Yona of the Dawn: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Yona of the Dawn: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

An action-fantasy from executive producer Haruki Nakayama (Tokyo Ghoul).

Yona of the Dawn is an action-packed fantasy series. The series animation is produced by Studio Pierrot (Kimagure Orange Road, Yu Yu Hakusho). Executive produced by Haruki Nakayama (Tokyo Ghoul), Michiyuki Honma (Fushigi Yugi), and Toshiro Sakaim the series is from original creator Mizuho Kusanagi (Game x Rush, Mugen Spiral).

Yona (Chiwa Saito) is the princess of the Kohka Kingdom. Her fairy-tale life becomes complicated when her father is murdered on her 16^th birthday. Devastated, Yona and her bodyguard, Son Hak (Tomoaki Maeno) decide to seek out four dragons legends foretell of helping to save the Kohka Kingdom. Can Yona lead her people?

The animation is strong on Yona of the Dawn. The series appears to have a good production budget. The art direction by Michie Watanabe (House of Five Leaves, Strike the Blood) makes Yona of the Dawn interesting. The background art work is compelling. The animation also has effective character designs by Maho Yoshikawa (Akatsuki no Yona, Assassins Pride). The characters have unique designs.

In to the dawn.

Action fans may wish to check Yona of the Dawn out for a sense of adventure. The action has some fantasy elements which audiences will want to discover. The Kohka Kingdom is a nice backdrop.

The score is composed by Kunihiko Ryo (Emma: A Victorian Romance, The Twelve Kingdoms). The music provides a decent backdrop to the production. The music helps the production merits unfold.

Directed by Kazuhiro Yoneda (Bungo Stray Dogs, Pumpkin Scissors), working from the script by Shinichi Inotsume (Hayate the Combat Butler, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure), Yona of the Dawn has adventure, action, and intrigue for adventure-fantasy fans to check out. An interesting concept.

Yona of the Dawn: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Funimation Entertainment, Yona of the Dawn is presented in the original television aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The series has a strong presentation quality. The animation looks splendid in high-definition. Color reproduction is excellent. A strong encode by Funimation.

Yona of the Dawn: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes two lossless audio tracks: Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 and Dolby TrueHD Japanese 2.0 stereo (with English subtitles). The audio sounds clear and engaging (and dub fans will enjoy the surround sound implementation for expanding the music score soundstage). A nice lossless encode.

Yona of the Dawn: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc 1:

Episode 4 Audio Commentary

Episode 8 Audio Commentary

Disc 2:

Promotional Videos & TV Spots:

Promo Videos (HD, 3:09)

TV Spot (HD, 00:17)

BD/DVD Promos (HD, 00:51)

Textless Opening "Akatsukino Yona" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song "Yoru" (HD, 1:32)

U.S. Trailer (HD, 1:03)

Trailers: Rage of Bahamut – Genesis (HD, 1:30), Samurai Warriors (SD, 1:08), The Boy and the Beast (HD, 1:39), The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (HD, 2:02), Selector Spread WIXOSS (HD, 00:54), Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign (HD, 1:59), Tokyo Ghoul A (HD, 1:18).

Disc 3:

Episode 16 Audio Commentary

Disc 4:

Episode 24 Audio Commentary

Promotional Videos (HD, 7:05)

TV Spot (HD, 00:17)

Textless Opening "Akatsukino Yona" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Opening Song "Akatsukino Hana" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song "Yoru" (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song "Akatsuki" (HD, 1:32)

U.S. Trailer (HD, 1:03)

Trailers: Project Itoh – Harmony (HD, 1:52), Blood Blockade Battlefront (HD, 1:50), Yatterman Night (SD, 00:47), The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (HD, 2:02), and Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign (HD, 1:59).

Yona of the Dawn: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Yona of the Dawn is a fantasy-adventure hybrid exploring the world of the Kohka Kingdom. The series animation has art direction by Michie Watanabe (House of Five Leaves, Strike the Blood). The series also has effective character designs by Maho Yoshikawa (Akatsuki no Yona, Assassins Pride).

The score to Yona of the Dawn is composed by Kunihiko Ryo (Emma: A Victorian Romance, The Twelve Kingdoms). Directed by Kazuhiro Yoneda (Bungo Stray Dogs, Pumpkin Scissors), Yona of the Dawn is designed for action and fantasy fans.

Yona (Chiwa Saito) leads the Kohka Kingdom and works with her bodyguard Son Hak (Tomoaki Maeno). Can the duo find the dragons and save the kingdom? Action awaits.

The Blu-ray release features a nice video-audio presentation. The set also includes a number of supplemental features. Worth checking out.