Rating: 
Summary: A Shameful Effort by Voyager Entertainment
Review: I would have loved to give this DVD a 5 star rating, but I can't. I consider myself a life long member of the Star Force and have waited for years for the DVD release of this brilliant series. However, I can honestly say that I don't think I've seen a DVD yet where less effort was involved in its production.There are *no* extras at all. The title and chapter selection screens are just plain ugly. But who cares? Those are just cosmetic anyway right? Still, it shows how little they cared about doing a good job. The DVD also clocks in at about 112 minutes (the first 5 episodes of the first season), which I feel is not a good value considering the capacity of DVD and the aforementioned lack of extras. But then again, the VHS tapes were even worse. Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of this DVD release is that the sound and image quality are poor. Of course, the sound and picture quality were poor back in the 80's when I used to watch this show, but you'd think that they'd try just a little bit harder to polish it up and remaster the sound before committing this show to digital posterity. If it wasn't for my sheer unadulterated love of this show, I would say that this is the worst DVD in my collection...and that's a shame.
Rating: 
Summary: The BEST Anime, but...
Review: Just the fact that Voyager put out the show on DVD is enough to be amazed. Even for a cheap shoe-string company, I have to give them credit for releasing STAR BLAZERS on DVD. The show is great to see again, but the DVD itself leaves little to smile about. Nothing has been remastered and the video/audio quality is comparable to VHS. The DVD menu is the worst I've ever seen, and the package is ho-hum marketing (showing pics from a different YAMATO series). Of course, being a fan of the show, I'd buy 'em all! Let's just hope Voyager releases all the shows on DVD!
Rating: 
Summary: Another version?
Review: Not sure what DVD the other reviewers were looking at, but the one I bought had a slideshow tour of the Yamato on it, so it isn't quite exactly right to say there are *no* extras (though a somewhat disappointing extra). It is true for Part II of the series, though. All in all, it leaves the viewer only nearly satisfied. The price is just a bit high for what you're getting.
Rating:
Summary: Broken Record
Review: Not to be a broken record, but I must agree with many of the other reviewers. This is a shoddily produced DVD. There is essentially no menu, and there are no extras at all. However, the picture and sound quality were fine by my standards. On to the show: the battles aren't quite as fast or explosive as I remember and the wave motion gun isn't as devastating as a remember, but Star Blazers is still a kick ax space adventure. I still think Nova is hot and the Tiger Squadron still rock. I will definately be moving on to vol. II, where it looks like the features and DVD quality are better.
Rating:
Summary: Woohooo
Review: One day I was discussing anime with some people at work and it made me think of the Star Blazers tune back from when I was 7 or 8 years old. So, I went lookin on the internet for the series on DVD. At the time they hadn't even released part I yet, so I waited and bought it the day it came out. The grainy film (it hasn't been touched up) and quirky music only seem to add value for me because it is exactly the way I remembered it. Enhanced sound may have been okay though, since I did spend a lot of money on my surround system. (Thus one star deducted) Also what may be a point of interest... I filled in the registration card that came with the DVD. Then I waited for a long time for the second disc to come out. When it finally came out I popped in the disc and they had added all the features I requested. Lost footage, etc. Except for better sound.
Rating:
Summary: Woohooo
Review: One day I was discussing anime with some people at work and it made me think of the Star Blazers tune back from when I was 7 or 8 years old. So, I went lookin on the internet for the series on DVD. At the time they hadn't even released part I yet, so I waited and bought it the day it came out. The grainy film (it hasn't been touched up) and quirky music only seem to add value for me because it is exactly the way I remembered it. Enhanced sound may have been okay though, since I did spend a lot of money on my surround system. (Thus one star deducted) Also what may be a point of interest... I filled in the registration card that came with the DVD. Then I waited for a long time for the second disc to come out. When it finally came out I popped in the disc and they had added all the features I requested. Lost footage, etc. Except for better sound.
Rating:
Summary: 5 Stars for Star Blazers, 1 Star for Voyager's Production
Review: Star Blazers: The Quest for Iscandar Part I, contains the first five episodes (of 26) of the first season of the cult-favorite Americanized Japanese Anime series from the early 1980's. For the uninitiated, here's a rundown of the plot. In 2199 Earth was under attack by an "evil" alien race called the Gamilons. The Gamilons bombed earth with "planet bombs" which destroyed the planet and emitted high levels of radiation, thus driving mankind into underground cities. In one Earth year the planet would become uninhabitable. Queen Starsha of Iscandar offers mankind hope in the form of the Cosmic DNA which would cure all mankind from the radiation sickness. She sends Earth a message along with powerful technology that will allow mankind to travel to Iscandar to get the Cosmic DNA. The Star Force is formed to travel to Iscandar to fetch the Cosmic DNA. Their faithful battleship is the Argo, a renovated WWII era navy battleship remade into a Starship. There is just one minor problem though, Iscandar is 148,000 Light Years away. No one has ever traveled that far before. More importantly, the Star Force only has one year to travel there and back for a total of 296,000 Light Years. Here is a summary of the first five episodes included on this DVD: Episode 1: Introduction to the Earth-Gamilon war, The Battle of Pluto and the bravery of Alex Wildstar. Also, the mysterious spaceship from deep space and its offer of hope to mankind and a dogfight over the Yamato. Episode 2: Raise the Yamato!!! Converting the Yamato to Space Battleship Argo. Argo's first attack. Episode 3: Assemble the Star Force!!! The Gamilon's try to take out the Argo before it takes off. The Argo launches. Plus, take a tour of the Argo. Episode 4: In order to travel to Iscandar (296,000 light years) within one year the Argo must travel beyond the speed of light. The crew prepares for a Space Warp while avoiding a Gamilon attack. Plus, snow on Mars. Episode 5: The Argo gets pulled into Jupiter and comes across a Floating Continent which holds a Gamilon base. Plus, the Argo tests out its greatest weapon - The Wave Motion Gun. Overall, I can't be any happier that Voyager has released the series on DVD. Star Blazers was one of my all-time favorite childhood cartoon series (along with Transformers, Robotech, GI Joe, He-man and Thundercats). However, you must admit that the production work of this DVD was VERY bush league. The navigation is laughable and the chapter breaks are almost non-sensical (about 5 minutes before the end of each episode). Here's my rundown: Great: Star Blazers on DVD Good: The episodes Bad: No DVD exclusive features??? Ugly: Pitiful navigation. Summed up, if you were ever a Star Blazers fan, give this a watch. It's great for a trip down memory lane. If you've NEVER seen Star Blazers, give it a try, it's a cult classic from the 80's (along with other Americanized anime greats like Robotech, Voltron, Transor Z, etc). The animation may look a little dated, but the storyline still holds its own very well against anything out there today. This series has stood the test of time. Due to limited distribution this show may have slipped by the radar of a lot of people but it caught on like a fire with those who did catch it. Try it, you WON'T be disappointed. Overall assessment: 5 stars for Star Blazers, 1 star for Voyager's production. Recommended
Rating:
Summary: 5 Stars for Star Blazers, 1 Star for Voyager's Production
Review: Star Blazers: The Quest for Iscandar Part I, contains the first five episodes (of 26) of the first season of the cult-favorite Americanized Japanese Anime series from the early 1980's. For the uninitiated, here's a rundown of the plot. In 2199 Earth was under attack by an "evil" alien race called the Gamilons. The Gamilons bombed earth with "planet bombs" which destroyed the planet and emitted high levels of radiation, thus driving mankind into underground cities. In one Earth year the planet would become uninhabitable. Queen Starsha of Iscandar offers mankind hope in the form of the Cosmic DNA which would cure all mankind from the radiation sickness. She sends Earth a message along with powerful technology that will allow mankind to travel to Iscandar to get the Cosmic DNA. The Star Force is formed to travel to Iscandar to fetch the Cosmic DNA. Their faithful battleship is the Argo, a renovated WWII era navy battleship remade into a Starship. There is just one minor problem though, Iscandar is 148,000 Light Years away. No one has ever traveled that far before. More importantly, the Star Force only has one year to travel there and back for a total of 296,000 Light Years. Here is a summary of the first five episodes included on this DVD: Episode 1: Introduction to the Earth-Gamilon war, The Battle of Pluto and the bravery of Alex Wildstar. Also, the mysterious spaceship from deep space and its offer of hope to mankind and a dogfight over the Yamato. Episode 2: Raise the Yamato!!! Converting the Yamato to Space Battleship Argo. Argo's first attack. Episode 3: Assemble the Star Force!!! The Gamilon's try to take out the Argo before it takes off. The Argo launches. Plus, take a tour of the Argo. Episode 4: In order to travel to Iscandar (296,000 light years) within one year the Argo must travel beyond the speed of light. The crew prepares for a Space Warp while avoiding a Gamilon attack. Plus, snow on Mars. Episode 5: The Argo gets pulled into Jupiter and comes across a Floating Continent which holds a Gamilon base. Plus, the Argo tests out its greatest weapon - The Wave Motion Gun. Overall, I can't be any happier that Voyager has released the series on DVD. Star Blazers was one of my all-time favorite childhood cartoon series (along with Transformers, Robotech, GI Joe, He-man and Thundercats). However, you must admit that the production work of this DVD was VERY bush league. The navigation is laughable and the chapter breaks are almost non-sensical (about 5 minutes before the end of each episode). Here's my rundown: Great: Star Blazers on DVD Good: The episodes Bad: No DVD exclusive features??? Ugly: Pitiful navigation. Summed up, if you were ever a Star Blazers fan, give this a watch. It's great for a trip down memory lane. If you've NEVER seen Star Blazers, give it a try, it's a cult classic from the 80's (along with other Americanized anime greats like Robotech, Voltron, Transor Z, etc). The animation may look a little dated, but the storyline still holds its own very well against anything out there today. This series has stood the test of time. Due to limited distribution this show may have slipped by the radar of a lot of people but it caught on like a fire with those who did catch it. Try it, you WON'T be disappointed. Overall assessment: 5 stars for Star Blazers, 1 star for Voyager's production. Recommended
Rating:
Summary: If the Gamilons made DVDs...
Review: The legendary Star Blazers TV series (the Americanized version of Japan's "Space Battleship Yamato") has finally arrived on DVD! ...But don't get too excited yet, fans, because this DVD edition (which includes the first 5 episodes of Star Blazers) comes to us NOT from a major anime studio, but from a little company called Voyager Entertainment. It seems that Voyager holds exclusive rights to all things Yamato, and that is very bad news for the millions of rabid Star Blazers enthusiasts in this country (and the world). Why? Because it appears that the folks at Voyager know about as much about how to make a DVD as my cousin Bubba does! If you can manage to wrest this disc away from its fancy case (complete with typos on the back cover!) without breaking it in half (and that's a big IF, 'cause this bad boy is constructed like a plastic bear trap!) and pop it into your player, you will immediately be struck by the obvious shoddiness of this production. Even the obligatory FBI warning looks cheesy! Then there's the menu design: nothing but a solid gray screen with two little pictures at the bottom left (one for PLAY and one for CHAPTERS)! Select PLAY to start the feature, and step back in time to the year 1979 - long before DVDs were even thought of. In 1979, the audio and video quality of this disc would have seemed good. Keep that in mind, and you won't be quite so disappointed. Now you can sing along to the inspiring theme song, marvel at the stylish animation, and savor the sophisticated storyline. Remember that an inferior Star Blazers disc is a whole lot better than nothing...and nothing is what we've had for far too long. And unfortunately, since Voyager OWNS the Star Force, a properly restored version of this excellent animated program may not be available for many years...if ever. For that reason alone, I will (reluctantly) recommend this disc. The picture is a bit grainy and the sound warbles in places, but it's still _Our_ _Star_ _Blazers_! Keep your digital expectations low and let your imagination soar with this blast from the past! ...1 star for the DVD, 5 stars for the show. NOTE: I read on the Web that Voyager is waiting for the little consumer response cards (included with the DVD) to come back before starting on a Volume 2 disc, so if you want more Star Blazers, make sure you fill the card out and send it in (YOU provide the stamp, of course).
Rating:
Summary: Star Blazers: Quest for Iscandar
Review: The only thing keeping this DVD from a 5 star rating is the lack of extras (there are none to speak of). Having not seen this series in about ten years I was amazed at how well the story telling held up. As interesting today as in my youth. The animation isn't as crisp as the animation of today, but the characters more than make up for it. Whether your reliving your childhood or giving you children something worth watching you can't go wrong. I can't wait till the next installment. Enjoy
| 
