Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

My Dress-Up Darling: The Complete Season Blu-ray Movie Review

My Dress-Up Darling: The Complete Season (Limited Edition) brings the comedy-hijinks to the table for the anime series. Created by Shinichi Fukuda, My Dress-Up Darling will appeal to fans of cosplay and everything the costuming world of anime fandom has to bring. The series features animation by production studio CloverWorks (Spy×Family, Wonder Egg Priority).

The opening theme song is by Spira Spica and the ending theme is performed by Akari Akase. The series features vocal-performances by Shōya Ishige and Hina Suguta. Co-star vocal performances by Atsumi Tanezaki, Atsushi Ono, and Hina Yomiya.

Wakana Gojō (Shōya Ishige) is obsessed with making hina dolls. The hobby is more than a simple passion for him and it causes a wide range of social anxieties and problems for him. Yet some of those troubles might just slide away when Wakana befriends the gorgeous girl-next-door classmate Marin Kitagawa (Hina Suguta).

Marin begins to help encourage the talents of Wakana and suggests he use his craft skills towards making her cosplay costumes. Apparently the two have far more in common than expected. Marin is obsessed with cosplay – a secret hobby of her own – and she loves the artistry of Wakana. Could this be the start of a beautiful friendship – or something even more beautiful and unexpected?

The character designs by Kazumasa Ishida are an impressive part of the production. The characters are well animated and the design work to bring these characters to life is something that adds a special distinction to the production. The aesthetic is certainly something that works well for the concept. Exploring the cosplay world, the character designs make sense for characters engaged in cosplay.

The animation is one of the best qualities of the production. The series features chief animation direction by Jun Yamazaki (Asteroid in Love, Wonder Egg Priority), Kazumasa Ishida (PERSONA 5 the Animation, Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend Flat), Mayumi Nakamura (DARLING in the FRANXX, Little Witch Academia), Shinpei Kobayashi (Castle Town Dandelion, High School Fleet), and Tomomi Kawatsuma (Lonely Castle in the Mirror, The House of the Lost on the Cape). The animators for the production did outstanding work at bringing the animated tale to the screen. The aesthetic of the production is one that is bubble-gum pop and it provides the right ingredients for the cosplay tale. Impressive aesthetically and something that seems well-tailored to the style of the series.

The score composed by Takeshi Nakatsuka (Magical Girl Ore, The Greatest Demon Lord is Reborn as a Typical Nobody) is a notable part of the series. The music is a good backdrop to the series. The score certainly does well at adding to the cosplay concept and the style of the anime. The score fits the production well and is worthwhile for the series.

The cinematography by Tsubasa Kanamori (Spy×Family, Horimiya: The Missing Pieces) is one of the more impressive aspects of the series. Kanamori does a solid job with the cinematographic style and the crisp animation is vividly brought to life with the stylish cinematography by Kanamori. The aesthetic of the cinematography is one that is bright and colorful – the vibrant style is one that is full of pop energy.

Written by Yoriko Tomita (Hi Score Girl, Sugar Apple Fairy Tale), My Dress-Up Darling is a decent anime for fans of the comedy genre. The series certainly has some compelling ideas and those who enjoy the concept and the characters will find it has some worthwhile elements. Though not a perfect homerun, My Dress-Up Darling still has enough good elements to entice some anime fans.

Directed by Keisuke Shinohara (Black Fox, A3! Season Spring & Summer), My Dress-Up Darling is an anime series aimed at fans of cosplay in particular. The concept will appeal to that core fanbase especially well. Shinohara taps into the series style and the program has a fun aesthetic that is enormously colorful and playful. Though perhaps not for everyone, My Dress-Up Darling does impress with noteworthy animation and style.

My Dress-Up Darling: The Complete Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Crunchyroll, My Dress-Up Darling is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The Blu-ray release includes an impressive native high-definition presentation. The encode quality on the release is noteworthy and it showcases the vibrancy of the series animation. The series animation looks crisp, colorful, and enormously engaging. The background animation and line art are impressively encoded on the Blu-ray release.

Blu-ray continues to provide viewers with the absolute best picture-quality for videophiles seeking the best possible quality out of the encoding. Streaming video platforms offer a more compressed image, showcasing video with lower bit-rates and compression that takes away a bit from the overall aesthetic provided in the presentation. For those wanting to eek out every extra detail in the image possible, the Blu-ray format offers a superior option. Fans will be pleased.

My Dress-Up Darling: The Complete Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound and the original Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 (with English subtitles). The release capably reproduces the soundstage. The lossless audio encoding on the release highlights the sound direction by Akiko Fujita (Classroom Crisis, Jujutsu Kaisen). The lossless sound quality is certainly one of the best qualities of the release. Blu-ray provides lossless encoding – something no streaming video service provider will offer you. For fans seeking the absolute best sound quality possible for the series, the Blu-ray provides the absolute best option available. In fact, many streaming platforms compress audio to MP3 quality – certainly nowhere near the bit-rates lossless audio provides.

My Dress-Up Darling: The Complete Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The limited-edition release includes a 104-page art-book featuring character art profiles, cosplay columns, and interviews. The booklet is extensive and includes a lot of extra material for fans. Expansive, in-depth, and fun booklet sections for a big super-fan to enjoy – and plenty of art. This is clearly the best supplement included with the box-set and there is no mistaking how nice of a bonus the art book included with the release is. A over 100 page art book is the type of bonus that sometimes fans might expect to have to purchase separately, causing an extra cost for their fandom of a particular anime show. The book fits nice and snug inside of the art box and fans can leisurely flip through the pages of the book and admire the quality artwork highlighted throughout the book and appreciate the artistry of the animation team and what the animators brought to the table. This is certainly a value-added feature, something adding more value-proposition to the package and to the limited collectors edition - making it a set that might feel worthwhile to fans who are on the fence between the standard edition and the collectors edition. If one was already more inclined to opt for purchasing an art book for the series, then why not opt for the deluxe collectors edition with the artbook included inside of the release? 

The release also includes a selection of 9 art cards, a 16-month calendar and cosplay planner, and a sticker sheet. The box-set release comes packaged in a deluxe chip-board art box package with an impressive glitter and sparkly effect on the box – sure to win the hearts of cosplay fan-girls. The packaging is all dressed-up and ready for the show!

My Dress-Up Darling: Dub Cast and Crew Q&A (HD, 9:04) includes interviews with Emily Fajardo (ADR Director), Risa Mei (English Voice of Sajuna Inui), Jad Saxton (English Voice of Shinju Inui), and Paul Dateh (English Voice of Wakana Gojo). This is a nice supplement to find on the release and it is a supplement that will appeal directly to fans of the English dub. Dub fans who enjoy hearing from the dub voice cast will find something worthwhile to appreciate with this 9-minute-long question and answer session. Given how passionate some dub fans are about their favorite dub voice-actors, Crunchyroll did a good job providing this type of bonus feature on the release.

Promo Videos (HD, 4:45)

Textless Opening Song (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song (HD, 1:32)

My Dress-Up Darling: The Complete Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

My Dress-Up Darling is an anime series aimed at cosplay fans. The cosplay crowd will find something to appreciate. The series has an impressive visual aesthetic and the production values work well, too. The release includes a quality video and audio presentation. The collector's edition release includes a nice selection of bonuses – including a 104-page artbook, 9 art cards, a sticker sheet, and more. A well-rounded collector's edition for fans of the series.