Dolls combined with Gothic Lolita hits the anime scene with this very intriguing and at times captivating series.
What They Say
Sakurada Jun isn't exactly the kind of guy who rises to the challenge. Having trouble getting along with his classmates, he decides to just stay home, spending his hours surfing the internet and shopping online, always returning his purchases just before payment is due. One day, while in the midst of his usual browsing, he comes across an offer that claims he should place his order in his own desk drawer and, with nothing better to do, Sakurada tries it. Much to his surprise, the order disappears and, soon, the mysterious item is delivered to him: a doll. She is exquisitely crafted and it turns out that after she's wound up, she walks and talks and acts like a normal girl. The only catch is that she treats Sakurada like her own servant. Can this timid boy and mysterious doll learn what they each need to get along in their strange world?
The Review!
Audio:
Done in a standard 2.0 format, I listened to the Japanese track for this review. It's a very strong audio, impressive in terms of the format in Japanese, as it seems to link with the atmosphere of the show, sullen, dark and atmospheric, with some booming quality. A quick switch to the dub showcases that for once, it seems very level in terms of quality as I've tended to notice on many dual language discs when both languages are stereo format that the dubs tend to be stronger '" in Rozen Maiden, it is equally good, not overpowering or outstanding, but no problems with distortion or with linking to the subtitles.
Video:
The video for the most part was fine '" working in collation with the audio, and the visual quality was decent '" however doing on a black square background seemed to dim the video a bit, not good for a show where dark is used a lot. What's worse was that on three seperation situations (twice on episode 3 and once on episode 4) they were what I can call just glitches in the video, where squares flashed in both the bottom and upper right of the screen, like it had been scratched or simply been on a bad VCD. There were no scratches or problems with the disc, and I will stress this was a test disc and not a DVD quality release, but I hope this isn't the case for the official DVDs.
Packaging:
There was no packaging for this test disc.
Menu:
The menu is very basic, it plays the very beautiful Ali Project opening song on a dark background, with an image of Shinku and Hina-Ichigo enjoying a spot of tea on the right in their trademark elegant gothic lolita. The selection is very basic, yellow lettering on the dark red background for Play All, Episodes and Set-Up. In what seems to now be a dying breed, again there is no scene selection and also it was hard to navigate slightly as the yellow on red was harder to see than expected.
Extras:
There were no extras on this disc.
Content:
Rozen Maiden has always been one of these enigmas in the anime scene '" it's definitely not your usual type of series, combined gothic lolita, dolls, magic and comedy all into one with some surprisingly dark undertones. And this combination comes very close to succeeding in terms of a quality show.
We are introduced to Jun Sakaruda, a young boy who seems to have literally locked himself in his home as a shut-in from society, only interested in seemingly ordering crazy occult stuff from the internet much to the chagrin of his long suffering sister Nori. One of his things that he orders however turns out to be a little more unusual '" when asked on a piece of paper, to 'wind' or not, he chooses to and after following the instructions, is later surprised to find a suitcase on the floor. Opening it, he finds a very human like doll by the name of Shinku '" who after being wound for the first time, suddenly begins to act like a prim young lady '" and basically treating Jun as her servant.
In their first meeting, Jun learns that Shinku has captivating powers, and to protect him from the various dangers that seem to come from such a mystical doll, he swears on her ring to aid her by giving her energy to fight. After saving him from a clown doll looking to kill him, Shinku has fun taunting and ordering Jun who in turn is not too happy at this latest development, but at the same time, begins to start what appears to be a theme of the anime, in trying to get Jun to break out of his hikkimori (shut-in) ways.
More fun is added when Nori finds Shinku, though isn't treated much better, and the additon of two more dolls. Episode 2 has the very childish Hina-Ichigo, who was being looked after by one of what appears to be Jun's old school friends Tomoe, and in episode 4 brings forth my favourite so far, the shy at first but definitely evil and fun Suiseiseki. Each doll has their own powers for battle, Suiseiseki's episode being the most intriguing with her powers to enter dreams, trying to understand Jun's past and true self, but at the same time, calling him a runt. She's fun.
It leads to the introduction of the main villain, Sugintou, a black doll who is more interested than the others in what is known as the Alice Game. Not much is known about this yet, but it seems in reference to the doll's creator, and that whoever 'survives' out of 6 Rozen Maiden dolls wins the game. The consequences haven't yet been discovered, but with 4 dolls discovered so far and 6 episodes to go, there is still time. Sugintou is an enigma herself, as she has no master that we know, and seems overly powerful, and it's up to Jun to basically get in connection with Shinku to try and stop her.
The series has a lot of stuff to take in at once '" Shinku is definitely a mix of bratty, elegant and caring, as she definitely does see Jun in a stronger light by the end of the disc, but at the same time is still very prim, treating him as a servant. Hina-Ichigo is very bratty and childish, whilst Suiseiseki is shy, fun and devilish at the same time. Episode 5 was a fantasic array of comedy as when Suiseiseki steals Hina-Ichigo's strawberry, all hell breaks loose between Suiseiseki and Shinku vs. Jun and Hina-Ichigo. Combine that with the show in a show Detective Kun-Kun and Nori's reaction at the end, Rozen Maiden surprisingly does comedy quite well.
The problem is that there's a lot going on and a lot to take in these 6 episodes alone. It's pace has been good, but with only 2 discs there's a lot that needs to be answered, such as how the dolls were created, why Jun became a shut-in (Tomoe seems to be the only person he doesn't have a barb to) and is literally afraid of going outside, and who are the remaining 2 dolls (Shinku mentions 'her' to Suiseiseki living with her, yet we don't know who Suiseiseki's master is yet, or if this her is another doll that was living with her). It is a bit confusing to say the least, and the bits and bobs of each episode don't mesh with each other too well aside from character development for Jun and introducing the dolls.
However, that's not saying it's a bad series. It very nearly succeeds in this hybrid of genres and cultures '" the animation and designs are wonderful for the dolls (Shinku in particular), and Jun has potential even if he seems quite unlike able at first. It's got both good fun moments and has been very good at the surprising dark edge the show has (Sugintou the provider for most of these, whether it's her torture of Shinku or Hina-Ichigo, or the after image of 'junk' dolls in her lonely world), making it definitely something that you have to really get into to enjoy, but once you do, it's surprisingly captivating.
In summary:
Rozen Maiden is definitely in the try before you buy category. It has splendid visuals, some engaging characters, and something that makes you want to know what happens next. On the other hand, it feels quite rushed and they are trying to bring everything together as soon as possible. However, there's plenty to still look forward to, whether it's the fun or dark stuff, and with another disc (and a second season) on the way, there is still a story to be told. Definitely worth a shot.
Features
japanese 2.0 Language, English 2.0 Language, English Subtitles
Review Equipment
Toshiba 37C3030 - 37" Widescreen HD Ready LCD TV '" Tangent Ht-50 Home Theatre System Multi-Regional DVD Players/Speakers '" Tangent Subwoofer 50-150 Hz, Impedenced 8 OHM.
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