Attack on Titan-Collection II (Shingeki no Kyojin) (Blu-ray) (2013) |
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Attack on Titan-Collection II (Shingeki no Kyojin) (Blu-ray) (2013) |
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| BUY IT |
| General | Extras | ||
| Category | Anime |
Audio Commentary-x 2 Featurette-Attack on Titan at Anime Expo (16:21) More…-Chibi Theatre: Fly Cadets Fly (47:15) Gallery More…-Textless Opening and Closing Songs Trailer-US Blu-ray trailer Booklet-24 page booklet Alternative Version-Marathon Play without opening and closing credits |
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| Year Of Production | 2013 | ||
| Running Time | 289:33 (Case: 300) | ||
| RSDL / Flipper |
No/No Dual Disc Set |
Cast & Crew | |
| Start Up | Menu | ||
| Region Coding | 4 | Directed By | Tetsuro Araki |
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Studio
Distributor |
 Madman Entertainment |
Starring |
Yuki Kaji Bryce Papenbrook Yui Ishikawa Trina Nishimura Marina Inoue Josh Grelle Kiso Taniyama Mike McFarland Hiro Shimono Clifford Chapin Yu Kobayashi Ashly Burch |
| Case | ? | ||
| RPI | ? | Music | Hiroyuki Sawano |
| Video | Audio | ||
| Pan & Scan/Full Frame | None |
English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 
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| Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 1.78:1 | ||
| 16x9 Enhancement |
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| Video Format | 1080p | ||
| Original Aspect Ratio | 1.78:1 | Miscellaneous | |
| Jacket Pictures | No | ||
| Subtitles | English (Burned In) | Smoking | No |
| Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
| Action In or After Credits | Yes, do not miss after the end credits, episode 25 | ||
Over a century ago a race of powerful giants, which people called Titans, appeared on the Earth. The Titans were almost invincible and humans were on the verge of extinction until the survivors retreated behind three rings of 50 metre high walls, caging themselves in but keeping the Titans at bay. But after 100 years of relative security, a massive Titan appeared, broke down the outer wall and let in the Titans. Fifteen year old Eren (voiced by Yuki Kaji / Bryce Papenbrook) watched as his mother was eaten before escaping within the inner wall of the city. Eren made a vow to kill all the Titans and joined the cadet regiment to learn how to fight. But during one attack by the Titans Eren mysteriously transformed into a Titan himself and helped humans defeat the attackers before reverting to his human form.
Yet, while Eren’s transformation into Titan form seemingly offered humans an opportunity to fight back against the Titans, many people with vested interests within the military, administration and religious orders see him as a danger to the status quo and want him killed. As a compromise Eren is made a member of the Scout Regiment and placed under the command of the cold and calculating Captain Levi (Hiroshi Kamiya / Matthew Mercer) who has orders to kill Eren if he becomes a danger. At the same time Eren’s childhood friends Mikasa (Yui Ishikawa / Trina Nishimura) and Armin (Marina Inoue/ Josh Grelle), plus the other cadets, finish their training and elect to join the Scout Regiment.
They are just in time; the Scouts, with Eren, are to go on an almost suicidal mission through Titan territory to the district where Eren’s family used to live as it seems that in the basement of Eren’s family home is something that may provide a key to defeating the Titans. Their mission had only just begun when the regiment encountered a new and very deadly Titan: a female Titan with speed and intelligence who may just be, like Eren, another human in Titan form but who is an enemy of humans.
Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) is based on the manga by Hajime Isayama and has generated a large and enthusiastic following. It is an exciting and complex anime and the second part of this first series is far bleaker than even the part, as friends die and human weaknesses become more prevalent. There are colourful, bloody and exhilarating action sequences as the soldiers zoom in their omni-directional equipment to attack the Titans. But the series is far more than action as it adds a mystery or two plus themes of friendship and loyalty, treachery, sacrifice, outsiders and privilege where the self-serving humans within the walls can be as dangerous as the monsters outside. Who or what is the real enemy?
Attack on Titan also looks unusual. Some scenes, especially those in the woods and countryside, are quite beautiful with vibrant greens and blues. However, inside the city there is a medieval feel with a brown palate and the series has a brown, dull and muted look. The lines are clean and strong; sometimes the backgrounds in the town such as the buildings, tiles on roofs and the town bells look almost 3D but the series also uses a lot of statically drawn, almost tableaux like scenes, where nothing moves and the characters are like cardboard cut-outs, posed in front of scenery, the frame shaking to suggest movement.
Attack on Titan aired on Japanese TV from April 2013 in 25 episodes. This two Blu-ray set of Attack on Titan Collection II includes episodes 14-22 on disc 1 and episodes 23-25 plus extras (except for a commentary) on disc 2. This season ends on an optimistic note for humanity, but leaves unanswered far more questions that it resolves, including the nature of the protective walls themselves and the likelihood that there are other Titans with human bodies within the walls.
Attack on Titan is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, the original broadcast ratio, in 1080p using the MPEG-4 AVC code.
The images are cleanly drawn and strong, sometimes looking 3D. Some scenes, especially those in the woods and countryside, are colourful with greens and blues although the cities have a medieval feel with a brown colour palate. Blacks are rock solid, shadow detail fine.
There is occasional minor ghosting with fast movement.
It is anime so lip synchronisation is approximate in either audio track.
The English subtitles are in American English in a clear white font. The subtitles are burnt in when the Japanese dub is selected so cannot be removed for Japanese speakers. I did not notice any spelling or grammatical errors.
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Audio is a choice of Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 or English TrueHD 5.1. This is another case where the English dub is 5.1 as opposed to the original Japanese in 2.0. I listened to a number of episodes in each dub (it cannot be changed on the fly with the remote – you must go to the set up menu).
The Japanese is surround encoded so the rears featured music and effects such as voices, hooves and ambient sound. This audio sounded reasonably good although the English 5.1 dub was crisper, with better separation and use of directional effects, especially in the action sequences. The sub-woofer did add bass to music and to the crash of the Titans’ feet.
The score by Hiroyuki Sawano is fabulous; it is diverse and includes religious sounding choral sections, epic orchestra music and quieter, reflective pieces.
The English was more enveloping and the voice acting reasonable although it lacked the intensity of the Japanese. I prefer to listen to the original Japanese audio and although this one is a more difficult choice than usual.
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One audio commentary is on disc 1. All the other extras are on disc 2.
The episodes on each disc can be played together without the opening and closing credits.
US ADR director and voice of Jean Mike McFarland joins with the lead adaptive writer and voice of Commander Erwin J. Michael Tatum and Matthew Mercer (the voice of Captain Levi). This is actually a better commentary than most as while they do laugh a lot they do manage to talk about some of the themes of the series, adapting the show from the Japanese and their characters. Certainly worth a listen.
In 2013 producer George Wada attended an Anime Expo in the USA. This featurette is footage of fans in costume attending the expo, an audience panel discussion with Wada, scenes from the anime plus an extended interview with Wada about the series, the director, the manga writer, concepts and challenges. Of some interest.
US ADR director and voice of Jean Mike McFarland joins with US voice cast members Lauren Landa and Bryce Papenbrook (the voices of Annie and Eren respectively). There is less laughing, but this commentary is not as interesting as the other although they discuss voice acting, their characters, other characters and favourite parts of the series.
These are a series of short, roughly drawn cartoons with the characters from the show during cadet training. At the end of each day they are eaten by a Titan!! The sections are (there is a play all option):
In the middle of each episode, presumably around a station break, are two stills with drawings and Japanese text providing information about aspects of the series such as the judicial process, the wall or the weapons and equipment of the soldiers. These stills are presented in this extra, with explanatory English text. Twenty-six stills: silent, the remote is used to advance.
The opening song without the credits.
The closing song without the credits.
The US trailer for the Blu-ray release of Collection II.
A twenty-four page booklet with character designs, interviews with the Japanese voice of Eren, the creator of the manga and the Japanese anime director, text describing the characters and some cartoons. Quite interesting.
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
Our local release of Attack on Titan Collection II is basically the same as the Region A US version.
Attack on Titan has gained an extensive following and it is not hard to see why. While ostensibly a revenge tale with some spectacular action sequences, Attack on Titan is a thriller and a mystery which raises some complex ideas about loyalty, friendship and what it is to be human.
The Attack on Titan manga currently runs to 14 volumes, has spawned spin off novels, a live action two film project currently being shot in Japan by director Shinji Higuchi and an announced Marvel Comics crossover. Sadly, however, at this time I cannot find anything about a second series of the anime in production. Bummer.
The video is very good, the audio fine although the original Japanese audio is only 2.0. There is a good range of extras and we get what is available in other regions.
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| Review Equipment | |
| DVD | Sony BDP-S580, using HDMI output |
| Display | LG 55inch HD LCD. This display device has not been calibrated. This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080p. |
| Audio Decoder | NAD T737. This audio decoder/receiver has not been calibrated. |
| Amplification | NAD T737 |
| Speakers | Studio Acoustics 5.1 |