▪	RELEASED BY:		ADV FILMS
		▪	ASPECT RATIO:		4:3 FULL SCREEN
		▪	AUDIO:		ENGLISH AND JAPANESE DD 2.0
		▪	RUNNING TIME:		650 MIN
		▪	RATING:		TV 14
		▪	RELEASE DATE:		11/20/2007
		▪	REVIEW DATE:		11/19/2007
		▪	REVIEWED BY:		HOLLY ELLINGWOOD

SYNOPSIS:
Darkness hid the pieces of her beloved’s shattered heart and time is running out for Princess Tutu to find them.  Using the power of an enchanted amulet she must uncover the mystery and keep herself and the prince alive.

The complete 26 episode series in one affordable thinpack box set. 

REVIEW:
If you wish to hear of a tale come to life, freed from the pages of a book in search of its ending, come closer. If you wish to hear of a princess with a tragic fate, a duck with a pure heart, a brave prince who has lost his, a story teller who may be dead, a villain who may not be evil, and a tale of such wonder to put the best of Disney to shame, then read on. For Princess Tutu, though the name may evoke the image of a mere trifling anime about a girl in a pink ballet costume, is far beyond any such simple things. It has all the makings of any of the grandest of fairy tales and most sweeping of operas. It holds adventure, romance, tragedies and triumphs of such power that viewers are helpless in its thrall.

The story begins simply. Once upon a time there was a duck that fell in love with a prince. When she noticed the prince’s sad eyes, she longed with all of her being to be able to see him smile once again. A strange old man with eerie eyes emerged from the mists to grant her the ability to find the shards of the prince’s lost heart so that he may smile again. To do so, she was given an enchanted jewel and was miraculously turned into a girl. However, if she ever confesses her love, Duck, as she is called, will turn into a speck of light and disappear forever. Her task is far from easy and much danger lurks in the corners of the quaint city where she attends the same ballet school as the prince. Others have also escaped the story book, such as the Raven whom the prince battled and is the reason he lost his heart to begin with. And others lurk in the shadows, the stuff of myths and fables that have come to life. And Duck, a brave girl with a pure heart doomed to never speak of her love, must face them all to save her prince.

This has all the grandeur of some of the greatest fairytales that exist. And it’s no wonder.  This series has innovatively combined Japanese animation style and sensitivity, and the creative genius with which writer Ikuko Itoh’s original story has reinterpreted some of the most famous classic tales including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, The Ugly Duckling, The Swan Prince, The Red Shoes, Cinderella and more, so much more all within this one amazing anime series being released by ADV Films. The story of Duck and her quest to save the prince leads us through a vast adventure of not only creatively intermixed fairytales but also a quest of one’s heart. The longer Duck is human and the more emotions the prince regains, the greater her heart is tested in all its good intentions as she comes to understand more fully the pain of being human. There is also the mystery of the book and the question of what is real and what is part of the story come to life. Many of the characters do not realize they are not of the real world; they have no memory of escaping a book. The tales of the different characters who become crucial to Duck’s story are as interesting and compelling as the heroine. Duck struggles to unravel the mystery tapping them all, but at what cost to herself and those around her? An anime of deep feeling and grand beauty, this is a must see for anyone who is a fan of fairytales and enjoys stories such as The Neverending Story. This anime however, has a strand of a more intense and dark undertones such as the Harry Potter series and Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events. I say this because Duck’s story is a complex one and the series has melancholy moments that can pierce the most jaded of hearts. The viewer cannot help but long for Duck to achieve her goal and yet, with it, we know the sorrow she herself is suffering. In volume two an even greater Gothic tone, one that is more reminiscent of the Grimm Brothers original fairytales, emerges with the appearance of Princess Kraehe, the Crow Princess. With her introduction, a few unsettling discoveries evolve about the characters around the prince, the cost of returning his heart, and even greater mysteries unfold. With the tragedies and trials the characters undergo, happily ever after may be out of reach. And yet somehow, the anime engenders a small sense of hope that compels the belief that somehow, someway, Duck and the others can defy their destiny.

The animation itself is as enchanting as the story. Directed by Junichi Saito (Sailor Moon, Kaleido Star) and Shougo Kuomoto (You’re Under Arrest TV Season 2), it has an iridescent quality, filled with classical music that suits the beauty of movement and mood of each scene perfectly. There is a part of the opening sequence that is something that one could have easily seen in Disney’s Fantasia, it is that well done. Produced by HAL Filmmaker that also did Kaleido Star and TBS famous for the fan favorite Chobits series, Tutu holds incredible backgrounds, movement and design. It truly is a fairytale within a fairytale and the enchanting animation style raises it above and beyond in terms of visual experience. If you are not familiar with classical music, rest assured these are very popular pieces that you would likely have heard before even if you’ve never been to a ballet or orchestral performance. Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet and his Nutcracker Suite are just two of the illustrious pieces you’ll hear while watching this anime. The variety of music, from sweet minuets to soaring dramatic opera scores, sweeps the listener up into another world.

EXTRAS:
This thinpack, unlike most of the ones from ADV, includes the delightful bonus features from the single disc releases. This makes the complete collection above and beyond the treasure of the wonderful anime itself as the extras in the series have been some of the best bonus features ever done for an anime series. There are an assortment of commentaries from the charming English voice cast and crew. There are promotional videos, clean opening and closing animation, ADV previews, and ‘In The Studio’ which gives us a behind the scenes look at the English animation dubbing process. A wonderful addition is ‘Etude’, which pieces together video clips from episodes of each volume with the English cast giving us background information on the music, the history, and the fairytales presented so far. Another fun addition is ‘Ballet for Beginners’ where viewers   are given a brief overview of ballet movement and terms.

IN SUMMARY:
Princess Tutu is an epic fairytale that will enchant viewers and stay in your heart forever.