Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Season One Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Season One Blu-ray Movie Review

Marginal animation and inconsistant pacing prevent this series from earning top marks.

Reviewed by Dustin Somner December 16, 2009

If there’s one thing I love about anime, it’s the wide variety of genres within the animated medium. Having said that, I continue to find it disappointing that so many people lump all anime into one distinct category, which typically involves assumptions that anime is merely comprised of well-endowed (scantily clad) women and large robotic suits. This unrealistic outlook isn’t the fault of the anime studios or those with only a cursory knowledge of Japanese culture. Instead, I blame the misconceptions regarding anime on the media wall between Japan and America, which has only recently begun to erode. Once you allow yourself adequate opportunity to develop an appreciation for stylistic visuals and dense storytelling anime has to offer, you’ll find it difficult to keep up with the growing library of shows hitting western shores. As with any form of media, some series are better than others, but given the huge variety of tone and style in different productions, everyone should find something engaging.

A band of warriors faces a group of approaching demons.

As the story opens, we’re introduced to Syaoran, a young archaeologist within the Kingdom of Clow, with deep feelings for his childhood friend Princess Sakura. One day, while the two young lovebirds are spending time with one another at a current excavation site, Sakura finds herself drawn into a symbol on the wall. Syaoran manages to save her, but the princess is robbed of all her memories, which transform into a collection of feathers. These memory feathers are scattered across multiple dimensions, leaving the princess unconscious and unresponsive. At the recommendation of the kingdom’s sorcerer, Syaoran agrees to be transported along with Sakura to the dimensional witch named Yuko, hoping she can help guide them to Sakura’s lost memories. Upon their arrival to the shop of the dimensional witch, the youngsters encounter two other individuals who also seek the help of Yuko. One is a violent warrior sent by his female ruler in search of a meaningful non-violent existence. The other is a wizard, who left his world in order to avoid a fateful encounter with his king. Though the four travelers each express a different reason for seeking the assistance of the witch, their paths are linked to Sakura’s lost feathers. In order to possess the ability to travel between dimensions in search of the feathers, each man is required to lose something valuable. Syaoran’s sacrifice is arguably the most difficult to give up, since he’s asked to accept a future where Sakura will never regain the memory of their time together, presumably leaving the star-crossed lovers unable to achieve the spark that once existed between them. Nevertheless, Syaoran agrees to the terms and the four dimension-jumping companions set off in search of Sakura’s memories.

As I noted in my introduction to this review, anime consists of a wide variety of genres, which appeal to some and seem lackluster to others. In the case of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles, I fell into the latter category. It’s not that the series is boring, but the lack of consistency in various sections of the first season left me a bit disenchanted with the plight of Syaoran and his friends. It certainly doesn’t help that the first dimension the travelers land in features an overly long segment that introduces several uninteresting characters and ends with a whimper. The next five episodes take a turn for the better, as the group faces a power-hungry Ryanban and his group of thugs who recklessly terrorize the local villagers. Unfortunately, despite a better setting and the presence of a true villain, the plotline in the second dimension simply can’t sustain five full episodes and begins to grow tiresome. By the time the show proceeded into the third dimension, I realized I was already almost halfway through the first season of the show and not much had happened. The rest of the plotlines in the various dimensions through the second half of the first season maintain better pacing and add a greater level of character development in the overall story arch, but I still had trouble getting past the slow start of the first eleven episodes.

Despite my ho-hum reaction to the first season of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles, the show has several positives worth pointing out. First, I enjoyed the inclusion of characters from other series and/or manga developed by the production studio Clamp. It’s always fun to see beloved characters show up in an alternate role (despite the lack of crossover connection between the various series), so the random appearance of familiar faces is a true highlight. Second, despite my reservations about the entertainment value and pacing in each dimension, the structure of the series ushers in a fresh experience every few episodes. You’re probably wondering how switching between futuristic and medieval settings can avoid a tendency to become disjointed, but that’s the beautiful thing about anime in general. When you remove reality from the equation, the sky’s the limit. The third and final element of the series that held my interest is the continuous story arch that incorporates sufficient character development and a side plot regarding a powerful man with a vested interest in the success of the main characters. This subplot is never fully addressed within the first season, but I’m assuming we’ll find all of the answers we’re looking for when the second season is eventually released.

I know we can’t expect every anime series to contain eye-popping visuals, but I was a bit let down with the quality of the animation on Tsubasa. During the first few episodes of the show I realized the action sequences consisted of static character animation with moving backgrounds (check out the screenshot below the audio portion of this review). When characters actually move, they lack the fluidity of other series and appear disproportionate from scene to scene. The animation quality seems to pick up a bit toward the end of the series (the last episode in particular), so at least there’s hope the second season will look a bit better than what we’re given here.

Lastly, I know this will probably sound petty, but I was slightly bothered by the presence of continual recap sections during the series. For instance, at the beginning of several episodes, the final minute of the prior episode will be shown to bring viewers up to speed on what is about to take place in the new episode. When you’re watching a show on a weekly television schedule with an extended break between each episode, this strategy is a welcomed addition. However, when you’re watching a series straight through, it becomes a bit tiresome watching the same scene time after time. I don’t fault Funimation for this issue since they are simply presenting the series as it appeared originally, but those of you who lack the patience to sit through multiple recaps might become a bit irritated with the technique.

Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Season One Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in 1080p utilizing the AVC codec (at an average bitrate of 20Mbps), Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles doesn't offer a dramatic improvement in the transition to high-definition. The main culprit is likely the source material, which originally aired during 2005, and appears slightly soft in comparison with other recent series from Funimation. This should likely be attributed to the upconversion of the image to 1080P resolution (creating a smoothing of the image, but not an actual resolution jump), which leads to a picture quality that clearly surpasses the capabilities of DVD, but never approaches the quality of source material originally created in 1080p. Aside from the lack of extreme clarity, the only other two problems I noticed on a very minor level are a bit of banding in stark color transitions and several instances of artifacting. I'm guessing these issues won't be nearly as noticeable on a display that's smaller than 50 inches (unless you have amazing eyesight), but they become more apparent when you're viewing material of this nature on a 100 inch display. On the positive side, the show contains a beautiful color spectrum, and I rarely noticed a shred of weakness in black level depth or contrast differentiation.

While Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles isn't the strongest offering I've seen on the anime front, it still benefits from the transition to Blu-ray, and appears to be an accurate presentation of the source material.

Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Season One Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Following their customary practice, Funimation has provided a TrueHD 5.1 track dubbed in English, and a Dolby Digital 2.0 track in the original language of Japanese. As always, I prefer the native language on any foreign produced series, so I was slightly disappointed in the diminished quality of the Dolby Digital 2.0 track. The front-heavy mix lacks the depth that comes from surround separation, leaving us with an experience that's merely adequate at getting the job done, but not what I'd consider a value-added audio experience. The English dub on the other hand, demonstrates a more robust feel, separating nuances in the audio effects to create an immersive experience. A great example of what I'm referring to is the battle sequence in the final episode on disc three. From the clashing of blades to the boom of explosions, every element in the track brings your home theater to life with a richness that lands you right in the heart of the action. Toss in a hauntingly beautiful musical score (one of the best I've heard from an anime series), and there's little reason to complain about the English offering.

If I had the option of scoring the audio offerings separately, I'd give the English track a 4.5/5, and the Japanese track a 2.5/5. The differences between the two tracks are certainly noticeable, but the lack of surround separation on the Japanese mix didn't detract from my enjoyment of the show.

Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Season One Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The supplemental package on the disc is a bit light compared with other recent anime titles, but it's difficult to complain when we're given a full 26-episode series at such a reasonable price (does anyone recall paying nearly this much for three episodes on a DVD). First up, we have a collection of 6 cast auditions with the English voice actors, presented with a piece of static artwork on the screen. Second, Funimation thankfully provided six brief text-based articles that explain the connection between certain characters in the Tsubasa universe and other Clamp series. I'm fairly certain there are other characters not mentioned here that also appear in other series, but making those connections are half the fun of watching this show. Next up, we have a lengthy character guide that allows viewers to scroll through storyboard artwork of each character, and read a brief biography on that character's history. Similar to the prior character guide, the last supplement with substance is a world guide that offers a brief description of each dimensional location the travelers encounter. Rounding out the extras, we're given textless songs and a collection of trailers for other Funimation releases (on DVD and Blu-ray).

Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Season One Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Considering the season 1 release of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles only brings viewers to the halfway point of the series, I'm reserving final judgment until I've had the chance to view the entire 52 episode run. At this stage of the game, my reaction is lukewarm due to occasionally slow pacing and some weak plot elements in a portion of the adventure. Additionally, I found the animation a bit lacking in comparison with other recent anime series released by Funimation (Witchblade and Full Metal Panic: Second Raid are two examples worth mentioning). If you're a big fan of anime and familiar with other series set within the Clamp universe, there might be enough value in this three disc set to warrant a purchase. Otherwise, I'd recommend renting season 1 and waiting for the release of season 2 to make a final decision on the lasting value Tsubasa has to offer.