Search - Nabari No Ou: Complete Series, Part 1 on DVD

The Ninja World is at War

ONENEO | Buffalo, NY | 09/21/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Nabari is an anime that is coming to the shores of North America for the first time ever thanks to Funimation. Based on a manga written and illustrated by Yuhki Kamatani, it was released in Japan by Square Enix back in 2004. The anime adaptation, which is being reviewed here, was directed by Kunihisa Sugishima, and animated by JC Staff then hit Japanese airwaves in April of 2008. Funimation has been working to get the series here for American viewing pleasure since the summer of 2008 and now it looks like all of the legal mumbo jumbo involved to do so is behind them as indicated by the fact that this, The Complete Series Part One is set for a September 22 stateside release. But before I get ahead of myself, let's take a look at the cold hard facts, shall we?

Nabari The Complete Series Part One comes in at a runtime of 325 minutes and contains 13 episodes spanning two discs. The discs come packaged in a pair of thin packs within a cardboard outer slipcase.

The show wears an appropriate TV 14 rating due to some slightly adult slanted themes of violence, war, and conflict. There is no nudity, swearing, or gore to report.

Language options are typical sub and dub, which means the viewer has the choice of running either the original Japanese dialog track (stereo) or an English dub (Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround) and the option of displaying English subtitles beneath either dialog choice.

Extras include textless songs, a commentary track from some of the English voice talent over Episode 2, and a host of upcoming Funimation anime previews.

The story, which is surprisingly complex, goes like this: The ho hum teen Miharu Rokujou wanted little more than to live a normal life in the hopes of one day inheriting an Okonomiyaki restaurant. His buddies at school (Kouichi & Kumohira) continually pressure him to join their martial arts club to which he respectfully declines time and time again. Miharu's tune changes once he's attacked by an actual group of ninjas and is protected by Kouichi and Kumohira. There, Miharu learns of a hidden world of ninjas and psychic powers (a place called Nabari) and discovers that people he thought he knew like his classmate and teacher were actually powerful figures in this new world. As they had been trying to convince him, his very survival depends upon his mastery of the mysterious art Shinra Banshou. Even more surprising is that Miharu discovers that he has a hijutsu (hidden technique) within him that just so happens to be control of the power of creation. Many rival clans are seeking the hijutsu as it is foretold that the one who possesses it will become the ruler of their world.

While this may sound fairly straightforward when spelled out as such, the truth of the matter is that Nabari's presentation demands a viewer's undivided attention. Expect episodes littered with flashbacks and recaps with hints of a deeper mystery being slowly unraveled in the moments between the action.

Speaking of, there are some seriously wicked action sequences scattered about which will hopefully shield many viewers from dismissing this property as simply a Naruto wannabe.

The first episode in particular sets a pretty cool pace for the rest of the episodes to follow with a nice combination of back-story and lead character development.

The music score is appropriate and melds well with the visuals neither outshining the images nor becoming lost to the background. Voice work is nice and tight in both language options with my vote leaning slightly to the English dub due to the fact that the story isn't linear and many names/ words can be confusing in any language. As such the less I had to keep sorted at the time of viewing, the better.

Funimation has already announced plans to release the remaining 13 episodes of the show to the North American market and I suspect it will be a very desirable purchase to anyone who has the pleasure of watching this collection."

WATCH IT NOW!!!!!!

Karen R. Patterson | New Castle, DE | 10/06/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"THIS IS A MUST OWN FOR ALL ANIME FANS!!! I just finished this series and loved it. This show is not for the weak of heart. WARNING you will cry!!! The plot starts off pretty simply,as the story opens we meet Miharu,an apathetic high school student who wants nothing more then to live a normal boring life. But that soon becomes impossible as he is targeted by leathel ninjas! He is rescued by two other ninjas who inform him that a secret art known as the shinrabansho dwells within him. They also tell him about Nabari,a secret world of ninjas,and that one group known as the kairoshu will do anything to get the secret art. Soon after we meet raimae a blond pigtailed samuri who decides that the best way to whip Miharu into shape is to take him to her own vilage called the Fuma.Once there the group discovers that the Fuma are under attack.The Kairoshu are after Fuma's book of forbidin techniquies.This when we meet one of the most influential charectors of the show and my personal faverite Yoite. Yoite uses the secret art of the Kairoshu known as Kira. This allows him to litrely kill his opents from the inside out,but at a terible price,each time he uses Kira it drains some of his life force. After the Fuma are saved all seems well,until Yoite returns and kidnaps Miharu! Yoite threatens the lives of Miharu's new friends to force him to agree to use the Shinrabansho to erase his existence. The two then begin despret journey to help Miharu master the Shinrabansho and soon an uneasy friendship forms between them. This is onley the first half of the series. The second half will be availible in November."

Good anime, watch it!

K. B. | Florida | 12/29/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Nabari no Ou is a real one of a kind series. I used to have an obsession with Naruto, but it faded so often, I needed to find another ninja/action series with interesting characters. I stumbled across this and it took maybe 4 episodes(A LOT less than Naruto did) to glue me to it. There is just enough action and an unbelievable amount of likeable characters. Also, I usually don't find the humor in most anime/manga very humurous, but the author of this story has a great sense of humor! The twist it takes at one point on focusing on the "good" guys and "bad" guys and their development is another aspect that makes it different(and better) than many other typical action series.

It is a must to read the ongoing manga alongside watching this. As many anime adaptions can do, there includes filler that takes up nearly half the series, leaving out characters and plot points. I still give it 5 stars because it is a deserving series."

A great beginning!

DES | 12/28/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This series hooked me from the first glimpse of the gorgeous drawings in the trailers. A very moving and intellectual series that makes you think and care and feel about all the characters involved.

The introduction seems so "typical" (accept for the highly original artwork) that at first you expect the "typical" shonen series;(where the lackluster protagonist fights the bad guys with his band of merry 14 year olds), but instead it turns into a thoughtful and involving tale of friendship, convictions and revelations; each built up with slickly choreographed fight scenes that often convey double meanings. For example; when Raime fights her brother under the bamboo trees she also conducts and internal battle against her own stubborness.

To tell you more of why I liked this series would give to much away, but it is rare for me to find a shonen series so thoughfully and beautifully constructed that it touches my heart and stimulates my imagination. Kudos to Kamantani and JC Staff for a job well done. :)"