Fantasista Doll: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Fantasista Doll: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie Review

Fantasista Doll is a fantasy-adventure anime series. The series features original character designs by Anmi. The production features animation by Hoods Entertainment (If Her Flag Breaks, Val x Love). Produced by Minako Doi, Sun Hye Moon, Teppei Harada, Toshiaki Kaneko, Wakana Okamura, Yoshio Okumura, Fantasista Doll, the series features the voice of Ayaka Ohashi. Executive produced by Kazuhiko Hirose, Keiji Ota, Kunihiro Takeda, Minoru Ogasawara, Motoki Furuya, and Takanori Aki, Fantasista Doll is distributed by and licensed for North America distribution by Sentai Filmworks.

Uzume Uno (Ayaka Ohashi) is nothing more than a typical high school girl. Uzume isn’t even doing that well with sports – nor is she keeping up with her grades. Age 14, Uzume Uno finds her life full of big question marks. Yet things begin to change when Uzume receives a magical deck of cards that can summon magic warriors known as the Fantasista Dolls.

Unlike other card games, this is one that ultimately has real stakes and consequences – the fate of the entire world might rest in her deck. Challenged by other Card Masters and facing new threats as the entire world is at risk – it is up to the Fantasista Dolls to save the day. Can Uzume control her own hand of cards?

The series has a fun approach to the character element with the deck of cards playing a direct role in the universe. The approach is interesting and will remind one of other anime series with a card game or puzzle approach. Though Fantasista Doll carves out its own approach to the subject, the results do manage to recall past franchises with card elements. The central character is a compelling lead: the adventures of Uzume Uno are certainly at the forefront. The character road map for Uzume Uno is one that makes the journey more compelling for audiences.  

The anime character designs by Hiromi Kato (Goblin Slayer, Monster Girl Doctor) are an impressive aspect of the character development and the production in general. The designs by Kato are quite effective. The designs certainly fit the central protagonist and the other supporting cast members. Exploring these characters and their journey, the end results work well for the animation and the production certainly benefits as a result.

The animation is certainly at the forefront of the production and one of the best elements of the anime series. Under the art direction of Shigemi Ikeda (My Hero Academia, Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040), the aesthetic of the series is quite compelling at times. The chief animation direction by Hiromi Kato (Monster Girl Doctor, Irina: The Vampire Cosmonaut) and Shoko Takimoto (Armed Girl's Machiavellism, Death March to The Parallel World Rhapsody) contribute to the experience as well – the animation has a good sense of style and is charming. These components certainly help to enhance the genre storytelling that is inherent within the production. The end result is more ambitious and sophisticated than one may have initially expected given the genre.

The cinematography by Yoshihiro Sekiya (Tatami Time Machine Blues, Your Lie in April) adds to the visual quality of the series, too. The cinematography appears lush and colorful. The art style is certainly quite compelling on the whole and the cinematographer at the helm understands this and how to highlight everything about it. The visual splendor of the cinematography enhances the series and helps it shine.

The score composed by Yasuharu Takanashi (The Ambition of Oda Nobuna, Fairy Tail) is an impressive element of the production. This is one of the best elements of the series – the music certainly plays a compelling role. The score by Takanashi is effective for the series. Composer Takanashi is a quality composer who has done excellent work before – most notably with the Fairy Tail scores. This is a compelling contributor for the production and the results are noteworthy.

Written by Yuuko Kakihara (RIN-NE, Viewtiful Joe), Noboru Kimura (Dragonar Academy, Princess Principal: Crown Handler), and Goro Taniguchi (Bloody Escape - Jigoku no Kōsōgeki, Estab-Life: Revengers' Road), the chief screenwriters help usher in the story and bring it to life. The series certainly has fun exploring the concept and the card element. These chief screenwriters certainly have fun in the ballpark and bring some solid genre elements to the forefront. The results are compelling and provide a extra sense of charm.

Directed by Hisashi Saito (Bamboo Blade, The Testament of Sister New Devil), Fantasista Doll is an anime series with some interesting and compelling elements. The director of the production understands the genre and the root appeal of the series. The filmmaker certainly imbues the production with some fun aesthetic elements and action beats. Fans of other similar productions will find it worth checking out.

Fantasista Doll: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Sentai Filmworks, Fantasista Doll is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The crisp and colorful presentation is certainly impressive looking and is something that will charm and delight audiences. The animation looks crisp and clear on the release. This is a solid native high-definition presentation. Some anime series simply utilize upscaled masters but this release has a solid high-definition presentation with good color reproduction and depth. The master looks exceptionally crisp and rewarding. A solid encode by Sentai Filmworks.

Fantasista Doll: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo (with English subtitles). The audio quality on the release is quite impressive sounding. The audio is crisp and clear on the release. Dialogue is well reproduced. The soundtrack is well encoded and enhanced by the lossless audio presentation. The only potential drawback for some audiences will be the lack of an English dub option on the set. Considering the set was released once before in a different edition (and Sentai has a track record for occasionally producing new English dubs on past titles) it is unfortunate that the same thing was not done for this release.

Fantasista Doll: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Clean Opening Animation (HD, 1:33)

Clean Closing Animation (HD, 1:31)

Fantasista Doll: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Fantasista Doll is a decent and charming anime series. The production has impressive animation and the direction is solid. Though this is not a classic series, the production has some worthwhile elements. The series will certainly appeal to its target base.

The Blu-ray release includes a solid video and audio presentation. The high-definition video looks quite impressive. The lossless audio quality is notable as well. The only downsides to the release include no English dub audio and a small supplemental package. Fans of the series may wish to indulge despite some shortcomings to the release.