Final Fantasy: Unlimited Phase 1 - Otaku Anime Network
- Otaku Anime Network
- Guardian Inferno
- 10/10/04
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Feature Presentation:
Special thanks to ADV Films for sending me a copy for a review for this site. I think this is the second Anime series that is base of the Final Fantasy series games you enjoy so much. It's not so bad, might be a little boring in some parts. If you are a fan of that series, you can noticed some similarity! You got the famous introduction music, you know, that harp melody and, of course, the victory music. I almost forgot, the summons & the lovable chocobos are in there, too! I love the chocobos, they are so cute & funny, too! Well, this series starts off with a bang, with a battle with two mysterious beasts after a gateway from another world pops out of no where. Twelve years later, the twin children of two scientists, who went missing when that gateway appears, went out to search for them in Wonderland, along with a girl named Lisa. Upon getting to Wonderland, they met a strange guy, Kaze, with a cool looking gun, for some reason, can summon demons! You should check out the effects when Kaza used his gun, it's a mix of CGI & regular animation. Will they find their parents or remains trap in Wonderland? Lots of questions to be answered, as the brave children goes out to explore the strange world... By the way, the ending theme is really cute! You will see it for yourself.
Video:
ADV Films did a very great job. I found no problem, the image are clear & the color looks perfect. The episodes are on a different track, so there will be a small loading time when you move on to the next episode. Each episodes are separeted into 5 parts: introduction, part A, part B, ending & the preview for the next episode! I do note that you can skip all those warnings & logos when you first load the DVD by just pressing the 'Menu' button on your remote control.
Dubbing: English: The dubbing is really great. I love the voice that did Kaze, the voice give him the feel that he is a powerful character, especially when he used his gun. Time to time, you might noticed that some parts there isn't any talking in the English dubbing, but there is on the original Japanese. I guess it didn't mix well or unimportant. It's about 80% of the original Japanese.
Audio 01: English 5.1: Unable to test it, since I don't have a 5.1 surround system, I can't really say much.
Audio XX: English 2.0: Just letting you know, there isn't an English 2.0 audio track on this DVD. This is artificially made from the 5.1 audio track, that's why I noted it as 'XX'. I found no problem with the audio, but I bet it would be alot more interesting with the 5.1. It sound clear, got no problem.
Audio 02: Japanese 2.0: No problem found.
Subtitle: ADV Films have selected a great font, very easy to read. They use yellow for the introduction, ending themes & the Japanese dialogue & white for Japanese signs & text. There are two tracks of subtitling. One track is for the sign subtitling & the other one is for the Japanese dialogue. I might note that every odd numbered episodes, the intro & ending subtitles are in English, while the even numbered episodes are in Japanese on this volume.
Menu Option: I got no idea how to describe the menu they use. Red moving background in the back, no special effects or long animation. Well, there is the chocobos running across, which is cute. There isn't a 'Play All' feature, just a selection of one of the 4 episodes, 'Screen Access', 'Set Up' & 'Extras'. The background music for the main menu is the prophecy music you hear during the preview at the end of each episode. Other sections varies different background music from the series.
DVD Extras: There isn't much extras on it, just a non-credit opening & ending, as well alot of production sketches, from characters & background, as well original illutrations images. There is also a commentary with Jessica Schwartz (Ai) & Shawn Sides (Lisa) for only the EPS 01. It's more of an interview then a commentary.
Packaging: The cover could use a little improvement. You see Kaze & his rival Makenshi, with Lisa in the middle. In the back, you get some screenshots & a picture of Fungus. The insert is really cool, though it doesn't have any chapter list. It got all the profiles of the characters you will see in this volume, as well the summons that Kaze called upon. There is also a relation table, but it kinda spoiled on what is really going on, so only take a look at it if you figure the relationship between each characters yourself. It's more fun that way. On the DVD disc itself, it's Kaza holding one of his magic bullets. Since this DVD case is a clear one, you get to see the reversible cover, which isn't really. It just list the episodes & another picture of Kaze with lots of screenshots, tainted in redish colors.
PC Viewing: Watching it on the PC is the same as watching it on the TV. Very clean, no problem at all, very little pixel (little squares popping in & out), both normal mode & full screen mode. The sound is just great. Since the episodes are on different tracks, it will take time to load when you move on to the next episode. Like on your regular DVD player, you can skip the warnings & logos when you load the disc, just use the 'menu' option to go to the menu screen.
Overall DVD Rating: If you enjoy the Final Fantasy series, I think you will like it & it does related to the games. It's not so bad the series, but it's fun to see the chocobos in action. Beside, you got to find out who is this Kaze guy really is.
Posted on Sunday, October 10, 2004 (Archive on Wednesday, November 10, 2004)