DVD Corner

Shakugan No Shana S: OVA Series Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack Review

“Sakugan No Shana S: OVA Series” is better than the usual OVAs.

If you’re an avid anime viewer, you’ll likely agree that OVAs aren’t the most beloved of anime material. For the most part, OVA stories tend to feel like extras or afterthoughts rather than a significant special episode that advances the plot of a series. Even worse, OVAs can be largely extraneous filler or shamefully pandering fanservice. Thankfully, the 4 “Shakugan No Shana” OVAs are inoffensive and are surprisingly more eventful than a majority of OVAs.

The first 2 OVAs “Reshuffle” and “Domicile” are nothing new and are certainly the least interesting specials of the 4. “Reshuffle” is a standard body switch episode with Yuki and Shana switching bodies via a reshuffle device. The body switch storyline has been done to death so I can’t say I was too invested in this one.  “Domicile” is a more character centric OVA that revolves around surprise for Wilhelmina (I won’t spoil what) and Shana acting oddly. While I appreciate the fact that this was a more personal OVA that delved into some of the main characters, it felt like the OVA was missing something more storywise.  The third and fourth OVAs (“Overture” parts 1 and 2”) are the noteworthy ones as they actually give viewers some backstory on Shana’s past. The 2 part story goes into Shana’s early days as a Flame Haze. The main story finds Shana taking over the identity of a deceased Torch named Junko while searching for the Denizen who killed her. Throughout the two OVAs, we learn about Junko’s life, parents, and even her love interest. It may not be an essential story to the overall mythology, but it’s a rewarding side story nonetheless.

Video/Audio:

The OVAs, which are presented in widescreen 1080p, looked sharp to this reviewer. The colors are rich and the cloudy stylistic visual style certainly looks superior in hi-def.

This disc contains English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 audio tracks. Personally, I don’t think you can go wrong with either track. From an acting standpoint, the English track is on par with the original language Japanese track.

Extras:
* Trailers for “Baka and Test,” “Soul Eater,” “Toriko,” “Heaven’s Lost Property,” “One Piece,” “Level E,” “Tenchi Muyo!,” “Shakugan No Shana,” and Funimation.com.
* Textless opening and closing songs.
* 4 silly animated shorts titled “Shakugan No Shana-Tan G,” “Shakugan No Shana-Tan Dos,” “Shakugan No Shana-Tan-Tri-,” and ‘Shakugan No Shana-Tan Frontier.”

Summary: This OVA set is strictly for fans who can’t get enough of these characters. It would make no sense for a casual viewers to pick this up because it’s obviously not a starting point for new fans (they would need to start with season 1 of “Shakugan No Shana”).

April 12, 2013 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Shakugan No Shana OVA Reviews, Shakugan No Shana S: OVA Series Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack Review