Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA Blu-ray Movie Review

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA is an outstanding science-fiction mecha anime. The series is based on the original manga by Masamune Shirow. The series features animation produced by GAINAX (FLCL, Gurren Lagann). The series is available on streaming on RetroCrush and Tubi TV. The series theme composition is arranged by Norimasa Yamanaka. Featuring lyrics by MASATO, the theme music is performed by Risa Yūki. Produced by Atsushi Sugita (Birdy the Mighty, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex), Hiroaki Inoue (Armitage III, El Hazard: The Alternative World), Masaki Sawanobori (Ninja Scroll, Sakura Wars), Taro Maki (In This Corner of the World, Millennium Actress), and Toru Miura (Bubblegum Crisis, Tenchi Forever!: The Movie), Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA is a classic OVA milestone.

Appleseed is executive produced by Hirohiko Sueyoshi (Guyver: Out of Control, Macross Plus: Movie Edition), Shinji Nakagawa (Amon Saga), and Yutaka Takahashi (Blue Seed, Sakura Wars). The voice cast includes Masako Katsuki and Yoshisada Sakaguchi in the leading roles. The vocal cast also features the voices of Mayumi Shō, Norio Wakamoto, Toshiko Sawada, Toshio Furukawa. Fans of mecha series and action-adventure anime won’t want to miss this classic OVA.

The world was never the same again after World War III. Following the devastating aftermath of WWIII, bioengineered Biodroids are created. The droids are the most cutting-edge droids ever created: half human and half android. The government seeks to control the people with these robotic hybrids. Humankind is now entirely controlled and monitored by the government. In the city of Olympus, terrorist groups work to destroy Gaia. Gaia is the high-tech computer that could help to restore civilization.

Despite the highly controlled environment in the future world, these terrorists seek to restore the old-world order. The Extra Special Weapons and Tactics Squad are part of the cutting-edge Olympus Police Force. The Olympus Police Force is in charge of making sure that the “utopia” is never destroyed.

With chief officers Deunan Knute (Masako Katsuki) and Brialeos Hecatombcales (Yoshisada Sakaguchi) doing their best on their tactile missions, it’s a union of a special kind. Brialeos is mostly a cyborg while Deunan remains a fully natural human-being (and is not a part-human/part- cyborg hybrid). Can the pair bring their own brand of justice? The fate of the planet and the future world order hangs in the balance.

The series animation is outstanding and the cell-based hand-drawn animation is fantastic and evocative. The creative style of the animation is gritty and compelling. The series looks much more ambitious and provocative than many modern series with its hand-drawn aesthetic helping the series to achieve the right tonal balance between gritty storytelling and fun entertainment. The character designs by Yumiko Horasawa (Magical Idol Pastel Yumi) are well-done and the characters are certainly compelling visually (providing the series with a sense of charm inherit in the designs).

The series art direction by Hiromasa Ogura (FLCL, Jin-Roh - The Wolf Brigade) is edgier than an average production and the animation direction by Yumiko Horasawa (Magical Idol Pastel Yumi) is bold in the series sense of ambition. The animators bring the series to life. Background art is fantastic and well detailed. Line art is impressively drawn. The mecha designs by chief designer Takahiro Kishida (Saber Marionette R) are entertaining in their sense of ambition. The mecha supervision by Hideaki Anno (Neon Genesis Evangelion) adds to the series exceptional production value – it is a joy to have a genius like Anno involved with the OVA.

The score composed by Norimasa Yamanaka (Cybernetics Guardian, Generator Gawl) is entertaining fun. The score has a sense of adventure that is outstanding. Yamanaka is a fantastic composer and the music adds a lot of exciting energy to the series action sequences. The music lifts the filmmaking up with cool and suave charm. The song selection by Kiyoshi Suzuki is excellent, too. The songs are fun and deliver fantastic adrenaline-packed gusto to the OVA.

The cinematography by Masaaki Fujita (Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040, Legend of the Forest) is a highlight of the production. The cinematographic style is exceptional. The gritty sense of realism combined with surrealist adventure makes the production more compelling on a visual level. Fujita has an abundant amount of fun with the production and brings some strong A-game energy to the visual language of the series.

Written and directed by Kazuyoshi Katayama (The Big O, Those Who Hunt Elves), Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA is a must-see action-adventure. Katayama is a skilled filmmaker with a good understanding of action sequencing and how to build a sense of tension and adventure. The filmmaking finds good footing with expertly crafted action scenes and the animation is brought to life with their involvement with such a first-rate team assembled for the OVA. Fans of classic mecha and action anime will consider Appleseed an essential OVA.

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray from Discotek Media, Appleseed is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original aspect ratio of 1.33:1 full frame. The presentation on the release is excellent. The picture-quality features an organic looking film scan and the cell-based animation looks sharp throughout the presentation. The detailed animation is brought to life with top-notch encoding. Showcasing the hand-drawn animation at its best, the encode capably handles the material and compression woes are never an issue. Discotek Media did a first-rate job with the video encode.

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options. The release includes English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound and Japanese uncompressed PCM 2.0 (with English subtitles). An optional English uncompressed PCM 2.0 audio presentation is also provided on the release. The Japanese language audio presentation is incredible and the dynamics of the audio are engaging.

The audio presentation is crisp, clear, and engaging. The score and song selections are well reproduced. The audio highlights both the sounds effects by Shizuo Kurahashi (Touyou Sound) and the sound direction of Yasumasa Date (Golgo 13: The Professional, The Super Dimension Century Orguss). Exceptional encoding by Discotek Media.

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The release includes a beautiful o-card slipcover. The inner-art sleeve artwork features additional key artwork for fans of the OVA series. (The sleeve artwork is reversible).

On disc supplements include:

English Dub Credits (SD, 2:50)

English Subtitled VHS Credits (SD, 3:00)

Live Action Music Video (SD, 3:08)

Vintage US Trailer (SD, 2:11)

Vintage UK Trailer (SD, 1:49)

Japanese DVD Re-Release Trailer (SD, 00:25)

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Appleseed: The Original 1988 OVA is an exciting and action-packed anime production. The OVA has a gritty aesthetic and a sense of ambition that is exciting throughout the OVA. The animation is bold, creative, and visionary. A wonderful OVA series and one that has gained a cult following with good reason. The Blu-ray release features an exceptional video and audio presentation alongside some worthwhile supplemental features. Highly recommended.