Blue Seed - The Nightmare Begins (Vol. 1)

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
Momiji Fujimiya believes she's an ordinary high school girl, growing up in rural Japan--until she's told she's really the Princess Kushinada and that her blood is mankind's most powerful weapon against the shape-shifting monsters, the Aragami. The centuries-old war between humanity and the Aragami is heating up again, so Momiji goes to Tokyo to join the government agency fighting the monsters. Complicating matters is the presence of the roguish Mamoru Kusanagi: as a child he was kidnapped by a powerful Aragami and given seven souls (symbolized by the "Blue Seeds" of the title). Their power enables him to protect Kushinada, as spilling her blood would imprison the Aragami for centuries, possibly forever. In battle, Kusanagi transforms into a werewolfish version of himself with sword blades in his forearms. In his more normal state, he shares a fractious romance with Momiji, although his comic fascination with her panties must seem funnier in Japan. Blue Seed plays off a number of traditional Japanese myths. As Kushinada, Momiji is a descendant of Susanooh, the younger brother of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu; Kusanagi's name comes from the sword that Amaterasu gave to the first Emperors of Japan. But audiences on both sides of the Pacific can enjoy this feisty adventure-comedy without catching all its cultural references. Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up: violence, minor profanity, and sexual humor. --Charles Solomon
Average customer rating:
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Blue Seed - The Nightmare Begins (Vol. 1)
Starring: Jason Lee , Rob Mungle , Tiffany Grant , Marcy Rae , and Kurt Stoll Director: Shinya Sadamitsu , Kenji Takemura , and Jun Kamiya Manufacturer: Adv Films ProductGroup: DVD Binding: DVD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000056V7G Release Date: 2001-01-30 |
Amazon.com
Momiji Fujimiya believes she's an ordinary high school girl, growing up in rural Japan--until she's told she's really the Princess Kushinada and that her blood is mankind's most powerful weapon against the shape-shifting monsters, the Aragami. The centuries-old war between humanity and the Aragami is heating up again, so Momiji goes to Tokyo to join the government agency fighting the monsters. Complicating matters is the presence of the roguish Mamoru Kusanagi: as a child he was kidnapped by a powerful Aragami and given seven souls (symbolized by the "Blue Seeds" of the title). Their power enables him to protect Kushinada, as spilling her blood would imprison the Aragami for centuries, possibly forever. In battle, Kusanagi transforms into a werewolfish version of himself with sword blades in his forearms. In his more normal state, he shares a fractious romance with Momiji, although his comic fascination with her panties must seem funnier in Japan. Blue Seed plays off a number of traditional Japanese myths. As Kushinada, Momiji is a descendant of Susanooh, the younger brother of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu; Kusanagi's name comes from the sword that Amaterasu gave to the first Emperors of Japan. But audiences on both sides of the Pacific can enjoy this feisty adventure-comedy without catching all its cultural references. Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up: violence, minor profanity, and sexual humor. --Charles SolomonCustomer Reviews:
Creative Monstering 101.......2003-03-30
Momiji Fujiyama is a young woman who wants nothing more than an ordinary life. The death of a twin she has never met finds Momiji being hunted down by evil creatures called Arigami. She is now the Kushinada, whose sacrifice will put the Arigami to sleep for decades, unless she is killed in special circumstances. She escapes, and is taken under the wing of the TAC Organization, dedicated to preventing the Arigami from devouring Tokyo.
TAC is the typical paranormal defense group. A gruff commander, efficient assistant, scientist, gun geek, and a computer freak. Add to this poor Momiji, whose desires for having a normal adolescence go up in smoke as one monster after another plague Tokyo. Momiji has a strange connection to the Arigami, through the blue seeds that are the essence of the monsters.
One of the problematic issues with this series is that the English dubbing considerably softens the original Japanese dialog. This would be bad if it were not for the problem that the Japanese narrative is very blunt and harsh. To the point that it seems out of pace with the story itself. Add to this the fact that the dubbing is unevenly recorded, and you have a dilemma of modest proportions. To be honest, I find the English dub a little easier to listen to than the Japanese is, but it is a personal choice.
This is a series where many of the characters specialize in being rude. Kome Sawaguchi, TAC's military specialist ignores her duty, insults the rest of the team, and is permanently angry. Mamoro Kusanagi, the Kushinada's guardian, uses unusually pithy language and behavior around 15-year-old Momiji. Everyone seems fixated on what cute animal print is on Momiji's unmentionables. The dubbing cleans this up enough to get the age rating down to 12+, but I think that is a bit optimistic. Some of this is funny, but it sets an uncomfortable tone to a series that has a very serious main theme.
Immature and pedophilic.......2002-06-25
I'm not into that whole little girl thing. Taking advantage of underaged children is sick... even cartoon ones.
Great Value!.......2002-05-09
Blue Seed - the Nightmare Begins.......2002-02-16
I now have the entire series on DVD. It can be had on four discs, 26 episodes, With both english and japanese languages, as well as spanish! The clarity of the DVD format really shows here, not because the original material is so good, but because you can see the grain in the film, which in a strange way adds to the overall look of the series. The discs also include the now infamous "Omake Theatres", little humorous 'outtakes' if you will, some racy and some downright side splitting.
Another thing to mention about this series is the english voice acting. In the past, I have often hated the english dubbing of any movie, and in the first few episodes of Blue Seed the acting is at times not very good. But as the series goes on, it improves dramatically, and by the time I got to the last two discs I found that I prefered it over the original japanese. By the time you reach the last episode, the emotional quality of the dubbing is just dead on right, and at times you thing that maybe the series was made with english in mind.
This is the only Anime that I have ever cared enough about to own. As a total package of dvds, this cant be missed.
Id give it more stars if i could.......2001-11-19
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