Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Princess Tutu: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie Review

A ballerina fantasy anime from the director of Sailor Moon.

Princess Tutu is a fantasy anime created by Ikuko Ito. The anime is based on the original manga by Mizuo Shinonome. The production is inspired by classic tales including Swan Lake and The Ugly Duckling. Produced by Atsushi Moriyama (BPS – Battle Programmer Shirase, Love Hina Again), Masafumi Fukui (Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi, Cosplay Complex), Shiroharu Kawasaki (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Shuffle!), Taiji Suinou (Psychic Academy, Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi), Tomoko Kawasaki (Bondage Queen Kate, Chrome Shelled Regios), and Yoshiaki Matsumoto (School Rumble: Extra Class, Tokyo Ghoul: re), Princess Tutu is a compelling anime creation for fantasy fans. The animation comes from studio Hal Film Maker (Saber Marionette J, Ghost Talker's Daydream).

With uncommon magic, the writer Drosselmeyer could bring stories to life. Yet the magic within Drosselmeyer led to danger and catastrophe ahead. Unable to finish writing The Prince and The Raven, Drosselmeyer's unfinished story instead led to the characters leaving the fantasy realm and entering the real world. Drosselmeyer's heart becomes shattered to stop the spread of evil.

As fantasy and reality blend into one, a duckling transforms into a young girl, the Princess Tutu (Nanae Katou). Princess Tutu must now find the missing pieces of Drosselmeyer's heart and deliver the pieces to his new-form, Mytho (Naoki Yanagi). Yet Rue (Nana Mizuki) worries about the shards being reassembled and the heart of Drosselmeyer resolved. Rue turns in to the evil counterpart to Princess Tutu, Princess Kraehe. Princess Tutu pursues the missing pieces while performing as a ballerina. To help her along the way is Fakir (Takahiro Sakurai), a descendant of Drosselmeyer.

The characters are central to the production. The series focuses on the adventures of Princess Tutu and her quest to recover the missing shards. The character is a unique creation. With a ballerina backdrop, the central figure of the anime series, Princes Tutu fits the story and helps enhance the universe that resides within the fantasy stratosphere.

The animation on Princess Tutu is exceptional. The art direction by Kenichi Tajiri (The Comic Artist and His Assistants, Akiba's Trip: The Animation) is creative and helps to provide the anime series with an engaging style that resides at the forefront of the production. The chief animation direction by Ikuko Ito (Magic User's Club!, Somali and the Forest Spirit) is creative and helps bring the best out of the series and its magical backdrop. The sense of serenity on display in the background art-work excels.

An imaginative journey.

The character designs by Ikuko Ito (Sailor Moon S, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan) also help enhance the filmmaking. The character designs seem unique to each character and these designs help the production feel more creative and inspired. The efforts of Ito are compelling and bring forward something worthwhile to the table. The designs work well for the fantasy narrative as well.

The cinematography by Takeo Ogiwara (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal, Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo) is a compelling element to the production and there is a lot to appreciate regarding the visual component. Princess Tutu manages to convey such a compelling visual aurua that the production works wonders with the narrative. The efforts of Ogiwara are appreciated and help with enhancing the experience.

The music score composed by Kaoru Wada (Inuyasha, Record of Lodoss War: Chronicles of the Heroic Knight) is another rousing success for the series. Wada is a gifted composer and the score for Princess Tutu is another effective effort. The score has a sense of majesty that sweeps audiences up in to the experience. Unlike some fantasy anime series, the score utilized here seems to fit the series well.

The series is written by Michiko Yokote (Hikaru no Go, Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches). Princess Tutu is a well- written anime series with a complex narrative for a fantasy production. The high concept narrative is a success and adds a lot to the viewing experience. The narrative twists and turns and there are surprised in store for audiences.

Under the chief direction of Junichi Sato (Sailor Moon, Magic User's Club!), Princess Tutu is worth a look. The series also features additional direction by Shougo Kawamoto. Director Sato is one of the most gifted anime auteur filmmakers around – with Sailor Moon standing as one of the crowning achievements in animation. Princess Tutu is well worth checking out for fans of fantasy anime. Ambitious and creative, Princess Tutu has a lot of merit.

Princess Tutu: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Sentai Filmworks, Princess Tutu is presented in 1080i MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original broadcast aspect ratio of 1.33:1 full frame. The release has decent definition and clarity. Though the release doesn't look as impressive as a native progression presentation would (over an interlaced encode) the effort is still decent – if never exceptional overall.

On the bright side, the animation looks nice and clean. Even so, the color reproduction is a bit subdued at times. This is one area where the presentation is not as robust as some audiences may be hoping for. Though not a total disappointment, it is clear that the colors are not as vibrant as many recent high-definition anime productions due to the source-material lacking the same degree of finesse. With interlacing, Princess Tutu also suffers from occasional jaggies.

Princess Tutu: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles). The lossless audio on the release is exceptional. Dialogue is clear and easy to understand. The music soundtrack is well reproduced. Everything sounds nice and crisp. The sound design fits the production and genre well.

Princess Tutu: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc 1:

Episode 1 – Voice Actor Commentary featuring Luci Christian (Duck) & Christopher Patton (Fakir)

Episode 5 – Staff Commentary featuring Shoko Oono (Translator) & Mike Yantosca (ADR Writer)

Episode 8 – Staff Commentary featuring Mike Yantosca (ADR Writer) and Mariela Ortiz (DVD Coordinator)

Disc 2:

Episode 13 – Voice Actor Commentary featuring Jessica Boone (Rue) & Jay Hickman (Mytho)

Clean Opening Animation (HD, 1:47)

Clean Closing Animation (SD, 1:32)

Outtakes (SD, 4:40)

Etude (SD, 11:25)

Ballet for Beginners (SD, 6:03)

In the Studio (SD, 28:37)

Japanese Pre-Production Promotional Video (HD, 2:44)

Disc 3:

Episode 16 – Staff Commentary featuring Sarah Alys Lindholm (Translator) & Mike Yantosca (ADR Writer)

Episode 20 – Voice Actor Commentary featuring Cynthia Martinez (Pike) & Christine Auten (Uzura)

Disc 4:

Episode 24 – Staff Commentary featuring Fumiko Chino (Graphic Designer) & Mike Yantosca (ADR Writer)

Episode 26 – Voice Actor Commentary featuring Luci Christian (Duck) & Christopher Patton (Fakir)

Japanese Staff Series Remarks features written-notes about the series (as translated in to English).

Clean Opening Animation (HD, 1:47)

Clean Closing Animation (SD, 1:32)

Split Episode Previews (HD, 3:43)

Clean Closing & Opening Animation for Split Episodes (HD, 1:14)

Chapter of the Egg Suite (New Year's Special) (SD, 11:37)

Mr. Cat's Love Lesson (New Year's Special #2) (HD, 11:37)

Vorfinale (TV Special #3) (HD, 11:33)

The Path to Tutu is a a click-through gallery with text and accompanying illustrations.

Etude (SD, 9:06)

In the Studio (SD, 49:54)

The release also includes a selection of trailers promoting other releases available from distributor Sentai Filmworks: Princess Principal (HD, 1:35), Scum's Wish (HD, 1:34), Takunomi (HD, 1:31), and Girls' Last Tour (HD, 1:31).

Princess Tutu: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Princess Tutu is a compelling anime with a lot of creativity and style in spades. The series comes from the same creative mind behind the Sailor Moon anime series. An impressive fantasy gem with strong animation, there is a lot to appreciate here – such as the strong storytelling and quality music score. Released as a standard edition from Sentai Filmworks, the standard set is less enticing than the collectors steelbook edition available here. Fans who don't care about the extra collectibles and steelbook packaging might be fine with the standard set. Recommended.