Welcome to the Ballroom: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

Welcome to the Ballroom: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie Review

Welcome to the Ballroom is a drama series with a ballroom dancing background. The series comes from creator Tomo Takeuchi. The production features animation produced by the acclaimed Production I.G (Eden of the East, FLCL). Fans of quiet and compelling character-centric anime series with a slice of life element will enjoy the simple pleasures of Welcome to the Ballroom.

Tatara Fujita (Shimba Tsuchiya) doesn’t know what to do with his life. Feeling as though his life and its purpose is aimless and without any clear direction, the young student finds himself under attack by dangerous bullies. Life is often complicated by bullies and their own aimless attacks on others.

As Tatara finds himself rescued from the abuse of a group of bullies by the strong-willed instructor Kaname Sengoku (Toshiyuki Morikawa), Tatara finds himself tossed in to the world of competitive dancing unexpectedly. Though Tatara never had plans to become involved in the world of dancing, everything changes for him when the hip motorcycle riding Kaname comes to his aid. Now Tatara is determined to learn how to dance and he becomes tossed in to a new world and finds a new sense of purpose. Can Tatara rise to the top of Competitive Ballroom Dancing?

Welcome to the Ballroom benefits from a compelling central protagonist. Tatara Fujita is certainly a worthwhile and compelling lead character. The character provides audiences with someone who is relatable on a variety of levels. Anyone who has ever felt like an underdog who strives to be the absolute best version of themselves will find something to relate to in the character. As Tatara is determined to do well on the ballroom dance floor, the journey as a dancer becomes a key part of the character and their arc.

The animation is breathtaking and astonishingly beautiful. The animation is certainly one of the best components of the production. Under the exquisite art direction of Ichirou Tatsuta (Bunny Drop, Robotics;Notes), Welcome to the Ballroom is an impressively realized production with a lot of exceptional merit in terms of the scope and scale of the animation.

The team of animators involved with the production manages to imbue the background animation with a sense of creative urgency that makes the series more compelling visually. This is no surprise for an animated production from the acclaimed animation powerhouse Production I.G. The results are certainly sublime and far more sophisticated than an ordinary anime production.

The chief animation direction by Masayuki Honda (Genshiken: Second Generation) and Takahiro Chiba (Occult Academy) helped to bring out the best of the production and the team of animators certainly delivered their best for the series. Fans of compelling dramas in the anime medium will appreciate it. Creative and organic.

The character designs by Takahiro Kishida (Arjuna, Serial Experiments Lain) are one of the most unique elements of the production. Welcome to the Ballroom has unique looking characters and the cast is certainly far more unique in appearance than some might expect to find. The results certainly are compelling and distinct in their visual flavor.

The cinematography by Hiroshi Tanaka (Bunny Drop, Eden of the East) is another first-rate element of the production. The cinematographic style of Tanaka is one that is full of bright and vibrant colors: a visually rewarding and dazzling sense of style and scale. Takana makes the most of the series unique animation and provides a colorful and vibrant cinematographic approach for Welcome to the Ballroom.

The score composed by Yuki Hayashi (Classroom Crisis, Death Parade) is first-rate and one of the most noteworthy aspects of Welcome to the Ballroom. The composer is one of the best and arguably most “go-to” composers working in anime today. Hayashi is a strong composer with a good sense of the medium. The composer manages to capably provide good character elements alongside solid and impressive dramatic backdrops. A worthwhile score by Hayashi.

Written by Kenichi Suemitsu, Welcome to the Ballroom is a compelling creation. The series has a nice concept and the characters are a central element of the storytelling. The tale is one of an underdog. Though there are always people hoping to beat down an underdog and see them fail, the underdog manages to push forward to be their best. This is the essence of Welcome to the Ballroom and the journey of the tale. It is about ballroom dancing and the journey forward. A well written effort by Suemitsu.

Directed by Yoshimi Itazu (Pigtails), Welcome to the Ballroom certainly excels as a compelling drama. The ballroom dancing drama is visually compelling and provides the director with a nice visual canvas to explore as a filmmaker. Welcome to the Ballroom might not fit the mold of a typical anime production in some respects and that is okay: it offers a slice-of-life tale about competitive dancing and the director of the series brings the tale to life in a uniquely compelling way and with a distinctive vision to carry the series.

Welcome to the Ballroom explores the journey of an artist and of someone in a specific field. This is highly relatable for me. As a youth, I began writing about home media without realizing it would later become one of the defining aspects of my entire life and my life’s work. I originally never expected to find myself writing about home media for twenty years and as I have matured as a writer and become more skilled, it became clear to me that it represents one of the most significant attributes. It is truly my life’s work. Though the tale of ballroom dancing might not be identical to that of a writer, the core ideas of pursuing an art and passion are one and the same. Welcome to the Ballroom taps in to that special energy and this is why the series is rewarding.

Welcome to the Ballroom: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Anime Limited, Welcome to the Ballroom is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The presentation is crisp and colorful. The series animation is well reproduced on the release with an exceptional encode. The encode capably handles the animation style and delivers crisp and clear animation and lines. The encode handles the dance sequences and the quieter dramatic moments. Anime Limited did a good job with the presentation on the release.

Welcome to the Ballroom: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a lossless Japanese audio presentation in uncompressed PCM 2.0 stereo. English subtitles are provided. The release does not include an English dub option and only the Japanese language track is available. The Japanese audio sounds crisp and clear during the presentation.

Dialogue is well reproduced on the Blu-ray release. The score and soundstage sounds excellent with the lossless audio sound clarity. For those with a nice sound system, the lossless audio encoding offers a huge improvement over any streaming service options. Most streaming services offer a heavily compressed audio stream and the music and soundstage is limited significantly as a result. The presentation is significantly more robust sounding on the Blu-ray format (and this remains one of the best advantages of Blu-ray as a format over streaming alternatives).

Welcome to the Ballroom: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Blu-ray release doesn't include any special features. This is unfortunate as it would have been nice to see some extras provided for fans of the series to enjoy. The release is barebones in this respect.

Welcome to the Ballroom: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Welcome to the Ballroom is an entertaining and engaging anime series. The series explores a tale of ballroom dancing. The protagonist is determined to do well as a dancer and the tale is one of an underdog. Anyone who has ever felt like an underdog (undervalued and underappreciated) will undoubtedly appreciate the character and the tale. The focus is about striving to be your best.

The Blu-ray release features an exceptional high definition presentation and includes a strong lossless audio presentation of the original Japanese language audio track. The release does not include an English dub option. Nonetheless, the series is worth seeking out – regardless of it one is a purist preferring the original language audio or English dubs. Recommended.