7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A young man with no memories fights to salvage his humanity when he’s forced into a life of murder by a dangerous crime syndicate called Inferno. The organization gives him a new name, Zwei, and molds him into a perfect killing machine, a meticulous instrument of death created to obey his masters’ every deadly command.
Starring: Ayahi Takagaki, Miyu Irino, Miyuki Sawashiro, Aya Hisakawa, Isshin ChibaAnime | 100% |
Foreign | 96% |
Action | 23% |
Romance | 16% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 2.0
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Seven-disc set (3 BDs, 4 DVDs)
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A, B (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Is there some kind of requirement in modern media that world class operatives (not to mention assassins) must suffer from amnesia? The most recent famous example of course is one Jason Bourne, who at least was able to reclaim his identity, for all the good it did him. But there are a number of anime series where the hero at the very least isn’t quite sure who he is or what situation he finds himself in, and that’s the case once again with Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, a fairly recent show culled from a light novel series and a well received videogame adaptation that just a few months ago was released in its newest version for the Xbox 360. There is one salient difference between heroes like Jason Bourne and the confused young man at the center of LPhantom: Requiem for the Phantom, namely that Bourne is a good guy uncovering all sorts of subterfuge and conspiracy in an organization at least supposedly set up to “do the right thing,” even it actually isn’t living by that dictum. Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom plops our amnesiac hero, given the nickname “Zwei” (German for “two”), into a global crime syndicate known as Inferno. Zwei comes to in a nondescript room in what seems to be an abandoned building, and he struggles to recall how he got there or in fact who he is. We soon discover Zwei is being monitored by a man who appears to be a mad scientist of sorts who reveals that Zwei is being brainwashed and conditioned to become the latest (or at least the second) professional assassin for Inferno. First, though, Zwei must pass his “entrance exam,” which consists of him battling another amnesiac assassin, in this case a young girl named Ein (German for “one”). Playing out against this initial battle are scenes showing what ultimately becomes of Ein and Zwei, as we see a vicious gunfight erupting sometime in the future where the two memory challenged killers have obviously banded together to complete some sort of mission that involves a lot of bad guys (or, considering Inferno’s criminality, worse guys) and flying bullets.
Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This is generally a very sharp and appealing looking high definition presentation, with nicely saturated colors and some excellently sharp line detail. What prevents this Blu-ray from receiving a higher score is the sort of slapdash look of a lot of the animation. While some of this series is impeccably drawn and designed (look at the second screencap for a great example), some of it seems to have been scrawled off quickly by someone working under a time constraint. That gives at least some of the series an unfortunately soft and less defined appearance which may in fact not have anything to do with the transfer itself, but which prevents this release from really popping—at least some of the time —as it really should. That caveat aside, Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom certainly offers well above average sharpness and clarity. The design aesthetic here may not be overly innovative, but for the most part, the series looks fine if not fantastic.
Two lossless audio options are included on this new Blu-ray set of Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, the original Japanese language track presented via a Dolby TrueHD 2.0 mix, and an English dub presented via a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mix. The Japanese language track is a good deal more subtle than the English track, from a voice actor perspective, and of course the action sequences have nowhere near the same activity level as the 5.1 mix offers. The English language track sports brilliant fidelity and some awesome dynamic range, and it must be admitted that while the dub features the usual FUNimation suspects in a lot of key roles, Newton Pittman's husky, scratchy take on Zwei adds immeasurably to the English dub's appeal. Surround activity is quite impressive in the many action sequences, and virtually every episode offers fulsome LFE via the many eruptions of gunfire that are included.
Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom is an often fascinating and even intriguing anime that manages to keep the audience guessing for large swaths of its running time. While a couple of the sudden shifts in character strain credulity to the breaking point, the slow surfacing of Zwei and Ein's stories make for some compelling viewing, and the omnipresent action elements means that you never have to wait very long for a lot of shooting and fighting to break out. The only real downside to this series is how relentlessly dour it is, something it shares with a number of other animes that have this kind of anti-hero at their core. Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom also might have benefited from a slightly more consistent animation style, but this Blu-ray looks fine and sounds fantastic, and even though supplementary material is on the light side, this release comes Recommended.
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