Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness Blu-ray Movie Review

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness is a science-fiction mecha adventure. Created by Go Nagai, Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness is a production with an emphasis on spectacle. The anime production comes from chief production studio Bandai Visual (Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex).

Broadcast on the Bandai Channel, Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness was executive produced by Federico Colpi (Voices of a Distant Star, UFO Robo Grendizer), Shigeru Watanabe (Blue Submarine No.6, Magic User's Club!), and Takashi Nagai (Black Lion, Gantz). Produced by Koji Morimoto (New Getter Robo, .hack//Legend of the Twilight), Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness features vocal performances by Hiroya Ishimaru and Shōzō Iizuka. An anime for mecha designs.

An immensely dark and intense Mazinger story awaits. The tale of the Mazinger is one with danger around every corner. The Mazinger are equipped with immense skills and could cause a sense of unending terror and commotion at any moment. Yet as the world moves towards a darker fate, everything becomes more complex as the Great General of Darkness helps to lead the Mycenae Empire towards Earth.

The army includes all-powerful Warrior Beasts. The battle stage is set. Kouji Kabuto (Hiroya Ishimaru) is being chased by Archduke Gorgon. Gorgon wants to wipe out Kouji before he manages to get to the Mazinkaiser. Will Gorgon or Kouji prevail in the epic battle? An epic battle is about to unfold and the stakes are greater than ever before!

The action is a huge part of the production and why audiences will want to turn up for the spectacle of the anime. There is no bigger component of the anime. Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness is an anime production entirely focused on building a sense of scale with the emphasis on the action scenes making it more compelling than your typical mecha. Audiences seeking a fun escapist action anime to unwind with will find this to be a decent production with enough interesting sequences to keep things entertaining.

The mecha element is certainly a huge component, providing a sense of adrenaline, and the mecha designs make a solid impression for Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness as well. Mechanical designs are by Keiichi Satō (Princess Resurrection, The Big O) and Tatsuo Yamada (Durarara!!, Getter Robo: Armageddon) and these elements provide an intense backdrop to the action sequencing and make things more elevated and grandiose. The spectacle is more robust as a result and there are certainly enough compelling elements here to make an argument for the mecha being a focal component of the storytelling. A good effort by the mecha designers.

The character designs by Kenji Hayama (Princess Jellyfish, Tiger & Bunny) are compelling and add to the production as well. Even though the characterizations in Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness are less sophisticated and compelling than some anime productions, the designs themselves are unique looking and add to the experience. The character design work is well- rounded and manages to contribute to making this a compelling action-packed anime.

The animation is impressive and one of the greatest stengths of Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness. The art direction by Kazuhiro Arai (All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku, Demon Prince Enma) works well within the framework of the production and showcases some nice detailing that is compelling. The animation direction by Atsuo Tobe (Blue Seed, Brain Powered), Kenji Hayama (The Big O, Tiger & Bunny), and Tatsuo Yamada (Lupin III: The Secret of Twilight Gemini, Natsume's Book of Friends) manages to bring forth the best of the team of animators involved with Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness.

The animation also helps highlight the storyboards by Akira Nishimori (Detective Conan: Crossroad in the Ancient Capital, Turn A Gundam) and Masahiko Murata (Naruto Shippūden: The Lost Tower, Space Pirate Mito). While not a perfect home run, the animation plays a big role in the success of Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness and why it works as an action-packed production. The team assembled manage to deliver something that works well on the whole.

The cinematography by Takashi Azuhata (Blood Reign: Curse of the Yoma, Getter Robo: Armageddon) is compelling and provides a stylistically unique aesthetic for Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness. Cinematographer Azuhata provides a darker color palate and manages to imbue something special within the anime. The use of color and light on the production is excellent and adds to the sense of craftsmanship.

The score composed by Kazuo Nobuta (Burn-Up Scramble, New Getter Robo) is energetic and action-packed fun. The music plays a good role in finding the balance between drama and action elements. Composer Nobuta certainly has fun with the production and understands how to evoke some extra emotion from the epic stage of the animation. The score highlights the mecha elements in a uniquely compelling way. There is a lot to appreciate about the effort by Nobuta.

The screenplay by Satoru Nishizono (Digimon Adventure, .hack//Legend of the Twilight) isn’t the best element of the production but it isn’t bad by any means, either. The script is decent enough and has some entertaining character moments during Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness. Though the script isn’t focused predominately on characterizations, the script does have some good dialogue and energy as well. The scriptwriting isn’t as complex as it perhaps could be but even despite some pitfalls, the script manages to fit the genre roots well.

Directed by Masahiko Murata (Naruto, Saiyuki), Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness offers fans of the mecha genre some entertaining and exciting action-packed adventure. The sense of action-packed energy inherit in the production is at the core of the experience. Though this could have been a little better with an even more well-rounded sense of storytelling and action-oriented scale, it is still rather entertaining and works on the whole. The end result is something that is worth seeing. Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness offers enough entertainment to keep audiences compelled.

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Discotek Media, Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness is presented in 1080i MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The high-definition presentation on the release is impressive on the whole. This is a solid looking video presentation, managing to showcasing the fine detail of the animation.

Though not a perfect presentation, the transfer is still reasonably engaging throughout. Though not a pristine and flawless presentation, the encode is reasonably sharp and the image is clear overall. The level of detail is good on the whole. Color reproduction appears impressive and fits the tone of the mecha production. The release also benefits from a healthy bit-rate. A nice encode from distributor Discotek Media.

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: English LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit), Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and Japanese LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 16-bit). The lossless audio on the release certainly provides a solid backdrop to the production. Dialogue reproduction is excellent and sounds clear during the presentation. The sound effects are well integrated as well. The score sounds nice and crisp. The 5.1 surround sound Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio track makes the biggest impression by offering a more robust and immersive surround sound experience.

The surround sound mix was an impressive aspect of the release and it offered a somewhat more engaging audio experience with directional details in the rear channels making a solid impression and sounding well-blended with front-stage elements. The English subtitles are noteworthy and are free from egregious spelling or grammatical errors. The encoding by distributor Discotek Media is impressive and works well for the release.

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The release comes with an o-card slipcover showcasing compelling front art-work. The slip design makes the release feel even more special in hand and it adds a sense of "prestige" to the release. It looks great on the shelf and in hand. The release also includes inner-art on the reverse side of the cover.

On disc supplements include:

Dub Bloopers (HD, 3:22)

Mazinger Troop Picture Album (HD, 1:36)

Mycenae Empire Picture Album (HD, 2:16)

Clean Opening (HD, 3:57)

Clean Ending (HD, 2:56)

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness is an entertaining and worthwhile science-fiction mecha production. The anime has a compelling sense of scope and scale. There are a lot of unique and impressive elements in the animation. The animators brought forth a great production. With direction from Masahiko Murata (Naruto) and scriptwriting by Satoru Nishizono (Digimon Adventure), action fans will want to check out Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness.

The Blu-ray release includes an impressive high-definition presentation with a solid encode from distributor Discotek Media. The release comes with a nice o-card slipcover. The package also has a selection of bonus features. Fans of Mazinkaiser VS Great General of Darkness will want to add it to their collection. Recommended.