Search - Rune Soldier - Enter the Klutz (Vol. 1) on DVD

Adventuring 101

Marc Ruby? | Warren, MI USA | 04/19/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hoping for adventure (and money) three young women band together to seek treasure in the ruins of the countryside around Ohfun. These are Merrill (the thief), Genie (the warrior), and Melissa (the cleric). Admittedly, they seem better at sitting in taverns getting drunk, but they are determined. Unfortunately, on their first essay, they find a magically sealed door and realize that they are missing an important addition - a mage.Returning to the city, they discover that there is only one magician in Ohfun who would be more interested in adventuring than hiding in their libraries. This is Louie, an inept magic student whose instinctive reaction is to use his fists rather than his wand. This DVD is subtitled 'Enter the Klutz' for a perfectly good reason. It doesn't help that Louie also isn't of 'the feminine persuasion,' or that Merrill thinks he is a pervert. But, against everyone's better judgment (except Louie's) they take him on as magician and luggage carrier. Louie gets the door open but then promptly falls afoul of the dungeon resident.Louie breaks his wand smashing goblins, which puts a temporary stop to his magic career. Although they have been saved, the women are utterly disgusted with his lackof style and good sense, and send Louie on his way. Only for Melissa to find out that her god, Mylee, has other plans. 'This is against my will,' she shrieks as the band comes back together to find Louie a new wand, and the situation goes from bad to worse. Much to the delight of the audience.Generally, I watch an anime DVD by listening to the English dubbing and turning on the subtitles. There are always deviations, and some are enlightening, and others funny. For the most part, they are fairly close. Occasionally, the texts differ so much that one has to wonder if the translators saw the same script. This is one of those cases. It's not that the English is unlikable, but it takes quite a few liberties. Purists will have to decide for themselves, but I would up listening to the Japanese and reading the subtitles.Other than the dubbing, this is an unexpectedly good start to the series. The artwork is good, much finer that that of 'The Slayers' (to which there will be inevitable comparisons). The animation captures the slapstick nature of some of the action perfectly. And most important, the writing is surprisingly intelligent for what is, so far, light comedy. This bodes well for wherever the series finally goes. Recommended."

One of the best anime you've never heard about

Steven Myers | SF Bay Area | 11/15/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Rune Soldier (originally titled: Louie the Rune Soldier) never seemed to get much attention--it certainly flew by under my radar, because volume 4 was out before I heard about it. This is a shame, because it is by far the best fantasy comedy released in the US. On the technical side, Rune Soldier features generally attractive character designs, fairly strong animation for a TV show, and a nice soundtrack. This disc, which is the first of six, contains 4 episodes.For its story, Rune Soldier is not an epic of originality. A creation of the same author who created Lodoss War (but I'm not sure if it's meant to be the same world), Rune Soldier focuses on a team of three female adventurers: a cleric named Melissa, a fighter named Genie and a thief named Merrill. What they need is a magician. What they don't want is Louie, a brash, undisciplined man, who prefers to fight with his fists than use his magic. Although you see the initial setup coming a mile away, it works: the god of battle Melissa worships decrees that Louie is the valiant champion she must serve. This is, of course, entirely against her wishes.Rune Soldier succeeds because of the intelligent writing. Although Louie may often act like an idiot, none of the characters are stupid--they all act reasonably given the circumstances. The show follows its own rules about how and why magic work. The characters play well off one another, with each of the girls fighting a grudging admiration about what Louie can do well and unleashing their frustration over the things at which he fails miserably. Because the creators clearly like their own characters, the humor flows naturally, instead of the forced dumb humor that plagues many shows.As far as any potentially objectionable content, there isn't much. It's rated as 15+, but that seems largely on two points: first, Genie dresses as if a chainmail bikini would be too constricting (she is, however, usually wearing a cloak); second, Louie has a bit of an imagination. The most that shows up is a rear end, and it's for a few seconds across the entire four episodes on this disc."

So another idiot wants to be a hero!

Anthony Murphy | Daly City, CA USA | 02/21/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"More of a Saturday Matinee than a Fantasy Epic, but don't let that fool you. This is one of the best comedy series to come out in a while. The story of a sorcerer who'd rather be a swordsman and joins a group of female adventurers on their missions for fame and fortune. Riui is a bit of an idiot, but like so many idiots before him he becomes the glue that ties people together with his simple faith and honesty. And there's a prophesy in there somewhere too. Can't wait for more of this to come to video!"

Louie the Rune Soldier

DMTingle | Indianapolis, Indiana USA | 11/24/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Great animation!! The characters are interesting and funny. It has PLOT!! I own the first four volumes and am absolutly in love with this series. The girls, Merrill, Genie, and Melissa, need a mage to help them open a ruin that they have found. They seek a female mage, but none are willing to or powerful enough to go. Up steps Louie. He's very different. Louie likes to fight, and has the muscle to back it up with.
The first thing Louie does is break his wand over the head of an enemy. He'll spend the rest of the series trying to live that down along with some other mistakes he makes."