The first volume of Galaxy Angel Rune was soundly criticized in the fan press (and in my review) for having a $20 MSRP but only containing a single episode.  Bandai Visual takes a step forward with volume two by including four episodes on the disc.  Unfortunately they also take a giant leap backwards by giving the disc a MSRP of nearly $50.  That's more than many collected series!  It has been stated that prices for the rights to anime shows has been climbing at an incredible pace, but even so I can't see even the biggest fans of this series plunking down so much for so little.  On the good side the show itself picks up a bit, this volume is much more enjoyable than the previous one with more laughs and more outrageous situations, but it still only falls in the average category.
 
Series Background:

The characters from Galaxy Angel, Galaxy Angel A, and Galaxy Angel Z aren't in this show.  Instead we find a new group of misfits trying to keep the peace and presumably searching the universe for Lost Technology.  This group of Galaxy Angels consists of five misfits who are amazingly similar to the previous team.  They include Apricot, the child-like main character, the captain Lily who gives the team their moral compass, even if it's at the point of her sword, Anise who is constantly in debt, and Kahlua, who is always in her lab performing magical experiments.  Sometimes she mysteriously turns into Tequila, a lesbian who has the hots for Apricot.  There's also Nano, a floating cat head.  Together these oddballs have to defend humanity from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

This volume:

These four episodes contain more wacky and outrageous comedy than you can shake a stick at.  The disc starts out with Apricot realizing that she basically just wears her uniform or pajamas.  She wants to look cool, but going to the "Bleed Us Dry Sale" at the local boutique is more violent and competitive than she was planning.  So she goes into training to prepare for the next sale.  Add in a stolen plate for printing currency and a rare form of kelp that will make the person who eats it young again and you have a wild episode.

Next we learn a bit about Anise.  Years ago she actually encountered the Legendary Hot Pot, but also had a run-in with its protector, The Hot Pot Minister.  She's been searching for the mythical Hot Pot ever since, and now she, along with the rest of the Galaxy Angels, find themselves up against the Minister once again to see who will eat the best tasting Hot Pot ever.

Natsume Izayo, Princess of the Arms Alliance, pays a visit to the planet Transbaal in order to sign a peace treaty.  While there the Galaxy Angels are charged with her protection and Apricot tries to entertain the young Princess to no avail.  That is until the Angel finds out what Izayo really wants; the best cookie there is.  That starts a wild romp through hill and dale (and a war zone) to find the sumptuous sweet.

The volume ends up looking at Lily and Anise's relationship.  The are constantly bickering and fighting and just can't get along.  But time heals all wounds, and in ten years the two sit down to let bygones be bygones.  They look back at their relationship, including when Anise arrived at Angel headquarters, and some of the bizarre events that have happened in the last ten years.  Of course there was a reason they fought so much, the two are like oil and water, and even ten year's worth of maturing won't change that.

This volume fared a lot better than the previous single-episode release.  It's easier to get into the spirit of the show when you have multiple episodes to watch, and this disc fits the bill in that regard.  All four episodes are pretty funny and entertaining, if ultimately forgettable.  This is one of those shows where you'll laugh at some lame gag when it's shown, but have trouble remembering just what it was after the episode is over.

One thing that I really enjoyed is the many in-jokes that the show throws in.  The make referenced to other anime conventions and shows, and even include a character from Di Di Charat in one episode.  I'm pretty sure I didn't get all of the in-jokes, but I caught enough to make the show just that much more fun to watch.

This disc contains episodes 2-5 of the series.  It comes in an attractive red keepcase with a reversible cover and a nice booklet insert.  The booklet contains sketch art, character profiles, special attacks and notes some quick jokes viewers may have missed.

Audio:

I was surprised to discover that this show lacked an English dub.  With a fast-talking comedy show like this one the subtitles often whiz by at a fast rate and sometimes it's hard to keep up, so an English track is always nice to include.  Bandai Visual has been releasing a lot of discs without an English track, and though I often prefer the original language English dubs should be included.  There are many people who prefer to focus their attention on the action on the screen rather than reading subtitles, and releases like these will only serve to alienate those viewers.  I know that the market is very tight now, but cutting the dub track to save money isn't the way to go.

Okay, enough of the rant.  The Japanese track was in stereo and sounded fine.  There wasn't a lot of use made of the front soundstage but the dialog was clear and the sound effects were strong.  There wasn't any hiss, dropouts or distortion to mar the playback.

Video:

The 1.78:1 video quality was also very nice. The colors are bright and the lines are crisp.  There was only a slight hint of aliasing and other digital artifacts that are hardly worth mentioning.  The fine lines on the characters did not shimmer and disappear like they do on some discs.  I was very happy with the look of these shows.

Extras:

This disc also contains a clean ending for all four episodes and two segments of Angel Rune Sentiment.  The latter is a rather unusual extra for an anime disc.  They are short (3 minute) live-action movies each featuring a different actress from Galaxy Angel Rune.  Both of these are about unrequited love, women who can't have the man they want.  They're set to soft piano music and nice to watch but afterwards I was thinking "Okay....why was that included?"

Final Thoughts:

Galaxy Angel Rune is a good, though not outstanding, program that has a lot of easy laughs.  This disc does provide an hour and a half's worth of light entertainment, but it's nothing that you'll ever write home about.  Normally I'd recommend the series, but with a $50 MSPR I honestly can't do that.  That's just way, way too much money for four episodes. (There's not even an English dub!  More money for less content.  That's not good way to sell DVDs.)  If you're a really big fan of the franchise, make this a rental.  Otherwise pass it by.