgrounds and also the character design. Kazuya Kuroda does a great job in conveying Sora Inoue’s original character designs for the anime series.

The two OVA’s have more detail and look much more vibrant compared to its TV series counterpart (which is expected).

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Vandread” features the original Geneon dub and for the most part, the English dub is well-done. Both English and Japanese soundtracks are presented in stereo with the exception of the OVA’s which are presented in Japanese with English subtitles. I can understand why the OVA’s were not dubbed in English, especially since this series was created over a decade ago and the dub version was created back in 2002. To keep things consistent and the fact that FUNimation uses different voice talent than Geneon did would probably have angered the hardcore fans if the original English voice talent were not used for the OVA’s. So, it was probably best to not dub the OVA’s to keep things consistent.

Dialogue is clear and understandable, special effects are front channel driven.

For those who have a modern home theater receiver will probably want to select stereo on all channels for a more immersive soundscape (especially for the latter episodes of both seasons during the battle sequences).

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Vandread: The Ultimate Collection” comes with no special features.

When I first began watching “Vandread”, I thought this was going to be your usual sci-fi harem animation series. But how wrong I was when I discovered that the male and females are from different planets and despise each other. So, needless to say, the harem part of the storyline does not come into full gear but you do get a sense that the men and women who discover other planets where men and women do co-exist, start to become curious about each other.

Although, the storyline does feature on the protagonist Hibiki and Dita, what I like about “Vandread” is that it also focuses on many members of the Nirvana crew. Instead of having plenty of episodes that could be filler, the writers did a fantastic job in incorporating the characters in each episode and you gradually pulls the viewer in and showing those character’s quirks and personality.

The first season of “Vandread” was more or less, how men and women can co-exist and if they can trust each other during battle. The second season is how both men and women of the Nirvana need each other in taking on their largest threat to mankind but also in the process, learning about their history and their ancestry from the Planet Earth.

“Vandread” is fun, enjoyable, humorous and upbeat anime series. Despite the cover of endowed women on the cover of the DVD, this is not a series that really showcases fan service. Yes, some of the women, especially the character of Jura tends to be a bit flirtatious, the way the men play off of the women and seeing their differences is quite interesting. Dita doesn’t know why she feels a certain way towards Hibiki, her crew can’t understand why she would care about a man, while Hibiki who was raised to thinking women are disgusting starts to have feelings which he doesn’t know how to interpret quite yet and sometimes his arrogance gets in the way.

Needless to say, after watching all episodes, I was hoping that there were plans for Gonzo to create a third stage and sure enough, it looks like there is interest in continuing the storyline of “Vandread”.

For those who purchased the original series back in 2002 and the complete collection in 2007 and in 2009, one may ask if it’s worth it to purchase this collection just for the OVA’s in the 2010 “Ultimate Collection”. The answer is probably not. For one, the OVA’s are not new stories but a summary of each season and for the English dub fans, the OVA’s are not dubbed in English. Although, if you missed an episode or a season, then most definitely, especially for the fact that owning all episodes and OVA is only around $30, that’s a remarkable deal.

Overall, “Vandread” is an enjoyable sci-fi anime series with a twist! If you are looking for a fun, sci-fi anime series, definitely give “Vandread: The Ultimate Collection” a try!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD, TV BOXSETS: DVD/Blu-ray

Strike Witches – The Complete 1st Season (A J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

April 9, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Humorous, action-packed, girl-power anime series with a lot of fan service. “Strike Witches” has its share of ups and downs but overall, an enjoyable series.

TITLE: Strike Witches – The Complete 1st Season

DURATION: Episodes 1-12 (300 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: English 5.1 Dolby Digital, Japanese 2.0 Stereo, English Subtitles

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: 17+

Released on March 30, 2010

Originally created by Humikane Shimada

Directed by Kazuhiro Takamura

Series Composition by Tsuyoshi Tamai

Music by Seikou Nagaoka

Character Design by Kazuhiro Takamura

Art Director: Hiromasa Ogura

Anime Production by GONZO

Featuring the following voice talent:

Misato Fukuen/Cherami Leigh as Yoshika Miyafuji

Ami Koshimizu as Charlotte E Yeager (Shirley Yeager)

Chiwa Saito/Trina Nishimura as Francesca Lucchini

Erika Nakai/Caitling Glass as Eila Ilmatar Juutilainen

Kaori Nazuka/Kate Bristol as Lynette Bishop

Mai Kadowaki/Jennifer Forester as Sanya V. Litvyak

Mie Sonozaki/Stephanie Sheh as Gertrud Barkhorn

Miyuki Sawashiro/Jad Saxton as Perrine-H. Clostermann

Rie Tanaka/Anastasia Munoz as Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke

Saeko Chiba/Kira Vincent-Davis as Mio Sakamoto

Sakura Nogawa/Luci Christian as Erica Hartmann

The year is 1944 and the world lives in fear of unidentified flying objects called Neuroi. With the old-boy old guard unable to thwart this deadly menace, humanity turns its desperate eyes to an aerial attack force with much nicer legs. Meet the girls of the 501st Joint Fighter Wing, better known as the Strike Witches. These darlings of the great blue yonder may not have standard issue uniforms, but they do have all the right stuff. Where the average flyboy falters, these dolls blast aliens to bits in the bat of an eyelash. With a little magic and a whole lot of leg, the girls of the 501st are winning the war on pants, and aliens!

In 2006, Humikane Shimada (“Sky Girls”) began his “Strike Witches” illustrated columns. The popularity of the columns led to a light novel series, a manga series an anime OVA and a 12-episode TV anime series which is now available on DVD via “Strike Witches – The Complete Series” courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

The TV series is directed by Kazuhiro Takamura (“He is My Master”, “Mobile Suit Gundam Seed”, “Mahoromatic”, “This Ugly Yet Beautiful World”) and also was responsible for character designs, series composition by Tsuyoshi Tamai (“Galaxy Angel”, “Chobits”, “Azumanga Daioh”), art direction is by Hiromasa Ogura (“Patlabor”, “Nadia – Secret of Blue Water”, “Ghost Hound”) and music by Seikou Nagaoka (“El Hazard” series, “Tenchi Muyou” series”).

“Strike Witches” is a series that takes place in 1939 in an alternate universe of Earth. During this year, the Earth was attacked by an alien force known as Neuroi. The Neuroi has shown up sporadically but various military around the planet have fought back with the use of Strike Witches, a female witch gifted with powerful magic and technology. And thus, the war between Earth vs. the Neuroi but it’s up to the 501st division to train the Strike Witches from all over the world and prepare them for battle.

The main characters of “Strike Witches” are:

Yoshika Miyafuji – The main character of the series from the Fuso Empire (alternate version of Japan). She has the power of healing and her father was responsible for designing the Striker Units for Strike Witches. Because of her father’s death, Miyafuji hates the war but because people are in need of help, she joins the 501st.
Mio Sakamoto – The first Strike Witch and is the squadron leader. Also from the Fuso Empire, she trains the new recruits and is responsible for scouting Miyafuji. Has the magical ability to fight Neuroi with a magical katana.
Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke – The ranking officer of the 501st and takes care of her subordinates. Because of the death of her boyfriend, she fears of losing people. Also, is a very good singer. She has the power of spatial awareness.
Lynette Bishop – A Strike Witch from the Britannian Commonwealth. Can be clumsy but an excellent sharpshooter.
Perrine-H. Clostermann – The wealthy Perrine is a Strike Witch very attached to Mio and dislikes Miyafuji because of the attention she gets from Mio and is constantly jealous of her. Has the power of using lightning.
Erica Hartmann – Quite sloppy and disorganized, Erica is a Strike Witch from Karsland and is an ace Strike Witch known for her victories. Her skill is her ability to barrel storm.
Gertrud Barkhorn – A Strike Witch from Karsland known for her shot tally. Has the magic power of strength.
Francesca Lucchini – A Strike Witch from the Duchy of Romagna and the youngest soldier and most childish member of the Strike Witches.
Charlotte E. Yeager - A Strike Witch from the United States of Liberion who is known for her buxom body and her enjoyment of speeding through the air.

The following 12-episodes are featured on two DVD’s. Here is a spoiler-less summary of each episode of “Strike Witches – The Complete Series”:

DISC 1:

EPISODE 1 - Mio Sakamoto tries to recruit Yoshika Miyafuji to join the 501st.
EPISODE 2 - The Neuroi attack an aircraft carrier that Akagi, Mio and Miyafuji are riding.
EPISODE 3 – Miyafuji is introduced to the other Strike Witches.
EPISODE 4 - Perrine becomes jealous of Miyafuji.
EPISODE 5 - The Strike Witches train in the Britannian Coast.
EPISODE 6 - Miyafuji trains with Sanya and Eila on night patrol and fight against the Neuroi.

DISC 2:

EPISODE 7 – When Erica misplaces her panties, everyone thinks their is a panty thief nearby.
EPISODE 8 – Akagi starts to become overprotective of Miyafuji when people start to show their praise to Miyafuji.
EPISODE 9 - Perrine’s jealousy gets out of control and thus she challenges Miyafuji and challenges her to an aerial duel.
EPISODE 10 - After contact with a new type of Neuroi, Mio is injured and Miyafuji is confined in her quarters.
EPISODE 11 - The 501st is disbanded and a new anti-Neuroi unit known as Warlock is created.
EPISODE 12 - Warlock is now out-of-control and Miyafuji goes against it alone.

VIDEO:

“Strike Witches” is presented on DVD with a 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. For a television series, “Strike Witches” focuses on the battles over sea and in the skies. So, there is a not a whole lot of detail going on in the series. If anything, more emphasis is put on the special effects and characters up-close especially showcasing the Strike Witches and their weapons. Also, a good amount of detail for the mechanical designs especially the Neuroi and the vehicles.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

Audio for “Strike Witches” is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 and Japanese Stereo 2.0. Dialogue is clear and understandable. Voice acting for both English and Japanese are done well. The series doesn’t really showcase an immersive soundtrack but overall, dialogue is clear and understandable. Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Strike Witches – The Complete Series” comes with the following special features on disc 2:

Episode 12 Audio Commentary - Featuring audio commentary by Scott Sager, Kate Bristol (voice actress of Lynette Bishop) and Cherami Leigh (voice actress of Yoshika Miyafuji).
Textless Opening and Closing Songs
Trailers – Trailers for upcoming FUNimation Entertainment releases.

In some way, “Strike Witches” can be seen as an anime series that looks as if it’s been overused, you’ve seen this kind of anime before but there are a few things that makes “Strike Witches” quite different from the others and that is a focus on character development, introducing many characters but yet fleshing them out throughout the series and last, the series has its share of naughty bits. There is nudity, there is plenty of fan service and lesbian-teases.

Here are a group of teenagers who are star pilots and responsible on taking on the Neuroid and defending the planet but at the same time, these girls have teen impulses and curiosities. So, needless to say, this is the kind of series that will appeal to the anime action fans by the aerial dogfights and mecha usage and then of course the number of pantie shots, face in boobies and more will appeal to the perverted otaku. But seeing the younger characters in their underwear is going a bit far in anime series and for me, it definitely lessened the series appeal.

Overall, “Strike Witches – The Complete 1st Season” is an action anime series that has its moments of enjoyability but also has its share of problems. If anything, this series is a girl-power, fun, action-packed anime series but in the end, it’s an average anime at best.

Filed Under: Anime on DVD, TV BOXSETS: DVD/Blu-ray

Trinity Blood – The Complete Series (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

March 27, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Humans vs. vampires, political corruption and more! Featuring an intricate, deep and dark storyline with strong action elements, “Trinity Blood – the Complete Series” is a stylishly dark anime series worth checking out!

TITLE: Trinity Blood – The Complete Series

DURATION: 24 Episodes (600 Minutes)

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

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV MA

Release Date: February 23, 2010

Originally novel by Sunao Yoshida

Directed by Tomohiro Hirata

Series Composition by Atsuhiro Tomioka, Tomohiro Hirata

Script by Atsuhiro Tomioka, Yuuji Hosono

Character Design by Atsuko Nakajima, Thores Shibamoto

Music by Takahito Eguchi

Art Director: Toshiyuki Tokuda

Chief Animation Director: Atsuko Nakajima

Art Design by Tomoaki Kaneko

Anime Production by GONZO

Featuring the following voice talent:

Hiroki Touchi as Abel Nightroad

Mamiko Noto as Esther Blanchett

Junichi Suwabe as Cain Nightroad

Junko Minagawa as Ion Fortuna

Kazuya Nakai as Tres Iqus

Kenichi Suzumura as Dietrich von Lohengrin

Michiko Neya as Astharoshe Asran

Shinya Kitade as Hugue de Watteau

Takako Honda as Catherina Sforza

Yoshinori Fujita as Alessandro XVIII

Yuki Matsuoka as Seth Nightroad aka Augusta Vradica

Armageddon. The ultimate sin of humanity, perpetrated upon itself, which cast the shroud of death across the world centuries ago. And out of that lasting darkness, they emerged… From the legends of ancient times, they have been called forth into the world anew… vampires.

Two races – Terran and Methuselah, human and vampire – are locked in a struggle for existence, trembling on the brink of war. Some seek the path to a peaceful coexistence, while others pursue a dangerous shift in the balance of power. The world’s enemy, Contra Mundi, is starting to move. Cooperation and goodwill between the two races may be their only chance for survival.

Abel Nightroad, a touring priest for the Vatican, walks calmly where others fear to tread. A member of the formidable AX, tasked with the protection of the fragile equilibrium. Neither human nor vampire, with an awkward yet optimistic nature, this Father is a force wholly his own. When the greater threat emerges, the enemy of my enemy is my friend… and Abel Nightroad seeks a safe path for all.

Be strong in your endeavors for the sake of the world.

“Trinity Blood”, the anime series that had captured the attention of anime fans with its vampire storyline and J-Rock feel, makes its first appearance on High Definition on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

“Trinity Blood” began as light novels by the late Sunao Yoshida (and illustrations by Thores Shibamoto) back in 2001 and serialized in Japanese light novel magazine “The Sneaker” and was inspired by real life alchemist and noblewoman Caterina Sforza. With Yoshida’s unfortunate death in 2004, mangaka Kentaro Yasui (author of “Ragnarok”), a friend of Yoshida’s would complete the novels.

The light novels received a manga series adaptation in 2004 (and is ongoing) while a 24-episode manga series was produced by GONZO and aired in Japan in 2005 on the WOWOW network.

The anime series would be directed by Tomohiro Hirata (“Irresponsible Captain Tailor”, “Crusher Joe” OVA’s) and a screenplay by Atsuhiro Tomioka (“Eat-Man 98″, “Hikaru no Go”, “Pokemon”, “Vandread”) and Yuuji Hosono (“Prism Ark”, “Pumpkin Scissors”, “Ray”). Character designs are by Atsuko Nakajima (“Haunted Junction”, “Ranma 1/2″, “Violinist of Hamlin”), art direction by Toshiyuki Tokuda (“Mermaid Forest”, “Major”, “Inuyasha”) and music by Takahito Eguchi (“D.N.Angel” and “Rental Magica”).

“Trinity Blood” is a series that may seem like your typical vampires versus humans but the story is much deeper. The series begins with a priest named Father Abel Nightroad who is riding on an airship. All of a sudden, a vampire (known as Methuselah) abruptly boards the airship and kills the pilots and inhabitants with a pilot trainee/restaurant employee taking over the airship while father Abel Nightroad fights against the Methuselah. We learn that Abel is a Crusnik, a vampire that feeds on the blood of a Methuselah.

We learn through the series that the introductions to Methuselah and Crusnik came from Earth dealing with its population increase and trying to colonize Mars. During the colonization, they discover alien technologies: The Bacillus and the Crusnik nanomachines and sure enough, the colonists install the Bacillus into their bodies and they became Methuselahs. While, four test tube babies – Seth, Cain, Abel and Lilith were given the Crusnik.

Back home in Earth, Earth was going through Armageddon and when the colonists came back to rebuild, unfortunately the humans did not take kindly to the vampiric methuselah’s and a war between the two have taken place with the Roman Catholic Church as the main force to fight the Methuselah with the use of the Crusnik’s (who are part of the AX, Arcanum Cella Ex Dono Dei) who specialize in taking on powerful Methuselah. Among the Crusnik, Cain has deserted his brothers and sisters and has gone mad. He now heads the Rosenkreuz Orden, a vampire terrorist organization who wants to make a new world order and destroy the Vatican.

“Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” consists of 13-episodes on three Blu-ray discs.

The main characters of “Trinity Blood” are:

Abel Nightroad – A compassionate Catholic priest who is always broke and hungry. But he’s also a Crusnik known for his power and hunts down Methuselah. One of the four test tube babies injected with the Crusnik nanotechnology. His past was filled with hatred towards humans and during the war between the Methuselah and humans (terrans), he slaughtered seven million of them. But after his brother Cain murdered his sister Lilith (she defended the humans), he went into mourning for 900 years. But after meeting Caterina Sforza who was trying to escape from the Methuselah, he vowed to continue his dead sister’s work and is now a member of the AX.
Cain Nightroad - One of the four test tube babies installed with the Crusnik Nanotechnology. During the Methuselah and human wars, when he saw his sister Lilith trying to bring Abel to her side of defending the humans, he killed her. In revenge, his brothers Abel and Seth tried to kill him but he survived. Now he leads the Rosenkreuz Orden in order to destroy the Vaticans and human kind.
Esther Blanchett – The legitimate granddaughter of the Queen of Albion. Esther joins with Abel and eventually becomes an AX agent and becomes close to Ion Fortuna. Her storyline becomes prevalent as the Crusniks try to protect her from being killed by the Methesulah.
Astharoshe Asran – An undercover agent of the New Human Empire (Empire for Methuselah) who teams up with Abel in trying to arrest Endre Kourza, a vampire mass murderer. She despises humanity but through her partnership with Abel, she starts to see them in a different light.
Ion Fortuna – A member of the New Human Empire who is also the Imperial messenger negotiating with the Vatican. He despises humans until he meets Esther Blanchett.
Augusta Vradica (Seth Nighlord) – The youngest of the test tube babies and is the empress of the New Human Empire and was responsible for find a home for the Methuselah and save them from persecution.
Caterina Sforza – Was instrumental in changing the mind of Abel Nightroad to defend humans. She heads the AX Agency and wants peace between humans and vampires, which her brother Cardinal Francesco is against.

VIDEO:

“Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” is an anime television series which aired on television in 2005. It’s important to note that a) “Trinity Blood” is a television series and not an animated film or OVA. The second part to note is that when it comes to anime television series, prior to 2008, pretty much a lot of the anime TV series on Blu-ray have been upconverted.

With that being said, “Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” is an upconvert and is presented in 1080p High Definition, 16×9 widescreen. You can see the compression artifacts, aliasing, edge enhancement and for me, I pretty much expected this because although released in 2005, it’s before many anime companies became serious about HD and because it is a TV series (which didn’t air on a major network but on satellite via Wowow), you’re not going to see major restoration being done. But with “Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” being an upconvert, I will say the video was not as problematic as “Samurai Champloo” or “Basilisk” when it came to the discoloration problems.

But the series does benefit from it being a GONZO production and that means beautifully painted backgrounds and solid character design. I actually enjoyed the animation of “Trinity Blood” as well as the overall look and feel. From the eyes, free flowing hair, the uniforms. It’s a very dark but artistic anime series and when it first came out on DVD, many people really enjoyed the overall look.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” shines with the lossless English dub. From the very first episode, you realize how immersive the English DolbyTrue HD 5.1 soundtrack is as the action and fight sequences literally envelop the soundscape of your home with the center, front and surround channels along with LFE being utilized quite nicely.

Dialogue is clear and understandable. I know some anime fans will take an offense by the Japanese soundtrack not being lossless but Dolby Digital Japanese 2.0. But overall, voice acting is well-done on both audio tracks and definitely the English lossless track is the highlight of this Blu-ray release.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” contains the following special features:

DISC 3:

Historical Artifacts - Text-based historical information that was used in the anime series.
Textless Songs -Featuring the textless theme songs from BUCK-TICK and Tomoko Tane.
Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment Trailers

EXTRAS:

“Trinity Blood – The Complete Series” comes in a slipcase and also comes with a 24-page booklet with interviews with light novel character designer Thores Shibamoto, character information, Kadokawa’s Editorial Department are interviewed and discussing how Sunao Yoshida wanted the anime series to be and pretty much giving them the freedom to not follow the original light novel too closely.

When “Trinity Blood” first began, the first thing I was expecting was a steampunk, “Devil May Cry” type of series. Humans vs. Vampires and a guy who was a vampire helping the humans and my love for the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel” TV Series led me to originally watch the series when it was first released on DVD.

But by episode 3, you start to realize that the series is much deeper as it begins to focus on the political and opposing sides of humanity (Terrans) and the New Human Order (Methuselah) and with each episode, the series goes much further into the corruption and politics as there are those who want peace between the two groups and those who will never accept the Methuselah. While we try to figure how the AX Agents and those of the New Human Order can work together to protect Esther, who may be the next in line for royalty.

The storyline of “Trinity Blood” was definitely far off what I was expecting but nevertheless, I did enjoy how deep the series was and how intricate the storyline would go into the warring factions but part of the difficult of the series is that there are a good number of characters introduced and because the manga series is ongoing and the light novel series never completed, the creators of the anime series had to come up with an ending that would be satisfactory for viewers but also fans of the manga and light novel series.

As for those who have owned the previous DVD series, as mentioned, this is a series that came out in 2005 and is an upconvert. Video quality is not going to be the greatest upgrade on Blu-ray and it doesn’t have a lossless Japanese soundtrack. But for those who never purchase the DVD, will probably want to pick it up on Blu-ray and if you enjoy the English dub, you’ll definitely enjoy the lossless soundtrack.

Overall, “Trinity Blood” is going to attract those who love stories with vampires and for those looking for a more deeper and darker anime series on Blu-ray. Featuring an intricate and deep storyline with strong action elements, “Trinity Blood – the Complete Series” is a series worth checking out!

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray, TV BOXSETS: DVD/Blu-ray