“The enchanting and beautiful anime series ‘Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time~’ has come to an end with this final volume.  The long awaited final battle between Akane and the eight guardians versus the Akram and the demon clan begins.  A volume full of action and also an interesting ending, giving the viewers the final choice of how they would like to see the series end.”

DVD TITLE: Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time~ - A Tale of the Eight Guardians Vol. 9

DURATION: Approx. 101 minutes

DVD INFORMATION: COLOR/NTSC / Japanese Audio (Dolby Digital Stereo / English subtitles

CATALOG #: 61516

COMPANY: Bandai Entertainment Inc./Honneamise

RATING: Suggested 13 and Up

DIRECTOR: Tsunaki Aki

SERIES PLANNER: Okazaki Junko

CHARACTER DESIGN: Ohnuki Kenichi, Kotani Khyoko

ART DIRECTOR: Sakamoto Nobuhito

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Arakawa Kousuke

COLOR SETTING: Ario Yukiko

SOUND DIRECTOR: Honda Yasunori

MUSIC: Hirano Yoshihisa

EDITOR: Morita Seiji

Original Story by Tohko Mizuno (serialized in LaLa and Lala DX by HAKUSENSHA)

Opening Song: “Haruka Kimi no Moto e” performed by Morimura Tenma (Seki Tomokazu), Inori (Takahashi Naozumi), Nagareyama Shimon (Miyata Kouki)

Ending Song: “flowin’ -Ukigumo-” performed by Sefle (Akikawa Yuu), Ran (Kuwashima Houko)

Animation Created by YUMETA COMPANY

VOICE ACTORS/ACTRESSES:

Motomiya Akane - Kawakami Tomoko

Minamoto-no Yorihisa - Miki Shin-Ichiro

Morimura Tenma - Seki Tomokazu

Nagareyama Shimon - Miyata Kouki

Fujiwara-no Takamichi - Nakahara Shigeru

Tachibana no Tomohmasa - Inoue Kazuhiko

Eisen - Hoshi Soichiro

Abe-no Yasuaki - Ishida Akira

Princess Fuji - Otani Ikue

Akram - Okiayu Ryotaro

Ran - Kawashima Houko

Abe-no Seimei - Matsumoto Dai

Little Tengu - Shimakta Junko

Tengu - Taniyama Kisyo

“Please, lend me your powers just one more time.  I’m going to summon the Dragon God.”

Akane sets forth into the final battle in hopes of putting an end to the long struggle, the resolve to summon the Dragon God firm in her heart.  Can her actions restore peace to the capital? And where will her heart lie in the battle’s end?

The final volume of “Haruka~Beyond the Stream of Time~ A Tale of the Eight Guardians” is here and the final battle between the Guardians and Akram and the demon begins!

In Episode 24 titled “The Released Four Gods”, Akram and the demon clan have tained the Four Sacred Talismans and now turning them against the Guardians.  With the assistance of Ran’s power of the Black Dragon, the kingdom stars to become more evil.  But the Eight Guardians are not going to let things continue without a fight and the battle between the Guardians and the Demon clan begins.

In episode 25 titled “The Parting of Clouds”, the war now begins and to make matters worse as a few of the Guardians are pit against a demon and a tainted Talisman.  Yasuaki has no choice but to free Little Tengu to help fight against the the demon controlled Tiger talisman.  As for Akane, she calls upon the Dragon God within her and begs for its help.  But the Dragon God answers back with a decision Akane must make.  She can save the capital, if only she will sacrifice her life.

In episode 26 titled “Into the Distance, into Your Heart”, the battle now concludes with the battle against Akram.  Akram sacrifices his body and unleashes the black dragon and Akane decides to call upon the Dragon God to save the capital.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

Video is presented in anamorphic 16:9:LB and presented in 1:71:1 aspect ratio. I watched this DVD twice now on my 52″ inch television and on my 24″ iMac. And as I have mentioned before in my reviews, “HARUKA” has beautiful conceptual art when it comes to the backgrounds and just overall, how the whole land just looks lush. The video is quite soft, and has a cloudy feel to it.  Which is more intentional.

As for the audio, audio is provided in Dolby Digital Stereo.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The “HARUKA” DVD’s do not really come with many special features. Mainly featured on each volume is bonus footage titled “The Demon’s Soliloquy” which is more or less Akram’s voice and his rendition of the teaser trailers.

But this volume is special in that the final episode is tied into the DVD.  Right when the story of Episode 26 ends, Akane is seen waiting for someone in her current reality.  Suddenly, you are taken to a screen  in which you are given a chance to choose one of the Guardians and thus giving you an ending of your choosing.  After selecting the Guardian and watching the storyline end, you are taken to the final credits.

You can access the character selection through the menu titled “The Romance of the Eight Guardians”.

I’m not quite sure if the TV series ended with that cliffhanger but on this DVD, the final decision of how the series ends is left to the viewer and by choosing one of the Guardians, you get a separate storyline for each.

And as with each volume, there is a four fold, double paged booklet which features episode synopsis, images, character profiles of Princess Fuji and Little Tengu and Tengu.  Also, included is a final interview with Director Aki Tsunaki, and a few of the voice actors/actresses and an Anthology of the Eight Guardians - Poems Unraveled.

With the final volume comes the close of the “Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time” anime series.  For 26 episodes, we watched the long journey of the introduction of each character, meeting new characters as they evolved to a guardian or those demons who wreaked havok against Akane and friends.  But most of all, what I will miss is the journey of Akane and these characters.

I often wonder how difficult it was to come up with an ending because the manga series continues to be ongoing.  The series had 26 episodes but you get this feeling that there is still quite a bit more story to tell and that the series could have gone on even longer.

But in the end, we do get a conclusion to the series that ended but you are left with wanting more.  I guess you can say that the series ended but you are left without the closure.  Fortunately, the creators of the series allowed for an ending that the viewer can choose on their own.

In this final volume, we have each of the Guardians each being touched by Akane and wanting to express their emotions to her.  Suffice to say, most of them have fallen for her.  So, depending on the viewer, they can choose the ending that would suit their taste.  Akane finding love and the viewer having control of who Akane will be in love with.

So, it was an interesting way to end the series by giving the viewer the final choice.  But all in all, this enchanting and beautiful anime series has come to an end.  The final battles were good but where anime series can really drag out a battle between good vs. evil for several episodes, the battles between let’s say a Yorihisa and Icktidarl or Shimon and Sefle end quickly in a single episode.  But granted, I understand that episode wise, the creators only had these final three episodes to conclude this series  and what they were able to accomplish does work.  But again, an interesting way to end the series by giving the viewer the final choice.

Overall, the final volume of “Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time” and the entire series in general featured a lot of heart, action and beautiful scenery.  I’ll definitely miss this series and its characters!

“’If you thought the first 13 episodes of the series was action-packed, the second half of this series just surpasses it in everyway.  More action, more characters and what an awesome conclusion to the series! ‘Buso Renkin’ is absolutely fantastic!”

© Nobuhiro Watsuki / SHUEISHA, Busorenkin Project

SHONEN JUMP™ and BUSORENKIN™ are trademarks of Shueisha, Inc. in the United States and other countries

DVD TITLE: Buso Renkin Box Set II DURATION: 300 minutes (13 episodes, 25 minutes each) DVD INFORMATION: Original Uncut Episodes, Stereo, Bilingual (Japanese and English), English Subtitles COMPANY: Shonen Jump Home Video/Viz Media

Originally Created by Nobuhiro Watsuki

Directed by Takao Kato

Character Designs by Akio Takami and Hatsue Kato

Director of Photography - Katsutoshi Hirose

Music by Kouhei Tanaka

Featuring the following voice talent:

Jun Fukuyama - Kazuki Muto

Ryoka Yuzuki - Tokiko Tsumura

Aya Hirano - Mahiro Muto

Hitomi NAbatame - Ouka Hayasaka

Kisho Taniyama - Shuusui Hayasaka

Masashi Ebara - Captain Bravo

Mitsuaki Madono - Koushaku “Papillon” Chouno

Alchemist Warriors Kazuki and Tokiko continue their war against the evil homunculi.  But the awakening of Victor, the “King” of all homunculi, triggers the dark force lurking within Kazuki.  Cursed with the black kakugane, he becomes a marked man.  Hunted by their former allies, Kazuki and Tokiko find help from the most unlikely source… As the showdown in this century-long battle nears its conclusion, the future rests in the hands of one young man.  Kazuki must make a final decision that no one, not even Tokiko, could have predicted.

Another exciting, action-packed series from Nobuhiro Watsuki, creator of “Rurouni Kenshin” comes another action-driven series “Buso Renkin”. “Buso Renkin” is a 26-episode anime series that aired in Japan back in 2006-2007 and is based on a hit manga series by Watsuki that was serialized in “Shonen Jump”. The first box set features the first thirteen episodes of the series.

In the first 13 episodes of “Buso Renkin”, the series focused on Kazuki and Tokiko’s relationship.  Kazuki, having been saved by Tokiko, does all he can to get stronger and protect Tokiko and all his friends.  His determination to protect people from the homunculi has made him an alchemist warrior and a hero among his friends.

In the second half, the wheels have turned the opposite direction as the battle against the supreme Victor who has the first black kakugane has gone south.  Not only has Victor started sucking the life energy of his friends and his classmates, anything living has their life being sucked up by Victor who keeps regenerating energy.  With the odds against them, Kazuki has no choice but unleash the hidden power within him, in order to save everyone.

The result is that Kazuki transforms into Victor-3. Victor leaves Victor-3 to be alone and regenerate.

Meanwhile, Tokiko can’t believe what Kazuki has done and what may be positive in Kazuki’s mind of saving his friends, Tokiko knows that with him transforming into Victor is not good at all. And with Kazuki now in the first stage of being Victor-3, Kazuki feels that he can protect people but he learns from Captain Bravo, the Victor process will go in three stages and although he feels human now, he will become a killing beast once he reaches stage 2 and will have lost humanity.

Captain Bravo then informs him that he has now become the enemy of the Alchemist Warriors and that he must kill Kazuki. The second half of the series introduces us to new characters as the Alchemist Warriors must now eliminate Victor-1 and Victor-3.  Tokiko, an alchemist warrior herself, will not let her organization kill Kazuki and will do what she can to protect him and joining her is a junior Alchemist Warrior named Gota Nakamura (who has a crush on Kazuki).

The three become a team in order to survive but also to find a way to make Kazuki normal. So, the second half of the series literally makes Kazuki, Tokiko and Gota traitors and a group of the top tier Alchemist Warriors go after them.  While the other half features a second group of Alchemist Warriors going after Victor.

Without spoiling the final six episodes, all I can say is that the storyline becomes more dramatic, more action-packed and you may want to break out the tissue because it gets darn right sad. I was literally blown away by this second box set.

The storyline definitely becomes more captivating, action in almost every episode but now, because of the first season focused on the character development, you actually care for these characters and just watch them in despair.

Especially for those who root for Kazuki and Tokiko and wonder if those two will ever fall in love and get together.

So, needless to say, “BUSO RENKIN BOX SET II” was not only full of action but a well-told storyline that leaves you content and knowing that this was an incredible series.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

For a newer anime television series that debuted back in 2006, the picture quality of the series is well done. Because the series takes place in a variety of scenes, I don’t recall seeing any blurring or digitizing during the dark scenes. The video transfer is featured in an aspect ration of 1.33:1.

The audio is featured in both English and Japanese 5.1. I watched the series both in Japanese and with English dubs and the Japanese version is well done. And the English version definitely does a great job, especially with the villains. The English dub actor’s do a fantastic job especially with the voice of Papillon and Moon-Face. I felt that the voice talent gave these two villains a much more creepy, perverse and humorous style that despite how off these characters are, they are quite deadly.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The box set features a “BEHIND THE SCENES of BUSO RENKIN”.  Where as the first box set focused on the main characters, this second box set focuses on the newer characters.  You get to watch the English dub voice actors work their magic in the studio and just see how the process works and an interview with them in which they discuss their characters and providing the voices for them.  This featurette is about 25 minutes long.

And included in this set is a booklet which features artwork and information on every major and supporting character in the series.

I was pleased with the first box set of “BUSO RENKIN” and there were a lot of humor and action but most of all character driven plots and the director and screenwiter focused on getting to know the characters and developing them throughout the first half of the series.

Once you get to box set II, things just change as the allies of Kazuki now treat him as the enemy and Tokiko, feeling guilty that she implanted Kazuki with the kakugane does what she can to protect him.  Every character is utilized quite well in this series.  The storyline just catches your attention and the amount of action and battles and even characters introduced is quite significant compared to the first 13 episodes.  Because these characters introduced are utilized well in the series, you don’t really get lost, you know who the characters are and their abilities.

But the storyline of Kazuki and Tokiko really goes through an emotional rollercoaster and the final three episodes are just classic. The second half of this series makes me appreciate the entire series even more.

I enjoyed the first 13 episodes in the first box set  but the animation, the voice acting, the battles and the characters together with an enjoyable, action-packed, dramatic storyline… I was very impressed. “Buso Renkin Box Set II” is highly recommended!

“’Full of action, humor and one of the most perverse villains that I have ever seen in an anime series.  Cool characters, awesome battles and ‘Buso Renkin’ is full of pure excitement!”

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© Nobuhiro Watsuki / SHUEISHA, Busorenkin Project

SHONEN JUMP™ and BUSORENKIN™ are trademarks of Shueisha, Inc. in the United States and other countries

DVD TITLE: Buso Renkin Box Set 1

DURATION: 500 minutes (13 episodes, 25 minutes each)

DVD INFORMATION: Animated, Box set, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Subtitled

COMPANY: Shonen Jump Home Video/Viz Media

Released on April 2008

Originally Created by Nobuhiro Watsuki

Directed by Takao Kato

Character Designs by Akio Takami and Hatsue Kato

Director of Photography - Katsutoshi Hirose

Music by Kouhei Tanaka

Featuring the following voice talent:

Jun Fukuyama - Kazuki Muto

Ryoka Yuzuki - Tokiko Tsumura

Aya Hirano - Mahiro Muto

Hitomi NAbatame - Ouka Hayasaka

Kisho Taniyama - Shuusui Hayasaka

Masashi Ebara - Captain Bravo

Mitsuaki Madono - Koushaku “Papillon” Chouno

High school student Kazuki Muto thinks he’s saving a girl from a monster, but it turns out that he’s the one who needs saving! Kazuki is killed while fighting a homunculus, a malevolent creature that feeds on humans. The girl, Tokiko Tsumura, revives him by replacing his heart with an alchemical device called a kakugane. With this device Kazuki can create his own Buso Renkin, an alchemical weapon in the form of a huge lance, capable of destroying homunculi. With his new weapon in hand, Kazuki decides to join forces with Tokiko to eliminate the homunculi and destroy their master, the strange and eccentric Papillon Masked Creator!

Another exciting, action-packed series from Nobuhiro Watsuki, creator of “Rurouni Kenshin” comes another action-driven series “Buso Renkin”.

“Buso Renkin” is a 26-episode anime series that aired in Japan back in 2006-2007 and is based on a hit manga series by Watsuki that was serialized in “Shonen Jump”.  The first box set features the first thirteen episodes of the series.

“Buso Renkin” focuses on a teenager named Kazuki Muto.  A good-hearted person who one day sees a girl that is in trouble and appears to be in distress.  With heart of a champion, Kazuki tries to save the girl from what appears to be a monster.  Unfortunately,  Kazuki is impaled by the monster and is literally killed.

The girl who was in distress turns out to be Tokiko, an alchemist warrior who has the job of taking down these monsters known as homunculi.  Tokiko has a special ability which is called a Buso Renkin in which she can have the power of the “Valkyrie Skirt”.  A deadly offensive and defensive ability in which braces attach to her legs and the braces have arms that carry these sharp blades.  She can summon her “Valkyrie Skirt” through the use of a kakugane.

But she has a special kakugane and uses it so save Kazuki as payback for trying to save her life.  The kakugane that she inserts into his body is a substitute as a heart and gives him a second chance at life.

Because he has the kakugane implanted into his body, he has the fighting spirit to protect his friends, family and Tokiko from these homunculus who literally feed off of humans.  He joins Tokiko and wants to fight these monsters who are apparently feeding off humans.  So, Kazuki summons his Buso Renkin and his ability is to bring out this blade which has this big red ribbon attached to it.  The ribbon is able to collect energy to make his blade attacks powerful.

And thus sets up the storyline of Tokiko and Kazuki taking on the homunculus.

The first 13 episodes of “Busou Renkin” features a three story arc.  The first arc features Tokiko, who trains Kazuki to become stronger and battle with the homunculi gets infected by a homunculi embyro.  If she and Kazuki are unable to get an antidote within a week, she will then turn to a homunculi and tells Kazuki that no matter what happens, if she turns into a monster, he must kill her.

With Kazuki so protective, he will do what it takes to find the antidote.  But the person who has the antidote, Koushaku Chouno, seems to be a bit mental and despite coming from a rich family and having great grades, he is suffering from a sickness and fears death, thus he is willing to become a homunculi in order to live forever.

The second arc focuses on Kazuki’s training as his goal is only to become a stronger person.   We are introduced to the L.X.E. (The League of Extraordinary Elects), a group of villains led by Doctor Butterfly, an ancestor and great, great grandfather of Koshaku Chono and the group responsible for unleashing these homunculus attacks.

Kazuki does what he can to become strong and with the tutelage of Captain Bravo (the leader of the Alchemist Warriors in that region of the world), Kazuki is offered the chance to become an alchemist warrior.

Meanwhile, enter the Hayasaka Twins: Ouka Hayasaka (the school president) and Shusui Hayasaka, an expert in kendo and a person who is a fantastic fighter.  It appears no one is willing to train with Shusui because he’s too good and he tends to hurt people. But with Kazuki wanting to become stronger, why not train with Shusui.  Both Kazuki and Shusui are looking for a challenge and find that they both can learn from each other and make themselves better fighters. Unbeknownst to Kazuki and Tokiko, the Hayasaka Twins work for the L.X.E. and are familiars who are humans who serve the homunculus in order to become one of them.

The final arc of the box set features Doctor Butterfly as he unleashes his monsters towards Kazuki’s high school in order to test his new monster and have it feed off of the students.  Will Tokiko and Kazuki be able to protect the students?

VIDEO & AUDIO:

For a newer anime television series that debuted back in 2006, the picture quality of the series is well done.  Because the series takes place in a variety of scenes, I don’t recall seeing any blurring or digitizing during the dark scenes.   The video transfer is featured in an aspect ration of 1.33:1.

The audio is featured in both English and Japanese 5.1.  I watched the series both in Japanese and with English dubs and the Japanese version is well done.  And the English version definitely does a great job, especially with the villains.  The English dub actor’s do a fantastic job especially with the voice of Papillon and Moon-Face.  I felt that the voice talent gave these two villains a much more creepy, perverse and humorous style that despite how off these characters are, they are quite deadly.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The box set features a few special bonus features.  You get a two commentary by the voice talent especially the voice actors who seem to love saying the word “Papillon” but nevertheless, I think the fans of the English dub actors in this series would get a kick from this feature but I’ll admit that I was hoping for Japanese commentary on the direction and the thoughts of the creation of the episode.

My favorite special feature was a nice and lengthy behind-the-scenes featurette and interview with the director and writer for of the English dub, plus interviews with the voice talent and footage from the actual recording of the series.  This was very fun to watch and to see how they came up with the voices for their characters and it’s always great to put a face to the name of voice talent who have worked on other anime series such as “Naruto”, “Bleach”, etc.

I was extremely pleased with the first 13 episodes of “Buso Renkin”.  It’s one thing to get a series that is packed with a lot of action and major battles with each episode but the characters are what makes this series truly shine.

Both Tokiko and Kazuki are truly interesting individuals.  Tokiko who is hell bent on eliminating the homonculus and anyone loyal to them, while Kazuki wants to be stronger to protect Tokiko and her friends, thus he puts himself in a position of intense training but deep inside unlike Tokiko, he has compassion and is willing to give people a second chance.

Then you have these really interesting characters such as their leader Captain Bravo, the cool and corny leader and of course the most perverse villain of them all, Koushaku Chouno aka Papillon who sports his butterfly mask and sports underwear or tights.

And then you have other characters such as Kazuki’s sister Mahiro and his buddies as his support system and a group of friends that also provide the series comedy and lighthearted moments.

And of course, the villains featured in this anime series are just really out there such as Moon Face who literally has a face of the crescent moon.  “Buso Renkin” really delivers in giving the viewer a twist on anime villains.

“Buso Renkin” is an exciting series that at first, starts off featuring a lot of action but eventually the action is necessary as part of the character development of the characters, their abilities and their weaponry.

As the series continues on, you start to get more of a storyline that gets a bit serious but at the same time, well-written especially with the many heroes and villains.

Overall, “Buso Renkin” is a solid fighting anime series!

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“A heartwarming and touching animated film that touches on friendship, relationships and most of all, if you had the opportunity to go back in time to change things, what would you do?  Featuring well-done voice acting, beautiful visuals and an awesome storyline, ‘THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME’ is definitely an animated film that is a definite must own!”

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DVD TITLE:  THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME (Toki o Kakeru Shōjo)

DURATION: 98 minutes

DVD INFORMATION: NTSC, Region 1, RATING: Suggested 13 and Up

COMPANY: Bandai Entertainment

Released on November 18, 2008

Original Story by Yasutaka Tsutsui

Directed by Mamoru Hosoda

Screenplay by Satoko Okudera

Producers: Takashi Watanabe, Yuichiro Saito

Character Designs by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto

Art Direction by Nizo Yamamto

Music by Kiyoshi Yoshida

Featuring the following voice talent:

Riisa Naka, Takuya Ishida, Mitsutaka Itakura, Ayami Kakiuchi, Mitsuki Tanimura, Yuki Sekido and Sachie Hara

Makoto Konno is having one of those days.  After getting up late for school she’s hit with a pop quiz.  She just started a fire while cooking in her home economics class and then she gets knocked down by some of the guys while they wrestle.  How much worse can this day get?

While performing an errand for her mother, Makoto loses the brakes on her bike and barrels headlong down the street into an oncoming train.  This would have been the capper for a horrible day, but for some reason something strange has happened.  Time has suddenly stopped and moved her backward.

With her newly discovered ability to literally leap backwards in time, Makoto finds that tests become a piece of cake, embarrassing situations are corrected and she can have her favorite food anytime she wants. Unfortunately her carefree time traveling has adverse effects on the people she cares for.  With ever successful leap, Makoto somehow alters the fate of those around her.  This wasn’t supposed to happen and as she races back in time to fix everything, she notices that her abilities are not limitless but with every successful jump she’s one step closer to discovering the most wonderful secret in her young adult life.

The series “Toki o Kakeru Shojo” has been a popular novel series in Japan for over four decades.  Originally written back in 1965 by Yasutaka Tsutsui, the series has spawned several live action films and a Japanese drama series.  As well as a manga series and now an animated film.

The 2006 version of “Toki o Kakeru Shojo”, known in the US as “THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME” is not a direct adaption from the novel but a continuation of the original storyline.  This time taking place 20 years after the original storyline featured in the novel.

In this animated film, the main character is on Makoto Konno, a girl who somehow gains the ability to travel back in time.

Previous to her receiving this special ability, Makoto’s life was as a typical high school girl, somewhat of a tomboy.  Throughout the course of the film, you see her grow and how she eventually comes to terms with her emotions.

Her best friends are two guys: Chiaki Mamiya, a calm, cool guy who happens to like Makoto and Kosuke Tsuda, the level-headed jock who has many girls that like him but oblivious to it.  The three like to spend time together and one of their past times is to play baseball.

The story picks up one day while Makoto is out delivering books at school.  In one class, she hears a noise and the noise brings her to a lab and while snooping around, after being scared, she falls and lands on some sort of device that whisks her out somewhere.   Makoto can’t believe what just happened.  Was it a dream?

Well, while on her bike and surprised of what has taken place, Makoto rides quickly downhill.  Unfortunately, Makoto forgot that her brakes on her bike is malfunctioning and while going downhill on a busy street, she tries to pull on the brakes of her bike, meanwhile an oncoming train is coming.

Makoto hits the train guard rail but and both she and her bike start floating in the air onto the path of an oncoming train.  Sure enough, she should be killed but somehow, she is taken back several minutes before the accident.  What has just happened?

Next thing you know through running and tripping, Makoto discovers that she has a new ability.  By running and leaping, she can go back in time.  Thus, Makoto starts having fun and figuring out the type of things she can do by going back in time.   Flunk a quiz, no problem, she can go back in time and make sure she gets a perfect grade.  What about her favorite pudding being eaten by her sister?  No problem, she can go back in time and eat it before her sister gets her hand on it.  So, eventually Makoto loves going back into time.  But each time she does, she notices a number on her arm.  What does the number represent?

Meanwhile, Makoto starts to notice a change with her friends.  Eventually, she and her friends are getting to an age where guys and girls start to view things differently with each other and Makoto is surprised when her best friend Chiaki asks her to be his girlfriend.

This freaks her out and Makoto not knowing how to respond to his question decides to go back in time (repeatedly) and make sure he is unable to ask the question.  Changes things in the past and avoids him, meanwhile making sure her classmate who likes Chiaki, making sure those two get together.  All, Makoto wants is for the three to stay as best friends.

Throughout the film, she consults her aunt Kazuko and tells her about her ability to go back in time but her aunt warns her that she could be affecting other situations in their reality.  (An interesting note:  As for the film’s connection to the original novel, Makoto’s aunt Kazuko was actually the main character of the first novel and original series.)

While Makoto keeps jumping back in time, trying to make her two best friends happy and be with other girls, she starts to wonder if she did the right thing.  Also, now that she has seen her best friends happy with another girls, she starts to have second thoughts.

Unfortunately, Makoto realizes that the number on her arm represents a counter and she has exhausted the number of times she can go back in the past.   To make matters worse, her aunt may be right, by continuing to change time, she may be causing more harm, maybe even death to the people she cares about.

So, overall you get an interesting take on time travel and how it affects time.  But also retaining the storyline of friendship and relationships and how young teens start to evolve as they get older and the emotions that they have.  Definitely an interesting twist on time travel but managing to balance it well with a well-told storyline and also beautiful visuals.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

The DVD is featured in 16:9 anamorphic widescreen.  The animation features designs that are helped by the talented character designer Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gunbuster 2, .Hack, etc.) and the beautiful, lush backgrounds courtesy of the art direction by Nizo Yamamoto (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Perfect Blue, etc.).  These two names alone will give the animation fan some idea of the quality behind this film.  Beautiful film!

As for the audio, there is English and Japanese 5.1 audio.  I watched the film both in English and Japanese.  First, the Japanese audio was done very well and Riisa Naka as Makoto Konno is just spectacular.  The director kept talking about how lucky they were to have Naka do the voice and I agree.  She brought a pure, warm vocal style to Makoto and for her first job, she did great!  As did everyone on the Japanese staff.

As for the English audio, it was also well done.  A different dynamic of course, having watched the Japanese film first.  But overall, I think those who purchase the DVD will be pleased with the English voice acting on this film.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

There are two versions of “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time”.  There is a limited version and a regular version.  The limited version comes in a box, a soundtrack and has a second disc that has storyboards and a director file.   While the version I am reviewing, the normal version features no soundtrack or box.  But it does feature the following:

• Audio commentary with director and cast
• Premiere Event in Tokyo
• Hanako Oku “Garnet” Music Video
• Theatrical Trailer
• Promo Clip

First of all, it was great to have a commentary with the director and cast and offering some insight on the creation of the film.  The commentary features Mamoru Hosoda (Director), Riisa Naka (Makoto), Takuya Ishida (Chiaki) and Mitsutaka Itakura (Kousuke).  The director would talk about how the three main voice actors were somewhat similar to their animated counterparts.  Naka talked about the re-recording of parts on their fifth and final day of voice over and how she developed as the days went on.

It’s interesting because during the commentary, you would get some pauses and the staff would talk about how they were so drawn into the film while doing the commentary.  Especially towards the end.  Really interesting insight on the final quarter of the film.

The premiere event was another great addition to the special features.  The staff and the director presented the film to an audience and talked about working on the film and questions such as “what would they do, if they can go back in time?”  So, it was a fun premiere event and also, it was the first time the staff watched the final film.  So, that was great to see this featurette.

The music video for “Garnet” by Hanako Oku is also included.  As well as a quick :30 second promo clip and the trailer are also included.

Overall, “THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME” was a fantastic film.  I watched the film both in Japanese and with the English voice acting and I found that both were done very well.

I was extremely pleased with the art direction of the film.  From the lush backgrounds of trees, to the detail put into the shopping areas in the city, the school and so forth.  You can’t complain when you have a top talent who worked on the Ghibli films working on this film.

As for the storyline, Satoko Okudera was able to come up with a well-done storyline capturing teenage love, discovery of emotions but most of all, the pure heart of Makoto and just how she is able to evolve from this tomboy and eventually a girl who starts to discover her emotions and show her conflicted but overall determined to take action on those emotions.

“THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME” is heartwarming and definitely a nice spin on friendship, relationships and time travel.  Everything comes together for this film from the touching storyline, beautiful artwork and great voice acting.  Definitely an animated film worth having in your DVD collection!

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“A fun anime adventure series that features a lot of action and a lot of heart!  For those who enjoy adventure based series such as ‘Blue Dragon’ and ‘One Piece’ will find satisfaction with ‘HUNTER X HUNTER’.”

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Cover Image: HUNTER X HUNTER is a copyright of (C) POT (Yoshihiro Togashi) 1998 - 2008
(C) NIPPON ANIMATION / SHUEISHA

DVD TITLE:  HUNTER X HUNTER DVD Box Set Volume 1

DURATION: 300 minutes (3 DVDs)

DVD INFORMATION: NTSC, Region 1

COMPANY: Shonen Jump Home Video, VIZ Media

Released on December 9, 2008

GENERAL DIRECTOR: Kazuhiro Furhashi

DIRECTORS: Shinpei Miyashita, Shunji Yoshida

SCRIPT: Nobuaki Kishima, Yoshiyuki Suga, Masashi Sogo, Ryota Yamaguchi

CHARACTER DESIGNER: Takayuki Goto

ART DIRECTOR: Nobuhito Sakamoto

BACKGROUND ART DIRECTOR: Goichi Kudo

COLOR DESIGN: Mari Miyashita

MUSIC: Toshihiko Sahashi

SOUND DIRECTOR: Takuya Hiramitsu

ORIGINAL COMICS: Yoshihiro Togashi

PUBLISHED BY SHUEISHA INC.

PRODUCED BY NIPPON ANIMATION CO. LTD.

Based on the popular HUNTER X HUNTER manga series by Yoshihiro Togashi (also published by VIZ Media), this new fantasy action series introduces audiences to Hunters, a special breed of adventurers dedicated to tracking down treasure, magical beasts, and even humans. But such pursuit requires a license, and less than one in a hundred thousand can pass the grueling qualification exam. Gon might be a country boy, but he has high aspirations. Despite his aunt’s protest, Gon decides to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a legendary Hunter.

The journey begins on the long, arduous road to the Exam Hall, where he meets Leorio and Kurapika, two applicants with the same determination. Gon and his two companions must now prove their worth and earn the right to call themselves Hunters!

The HUNTER X HUNTER DVD Box Set Volume 1 contains the series’ first 15 episodes on 3 discs.

The ‘HUNTER X HUNTER’ series is one of the most popular and long-running manga series in Japan.  Written and designed by Yoshihiro Togashi (creator of ‘Yu Yu Hakusho’), the manga series began in 1998 and is still ongoing to this day.

As for the animated series, the 62-episode TV series which was shown on FUJI TV began in October 1999 and ended in March 2001.

As the series is celebrating its 10th Year Anniversary, it’s fitting that finally one of Japan’s beloved anime series makes its way to the US with a 15-episode vol. 1 box set courtesy of Shonen Jump Home Video.

The first volume focuses on a young boy named Gon who is rescued by a hunter, Kite.

Kite is looking for another fellow Hunter named Ging Freecss.  A man that Kite served as an apprentice for who has a gift of being able to communicate with animals but also a reputation of being one of the greatest hunters ever.

Kite learns that Gon has the same abilities as Ging and wants to learn more about this young boy and discovering that Gon, may be the son of the well-known hunter.

Gon was told his father died long ago but learns that he is still alive and immediately wants to follow his father’s footsteps by becoming a hunter and also hoping he can find and meet his father.

A hunter is a person who is granted special privileges in the world. They can roam in areas that the public is not allowed to visit, they can go to establishments without having to pay for it, they have a license to hunt and do other jobs that are only specific to those who have a hunter’s license.

But not everyone can become a hunter.  Only a few become hunters and in this case, only one hunter can be chosen.   Also, to make it more challenging, only a few make it past certain tests.  But for Gon, he is determined to follow his father’s footsteps and will do what it takes to become a hunter.

Gon is different from other hunters since he was raised by a loving relative and lived in a village where there has not been much strife or conflict, so he is a bit naive about the world around him.  In fact, his motivation in becoming a hunter is so opposite of what other hunters are wanting it for.  But Gon’s pure and positive attitude seems to have an effect on the people that he meets.

As for Gon, he has the ability to communicate with animals like his father and carries a fishing pole that acts like a weapon and helps him swing to different areas.  He is also learning more and more about his abilities as he continues on in his hunter training with his friends.

Along the way, he meets three others who will be taking the hunter exam and the four form a friendship and become a circle of friends helping each other out.  Gon befriends:

Leorio - Gon meets Leorio, a man who wears a business suit and sunglasses who has a hot temper but has a good heart.  He seems to want to be a hunter because of money but why he wants the money is explained in this first volume. Leorio is a great fighter and if his hunger is full, he exhibits tremendous strength.

Kurapika - Gon meets Kurapika while traveling on ship to another island.  Kurapika tends to get at odds with Leorio in the beginning because both have different reasons for wanting a Hunter license.  For Kurapika, his motivation to get a hunter’s license is for revenge and it is explained during his storyline on volume 1.  Kurapika is intelligent, a balanced fighter and also is a conjurer and specialist with the ability to materialize objects with his imagination.

Killua Zoldyck - The fourth member of the team is Killua, a mysterious boy that finds Gon’s purity interesting and thus immediately, because of how Gon is, Killua immediately becomes friends with the three.  Killua comes from an upbringing of an assassin and is a trained killer.  He somewhat has a split personality.  He can be seen as a happy, young person intrigued by people but when in battle, he can turn and become a deadly individual who enjoys the thrill of killing.  Killua is learning to control himself and his weaknesses as shown in this first volume.

The first volume is literally an introduction to the four friends who want to become hunters and during their adventures of traveling to a variety of islands and areas, are faced with immediate and deadly challenges that they must be prepared for.  You learn of their motivations of becoming a hunter but how they learn to help each other in achieving success during their long training.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

The animation of “HUNTER X HUNTER” has similarities to Togashi’s other popular work “Yu Yu Hakusho” in terms of character designs.  Also, with the series created back in 1999, you expect to see quality of a TV anime series created in the 90s completely different to the digital colorful quality of anime TV series of today. So, you do get noise on the video as would be expected from an older animated TV series.

But for an anime TV series created in the late 90s,  you get a lot of shading through the backgrounds and dungeon areas.  You get to see the luscious backgrounds painted.  The cool aspect of “HUNTER X HUNTER” animation-wise is that the main characters are continually on the  move, so you get something different with each episode in terms of scenery and backgrounds.

I watched the series in both Japanese (with English subtitles) and via English dub.  Both voice acting tracks are well done and as for the English dub, I’ve always felt that VIZ media are typically on top of their selections for voice actors with series like “Naruto”, “Bleach” and “Death Note”.  The same can be said for “HUNTER X HUNTER”, the voice actors for Gon and friends are well done.

I typically dislike children or teenagers who sound too much older than they are in anime series but I’m happy that the voice acting was well done for Gon and the others.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

There really isn’t much in terms of extras.  You get a trailer for Shonen Jump Manga, Shonen Jump Home Video but fortunately you can find the production storyboards (a total of 15).

I suppose that the theme of a young boy and his friends trying to get a license can be compared to a series like “Pokemon” but with “HUNTER X HUNTER”, there are no monsters being caught and although Gon is a young guy, pure-at-heart, his friends are trying to overcome their own personal issues from their past.

But what makes “HUNTER X HUNTER” a fun series is the fact that you have four individuals who are so different from each other, they learn about themselves and about others through their friendship.  Having to work as a team during their training and their adventures and knowing that not many people make it far in their training.

The first volume focuses more on the character development on each character and their team dynamics.  But with so many episodes still left in the series, you can only expect that the adventures will become more difficult, challenging and that the storyline will continue to get even more wilder and interesting as it progresses.

With the odds against them, instead of working as individuals, the four work as a team despite their differences and with a storyline that features a good balance of humor, action but also some seriousness, “HUNTER X HUNTER” is an enjoyable adventure-based anime series thus far.

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“Season 7 of Dragon Ball Z takes place seven years after the battle with Cell.  Featuring on Gohan as a teenager, introducing Goku’s younger brother Goten and a focus on battle tournaments!”

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DVD TITLE: DRAGON BALL Z (SEASON 7)

DURATION: 565 minutes

DVD INFORMATION: Animated, Color, DVD-Video, Subtitled, NTSC

COMPANY: Funimation

Released on November 11, 2008

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

Includes the Complete Great Saiyama & World Tournament Sagas

Seven Years of Peace have passed since the defeat of the monstrous Cell, and the Z-Fighters have enjoyed a return to normal life.  Goku has eagerly continued his training in Other World, Krillin has gotten married and Gohan has renewed his scholarly pursuits while attempting to navigate the pitfalls of high school.  Two fresh new Saiyan faces have also appeared on the scene-Goku’s son Goten, and Vegeta’s son Trunks!

Now, the time has come for the Z-Fighters to reunite, as the new World Martial Arts Tournament is set to begin.  The greatest warriors on Earth have come together for their chance to capture the title of the reigning champion, Mr. Satan - but behind the scenes, sinister forces are at work.  An evil eye watches the competitors’ every move, waiting for the opportune moment to strike.  The action grows firece on the tournament floor, but for the Z-fighters, the real fight is only just beginning!

TRAILER:

Another awesome Dragon Ball Z season box set is here and it features a three-arc storyline.

The first arc features focuses on Goku who is still dead and living in the underworld.   But with the Underworld Martial Arts Tournament coming full force, King Kai and the other Kai’s wager on who will win the tournament.

This arc features King Kai and West Kai at each other’s throats of who is the best, Goku or Pikkon? And thus the first disc on this box set focuses on the tournament.

The second arc then reintroduces us to Z-Fighters seven years later.  Gohan is now a teenager and will be attending public high school for the first time.  As expected, with his strict mother Chi Chi, Gohan becomes a straight A student.  But you also learn that he has a seven year old brother named Goten.

As Gohan enters high school in Satan City (named after Mr. Satan because of his lie that he is the one that defeated Cell), he sees that there is trouble in the city with bank robbers and so forth, so with the help of Bulma, creates a costume for him and thus Gohan goes under the secret identity of Great Saiyaman.

In high school, he meets Bedil (Mr. Satan’s daughter) who is a powerful fighter and helps the police force take on the criminals.  Eventually, she catches on to Gohan’s identity and demands Gohan to teach her how to fly or else, she will reveal his secret identity.

I have to admit that when I first watched these episodes (when it was first released in Japan), I absolutely loved the chemistry between Gohan and Bedil.  So, it was great to see how the two fighters get close to each other and it’s almost similar to how Goku and Chi Chi became boyfriend and girlfriend (and eventually husband and wife).

For the third arc, a new World Martial Arts Tournament is happening and the Z-Fighters intend to take part.  Also, Goku has been granted a 24-hour stay in Planet Earth to take part in the tournament.  The first part of this third arc features the junior division in which Son Goten and Trunks enter the tournament.  The second part features the main division which the Z-Fighters (Goku, Vegita, Piccolo, Krillin, No. 18, Gohan, Android 18 and Trunks/Goten in disguise) are taking part in.   But introduces two mysterious characters named Shin and Kibito which somehow scares Piccolo for some unknown reason.

And then there are other fighters who seem to have superhuman power levels and along with the two mysterious characters, the Z-Fighters must find out who they are and what is their scheme.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

The video looks great on DVD and for those of us who have multi-generation fansubs or fading VHS tapes, just having these episodes on DVD and everything looking great. I know some people have a problem with the show receiving some cropping but for me it’s quite miniscule.  The series has been remastered in high-definition and digitally restored widescreen transfer from the original Japanese film.

As for the audio, the audio features newly revised English dialogue, English voice track with original Japanese music (in Digital 5.1 surround or original TV broadcast in Stereo).  Also, featured is the original Japanese language track (in mono).

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Special features include trailers and open and ending themes. If there was one thing lacking with the DBZ box sets, it’s the fact that there are really nothing in terms of special features.

I have to admit that I’m a bit biased towards the “Dragon Ball Z” anime series.  I loved the series when it was first release in Japan and still passionate about it today.

The fact that FUNimation Entertainment releases these season box sets with plenty of episodes (25 in this box set) for under $30 is just awesome!  Could you imagine that just several years ago, the series was released with only a few episodes per disc (and there are literally a few hundred episodes of DBZ) and were sold for under $20 at one time.  So, the fact that you can watch all these episodes with digitally remastered video and revised audio is just great!

As for this box set, personally I enjoyed the Great Saiyaman arc.  We watched little Gohan grow up and now he is a teenager and although he doesn’t know it yet, he has met someone he cares about and willing to help her no matter what.  The chemistry between Gohan and Bedil is just awesome and episodes just focusing on these two were just great.

Also, episodes featuring Goten and Trunks and seeing these two go against each other in the Junior Division of the World Tournament was fun to watch.

And of course, to see how everyone has changed.  Especially Krillin who is now married to Android 18 and both have a daughter.  Heck, Krillin now has hair!

But once you get to the third arc, you know that we are now heading towards the explosive final “Dragon Ball Z” villain arc of the coming of Majin Buu and with that being said, similar to the fifth season box set, season seven may leave people feeling cheated because there are only 25 episodes instead of the 30+ episodes.

In fact, discs 4-6 only contain three episodes each.  Disappointing but at the same time, I understand why FUNimation had to do it, and that is to make sure that a TV season focuses on certain arcs.  This season box set focuses on the Great Saiyaman but also the Underworld Martial Arts Tournament and the World Martial Arts Tournament.

It’s easy to get spoiled since the first few seasons and even the last season, fans have been treated with more than 30 episodes.  But still, considering how much these episodes were sold at one point and the fact is, you still get 25 episodes at under $30, that’s still a great deal.

Also, if you are buying Season 7 of the the series, more than likely you have committed yourself in buying every season of “Dragon Ball Z”.

All in all, another fun and enjoyable season of “Dragon Ball Z”.  Check it out!

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“Perhaps one of the most unique and compelling anime TV series to come from Japan within the last decade.  Cool characters, cool music but most of all a gripping, dark storyline with a number of twists.  Definitely a must buy for anime fans!”

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TV SERIES:  DEATH NOTE - Volume 1 Box Set

COMPANY: Viz Media/Shonen Jump Home Video

DVD INFORMATION: NTSC, Region 1

RATED: T+ (for older Teen)

DURATION: 500 minutes (20 episodes)

Release Date: November 18, 2008

Episodes written by Takeshi Obata, Tsugumi Oba and Toshiki Inoue

Directed by Tetsuro Araki

STARRING:

Mamoru Miyano/Brad Swaile as Light Yagami

Kappei Yamaguchi/Alessandro Juliani as L

Shido Nakamura/Brian Drummond as Ryuk

Aya Hirano/Shannon Chan-Kent as Misia

Chris Britton, Vincent Tong, Treveor Devall and more

Meet Light Yagami, a brilliant but bored high school student whose life is changed when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinagami, or god of death, named Ryuk.  When Light discovers that any human whose name is written in the book dies, he vows to use its power to rid the world of evil.  But every action has its consequences, and Light soon finds himself in a life or death battle of wits with the mysterious genius detective called L.  Humanity itself becomes the battleground to determine what form of justice will prevail!

I first caught “DEATH NOTE” on television.  I’ve heard so many impressive things in regards to the storyline and also saw the series featured on NPR.  To get the critical acclaim that it has worldwide, this series must be special.

And special is what “DEATH NOTE” truly is.  From beginning to end, this series has just grabbed my attention because of its well-written cat vs. mouse storyline.

“DEATH NOTE” is a 37-episode TV series that was created by Studio Madhouse and featured on Japanese television in 2006-2007 and featured in the US in 2007-2008.  The series has spawned a popular manga series, a novel, three live action films and has captured the attention of anime and non-anime fans worldwide.

The series focuses on the character of a very smart high school student named Light Yagami.  Bored with his life, he comes across the “Death Note” that has special instructions that if one was to write their names on the Death Note, the person would die.  They would die of a heart attack if there were no instructions on how the person is to die.  Or die the way the person possesing the Death Note wrote down.

The Death Note is from a Shinigami (death god) named Ryuk who seems to be bored in his own world and thus starts to enjoy how a person like Light starts to use the Death Note.

For Light (who goes by the name Kira), starts out using the Death Note by writing the names of criminals.  He starts to win supporters due to his ideology of creating a new world without these criminals.  But with so many deaths occuring, the police and the International community begin to fear this serial killer.  And along the way, Light is suspected by the police as a person of interest (a person who could be “Kira”) and then Light starts to use his Death Note on those who are onto him.

Thus a mysterious detective named L is assigned to the case and the series becomes a compelling storyline of will L find a way to catch Light Yagami or will Light Yagami kill L first?  Two geniuses trying to outwit the other in a thrilling storyline that is so unique, I’m confident in saying that it’s one of the most original anime to come out in the last decade.

The volume 1 box set features on the first half of the series (twenty episodes, five DVDs, four episodes per disc) as Light Yagami (Kira) moves forward to create his new world, while L and the Kira Task Force try to stop him.  Also, that there may be another person in the world who may possess a second Death Note as well.

AUDIO & VIDEO:

“Death Note” was a TV series and I found the animation to be quite cool as it showcased a dark, stylish feel to it.  Featuring a good dose of J-rock and style to it’s overall presentation, Studio Madhouse did a wonderful job in this series and bringing out the illustrations of Takeshi Obata and the storyline of Tsugumi Ohba to television.  The dark atmosphere really is well displayed in this anime series.

But the most appealing part of this series is the awesome voice acting.  Being the Japanese language purist that I am, I watched the series with Japanese voice acting and it was done very well.  But I have to admit that I was really impressed by the English dub voice acting.

Brad Swaile as Light Yagami, Battlestar Galactica actor (Felix Gaeta) Alesandro Juliani, Brian Drummond as Ryuk and Shannon Chan-Kent as Misa did a tremendous job.  As did the other English voice actors.   A job well done!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Personally, I wasn’t sure what kind of “special features” would be included on the DVD box set but you do get a really awesome behind-the-scenes interview with the English voice dub talent.  Here are the special features featured on the Volume 1 Box Set:

• Disc 1 - Behind the Scenes with Brad Swaile “Light”, Clean Opening and Ending
• Disc 2 - Behind the Scenes with Alessandro Juliani “L”, Japanese Director and Character Designer Interviewer
• Disc 3 - Behind the Scenes with Brian Drummond “Ryuk”
• Disc 4 - Behind the Scenes with Shannon Chan-Kent “Misa”
• Disc 5 - Behind the Scenes with Chris Britton, Vincent Tong and Trevor Devall “The Kira Task Force”

And on each disc, production art and trailers are featured on each disc.  What I enjoyed about the behind-the-scenes footage is that they were lengthy and not super short.  You really get a good insight on the actor’s take (from the beginning of the series) of their character, the challenges they faced in doing the vocal work and much more.  So, it was very cool to have these extras included on each disc.

I can’t tell you how awesome this TV series is.  “Death Note” is truly special as it really show how power can corrupt but taking that cat versus mouse type of storyline of two geniuses trying to outwit each other.

There are literally so many twists and turns in this anime series that it really captures your attention and has you on the edge of your seat.

As for the DVD box set, I think it’s just great that Viz Media chose to feature 20 episodes of the series and sell the box set for a great price!  I definitely like Viz Media/Shonen Jump Home Video really doing anime fans a great service by following a US TV Season Box Set style of pricing instead of selling the episodes as separate volumes.  You’re definitely getting your bang for the buck.

Overall, a well-acted anime series (on both the Japanese and English side of things), cool characters, well-written episodes, stylish animation and a unique, compelling anime series that I highly recommend!  A+

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“The eighth volume of ‘Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time~: A Tale of the Eight Guaridans’ continues the  storyline of the Eight Guardians searching for the last two Sacred Talismans, more revelations of one of the demons and much more!”

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DVD INFORMATION:

DVD TITLE: Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time~ - A Tale of the Eight Guardians Vol. 8

DURATION: Approx. 74 minutes

DVD INFORMATION: COLOR/NTSC / Japanese Audio (Dolby Digital 5.1 ch and Dolby Digital Stereo / English subtitles

CATALOG #: 61509

COMPANY: Bandai Entertainment Inc./Honneamise

RATING: Suggested 13 and Up

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

STAFF INFORMATION:

DIRECTOR: Tsunaki Aki

SERIES PLANNER: Okazaki Junko

CHARACTER DESIGN: Ohnuki Kenichi, Kotani Khyoko

ART DIRECTOR: Sakamoto Nobuhito

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Arakawa Kousuke

COLOR SETTING: Ario Yukiko

SOUND DIRECTOR: Honda Yasunori

MUSIC: Hirano Yoshihisa

EDITOR: Morita Seiji

Original Story by Tohko Mizuno (serialized in LaLa and Lala DX by HAKUSENSHA)

Opening Song: “Haruka Kimi no Moto e” performed by Morimura Tenma (Seki Tomokazu), Inori (Takahashi Naozumi), Nagareyama Shimon (Miyata Kouki)

Ending Song: “flowin’ -Ukigumo-” performed by Sefle (Akikawa Yuu), Ran (Kuwashima Houko)

Animation Created by YUMETA COMPANY

VOICE ACTORS/ACTRESSES:

Motomiya Akane - Kawakami Tomoko

Minamoto-no Yorihisa - Miki Shin-Ichiro

Morimura Tenma - Seki Tomokazu

Nagareyama Shimon - Miyata Kouki

Fujiwara-no Takamichi - Nakahara Shigeru

Tachibana no Tomohmasa - Inoue Kazuhiko

Eisen - Hoshi Soichiro

Abe-no Yasuaki - Ishida Akira

Princess Fuji - Otani Ikue

Akram - Okiayu Ryotaro

Ran - Kawashima Houko

Abe-no Seimei - Matsumoto Dai

Little Tengu - Shimakta Junko

Tengu - Taniyama Kisyo

“The meaning of those words you said when we first met… I now understand.”

Can the demons and humankind ever understand one another?  Where does the final Sacred Talisman, the Talisman of the North, lie?  The power of the Dragon God that dwells within Akane grows stronger with each passing day, while the thoughts of the Eight Guardians weave and clash…

The eighth volume of “Haruka~Beyond the Stream of Time~ A Tale of the Eight Guardians” brings us closer to the group accumulating all Sacred Talismans but also an interesting reveal on the side of the demons.

In Episode 21 titled “Demons and People”, the story focuses on Inori and dwelves deep into finding out why he has a hatred towards demons and also his relationship with his sister.   Especially how his sister has a strong connection to demon Akram’s right hand man Ickiditarl.  Inori, protective of his sister decides to take matters in his own hands to fight the demon.   Also, the curse that Akram has put over the villages have made life much worse with a major drought and no food being produced.

In episode 22 titled “When Demons Appear”, Tenma’s sister Ran wants to know what happened to them and why they are in another land.  Not having remembered that she was summoned by Akram and having worked with the demons, Guardian/android Yasuaki who has no emotions, tells Ran everything.  This sets everything in a tale spin as Ran leaves the compound and makes herself vulnerable to Akram.  Akram’s plan to take the Talismans away from the Eight Guardians begins.

In episode 23 titled “Dusk”, Akram succeeds in his mission in obtaining Ran and also stealing the Sacred Talismans.  But one is still left and that leaves Yasuaki and Eisen the only Guardians who have not obtained a talisman.  When one of the demons tells Yasuaki that there is no chance of getting the final Talisman, Yasuaki feels that because he is an android and lacks any emotion, he serves no purpose. So, Yasuaki tries to understand his worthiness to help Akane.

VIDEO:

Video is presented in anamorphic 16:9:LB and presented in 1:71:1 aspect ratio. I watched this DVD twice now on my 52″ inch television and on my 24″ iMac. And as I have mentioned before in my reviews, “HARUKA” has beautiful conceptual art when it comes to the backgrounds and just overall, how the whole land just looks lush. Colors galore! And I also enjoy the character designs. The men of course are quite Bishonen but the overall costumes to the colorful settings of the backgrounds mesh well with each other. Beautiful anime.

AUDIO:

As most of Honneamise releases, there is no English dub track and as most Honneamise releases, the encoding of audio for their DVD’s are top notch as audio is encoded at 448 kbps and clear audio. As for voice acting, I have been so far, very pleased with the Japanese voice acting for the characters.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The “HARUKA” DVD’s do not really come with many special features. Mainly featured on each volume is bonus footage titled “The Demon’s Soliloquy” which is more or less Akram’s voice and his rendition of the teaser trailers.

And as with each volume, there is a four fold, double paged booklet which features episode synopsis, images, character profiles, super deformed characters images, staff interview with Ritsuko Hayasaka (scriptwriter), cast interview after the recording the series part 1 and a section titled “Anthology of the Eight Guardians - Poems Unraveled” which features the poetry shown at the end of each episode.

With volume 8, the series continues with the adventures of the group trying to get the Sacred Talismans but if anything, more background stories that explains a few things such as Inori and his sister and his hatred for demons.  Also, we learn the tru