Good day, El Cosmico here, with a review of an anime DVD that's been out for a while, but which we didn't get until about a week ago, and then I was too busy...and...and... well, I have time now. This reminds me, somebody emailed me the other day and asked why I usually give good reviews. It's pretty simple. I don't like to waste my time writing reviews of stuff I don't like. I figure, if I think it sucks, there's no reason you need to even know it exists. Just my way of looking at things. Anyway, here's something I really DO like: the disc in question is Sol Bianca: The Legacy- Lost Treasures an anime DVD that I really enjoyed, and which is distinctive enough that I think it deserves a look.
Brought to us by the fine folks at Pioneer Entertainment, Sol Bianca: The Legacy is the first in a new OVA series. This, of course, is the follow-up series to the original Sol Bianca series, released by ADV Films ages ago, in 1992, although by no means do you need to have seen the original to follow what's going on here. The two series are quite independent of one another. So, what's this series about?
Space-pirate chicks kicking ass. Here's the description listed:
Mankind has taken up residence in space, with any memories of Earth more a legend than a reality. A militaristic splinter group, known as the Earthians, share a quasi-religious belief that the Earth is sacred ground, and prefer to use force to seize the Earth's holy treasures. However, the beautiful crew of the pirate ship, Sol Bianca, gleefully challenges the Earthians oppressive tactics and meets might with might. Join April, Jun, Janni, Feb, Meiyo, and their marvelous space ship, the Sol Bianca, as they challenge the forces of the Galaxy in the pursuit of Life, Liberty, and Lawlessness!
The story is fun, quite entertaining. The characters likable, and even the English dub is good, in fact, I've been hearing a lot of good English dubs lately, which I'm pretty encouraged by. All of these are reason enough to get this disc. Seriously. The story and performances are definitely notable, and the first disc in this series passes the all-important anime test: it doesn't blend into the background of the anime genre. You can remember it as a distinct entity, not just another re-hashing of the same old anime cliches, and each episode leaves you wanting another one. To me, that's all that's required to consider a work of anime a success. Regular readers know I usually don't care to give spoilers of any sort, so I'm just going to leave it at that.
Sol Bianca is even more distinct and noteworthy, however, because of the amazing and notably different style of presentation it is given, which is, of course, most noticeable on DVD. Both the look and sound of this disc are impressive. I kept finding myself rewinding and looking at scenes over and over again. They're just...really visually stimulating. Weird. Why?
Well, it turns out that this series was entirely computer-generated. Fully digital animation. Is that anything new? Well, not anymore, but the effect in this case is really very stunning. You know how a lot of digital animation looks... like crap compared to hand-drawn stuff? Well, Sol Bianca blurs the lines between digital and hand-drawn animation...giving you a feel that is really kind of trippy. Surreal at times, unreal at others, with a bit of hyper-real thrown in for good measure. The word that kept popping into my head was clarity. I mean, the animation is just so damn clear! Some of you may have seen another excellent series from Pioneer, Serial Experiments: Lain, which came out last year, but which I'll nevertheless be reviewing soon, and those of you familiar with that series on DVD may remember a similar, albeit somewhat less vibrant effect. It's the sort of thing that makes you realize that computer animation can actually be really cool. Not that I want hand-drawn stuff to go away, mind you, but in the case of Sol Bianca, the results of the digital age are undeniably wonderful.
Okay, you probably get the point. It looks strange and amazing. The sound, while not as surprisingly different, is outstanding as well, recorded in four versions, two in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, one English and one Japanese, and a matching pair in Dolby Digital 2.0, for the home-theatre challenged. As you'd expect on a disc that took such pains to produce excellent visuals, the audio is appropriately clear and vivid. Very enjoyable.
All areas of production on this disc were excellent, in fact, even the menus are some of the coolest I've seen in anime...they're a fine simulation of the computer interface on the ship in Sol Bianca. As for the extras you can get to through these menus, there's a set of animated 3d model tests of the ship, a full set of character designs, a trailer for disc two, and a very well done music clip from the folks at animetronic. All you need to get thorough enjoyment out of your disc.
Sol Bianca is definitely part of a new breed, which in my opinion really started to get its legs in Serial Experiments: Lain. I don't think it's a coincidence that Pioneer Animation picked up both of these series, as they seem to be on a trend toward high production value these days. That can only be a good thing for the world of anime. I'll be reviewing two more series from them this week, but in the meantime, do yourself a favor and pick up this disc. It's a fine example of how to put anime on DVD.
-El Cosmico
mail me at:elcosmico@austin.rr.com
