Ninja Robots Tobikage: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

Ninja Robots Tobikage: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

A classic hand-drawn action anime.

Ninja Robots Tobikage is an action anime with outstanding ninja robot elements at play. The series is produced by Masaaki Fushikawa (Creamy Mami: Long Good-Bye, Magical Fairy Persia), Norio Hatsukawa (Cat's Eye, Dirty Pair), and Yoshitaki Suzuki (Magical Angel Creamy Mami, Magical Idol Pastel Yumi). The production shines with great animation, music, and energy. For fans of classic hand drawn anime, Ninja Robots Tobikage features animation produced by studio Pierrot (Flame of Recca, Hikaru no Go). The series brings a unique tale of robot fighters to the genre.

The fate of the future resides on teenage fighters with powerful Ninja robot warriors fighting by their side. At the forefront of the teenage team is Joe Maya, the lead, who fights with a giant robot to battle enemies and push forward in pursuit of the betterment of all humanity. Alongside his brother Mike and friends Jenny, Damien, and others, Joe finds the clan working together to help fight for tomorrow. Can Joe and the others work to save alien princess Romina? The stakes are high as the teenagers fight for their futures with robot-rock Ninjas!

The series finds its groove in the action. The saga features entertaining action sequences which are well explored by the team of animators. The epic battles showcase the robots fighting in intense scenes. A wonderful element of the production, Ninja Robots Tobikage is an anime which certainly benefits from having a creative action backbone. There is much to appreciate about the efforts of the production team to make the action elements carry gravitas while remaining engaging.

The animation is one of the best elements of Ninja Robots Tobikage. The team of animators involved on the production delivered excellent hand-drawn art with this series. Under the art direction of Geki Katsumata (Be Forever Yamato, Galaxy Express 999: Can You Live Like a Warrior?), Ninja Robots Tobikage is a fascinating example of how excellent traditional art looks with anime series. There is a huge difference at times between a modern anime produced with computers and vintage anime series done entirely by hand and put on film. Often, the vintage art style (by hand) looks superior.

Time to take flight.

The character designs by Koichi Ohata (Yamato Takeru, Sonic Soldier Borgman), Shigeru Kato (Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs, Silent Service), and Toshihiro Hirano (Cosmos Pink Shock, Megazone 23) are solid looking and fit the tone of the production quite well. There is a sense of cohesion to these designs. The mecha designs by Koichi Ohata (Black Lion, Cybernetics Guardian) and Yasuhiro Moriki (Banner of the Stars, Angel Cop) impress as well. The robots are well designed and use colorful animation too.

The cinematography by Masayoshi Miyakojima (Dallos) is another shining example of the impact hand drawn animation can have on the anime medium. The visual elements are strong and the use of color impresses. The cinematography gives the series a unique aesthetic and aids the concept of the series.

Featuring an original score composed by Eiji Kawamura (Hades Project Zeorymer, Kamen Rider Black), Ninja Robots Tobikage is a reasonably entertaining addition to the series. The music is fun for the program and aids the action-adventure. The music might not be top-tier in the anime realm but nonetheless, the score is entertaining and adds to the production well.

Written by Yūji Watanabe (Space Runaway Ideon, Aura Battler Dunbine), Ninja Robots Tobikage is a program with a concept custom-made for action. The ideas of Watanabe help to keep the saga entertaining. A thrilling ride at times, Ninja Robots Tobikage has a solid script for action anime enthusiasts to enjoy.

Directed by Masami Anno (Legend of the Condor Hero, Science Fiction Saiyuki Starzinger), Ninja Robots Tobikage is certainly a compelling hand-drawn anime. Fans of classic anime series will enjoy the art style. The direction highlights the action and the characters well.

Ninja Robots Tobikage: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Discotek Media, Ninja Robots Tobikage is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.50:1 full frame. The presentation is excellent for a vintage anime series. The hand-drawn art style looks great and flourishes on the release. The series does have some excellent visual elements (well handled by the encoding from Discotek). A solid effort from the label.

Ninja Robots Tobikage: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of audio options: uncompressed PCM 2.0 stereo in the original Japanese language (with English subtitles) and uncompressed PCM 2.0 stereo for the English language dub. The soundstage is impressive for a classic anime series. Dialogue is clear and well reproduced. Subtitles impress and are well-done for the series.

Ninja Robots Tobikage: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Creditless Opening – Japanese Version (HD, 1:39)

Creditless Opening – English Version (HD, 1:39)

Creditless Ending – Japanese Version (HD, 1:20)

Creditless Ending – English Version (HD, 1:20)

Vintage English Opening (SD, 1:41)

Vintage English Credits (SD, 2:48)

Vintage English Episode Recaps (SD, 18:25)

Vintage English Next Episode Previews (SD, 10:10)

Vintage English Commercial Bumpers (SD, 00:44)

Art Gallery includes 67 click-through illustrations in full color.

Ninja Robots Tobikage: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Ninja Robots Tobikage is an exciting action series with a lot to offer fans of classic (vintage) anime series. The series has action- packed excitement and a nice sense of energy. Director Masami Anno (Legend of the Condor Hero) creates a fantastic visual experience with great animation for vintage anime fans.

The Blu-ray release from Discotek Media features a solid video-audio presentation of the series and a nice assortment of extras (including a great art gallery featuring a number of impressive full-color illustrations). The release is excellent and has great technical merits. Recommended.