8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.3 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.7 |
Mugen is a fierce animal-like warrior with a unique Bboying (break-dance) inspired fighting style. Jin has a more traditional style but don’t think of this as a weakness because his skills are amazing. The two contrasting samurai warriors are far from friends, yet their separate paths seem to cross anyways. Mugen is wandering aimlessly through the city when he stumbles upon a teahouse where he meets Jin and Fuu (A ditzy waitress, but don‘t think she doesn‘t have anything hidden up her sleeves). Fuu convinces them both to come with her in search of a mysterious samurai that smells like sunflowers and their journey begins. This modernized hip-hop tale breaks the barriers of the common, historical, samurai anime.
Starring: Kazuya Nakai, Ayako Kawasumi, Ai Maeda (IV), Daisuke Gōri, Fumihiko TachikiForeign | 100% |
Anime | 94% |
Action | 36% |
Adventure | 16% |
Comedy | 8% |
Dark humor | 7% |
Drama | 3% |
Period | 3% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p (upconverted)
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (3 BDs)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 1.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Running a total of 26 episodes (spread over two seasons), Samurai Champloo is one of the first television series to seamlessly blend eastern and western cultures into a production that surely seemed preposterous on paper, but became pure television gold upon its release. If you’re like me, the first exposure you had to the series was likely midnight showings on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim, but given the unfortunate decision to edit elements of the anime, American viewers were forced to wait for a proper unedited release (with the bloody violence, foul language and nudity intact). I passed on the opportunity to add Samurai Champloo to my collection during the initial DVD run (it was difficult to shell out $25.00 a pop for a seven volume series I’d already seen in one form or another), so you can imagine my excitement at the opportunity to own one of my favorite series in high definition as it originally appeared during the Japanese broadcast. I’ll provide more detail about the production of the series throughout this review, but in case you only have time to read the introduction, this release was worth the wait, and deserves a spot on the shelf of every anime enthusiast with a pulse.
The eyes alone tell a hundred stories.
Presented in 1080p utilizing the AVC codec (at an average bitrate of 19Mbps), Samurai Champloo looks every bit as good as I was hoping for. It's been quite some time since I've watched the full series, so I can't offer an in-depth opinion regarding the improvements in the transition to high-definition. However, stacked up next to other anime offerings from Funimation, this transfer maintains the same noticeable rise in quality that you'd expect from a production that wasn't originally created in 1080p. I've heard some rumblings regarding minimal improvements over the standard definition version, but I find it hard to believe the 480p resolution of DVD is capable of looking this smooth or appealing. That's not to say everything is on the up and up, since I still detected the presence of artifacts from time to time, but when you're viewing the image as a whole, there are rarely any glaring distractions worth reporting. Aside from the smoothing of the image that accompanies the transition to 1080p resolution, I'm also confident we're witnessing a dramatic improvement in the accuracy of the color palette, which appears much brighter than I recall on prior viewings. Likewise, black levels offer abundant depth in all but a handful of scenes, allowing contrast the opportunity to deliver variations in shade depth that surpass expectations from a two-dimensional hand-drawn production.
If you're at all concerned about the visual upgrade on this release, let me be the first to calm your fears and assure you this is the best Samurai Champloo will likely ever look. The limitations of the source material hold it back from earning top marks, but I can't imagine many fans will be disappointed with the quality of the transfer.
Breaking from their recent trend of offering a Dolby Digital 2.0 track in the native language of Japanese, Samurai Champloo has been given the royal treatment, in the form of a lossless Japanese mix. As always, I'm a big fan of the native language offering on any foreign release, so the inclusion of a highly competent lossless track on one of my favorite anime series was a tremendous value-added aspect of this edition. Switching back and forth between both tracks, I was a little surprised to find the Japanese dialogue a notch higher than its English counterpart (since it typically seems to be the other way around on Funimation titles). The rest of the elements in each mix sound almost identical; meaning the recording of the dubbed track was likely sampled at a lower volume than the original voice recording. Getting down to the raw elements of the audio presentation, I was slightly less impressed with the incorporation of surround activity in comparison with other anime television productions. There's plenty of activity when the action kicks into gear, but I hardly noticed environmental sound effects during the softer moments of the series. I'm not entirely sure if this was an intended artistic move (to add intensity during the many fight sequences), but the missed opportunities during the emotional sections of the show are a bit disappointing. Getting back to the positive aspects of the audio presentation, you can expect a twelve round workout for your subwoofer, since the hip-hop infused soundtrack provides plenty of bass beats in the sound design. If you're like me, you'll probably wind up bothering your wife or significant other when you spend the rest of the day walking around the house humming the opening theme song (which I still can't bring myself to skip).
Similar to the visual quality of the show, the audio presentation isn't going to earn a spot in the upper echelon of anime productions, but the competent English track coupled with the inclusion of a comparable Japanese offering make this a worthy upgrade over prior editions.
Battlecry: Opening Video (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 1:45 min): This is essentially a glorified trailer geared toward an English speaking audience.
Promo Video (480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 1:01 min): This seems to be a midseason recap showing the three main characters sitting in a drive-in setting.
Rounding out the meager extras, we have a standard definition teaser trailer, two high definition art galleries, a textless presentation of the opening and closing songs, and various trailers for other releases from Funimation.
Samurai Champloo is one of my favorite anime series of all time, and continues to be the most accessible Japanese television production to hit western shores. The seamless integration of multiple genres, coupled with excellent production values creates an overall entertainment experience that's just as good on repeat viewings, increasing the value of the series tenfold. From a technical standpoint, this certainly doesn't stand out as one of the better anime releases from Funimation, but given the limitations of the source material, I'm pleasantly surprised with the upgrade in both the video and audio departments. Those of you who've held off on adding Samurai Champloo to your collection until now should dismiss any reservations and make the plunge.
サムライチャンプルー / Anime Classics
2004-2005
Classics / サムライチャンプルー
2004-2005
Limited Edition | サムライチャンプルー
2004-2005
ストレンヂア 無皇刃譚
2007
Classics / フリクリ
2000-2001
2005
Essentials
2007
2010
ソウルイーター
2008-2009
2009
Anime Classics
2008-2009
Classics
2005
Classics
2004
Classics
2005
S.A.V.E.
2008-2009
Classics
2014
Anime Classics
2007
Anime Classics / フルメタル·パニック!
2002
2006
Special Edition | カウボーイビバップ
1998-1999
Essentials
2006
2007
Classics
2005