Natsume's Book of Friends: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Natsume's Book of Friends: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie Review

Natsume's book is overdue.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 12, 2013

Joining a series cold in the third season might seem to be a bit of a daunting task, but in the case of Natsume’s Book of Friends it’s really not as hard as might be imagined. (This is the first Blu-ray set of Natsume's Book of Friends, though the first two seasons are available in a Premium Edition DVD set from NIS America here.) The series quickly establishes its premise while evoking a moody, mystical quality that is rather haunting and distinctive. Natsume’s Book of Friends might be thought of as an anime sibling to little Cole in The Sixth Sense, but in this case Takashi Natsume doesn’t see dead people, he sees spectral yokai, the fanciful creatures that are a part of Japanese folklore. Yokai can be frankly scary or they can be decidedly more whimsical, and Natsume’s Book of Friends is filled to the brim with both kinds, not to mention a range in between these two extremes. The basic setup of the series is that Natsume has inherited a book from his late grandmother Reiki. Reiki was a noted yokai hunter, and after having defeated various ghouls and goblins, she wrote their names in her book, contractually obligating the specters to obey her will. What this means is that Natsume is constantly being chased by various yokai who want their freedom back. Also, since Natsume has the special “gift” of being able to see yokai (the spirits are of course generally invisible to the public at large), he’s often recruited to do special tasks for them. The idea of a younger generation becoming aware of an ancestor’s supernatural monster fighting abilities is rather reminiscent of the current NBC series Grimm (filmed in my hometown of Portland, Oregon), but Natsume’s Book of Friends is a considerably gentler exercise than the live action show, and in some ways feels like a cousin to some of Hayao Miyazaki’s fabled Studio Ghibli pieces. As in Miyazaki’s work, there’s a very palpable dreamlike quality to a lot of the storytelling, as if we’ve been sucked into an alternate universe where things seem to be real and relatively rational but where unexpected elements suddenly morph or penetrate into that supposed “reality” to create a completely different environment.

The worlds of folklore and fairy tale are filled with this same dreamlike ambience, and that’s probably at least one reason this form of story is often utilized at bedtime to help transport children to another realm of consciousness (though of course many fairy tales, notably some by the Grimm Brothers themselves, are rather gruesome in their original forms and therefore probably prone to create nightmares more than dreams). A lot of Natsume’s Book of Friends plays out in what could almost be termed a childlike fashion, with quiet but deliberate plot movement that nonetheless has a slightly disturbing undertone to it. Something as simple as meeting an elderly woman by the side of the road is fraught with an almost subconscious terror at times, and that intuitive fear just as often turns out be well founded, though in the series nothing ever gets to an overly grisly state of affairs. Instead this series plays more on the subtle trepidation that kids feel when, for example, they hear one of those fabled “bumps in the night” that have no immediate or apparent cause and are a scary symbol of the unknown.

Though it’s not an integral plot point, the series also makes some subtle comments about perceived “outsiders”. Natsume discovers that his grandmother Reiki was in fact ostracized for being some kind of mutant during his lifetime, and if Natsume’s personal life isn’t quite that bad, it’s obvious that his peers look at him with at least a bit of a dubious quality. This also plays into Natsume’s wishes to fee himself of the yokai yoke (so to speak); though it’s not really dealt with overtly, there’s kind of an implication that if only Natsume could cancel the contracts his grandmother put into effect back in the day, not only would the yokai be liberated, so would Natsume, allowing him to become just another “normal” teenager.

Much like in Miyazaki’s iconic work, Natsume’s Book of Friends is often surprisingly quiet, introducing natural elements at unexpected times (a gorgeous golden butterfly will suddenly flit by, or in the midst of some angst Natsume will suddenly gaze up and about at tree leaves rustling in a gentle breeze). This ties the hidden world of the subconscious, the typical lair of ghouls, goblins and amorphous beasties, in with the sometimes mysterious “real” world of the forest and other sylvan environments and it gives Natsume’s Book of Friends a very distinctive ambience. Like many of NIS America’s releases, this isn’t “in your face” anime entertainment in any way. It’s usually (though not always) rather restrained, delivering its hypnotic spell in almost a monotone at times. This isn’t to say the series isn’t captivating, for a lot of the time, it undeniably is. The show is filled with a variety of whimsical characters (including Natsume’s sidekick, a wisecracking “recovering yokai” in the form of a fat cat who has a sweet tooth which help to give it a flavor all its own. If you’re willing to relax and be slowly ensnared by the trance like state Natsume’s Book of Friends has to offer, you’ll find yourself in a dream world quite unlike anything else in contemporary anime.

Natsume's Book of Friends: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Natsume's Book of Friends is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of NIS America with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This series is just slightly soft looking at times, some of which might be due to its intentionally dreamlike quality. Colors are often beautifully robust and varied, and line detail remains quite strong throughout this presentation. There are several standout sequences scattered throughout the season where a quasi-3D effect is utilized, kind of like the old Disney multi-plane technique of yore (watch in the very opening sequence when the giant masked yokai shows up in the forest looking for Natsume for just one notable example). The series has a kind of whimsical animation style at times, perhaps most notably embodied by Natsume's sidekick, the Garfield-esque cat Madara. But a lot of the yokai are incredibly distinctive looking and pop quite well in this overall commendable high definition presentation.

Natsume's Book of Friends: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Natsume's Book of Friends features the original Japanese language track delivered via an uncompressed LPCM 2.0 mix. This show has an at times incredibly subtle sound design. I was especially struck by the exceptionally fine mixing of natural ambient sounds into virtually every episode. Dialogue is cleanly and clearly presented and though this mix is obviously fairly narrow, there's a fair degree of stereo separation, at least with regard to effects if not to dialogue or score. Fidelity is excellent, though dynamic range is relatively restrained.

Natsume's Book of Friends: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This is another so-called Premium Edition from NIS America, a label which has specialized in these deluxe packaged affairs. Once again two slimline cases are enclosed in a sturdy slipcase that also houses a very nice, glossily illustrated hardback book. The actual on-disc supplements include:

• Clean Opening (1080p; 1:31)


• Clean Ending (1080p; 1:31)


• Japanese Commercial (1080p; 1:22)


• Trailers for other NIS America Releases

Natsume's Book of Friends: Season 3 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I frankly hadn't caught the first two season of Natsume's Book of Friends and so wasn't sure if I was going to be able to jump headlong into the third season and understand, let alone enjoy, the show. I needn't have worried. The third season gives just enough background and context to orient newcomers while not dredging up too much back story to bore those who are already acclimated to the series. This is a deliberately languid, slow moving show that nonetheless ends up packing an unexpected wallop. It artfully creates a world that seems poised halfway between waking and dreaming and it very smartly outlines the deep emotions of a boy who feels ostracized from his general surroundings. In Jewish tradition, the time span between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is spent with individuals atoning for their sins in order to guarantee they'll be written into The Book of Life for another year. Natsume's Book of Friends offers a different kind of tome, a veritable Book of Death that has ensnared generations of yokai who are aching to be set free. While that gives the series a definite supernatural edge, a lot of the emotion this unassuming little anime manages to convey comes from Natsume's inner angst at having to deal with the yokai, not the yokai themselves. This may not be earth shattering entertainment, but it's exceedingly well done and really crafts a very visceral spell in a surprisingly short amount of time. This Premium Edition set from NIS America is on the pricey side, but it has the requisite bells and whistles that usually accompany these outings from the label. With very good audio and video, Natsume's Book of Friends comes Recommended.