DVD Corner

Steins;Gate Part 1 Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack Review

“Steins;Gate” is a well written time travel centric anime series.

In the first 12 episodes of this anime series, we are introduced to the oddball, borderline crazy scientist Rintaro Okabe. Rintaro is a fast talking intellectual egomaniac that is starting to notice that time is a bit out of whack. He soon learns that a peculiar microwave turns out to be a time travel device which explains why, for instance, a neuroscience expert named Kurisu who was once dead is now alive and well. With a misfit group of assistants (Mayuri, Itaru, Kurisu, Moeka) helping out Okabe, the group sets out to explore this time travel curiosity. Other major plotlines involve: an organization named SERN’s time travel experiments, an alleged time traveler named John Titor, a special computer (IBN 5100), Moeka (a mysterious girl who becomes a member of Rintaro’s group), different timelines, Rumiho (a maid), changes to timelines, Ruka (a crossdresser), Suzuha (an electronic shop assistant), and D-Mails (messages sent to the past).

At the start of the series, it seems as if the writers might be digging themselves a hole by making the show overly complicated with the time travel element, but if you pay close attention, the show shouldn’t make your head spin. In fact, it’s generally a pretty clever series that offers a great hook with all of the odd things that happen to Okabe.

Some viewers might find the comedy and drama tonal shifts distracting, but it really feels pretty balanced once you finish watching all 12 episodes. The series is gradually becoming more serious as it progresses and it’s clear the writers are trying to ease you into the drama that I expect is coming down the pipeline.

On the subject of “what’s coming soon,” I have to say that the doozy of a cliffhanger in episode 12 made me want to see part 2 asap. I won’t spoil what happens, but it’s safe to say you should be excited to see what’s in store for the second half of the series.

Video/Audio:

The series, which is presented in widescreen 1080p, appears very bright and the Blu-ray definitely plays that up.

This set contains English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (even though the box says 2.0) and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0. Surprisingly, the English track might be better here as the casting seems more suitable to the characters. The Japanese track didn’t grab me in the same way as the English track here simply because the English track had more energy to it.

Dvd Dolby Digital 5.1 and Japanese Stereo.

Extras:
* Trailers for “C: Control- The Money and Soul of Possibility,” “Fafner,” “Deadman Wonderland,” “Texhnolyze,” “Ergo Proxy,” “Ga-Rei-Zero,” “Serial Experiments Lain,” and Funimation.com.
* Commentary on episode 1 by voice actress Trina Nishimura and voice actor Tyson Rinehart. The two talk about past Funimation work, opinions on the show, voice recordings, etc.
* Textless opening and closing songs.
* “Akihabara Map”- Map pages that you can flip back and forth through.
* Commentary on episode 12 by writer/voice actor J. Michael Tatum and writer John Burgmeier. Lots of discussions about English translations, time travel, etc.

November 10, 2012 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review, DVD review | Funimation, Steins;Gate Blu-ray Review, Steins;Gate Part 1 Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack Review