Rating: Summary: Excellent film, layout a little confusing Review: I recently watched this series and it's good. There is a lot of action and the story tends to flow rather quickly, maybe too quickly. Although the technical material was not really explained, you can still understand it.The box is rated at 13 and up and that is rather suiting. There is a lot of violence (as with most action animes) but the nudity is VERY brief, maybe 5 seconds of actual nudity within the whole 3 hours (towards the end), and those 5 seconds you don't really see anything. The rest of the series is just the tight clothes the female characters wear. Basically, if you're comfortable with the cover of the box, then there should be no problem. The layout of the series is a little confusing. Episodes one through four progress through. At the end of the fourth episode is the "end" of the series. Episodes five and six are flashbacks to before the first episode. So the chronological order of the series is 5, 6, 1, 2, 3, and then 4. I would still watch it in the order it is on the DVD simply because episodes 5 and 6 contain things that would spoil the other episodes if you didn't see those. But if you are confused after the fourth episode, keep watching the second two because it will answer a lot of the questions you may be having. Overall, it's a good series. The animation is good and the English dub is good. The plotline isn't so complicated you can't follow, but not so linear that you get bored. If you can afford the somewhat hefty price tag, I would highly recommend this.
Rating: Summary: Great, dark fantasy of the bishoujo kind Review: I'd write a fair bit about this if it were more popular with people, but it seems to be something of an underground affair. Ignore the bad press (except maybe the bit about the viewing order of episodes) - this IS definitive CLAMP animation with a great story, dark undertones, interesting characters, humour and a little blood. Only bad thing is there should be more episodes. Once again, the dub actors need shooting.
Rating: Summary: PLEASE BUY THIS ANIME!!!! Review: I've heard reviews from both the Amazon raters and from the Anime Encyclopedia claiming that this film is convoluted and incoherent. I checked it out anyway and decided they were wrong here (though they were right about Maze, it stunk) as I had no trouble following the plot. As I watched though, I found that there were several tricks to following the action. First, you need to learn to filter flashbacks and mirages from the current events. Second, you need a basic grasp of Eastern philosophy, particularly Taoism. Third, you have to understand that the last episodes were flashbacks. It's pretty easy to follow actually, even easier than A Man Called Hero.
Rating: Summary: I don't think it's incoherent Review: I've heard reviews from both the Amazon raters and from the Anime Encyclopedia claiming that this film is convoluted and incoherent. I checked it out anyway and decided they were wrong here (though they were right about Maze, it stunk) as I had no trouble following the plot. As I watched though, I found that there were several tricks to following the action. First, you need to learn to filter flashbacks and mirages from the current events. Second, you need a basic grasp of Eastern philosophy, particularly Taoism. Third, you have to understand that the last episodes were flashbacks. It's pretty easy to follow actually, even easier than A Man Called Hero.
Rating: Summary: good anime... bad DVD Review: Imagine for a moment you're watching the movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Now imagine it starting, not ending, with the opening of the Ark. Marion and Indy are already there. So are the Nazis. You wouldn't know who these people are or what they were doing. Once the Ark was opened and the Nazis destroyed, THEN the story starts at the begining. It would be hard to follow wouldn't it? Now imagine that set in a medieval world on another planet... This is exactly the problem with Shamanic Princess. It begins with the ending. You couldn't care less about the characters because you have no idea who they are or what they're trying to accomplish. You also have no emotional stake in the outcome. Even worse, Shamanic Princess tries to make up for these short comings with flashbacks...lots of flashbacks to different times and places. Still I give it high marks for trying something different. It also has a catchy opening theme and when the heroine transforms (don't they always?) she has a refreshing air of menace about her, despite her provocative outfit. I also found some of her conversations the Throne of Yord about existance and reality to be rather thought provoking. But would I purchase it again knowing what I know now? Probably not. I found it just too difficult to follow. I'm a bit surprised several people here gave it 5 stars. If you're looking for a D&D anime adventure you might try the comedic Slayers, the more serious Record of the Loddoss War or the superior Escaflowne. Still, If you find it for cheap, Shamanic Princess is worth taking a look at. Just expect it to be bewildered.
Rating: Summary: Backwards story telling Review: Imagine for a moment you're watching the movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Now imagine it starting, not ending, with the opening of the Ark. Marion and Indy are already there. So are the Nazis. You wouldn't know who these people are or what they were doing. Once the Ark was opened and the Nazis destroyed, THEN the story starts at the begining. It would be hard to follow wouldn't it? Now imagine that set in a medieval world on another planet... This is exactly the problem with Shamanic Princess. It begins with the ending. You couldn't care less about the characters because you have no idea who they are or what they're trying to accomplish. You also have no emotional stake in the outcome. Even worse, Shamanic Princess tries to make up for these short comings with flashbacks...lots of flashbacks to different times and places. Still I give it high marks for trying something different. It also has a catchy opening theme and when the heroine transforms (don't they always?) she has a refreshing air of menace about her, despite her provocative outfit. I also found some of her conversations the Throne of Yord about existance and reality to be rather thought provoking. But would I purchase it again knowing what I know now? Probably not. I found it just too difficult to follow. I'm a bit surprised several people here gave it 5 stars. If you're looking for a D&D anime adventure you might try the comedic Slayers, the more serious Record of the Loddoss War or the superior Escaflowne. Still, If you find it for cheap, Shamanic Princess is worth taking a look at. Just expect it to be bewildered.
Rating: Summary: Skimpy costumes and a back talking russian cat creature. FUN Review: It could have been a little better at time, and they probobly went a little extreme on the skimpy costumes, but all in all I enjoyed all 6 episodes. The story isn't bad and has a few unusual ideas. The characters all look excellent if not a little anime cliche at times. 6 complete episodes makes this well worth the money, just plain excellent value. I can forgive the small things that the series lacks because of getting so many episodes on the DVD. If you want to see a magic based series then give this one a go.
Rating: Summary: Ray Ray Review: Okay this isnt a review but a question I would like answered. What is the difference betweeen this DVD and the one that has a different cover and is about 7 dollars more? I can't find the difference, can someone please help me?
Rating: Summary: Mystical and Creative Review: One of the better buys that I made. It uses a unique design to keep you seated until the very end. They let you see the characters go thtough the final days of their adventure. Then they let you see in the final two episodes what lead up to the final conflict. A little confusing at first but well rewarding in the end. The characters are well developed in personality and character. The english accents and voices add a bit more color in my opinion to the characters, esspecially Japolo. The russian accent just can't be replaced. The art work and animation is superb. A medium story line that takes a little imagination to follow. Good music and wonderful characture design. No acctual nudity in the movie. There is always the piece of cloth or ribbon blocking the view. There is a demon sceen that gets a little risky (no sex) but thats about all. Some swearing but not enough to matter. A great buy.
Rating: Summary: Saturday morning cartoon fare Review: Same schoolgirl crushes seen on many anime: the love triangle theme of schoolgirls ogling one guy. Kicking and boxing Ninja action, with amorphous monsters. Again. Special powers, again. The artistry is pretty good and in some places excellent. Some scenes are drawn deliciously. But the charaters are the same shelf-nosed Japanese Europeans you'll see elsewhere - not realisticlly drawn people. The plot is strong enough to keep it from being a total dump, but overall it's a weak story. It's par normal anime, worth a rental, and for anime fans a must buy. Overall it is aimed at the 12 to 15 year old schoolgirl set. For example, the "nudity" word is used as a disclaimer but actually there's only one bit of nudity, a red demon (the demon inside us all) of the main character during a later episode. That and bkini-level suggestive shots in the credits (you get more and better skin from a bikini shoot; an R rate movie is far above this in nudity). What would have made a better? Humanly drawn characters. The main character being married instead of a schoolgirl-with-infatuateion level celibate nun. Something on par with mature themes. That or a price of [amt.] instead of [amt]. [Amt.] is what real movies are worth, not cartoon fare.
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