 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | FUNIMATION ENTERTAINMENT | | | ▪ | ASPECT RATIO: | | 16.9 ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN | | | ▪ | AUDIO: | | ENGLISH DD 5.1 / 2.0 AND
JAPANESE DD 2.0 | | | ▪ | RUNNING TIME: | | 100 MIN | | | ▪ | RATING: | | TV MA | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 04/29/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 04/25//2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | HOLLY ELLINGWOOD |
Badly wounded, Masane has been burned out by the power of the Witchblade as it takes its lethal toll. But as her life force ebbs, Doji’s I-Weapons are about to go after her thanks to Wado’s over-reaching plan. To protect her daughter, Masane must fight, not for herself, but to save the life she holds most dear – Rihoko’s. Things begin with a heavy dose of angst as the final volume unfurls. Masane is on her last legs, Wado’s plan is afoot, and her time is running out. The X-Cons are released and she must fight, despite the cost to her life. Wado’s fiasco however, only turns monstrous when the I-Weapons move out and 1300 of them are going towards Tokyo to destroy it! Now Takayama and Masane must make cruel choices. He must ask the woman his daughter loves like a mother to sacrifice her life to save them all. And Masane will go fight in order to save Riko and everyone else. To fight so many under such conditions...it’s a suicide mission and she knows it. It makes each of the affection laden scenes between her and Riko so very bittersweet. It all culminates with a final battle at Tokyo Tower between Masane and Maria with two other Cloneblades. Riko rushes to the scene, Takayama tries to get there in time, but the final fate of the bearer of the Witchblade has always been one sealed in blood and death. Can Masane change Fate? Huge battles, a final transformation and heartrending moments make up the final volume of Witchblade the anime. There are scenes with each of the characters that have made up the story. Curiously, at the end there is a moving ending theme song but it is sung by a male lead. Considering that the bond between mother and daughter is at the heart of this anime, a female voice would have lent much more emotional power to the final song. Each of the characters held hopes and dreams. Some get dashed, some burned, while some few are achieved in unexpected ways. Get the Kleenex box ready and prepare yourself for the stunning finale to this involving anime series.
EXTRAS:
Bonus features on the DVD include trailers, clean opening and closing animation, video interview with Japanese voice actor Nana Mizuki (Maria), and Japanese TV spots. The extra features regarding packaging include a 12 page booklet holding interviews with Jin Aketagawa (Sound Director), Yoshimitsu Ohashi (Director) and Yasuko Kobayashi (Series Planner/Script), and holds character with full color images along with black and white sketches. This DVD also comes with a sharp looking silver foil slip cover featuring Top Cow Productions artist and founder Marc Silvestri, giving fans his rendition of Masane in full powered Witchblade mode based on Makoto Uno’s original character designs.
IN SUMMARY:
Final battles, final choices, and final breaths are all to be had in the stunning conclusion to Witchblade the anime. |
