There is a new kid in the world of anime DVDs.  Crash Cinema, a producer of old-school kung-fu movies on DVD has branched out and created Anime Crash, an imprint for releasing anime here in the US.  This imprint has just released their first DVD, The Geisters Volume 1.  Will Anime Crash make the same mistakes other new companies have when releasing their first anime title?  Luckily, it seems that they've avoided most of the common pitfalls.  And while there aren't too many extras on the disc itself, the DVD comes packed with some outstanding bonuses that will be sure to please the fans.

The series takes place far in the future.  400 years ago, an asteroid was spotted that was on a collision course for Earth.  With no hope of stopping it, mankind split up into two groups, those that took to space and lived on an orbiting station, and those that burrowed underground.  300 years after the asteroid destroyed most life on the planet, the humans come back to reclaim their world.  The Shioru emerged from the ground, and the Dodias returned from space.  But they find out that there is a new life form now controling Earth, the Siliconians.  These large monstrous creatures that feed on people and are immune from standard weapons and very hard to kill.

To fight this menace, the Dodias leaders created the Geisters, an elite fighting force specifically trained to fight the Siliconians.  This is the story of the second generation of Geisters, lead by Dean Honos.  Promoted after their previous leader was killed in action, Dean is young and inexperienced, but has the potential to be a great leader.  He leads his team to the best of his ability, but there are problems.  The Dodias ruling council is using the Geisters as pawns in a political game.  Some members want to wage war on the Shioru, others want to wipe out the Siliconians, and the leader of the scientific branch wants to develop a form of bioarmor that was previously abandoned because of its dangerous side effects.   If that wasn't enough of a problem, the Geisters have been assigned a new member, Shai Tanna, a lone wolf who doesn't get along with the others for many reasons, not the least of which is because she is a Shioru.

To add to Honos' problems, he's been given a suit of very powerful bioarmor that is effective against the Siliconians, but is causing him to have strange dreams and to be constantly tired.  It also seems that one of his unit is a spy, working for parties unknown.

This is a pretty good series.  It has a good mix of action and intrigue, so it should appeal to a wide range of ages.  Most of the real violence happens off screen, making it suitable for preteens to view it.  Every episode has an action sequence to keep things moving along, but there is also a good amount of mysterious happenings and political maneuvering that makes the show interesting for older viewers.  Everyone in the political arena has their own agenda, and you aren't sure who what motivates some people, and who should be trusted.  Is the mysterious girl who spends time with a certain Geister a spy?  What about the science officer?  Why is she pushing this bioarmor so much?  Is it for the good of her race, or does she have ulterior motives?  There are a lot of questions that are not answered in this first volume.

On the production side, the animation is not the greatest, but it suits the subject matter.  Made in 2001, the 3D animation looks very good, but it doesn't mesh with 2D shots very well.  The CGI scenes of the attack plane taking off and flying are great, as are the Siliconians, but when these images have to interact with more traditional 2D animation, the difference is striking.  It's not so bad that it ruins your enjoyment of the show, but it is very noticeable, which is too bad.  Aside from that one critique, this is an interesting and enjoyable show.

Anime Crash has put together a very attractive package for this release.  The DVD comes in a clear case with a reversible cover.  One side has a full color image and a summary of the show with UPC.  The reverse had a more minimal illustration that I really liked, and a synopsis of each episode.  (And both sides have the volume number on the spine!  I hate when they leave that off.)  Inside there is a thick card stock insert with a biography of the Geisters commander.  There will apparently be one for each Geister member in the future volumes.  That's all fairly standard stuff, but wait there's more!  Included in the case is a really cool metal lapel pin with the Geister logo.  It's fairly large; a 2" X 1½" oval.  There is also a postcard that you can mail in when the series is complete to get a free talking action figure.  You need to include a stamp that will be included with the 6th volume and mail it in.  There doesn't seem to be a shipping and handling charge, which is very cool.  According to the small print, there will be a different collectable figure available for volumes 2-5.  That's quite a lot of stuff for a regularly priced release, and it all arrives in a spiffy slipcase (that only volume one fits in.)  This is the most bonus material I've seen included with a single DVD release that didn't charge extra for a collector's box.  I hope Anime Crash continues to shower us with extras like this in their future releases.

While I really liked the whole package Anime Crash put together, there were a couple of things I didn't like about the disc.  When you first pop the DVD in, a minute long animated sequence that ends with the Anime Crash logo plays.  You can't skip this little flourish because the remote buttons are disabled.  While I enjoyed watching it once, I don't want to watch it every time I feel the urge to view an episode.  Another thing that I didn't like is that the time was disabled on my DVD player's display.  Usually, I can chose whether to display how much time has elapsed or how much time is remaining on the disc, but there wasn't a time code on the DVD.  This will probably only effect a small portion of viewers, but I often jot down times when a particularly good (or bad) looking scene takes place or some witty piece of dialog that I may want to quote.  Again, it's a minor quibble, but one I felt should be noted.
 
Audio:

The DVD offers you the choice of an original Japanese language track in stereo, or an English dub in 2.0 or 5.1.  I viewed the show with all three tracks on different episodes, and I had a slight preference for the original language.  The English tracks were very nice though, with good voice actors.  The main characters and supporting cast all had realistic sounding voices.  Unfortunately the very minor incidental characters sounded really silly with strong fake accents.   This isn't too bad since most of these people only have a line or two.  One odd thing about the 5.1 soundtrack is that the replayed the opening song over the end credits.  The Japanese and English 2.0 tracks had a different song at the end.

The sound quality is very good.  All three soundtracks have a good dynamic range, but the English 5.1 is the most forceful.  (The explosions and battle scenes sound great on that track.)  The sound is clear with the echoing of footsteps on a metallic floor coming through perfectly.  The dialog is easy to understand and there is no distortion.

Video:

The full frame video is also very good.  The colors are nice and vivid, and there is good detail and shading.   The encoding is very good, resulting in a disc that is almost free of artifacts.  There is some very minor aliasing in the background when the camera moves, but this is almost invisible.  Anime Crash has put out a solid first disc.

The Extras:

In addition to the lapel pin and card for a free figure that I already mentioned, the disc itself has a couple of bonuses.  There is an alternate opening for the show that was used when it was shown in Korea, and a photo gallery.  There is also a trailer for the as yet unscheduled show Ki Fighter.  This looks like it might have potential for younger audiences, and I hope they schedule it soon.

Final Thoughts:

Anime Crash seems to be on the right track with their release of teh first volume of The Geisters.  There are some fun goodies included with the DVD, and they did a good job with the sound and image on the disc.  But the most important thing is the show itself.  While this show doesn't grab me by the throat the way the best anime series do, it is very good and enjoyable.  It has a good mixture of plot and action, and some interesting characters.   It looks like Anime Crash is off to a great start.  A strong Recommendation.