Rozen Maiden – Doll House: Volume One (Geneon/Animé TV)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: B     Extras: C     Episodes: B

 

 

This is the story about a lonely boy, Jun Sakurada.  Afraid to go outside, afraid of people, he rather closes himself off to the world than live in it.  He spends all his time ordering weird/cursed items on-line, but all that changes in his quiet life when a mysterious box gets mailed to him, inside he finds a beautiful doll to his surprise can move and talk on it's own!  Soon he discovers that there is more than one, and drawn into their world in which the dolls battle one another in the mysterious 'Alice Games'...

 

This is fun Animé, while the story has very childlike characters most of the time they interact in social settings, the story setups of the story of a reclusive character learning what it is to trust another, each episode the story develops with either a new character or discovery of each other.  As the story progresses they find out more about each other and what is the so called 'Alice Games'.  Whoever wins the game will finally get the chance to become a real person.

 

An interesting anime thought the characters are childish in nature starts and out with a reclusive young boy and magical living Victorian like dolls.  Their relationship starts out with master/servant and develops into a co-dependent relationship.  Oddly the boy is almost like a doll himself, afraid to go outside, something to be left alone, kept inside and safe, but all that changes with the arrival of Shinku, the Rozen Maiden doll.  Together they explore the world and their fears, learning to trust one another and their power.

 

Episode 1: Fraulein Rose

 

Jun was perfectly content to stay in his room forever, until that is a special package arrives for him! A talking and moving doll and with an attitude to boot!

 

Episode 2: Kleine Beere

 

Another Rozen Maiden appears, Hina Ichigo. Jun and Shinku are drawn for the first time into the mysterious 'Alice Games'.

 

Episode 3: Mercury Lampe

 

As Jun and Ichigo tries to live together without driving each other up the wall, a mysterious character Shuigintou appears and seems to has something against Shinku.

 

Episode 4: Jade Stern

 

A new Rozen Maiden crashes into Jun's house (to his dismay!) with the power to enter dreams, as they enter Jun's dreams what will they find?

 

 

The anamorphically enhance 1.78 X 1 image is not bad with its stylizing, with color, definition and detail holding their own in this format but not the best such Geneon release.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo has healthy enough Pro Logic surrounds in both languages to be enjoyed.  The non-credit opening and four Geneon trailers are the only extras.

 

 

-   Ricky Chiang