Boogiepop Phantom: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		2.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Boogiepop Phantom: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

Boogiepop Phantom is a sophisticated and stylish horror-thriller. The series breaks expectations for the genre. The series has a supernatural horror element and tells a non-linear story. The series is produced by Kazuya Furuse (Seraphim Call, Disgaea), Masao Maruyama (Birdy the Mighty, Claymore), and Yasuo Ueda (Lupin the 3rd: Green vs Red, Tenchi Muyo! Ryo Ohki).

Featuring original character designs by Kouji Ogata, Boogiepop Phantom explores a dark mythology and the production delves in to some dark and complex undercurrents of horror anime. Each episode focuses on new characters within the Boogiepop mythos. Boogiepop Phantom features animation producted by Madhouse (Cardcaptor Sakura, Black Lagoon). Boogiepop Phantom was originally broadcast on TV Tokyo.

The unnamed city of the Boogiepop Phantom tale encountered unspeakable horrors when a series of grisly murders happened. As these killings seem to resemble that of a serial killer, an urban legend is created by local high school students. Terror mounts in the city.

City dwellers begin to wonder if the killings are the result of the mysterious Boogiepop (Kaori Shimizu). The shadowy figure of Boogiepop resembles that of death himself – and as the legend swirls of this figure (death incarnate), new teenagers begin to disappear years following the original killings. As dangers rise, who will survive the new wave of murders?

The series has a gothic and dark style that is at the root of the series success. The production would not be as successful without this complex and gritty aesthetic at the root of the production. This is not a conventional horror anime. Breaking expectations, Boogiepop Phantom became a cult hit with the unconventional aesthetic inherit in the production.

The character designs by Shigeyuki Suga (Kino's Journey, Monochrome Factor) are essential to the production and its success. The designs are unique and distinct looking. Suga certainly achieves an impressive aesthetic with the series. Boogiepop Phantom has a wide cast of characters and these characters are interchanging within the story and the puzzle-piece of the story. Benefiting the nonlinear storytelling, Boogiepop Phantom showcases compelling character designs and the results here work well and on many levels.

The art direction by Izumi Hoki (Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, Space Brothers) and Yuka Hirama (Gurren Lagann, Magical Girl Ore) is certainly one of the most compelling elements of the production. As beautifully bleak as Boogiepop Phantom can be, the animators understood the horror tone the production was working to achieve and the team of animators involved with the series managed to provide something that capably showcased these aesthetic goals.

Dark, brooding, and foreboding, Boogiepop Phantom is not a conventional looking anime production. Most anime series are quite the opposite: bright, cheery, and vibrant. Boogiepop Phantom attempts to do something far different and the tone established by the animators is something that is key to the series cult legacy.

The cinematography by Takashi Azuhata (Macross Plus, Serial Experiments Lain) is one of the highlights of Boogiepop Phantom. Boogiepop Phantom often showcases a Noir aesthetic with an almost black-and-white visual style (as the color is drained from the animation for most of the production). There are only some subtle hints of color used during the presentation and the end result is something far more sinister and foreboding than a typical series. Azuhata also regularly utilizes vignetting throughout the series and these elements provide a distinct visual appearance.

Written by Sadayuki Murai (Millennium Actress, Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040), Boogiepop Phantom is a gritty and complex horror anime with a lot of darkness to explore. Murai provides the script with good dialogue and characterizations. The results are certainly impressive and add to the series sense of creativity.

With a less skilled writer, the concept might not have been as well executed. The story certainly explores dark terrain and the concept is not one for those who cannot handle horror storytelling too well. Murai capably handles the material.

Boogiepop Phantom taps in to the common fears of a “boogeyman” and all that the concept entails in the end. The tale explores the course of legend in a unique way. The tale also explores mythology by way of folktales. The tale finds the balance of horror and supernatural for a compelling horror mix.

Directed by Takashi Watanabe (Lost Universe, The Slayers), Boogiepop Phantom is a compelling horror anime. Watanabe is a gifted filmmaker with a strong sense of visual finesse. The filmmaker explored Boogiepop Phantom with a unique approach to the series material. By providing a decidedly bleak and gothic undercurrent to the tale, director Watanabe imbued Boogiepop Phantom with all of the right ingredients for a successful horror series.

Boogiepop Phantom: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Anime Limited, Boogiepop Phantom is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.33:1 full frame. The presentation is sourced from standard definition material. The standard definition footage is not in pristine condition and has a weaker visual fidelity.

The high-definition imagery is quite soft and often appears out of focus on the release. Some of this is the intentional aesthetic of the series and some of it is due to the production time-frame. The bleak visuals are certainly enhanced by the upscaling regardless – even if only to a moderate degree.

This is a decidedly dark and grim looking production and though the standard definition source material will certainly never be as crisp as modern high-definition productions, the upscaling is adequate for the source (even if imperfect). Colors are dark and quite drab looking but this goes back to the intentional aesthetic of Boogiepop Phantom.

The series drains color intentionally to achieve a specific aesthetic for the filmmaking. The series also regularly uses vignetting and this is something that the video encode handles well for the presentation. Though viewers should keep their expectations in check given the standard definition source material, the results are decent given the condition of the material and the source limitations.

Boogiepop Phantom: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles), English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo, and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound.

The surround sound option provides a slightly more enveloping sound mix with emphasis on expanding the soundstage for the score and eerie sound effects. The stereo audio sounds worthwhile, though. The stereo audio is what purists will prefer (especially for those wanting to watch the series in the original Japanese language). The audio fidelity sounds somewhat limited and not as crisp as on many modern productions. Nonetheless, the audio sounds decent and will still seem reasonably satisfactory for viewers.

Boogiepop Phantom: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc 1:

Audio Commentary

Clean Opening (HD, 1:32)

TV Spots (HD, 00:54)

Opening Music Video (HD, 1:32)

Fruits Music Video (HD, 2:42)

Disc 2:

Audio Commentary

Clean Endings (HD, 11:11)

Ending Music Video 1 (HD, 1:07)

Ending Music Video 2 (HD, 1:05)

Boogiepop Phantom Commercials (HD, 4:07)

Boogiepop Phantom: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Boogiepop Phantom is a compelling and grim horror tale. The series breaks from anime norms and is a grittier and darker series with a bleak aesthetic – the opposite of what most viewers expect to find in any anime production. The aesthetic drains the color out of the production to achieve a Noir style sensibility.

The Blu-ray release features a solid upscale from the standard definition material and a lossless audio sound presentation. Though the presentation has some source limitations, it is a solid enough video and audio presentation of the material. Fans of Boogiepop Phantom may wish to pick up the release and add it to their collection. Recommended.