Bubblegum Crisis Ultimate Edition Blu-Ray Review
Over the years there have been a number of high-quality releases of Bubblegum Crisis on home video. In North America, AnimEigo's remastered DVD boxset set the bar a decade ago, but now Blu-ray is here. While the series was released on Blu-ray in Japan in 2008, it unsurprisingly lacked English subtitles. It was also Region A coded, making it not so import-friendly for everyone. Fortunately, the next Blu-ray release would be something truly special because, for the first time, the fans would have a say in its production.
In 2013, AnimEigo launched a crowdfunding campaign on KickStarter to raise funds for an ultimate edition of BGC on Blu-ray. Through this campaign, backers were given the opportunity to participate in the planning and development of the project which included discussing and voting on budget allocations, special features, packaging options, and more to create a custom release like no other.
After a year of development, AnimEigo released the Bubblegum Crisis Ultimate Edition Blu-ray in December 2014 in both Basic and Premium sets. Both are limited, region free, 3-disc sets with identical video content but differ in terms of packaging and included collectables. In this review, I take a look at the Premium set.
Video:
The video transfer is top-notch with a crisp image and vibrant colors. I am glad the episodes were spread across 3 discs -- they do not look compressed in the slightest. There is grain, but I did not find it distracting. Certainly, this is a huge improvement from the DVDs. The image also looks brighter than the DVDs. Very impressive for '80s anime.
Audio:
I watched the episodes with the original Japanese stereo soundtrack. It is very well done. Songs sound excellent and powerful. The old English dub is also included if you want it. Both audio tracks are presented in LPCM 2.0.
Subtitles:
Subs are included in English, French, German, Italian, Finnish, and Japanese. Two styles are available: multicolor and greyscale. I found the greyscale to be easier on the eye.
Menus & Extras:
The menus feature neon line art from the series that loops over high-tech animated backgrounds. Episode selections and extras are displayed on the left hand side while sub-menus appear on the right. The menus are straightforward and do the job.
There are 8 chapter stops per episode. After each episode, credits in the subtitle language selected will play following the original Japanese credits.
Disc 1 extras consist of the 8 original music videos remastered in HD. They look and sound absolutely stunning. They all play in succession, separated by chapter stops, but you can quickly jump to any specific MV through the chapter menu. The rest of the extras are on Disc 3. First are the Hurricane Live 2032 & 2033 music videos in SD, sans the live version of There's a Hurricane Tonight. Also included is the Holiday in Bali special in SD featuring the seiyuu who voice the Knight Sabers. Full subtitles are included on all the extras. Finally, color and line artwork is included.
Each disc also contains credits where all the project backers are listed.
If you have a BD-ROM drive, you will also be able to access an entire archive of production notes, artwork, a digital copy of the BGC Grand Mal comic book, and digital copies of R. Talsorian Games' BGC RPG books.
Packaging & Collectables:
Here is where the Premium and Basic sets differ. The Premium set comes packaged in a nice chipboard box with the Knight Sabers on the front and Priss in her motoslave on the back. The discs are in 3 slim cases, each with cover art featuring one of the Knight Sabers in their hardsuits on the front and an image comprised of the names of the project backers on the back. The cover art is reversible and contains alternate artwork of the Sabers on the inside (Nene fans will have to reverse the cover on Disc 1). The designs on the actual discs feature Boomers. There are no product specifications on the packaging, but the discs themselves do indicate which episode numbers they contain.
Some nice collectables are also included with this set: 6 postcards with full color artwork, a commemorative coin with Priss on one side and Largo on the other, a metal AD Police badge keychain, and an embroidered color patch of Priss in her hardsuit.
The packaging of the Basic set consists of the three discs packaged in a single case with a reversible cover, and an outer slipcase. This set comes with the postcards and either the keychain or a smaller version of the coin. It lacks the embroidered patch.
Conclusion:
As a backer, it was fun to participate in this project, and I am very pleased with the way the final product turned out. The episodes and music videos are presented in pristine HD quality, and the selection of extras is great. I'll still hang onto the DVDs as they contain a few extras that were not included here (Remember those rare promos for Revenge Road and Moonlight Rambler?), but the Blu-ray packs plenty of additional goodies. The quality of this set is excellent, and I easily recommend it to Bubblegum Crisis fans and anime collectors.
Reviewed with:
Sony KDL-32S2000 HDTV
Sony HT-DDW900 Receiver
Pioneer Elite BDP-80FD Blu-ray Player