That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season One, Part 02 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season One, Part 02 Blu-ray Movie Review

The second half of the first season: an improvement for action-anime fans.

Returning for the second-half of the introductory season, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is a popular action-adventure production that is an adaptation of the original light novels written by Fuse and featuring art by Mitz Vah. The anime series is from the successful animation company Eight Bit (Infinite Stratos, Tokyo Ravens). The concept of the series begins with a 37 year old man, Mikami Satoru, getting stabbed in the chest violently from a random stranger. Awakening from death as a reincarnated ball of slime (and given a new name), slime- ball Rimuru has a new world to explore.

The second half of the season has some new bags of tricks up its sleeve. The story progresses from introducing Rimuru to the new world in to something more complicated. As the story unfolds further, Rimuru becomes thrust in to some new obstacles that challenge him. Bringing an end to the ongoing orc wars occuring across the land, Rimuru has an upgraded title given by the otherworldly creatures: Slime Chancellor.

With his new position of responsibility, Rimuru must learn how to lead others and not just look out for himself. The group known as the Moderate Harlequin Alliance is causing all sorts of problems and it is up to the newly-donned “Slime Chancellor” Rimuru to somehow course- correct and bring stability to the monsters and creatures all across the land. Does the ball of slime have what it takes to be a true hero?

"I'm still blue."

The animation improves in the second-half of the first season. While the series does seem to take on a laid-back and reserved animation approach (with many scenes feeling a bit over-long), there are less moments of excessively long animated-frames to frustrate audiences. Series art director Ayumi Satô (Sakura Quest, The World God Only Knows) steps up their game and makes the production a bit more creative this go-around.

The action becomes a little more invigorating and during the conclusion of the season the animation team seemed more determined to push out something impressive for fans of the series. The action scenes are actually effective and it makes the storytelling a little more engaging. The cinematography by Hiroshi Sato (Penguin Highway, Dragon Pink) gives the art work a style which rewards fans with a nice color palette (especially during some of the scenic outdoors moments).

The music scores from composers Hitoshi Fujima (Kasimasi: Girl Meets Girl), Yousuke Yamashita (Murenase! Seton Gakuen), Noriyasu Agematsu (Bodacious Space Pirates), and Ryota Nakano (Girls Mode 4: Star Stylist) remain enjoyable and help to bring one in to the universe. There is a consistency from the composers during these episodes. The music swells when the action beat drums. It becomes more dramatic during the quieter scenes. These elements given the production some added gravitas.

Yasuhito Kikuchi (Knights of the Zodiac, Infinite Stratos) brings the series in to some new territory as director. Kikuchi blends the action-adventure elements with a larger quotient of comedy (which has been expanded upon since the first set). Though the humor is inconsistent (and not necessarily laugh out loud), the series finds new ways to experiment. The scripts by Kazuyuki Fudeyasu (Claymore, Black Cover) are continually inconsistent but there seems to be more emphasis on action during episodes featured on set two. That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is far from perfect but it improves (somewhat) during the second-half.

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season One, Part 02 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Funimation Entertainment, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season 1, Part 2 is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The video-presentation is top-notch and easily matches the high quality of the encode given to That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season 1, Part 1. The transfers are quite colorful and engaging. Color reproduction remains impressive throughout the entire batch of episodes and the evocative imagery seems to almost leap off the screen at times (giving the presentation a bit of a three-dimensional feel even within the standard animation style). The native HD imagery is a joy to watch.

The fight scenes are fluid and never seem to be struck by obtrusive compression woes. The line art appears extremely detailed and will have viewers absorbed within the fantasy world. There is something remarkable about how beautiful anime is when well presented: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season 1, Part 2 is a great example. Bravo.

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season One, Part 02 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two separate lossless audio options provided on the release of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season 1, Part 2: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 stereo (with optional English subtitles). Either option provided on the release will reward viewers with an exemplary experience. The presentation is clear and engaging from beginning to end. There were no glaring issues with audio defects to report.

Dialogue is consistently crisp and easy to understand from beginning to end. The music score is also well reproduced and well integrated in to the surround sound mix. While the English dub lacked a little in the LFE department, the surrounds were still actively used and engaged: the action-packed adventure still packed a mighty punch with its sweeping use of the rear speakers when needed. The audio presentation is a blast of high-octane energy.

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season One, Part 02 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc 1:

Episode 16 Audio Commentary

Disc 2:

Episode 24.5 – Tales: Veldora's Journal (HD, 23:46) answers a question fans of the series might have lingering on their minds after the last episode of the season. However, the experience is a bit tedious at times: this clip-show style episode is largely just a re-cut of several scenes from throughout the series (with only brief new animation to tie in the story).

Episode 14 Video Commentary (HD, 23:54)

Episode 21 Audio Commentary

Promo Video (HD, 2:00)

Commercial (HD, 00:17)

Textless Opening Song "Nameless Story" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Opening Song "Meguru Mono" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song "Another Colony" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song "Little Solider Version 1" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song "Little Solider Version 2" (HD, 1:32)

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season One, Part 02 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is a decent action-adventure series. The animation is good and the action scenes are particularly interesting in the second-half of the first season. Even so, the anime is somewhat inconsistent. The production values impress but the story sometimes leaves one wanting a bit more. The Blu-ray release features a strong video-audio presentation and a decent selection of supplemental features. Fans will certainly want to take a look at Season 1, Part 2.