Tekkonkinkreet!! Yikes!

[Horrorview]

I'm not usually a big fan of the OVA anime stuff as it tends to either confuse the crap out of me, or make me want to slam my head through a wall, but I really enjoy the "feature" stuff like Spirited Away, Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Steamboy, etc.. I'd not heard much of anything about Tekkonkinkreet before Sony solicited it for review, but I got all excited when I saw that it was coming to Blu-ray, and had to request it!

Man, am I glad I did!

I got my copy in Friday and have since watched it three times. Once on Friday, a little buzzed after the Sox/Yankees game, and in no shape to really appreciate the story, then once again on Saturday afternoon and evening (to show a friend). Man, is this thing a treat on the eyes! The animation style looks like a sort of blend between traditional anime, that crazy French flick, The Triplets of Belleville, and that old Aeon Flux series, with a little unobtrusive CGI polishing it off. The story's a bit odd, as it focuses on two orphans named Black and White who rule the streets of a run down city called Treasure Town (fighting off everything from encroaching gangs of other kids to the Yakuza to a bunch of...huge blue guys...from space or something). Still, it wasn't nearly as silly as a lot of the anime stuff I've seen, and I actually found some of it quite touching. The real star, though, is how good this looks on Blu-ray! Yikes!!

I know a lot of people discount HD's benefits to animation (at least HD-DVD fans desperate to make Disney's Blu exclusivity seem like less of a big deal), but Tekkonkinkreet is drool-worthy stuff. The transfer is so crisp and vibrant, even sitting fairly up close when trying to pick out the detail in the insanely complex backgrounds. This is my first HD anime experience (outside of Comcast's broadcast HD, which we all know isn't nearly as solid as BD), and I was floored. I can't wait for Disney to release the Miyazaki stuff on BD!! I can only imagine how good Princess Mononoke will look.

This is obviously not a proper review; I'm just throwing out a quick heads up about this title as it's bound to be a favorite of a lot of the forum's users. Definitely add this one to your "to buy" list!