Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)In a post apocalyptic world destroyed by nuclear war, one man stands above the suffering of ordinary people. Kenshiro (Ken) is the last successor of the ancient Chinese fighting style known as Hokuto Shinken. With this fighting style, Ken acts as a post apocalyptic Robin Hood of a sorts, fighting against the injustices brought upon the weak by the strong. It's like an animated version of Mad Max, but more violent and longer.
That's about the best synopsis of the series a person can give. Each episode usually centers around Ken fighting some gang and their leader to save some oppressed individuals, the whole time giving us more insight into Ken's own background.
WARNING to PARENTS- this series is VIOLENT. They don't tend to show copious amounts of blood or anything (though there is some blood) and all the head explosions and exploding bodies are highly stylized, it is STILL violent.
There have been a couple of releases of this series over the years and this one EASILY bests them all in terms of video and audio quality.
VIDEO:
Nothing short of amazing. I have not noticed any banding, blocking, cross coloration or any other video abnormalities in this set. Discotek got their hands, it appears to me, on the painstakingly remastered version that was released in a box set in Japan as a 28 disc set (included the first and second TV series, along with the 3 specials and a bonus Mandarin language episode). The Japanese release of this series would set a person back north of $1000. Assuming there are 4 boxes for all 152 episodes at $60 MSRP, if all you want is the show you are saving almost $750 buying the US release.
In all the time I've spent watching these episodes, I have NOT seen ANY dirt or dust and very little to NO cell jitter. The video in this set is simply jaw dropping.
I love traditionally animated Anime and this is a classic series that has been restored to video quality that can stand tall among the new digital Anime released.
AUDIO:
Included in the set are the 36 episodes that Manga released in 1999 English dubbed. The English dub on these discs are the exact same dub Manga created. The audio is clean with no audible problems.
As a warning, if you are buying this series to watch in English, please know that Discotek will NOT be dubbing the remainder of the series. The only English dub to be included is the one Manga already created and only created for the first 36 episodes; the episodes included on this set. When the remaining sets are released, they will NOT be English dubbed. Sorry.
The Japanese dub is also included. Similar to the English dub, there are no audible issues. I believe this is a stereo audio track which is what the Japanese release received.
All in all, the audio is great for a series this old.
SUBTITLES:
The subtitles that Discotek include appear to be cleaner and better English than the subtitles that Toei offered up for the series to various Anime streaming services. It seems they used the work Toei had done as a base, then went back and corrected the mostly minor issues (clunky sentences). They did a good job.
PACKAGING:
In a word: LAME. What Discotek is selling us is a typical oversized DVD case that holds all 6 discs. The artwork/silk screen/whatever you call it on the discs is clean and bright and looks good. The cover art is the only artwork included with the exception of the unique pictures on each of the 6 discs. Honestly I didn't expect much, and for a series that I thought would NEVER see a proper DVD release, I am really happy we got anything at all on packaged media! And given the video/audio appear to be on par with the Japanese DVD release, this bargain set is still worth the price.
EXTRAS:
So if there is another spot for complaint it would be in terms of the extras. The only extras included in the set are character biographies and a trailer for the movie (also available from Discotek). That's it. The extras on the Japanese release were creditless opening and endings, the Mandarin language version of episode 1, Japanese TV spot (commercial for the series), interviews and the 3 "omnibus" episodes. None of that is included on the US release. I am hoping that these series sets sell well enough to justify Discotek to give us these other extras (especially translations for the interviews). If not, either way I am still insanely happy that a company in the US has FINALLY decided the series is worthy of a DVD release with amazing video and audio.FINAL VERDICT:
If you're a fan of old school Anime, buy it now. If you are a fan of the Fist of the North Star, buy this. Don't even hesitate as you WILL be happy with the quality of the audio and video. You may not be happy about the packaging or the extras, but in the end it really is only all about the series proper.
If you're looking for violent Anime, pick this up. If you need to see blood flying, you may want to move on given the stylized death sequences, but I still think most people would be happy with this.
If you're looking for extras and amazing packaging, you'll want to skip this series and instead look to spend $1000 - $1300 for the complete Japanese box set (that doesn't include English subtitles at all).Highly recommended.EDIT- there is cell jitter. Given the way animation was done in the 80s, this is almost unavoidable and difficult or impossible to fix.
ALSO- this set is actually FIVE (5) discs, not 6 like the Amazon description currently claims.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Fist of the North Star: TV Series 1 (6pc) (Full) (1984)
It's fast and furious deadly martial arts action pushed to the limits, and beyond. Never before have so many been killed by just one man. Ken's quest to save the post-nuclear world from his arch rival Shin will have you on the edge of your seat. Enter the deadly world of Hokuto No Ken and witness a place where violence isn't the problem, it's the solution! This boxset contains the first 36 bone crushing episodes, completely remastered and completely insane!
Click here for more information about Fist of the North Star: TV Series 1 (6pc) (Full) (1984)
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