Noir Complete Collection - CineGeek
- CineGeek
- Stephen Lackey
- 08/03/05
- click here
"The action is exciting and the mystery is addictive combining to make for one of the coolest anime series available on DVD."
"Noir is a dark and addictive series full of great style to go along with the adult storyline."
I can be sort of picky about my anime. I don't typically like teenage super hero types of things. There are exceptions but for the most part I just don't identify with them. This may be because I haven't been a teenager for a few years I don't know. But for me to get hooked in I have to be able to identify with the characters and the situation in some way. That's not to say that I don't like series that feature teens or younger kids in a heroic situation because that's incorrect. What I'm talking about are those where the government has an elite force of secret badass agents that aren't old enough to even drive a car. This just doesn't play with me. Now making teens have extraordinary abilities to deal with along with all the trappings of being a teen can make for great story telling. Hell that's where Spider-Man comes from!
The story of Noir is just such a story. Mireille, a professional hit woman is drawn to Japan by a vague email. There she finds a teenage girl, Kirika, who has no memories of her past but does have an amazing ability to kill without remorse being chased by a dark organization. Kirika believes that Mireille can help her find the secrets of her past. Mireille agrees to help her as long as she understands that once all the questions are answered Mireille will have to kill her to protect her identity as an assassin for hire. The two live together and take jobs as the assassination team known as Noir.
Noir walks a tightrope between a mystery and an action series. The jobs these girls take are extremely violent, often to a shocking degree. The mystery grows and creates more questions with each passing episode. The action is exciting and the mystery is addictive combining to make for one of the coolest anime series available on DVD. Noir, as the name implies, is a dark series and thankfully it takes itself seriously. You won't see cutesy girls with tons of fan service. While the girls are obviously drawn to be cute, they are determined killers and they are portrayed that way in every episode.
9/10
The Video
Colors are a bit off balance here and there with some looking vibrant and beautiful and others looking a bit washed out. Grain is minimal and edge enhancement and aliasing are also kept under control for the most part.
8/10
The Audio
Audio is available in English and in the original Japanese with English subtitles. Both are presented in Dolby 5.1 but are mostly front loaded. Everything is well mixed and clean throughout though.
7/10
The Packaging and Bonus Features
The complete series is presented here on 7 disc housed in thin amaray cases inside a plush cardboard slipcase. The artwork does a great job of representing the dark nature of the series as well as the highly stylized artwork.
Noir is a dark and addictive series full of great style to go along with the adult storyline. This is required viewing for the true anime fan.
Overall ( Not an Average) 8/10
Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 (Archive on Saturday, September 03, 2005)