6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Asuka and her friends may look like any other girls at Hanzo Academy, but they’re secretly studying the ancient art of Ninjutsu! While other students do their homework, Asuka and the gang push their beautiful bodies to the breaking point in pursuit of their perfect form. Life is one sexy sparring session after another until a Deviously Demented rival clan of evil ninjas ambushes the Hanzo hotties – and steals their sacred ninja scroll. Faced with their toughest – and most well-rounded – enemies ever, Asuka and her fellow Deadly Divas will have to go further than they’ve ever gone before to prove they’ve mastered the art of full frontal combat!
Starring: Hitomi Harada, Asami Imai, Yû Kobayashi, Kaori Mizuhashi, Yuka IguchiAnime | 100% |
Foreign | 94% |
Comedy | 32% |
Action | 27% |
Erotic | 27% |
Martial arts | 13% |
Teen | 8% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 2.0
Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 2.0
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Four-disc set (2 BDs, 2 DVDs)
DVD copy
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 1.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
American Ninja Warrior has become appointment television over the course of the past few summers, offering a perhaps surprisingly large audience the chance to see people attempt to make it through a gauntlet of daunting obstacles. In an effort to make the show less of a goofy Wipeout and more of a “legitimate” sporting event, the series regularly posits “character arcs” or story points, going into the backgrounds of various competitors and coming up with something akin to traditional plotlines. This season has seen the emergence of one of these supposed generalizations, the rise of women to the winners’ circle after at least a few females managed to make it through some of the qualifying rounds. The series seems especially intent on furthering the ostensibly inspirational stories of at least a couple of these women, highlighting their appearances in the audience even when they’re not actually in the competitive ranks. While diehard fans of Asian cinema may question the whole “ninja” aspect in a show like American Ninja Warrior, female ninjas have also managed to take over their own little corner of anime, as evidenced by the fan service laden Senran Kagura; Ninja Flash. The irony here is that while American Ninja Warrior is doing its level headed best to flaunt the athleticism of its female competitors, making at least the finalists the equals of the men, Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash is a resolutely old school, almost adolescent, series which flaunts its women’s buxom bodies more than any intrinsic element like intelligence or even ninja skills. The result here is probably no more ironic than a woman posing nude for a men’s magazine insisting that she’s doing it all for female empowerment, while simultaneously ignoring the overtly titillating enjoyment most men who will be looking at the picture will glean from it. While the fan service in Senran Kagura; Ninja Flash is actually often on the tame side (at least insofar as these things typically go), it points up the fact that this series has pitifully little to offer other than that very titillating aspect.
Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer. This relatively recent vintage anime looks great in high definition, with clear, convincing line detail and some outrageously saturated colors that span the gamut from cool pastels to incredibly vivid primaries. Some of the character animation is a bit on the generic side, though even here there are some nice surprises along the way. The standout elements in the series are the battle scenes which erupt with fluidity and fury, and which often offer weird, almost psychedelic, backgrounds. There are some minor issues here with banding, especially in segues and fades, but otherwise this is a bright, clear and appealing presentation that should certainly satisfy the series' fan base.
Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash is just the latest in a string of anime releases where some folks may be wondering why there's no surround mix, especially considering the action elements which are such an important part of the series. That said, the two Dolby TrueHD 2.0 mixes (in the original Japanese and an English dub) provide ample support for the series' dialogue and sound effects. Things can sound a bit crowded at times, with a lot of foley effects seeming to emanate toward the center rather than being splayed for better stereo separation. But fidelity is excellent on both of these tracks and neither offers any problems to worry about.
- "Shissouron" (1080p; 1:32)
- "Fighting Dreamer" (1080p; 1:32)
- "Yamiyo Wa Otome Wo Hana Ni Suru" (1080p; 1:32)
Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash has a couple of interesting angles, but the "angles" most viewers are probably going to notice are the delicious curves of the females' voluptuous bodies. The weird thing about this series is that it could have just been an out and out fan service fest, with nimbly fighting women flaunting their oversized bosoms into the viewers' faces. Instead, though, there's a really almost bizarre attempt here to invest the ninjas (ninjettes?) with often pretty traumatic histories, something that may not sit well with a younger male demographic that is tuning in just to catch sight of huge breasts bursting out of schoolgirl uniforms. The animation here is probably the single biggest selling point, at least to those who have moved beyond any rampant need for fan service.
2013
S.A.V.E.
2013
Essentials
2013
(Still not reliable for this title)
Essentials
2013
Asobi ni Iku yo! / Essentials
2010-2011
Essentials
2013-2014
2013
2018
S.A.V.E.
2011
2010
1993-1996
1991
1992
1989
1995
1993
1994
Essentials
2010-2011
1994
Limited Edition
2013
SD on Blu-ray
1990-1991
2014
ガールズ&パンツァー 劇場版
2015