Star Ocean EX Volume One: The Inception
(Animé TV)
Picture: C+ Sound: B- Extras: B-
Episodes: B-
Star Ocean EX, the
fantasy/adventure anime based on a Playstation game, is… pretty much an anime
of a Playstation game. The story begins
when the son of a starship captain, Claude, gets transported to another planet
with no way of getting home. He
consequently saves a girl from a monster, finds out he’s a legendary warrior,
gets some instructions from her wise old father, and sets out on a journey for
the magical Sorcery Globe, gathering new members to their questing party along
the way. It’s a familiar fantasy plot,
and nothing against it in theory, but there’s very little here to flesh it out. The characters are flatter than
cardboard. Rena, the rescued girl, is
the requisite “cute elven chick with no pants who instantly gets a crush on the
main character.” The character designs
are otherwise all right, credit probably being due to whomever originally
designed the game that inspired this anime.
No big plot surprises in the first five episodes, but it’s still a
decent tale. It would probably appeal
more to a younger audience, one with less experience of fantasy clichés.
The full screen image and
Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo with Pro Logic surrounds in either language are a
typical performance combo. Other things
about the DVD are decidedly positive.
Since there was a previously existing story, the extras are a bit more
than bare bones, including character profiles for all the main characters we’ve
met thus far. The DVD also includes the
original Japanese opening, as well as the ever-more-popular option of watching
the opening sans text. Another feature
of note is the English voice acting. It
all seems rather well suited to the characters – and actually acted!
Granted, the roles don’t call for a whole lot of depth, but I was quite
pleased with how well the voices matched their Japanese equivalents, and how
well they matched the original script.
If I were too tired to focus on tiny subtitles, I’d be willing to sit
back and let this one roll over me in English.
Overall, it’s a simple but nice, light-hearted show, and also suitable
for children – which is rarer than one might think, in the world of Japanese
animation.
- Anne Moffa
