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Feature Presentation:
Special thanks to ADV Films for sending a copy for a review for this site. Now, it's getting more interesting. Misaki is doing great in the Angelic Layer tournament & won her first game there. Now, she & her Angel Hikaru, is facing tougher opponents, including Hatoko, the Kindergarden Kid, & her Angel, Suzuka. What an amazing fight that was. However, she seems to be in trouble because she is self-doubting herself & somehow, not believing fully in her abilities & Hiraku. Will Misaki able to enter for the Kanto games? You got to watch it to find out, because I'm not going to spoil it for you. Oh, a note that you will find out more about Misaki's mother, as well, more about the other characters. The last episode I find it cute. A guy that have the same name as Misaki. It's boy VS girl! However, a good moral lesson that gender playing a game doesn't really matter, as long you have fun. Misaki got to learn that it's only a game after all.
Video:
ADV Films did a very great job. I found no problem, the image are clear & the color looks perfect. There is one little problem, but I'm not sure if I'm the only one. The episodes are on a different track, so there will be a small loading time when you move on to the next episode. Each episodes are separated into 6 parts: the prologue, the introduction, part A, part B, ending & the preview for the next episode! I do note that you can skip all those warnings & logos when you first load the DVD by just pressing the "Menu" button on your remote control.
Dubbing: English:
The dubbing is really great. The voice for Misaka is picked quite well & it suit her role, as well as the other characters. It's about 90% of the original Japanese.
Audio 01: English 5.1:
Unable to test it, since I don't have a 5.1 surround system, I can't really say much.
Audio XX: English 2.0:
Just letting you know, there isn't an English 2.0 audio track on this DVD. This is artificially made from the 5.1 audio track, that's why I noted it as "XX". I found no problem with the audio, but I bet it would be alot more interesting with the 5.1.
Audio 02: Japanese 2.0:
No problem found.
Subtitle:
ADV Films have selected a great font, very easy to read. They use yellow for the introduction, ending themes & the Japanese dialogue & white for Japanese signs & text. There are two tracks of subtitling. One track is for the sign subtitling & the other one is for the Japanese dialogue. I might note that every odd numbered episodes, the intro & ending subtitles are in English, while the even numbered episodes are in Japanese on this volume.
Menu Option:
The menu remains the same as the first volume, but in different color, green, the Angelic Layer welcoming symbol moving around, which you will see during the beginning of the Angelic Layer tournement. Not to mention that you can see now the moving lights as the animation moves along on the menu. Again, there isn't a "Play All" feature, just a selection of one of the 4 episodes, "Screen Access", "Set Up" & "Extras". The little cursor for selecting in the menu is pretty cute, a pink Angelic Layer egg with wings symbol. The background music is my favorite music in the series, it's the battle music!
DVD Extras:
Somehow, ADV Films didn't note this on the package, but you still get the a non-credit opening & ending, again! Why they didn't just put the original Japanese credits. The best part of the extra is the audio commentary for the second episode, EPS 06, with Kevin Corn (Kotaro) & Monica Rial (Tamayo). Well, it's not really a commentary, but more like getting to know who are the voices for this series & a little about themselves. Boy, both of them aren't serious at all, odds & ends, lots of fun only. Oh, there is also a production artwork gallery, which isn't much. Some of them aren't related to the episodes on this volume.
Packaging:
The design remains the same as the first volume, just that the color green is used this time. On the cover, you see Misaki & her Angel, Hikaru, as well, Kotaro & her Angel, Suzuka in the back. In the back, you get some screenshots & there is a really cool background, mostly Angelic Layer theme designs! Yup, there is even two screenshots of the main menu. The insert is really cool, though there is no chapter list that you usually get, but it's just a mini-poster straight of the bat, a cute Misaki having a drink on a summer day with Hiraku, of course. Inside the insert, you get the profiles of Tamaya, Kotaro, Shoko (Misaki's aunt) & Ogata. The DVD disc itself it's the Angelic Layer welcoming symbol, same design, again using green. It suits quite will with the white DVD case.
PC Viewing:
Watching it on the PC is the same as watching it on the TV. Very clean, no problem at all, very little pixel (little squares popping in & out), both normal mode & full screen mode. The sound is just great. Since the episodes are on different tracks, it will take time to load when you move on to the next episode. Like on your regular DVD player, you can skip the warnings & logos when you load the disc, just use the "menu" option to go to the menu screen.
Overall DVD Rating:
I still wish Angelic Layer is actually real. It sound like a cool game to play. Though, honestly, I didn't like this set of episodes as much as the first volume. There are some moments that you just want to get off your seat & just want to give Misaki some advice, but don't worry, it's all going to work out. It's still a great series & it's nice to watch Misaki overcome any problems, getting stronger & discovering what she can do when she believes in herself.
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