Samurai Girls

[fenrir72]

Released and Localized by Sentaiworks aka the old ADV films outfit

Format: DVD

Contents: 3 DVDs

Disk #1 Episodes 1 to 6
Disk #2 Episodes 7 to 12
Disk #3 Bonus disc

The Rant:

************************"Some Spoilers"***************************

Picture the show as a high caloric, multi topping pizza pie that recycles every fetish/theme we have come to expect from a Japanese anime. Let's see, we have KissPlayers from Transformers, Ikkitousen,Queen's blade and Maburoho for all the clothes bursting off, Luv Hinna for the harem theme, Inma Seiden for "harvesting "DNA" etc etc. Talk about originality..................but I ain't complaining ;D

Art style/presentation is similar to Muramasa:The Demon Blade Wii game(and Jubei Yagyu's persona is similar to that of Momohime). It's like watching an interactive Japanese painting (very slick accolade to the producers..........ARMS )(known for Queen's blade,Words Worth, Midnight Panther etc). This company also had its finger prints on Mezzo Forte and Akite (another great classic anime with a lot of violent and sexual overtones)

Rin Shin btw also is responsible for the Animation style/direction and Tsutomu Miyazawa.

Need I mention that it is uncensored.

I won't delve into the plot too much as most if not all already know but to the uninitiated, in an alternate world, Emperor Hirohito's family never got into the restoration period (as seen in Samurai X). So the Tokugawa shogunate continued to rule Japan until the present (so being isolated from the "evil" Western influence that eventually led Japan to the fascist route that of World War II) under the Code of Bushido.

Under the honor code, every time Japan was threatened, 7 Master Samurai always rose up to confront the threat (manifested by Shogo Amakusa who for all Samurai X fans remember, was a Christian rebel who wanted to overthrow the Shinto Japanese government). An underlying theme in the anime has a bit(to put it lightly) of xenophobia and religious paranoia ( can't blame them, the Japanese that is, 'cause the Catholic Christian missionaries back in the 16th century did want to conquer the country through Cross and Sword)

Oh, did I fail too mention the show having a lot of double entendre ?

Seiyu on both fronts, Japanese and English (not like the horrid Bible Black type dub,I've been emotionally scarred by it even up to the present ) was superbly implemented and the subtitles synced properly to help the viewer in keeping up with the high octane action.

Easter Eggs:

Though been trying hard to find one................. well zilch! (Queen's blade by Animeworks had only one, but I'll delve with it in my QB review later). So being without easter eggs, the set is chuck full of bonuses in disc #3.

We have the following:

1. Narrated comics with absolutely non-sensible situations by various characters of the series ( very rib tickling btw)

2. Blushing Maidens in the Pact aka the 6 ovas that accompanied the Japanese release(divided into 2 episodes + 1 ova per disc ). The animation btw is animated using the traditional style of animation and not the sepia purple shaded style of the main story. You can opt to see each episode individually or watch them continuously

3.Japanese Promotional Videos

4.Japanese TV Promos

5.Uncensored production Sketches

6.Clean Opening and Closing

7.Trailers

Rating:

Plot wise, heck it won't win any awards I'd grant you. Should we care? I don't think so. ;D We came to watch to marvel at it's production values at presenting a fresh take on ancient Japanese mythos that...........awwwww heck, we watched it for the stereotypical unrealistic standards we place on our fantasy girlfriends/wives.

The set btw is a bargain compared to the Japanese releases (though the Japanese versions came with all sorts of bells and whistles like a special case, telephone cards, art by Nio etc(win some loose some catch 22 situation))

And Sentaiworks really know how to pack their stuff not like Animeworks ( the latter who always the worst case of cat scratch syndrome on their dvds)

Though the dubbing is AAA, there is one track in episode one that managed to get a snafu. A scene where Muneakira blurts "....the discipline committee....." well he just says "......... discipline......"

I give it a 5/5 (not counting the "originality content "which is a subject I won't touch with a 10 foot pole ;D )