Gankutsuou – The Count
Of Monte Cristo (Volume 3/Animé
TV)
Picture: B-
Sound: B- Extras: C Episodes: C+
Picking up like few Animé series have in the U.S. market
since we first looked at it, this new animated version of Alexandre Dumas’
classic The Count Of Monte Cristo called Gankutsuou (2004)
continues with a story set in the future and puts a twist on the Animé style
with some clever CG work and a style of cut out figures that are filled in by
designs that do not move as the figures do.
To recap yet again, Mahiro Maeda (The Animatrix)
continues to deliver one of the best such series in recent Animé years. It manages to walk the fine line between the
classic text and imaginatively transport it into a future world that is not so
overly fantastic as to be distracting.
Dialogue is not bad, though the “talk at” is still here, which would be
in line with the source material instead of being just pretentious for a
change. This time, the show’s episodes
are starting to slip a bit, but most of the quality of the previous shows
continues here. The next four episodes
featured are:
8) I Dreamed A Dark Dream
9) The Letter From Edmund
10) An Engagement Broken
11) Encore
The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image again is
stylized, but only has mild definition and detail limits, but continually
impresses with its uniqueness. The
result is a more layered, complex image that may even point to a new direction
for Animé in general and the rare use of the overly white cliché is another
asset. A bit more softness is purposely
presented in these shots versus the previous DVD sets. The sound is here in Dolby Digital 2.0
Stereo with Pro Logic surrounds in English and Japanese, both of which are
fine. Too bad there is not a 5.1 mix,
especially DTS, because the visuals merit such treatment. Extras include a promo trailer for this and
three additional Geneon Animé trailers, on-camera comments from the Japanese
voice actors about working on the show and some additional TV ads for this
show. That too is not as good as the
first volume, the one anyone should start with to begin with. Only go for this one after the first two
discs.
- Nicholas Sheffo
