7.7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Renton Thurston is a 14-year-old boy who lived with his mechanic grandfather in a backwater town. Every day he dreamed of being with the mercenary "Light Finding Operation (LFO)" aircraft pilot group "Gekkostate" and riding "Trapar" particle waves—a sport called "reffing"—with their charismatic leader Holland, especially when faced with his father's acclaimed past or his grandfather's desire to protect him. When a young girl named Eureka riding the original LFO, the "Nirvash typeZERO," asks his grandfather for a tune-up, she inadvertently brings the attention of the military to the garage; as a result, the garage is destroyed and Renton is forced to deliver a new type of interface—the "Amita Drive"—to the Nirvash. After a heated fight in which the Nirvash destroys the military LFOs by unleashing an immense amount of power, Renton is invited into Gekkostate. However, he quickly realizes that behind the facade of a traveling group of mercenaries is a very bitter reality.
Starring: Yûko Sanpei, Kaori Nazuka, Keiji Fujiwara, Mayumi Asano (I), Takeshi AonoAnime | 100% |
Foreign | 98% |
Action | 22% |
Sci-Fi | 21% |
Comedy | 20% |
Romance | 13% |
Adventure | 11% |
Teen | 9% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080i (upconverted)
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 2.0
Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 2.0
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Four-disc set (3 BDs, 1 DVD)
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A little less than a year ago, FUNimation Entertainment released Eureka Seven AO, a 2009 reboot of one of the more venerable anime outings of the past couple of decades, Eureka Seven, which initially aired from 2005 to 2006. Despite its relatively recent vintage (at least when compared to really old school fare like Dragon Ball Z), Eureka Seven has attained an almost iconic status as one of the formative works in the mecha subgenre that populates a lot of contemporary anime. As was mentioned in the Eureka Seven AO Blu-ray review, both that series and this original outing offer what is at its core a rather simple story, albeit one adorned with a confounding array of supposedly high-tech terms and acronyms, which may make the initial going for some viewers about as bumpy as a kid lifting on trapar. And if you don’t understand that reference, just relax: the good news is that Eureka Seven, for all its accrued density in verbiage, actually offers a straightforward enough tale that is generally more than easy enough to follow. The protagonist of the story is young teen Renton Thurston, a kid with the perhaps unenviable heritage of being the progeny of one of his country’s most lauded military heroes, a guy named Adrock Thurston who saved the planet but who disappeared under mysterious (and perhaps nefarious) circumstances. Adrock’s reputation is somewhat bifurcated as a result, and Renton’s older sister Diane has also vanished, supposedly in an attempt to prove that her father was in fact a hero. That has left Renton alone with his dreams of becoming a hero himself, albeit under the watchful gaze of his somewhat stern grandfather. When a cataclysmic collision introduces Renton not just to the mecha of his dreams, a prototype unit called the Nirvash typeZERO (orthography is very important in a series like Eureka Seven), but also to the girl of his fantasies, things seem to be looking up for the boy. But soon Renton finds himself embroiled in a series of events for which he may be spectacularly unprepared.
Eureka Seven is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer in 1.33:1. This native SD presentation actually looks surprisingly decent if not fantastic, if one comes with appropriate expectations. This certainly exhibits none of the softness and drabness of, say, Shakugan no Shana: Season 1, but it just as certainly doesn't have the crispness and clarity that native HD source elements could have provided. Colors here are vivid and nicely saturated and the interlaced presentation doesn't really drastically affect the overall image quality. While line detail never devolves to stairstepping, it doesn't quite have the fine sharpness that some may wish for. There are occasional issues with banding in some fine gradients. Overall, this offers an acceptably sharp and well detailed viewing experience.
Both Dolby TrueHD 2.0 mixes included on the Blu-ray, one in Japanese and one in English, sound nicely rambunctious and detailed, with excellent reproduction of both dialogue and sound effects. There's some nice lower end here courtesy of some of the action sequences. Dialogue remains well prioritized even in noisy segments.
Blu-ray Disc One:
- Yuko Sanpei (Renton) and Kaori Nazuka (Eureka) Part 1 (480i; 14:53)
- Yuko Sanpei (Renton) and Kaori Nazuka (Eureka) Part 2 (480i; 31:44)
- Stephanie Sheh (Eureka) (480i; 16:02)
- Johnny Yong Bosch (Renton) (480i; 11:05)
- Keiji Fujiwara (Holland) and Michiko Neya (Talho) Part 1 (480i; 15:22)
- Crispin Freeman (Holland) Part 1 (480i; 16:13)
It's really not very hard to see why Eureka Seven has such an outsized reputation in the anime world. This is a series that rather smartly balances head and heart, offering a convoluted but ultimately rather simple story of two individuals finding themselves through each other. Newcomers need to be warned that there is an awful lot of show specific terminology that has to be mastered in order to fully understand some of the rapid fire dialogue, but having a little patience pays off with this show. While the image quality on this set is perhaps unexpectedly decent given native SD source elements, those expecting crystalline clarity are probably going to be disappointed by this release. Those who don't mind their viewing looking a little "old school" will find charm to spare in this series, and Eureka Seven comes Recommended.
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