Synopsis:

Back of the box spin: In the near future, advanced robots called "LABORS" are used for civil and military operations. In order to combat criminals who might misuse this new technology, the Tokyo Police Department's Special Vehicle Division (SVD) is equipped with Patrol Labors, or Patlabors to combat urban crime. The date is 2002, three years after the events of Patlabor 1. The destruction of a United Nations Labor team in Southeast Asia signals the beginning of a deadly terrorist plan that threatens to send shockwaves throughout Japan's military. With evidence of an impending military takeover, the scattered members of the original SVD must gather to defend the city against danger. To make matters worse, the mastermind behind the operation is none other than Nagumo's former teacher and ex-lover Tsuge. Can Nagumo stay true to her oath to uphold the law in the face of Tsuge's destructive plan for revenge? The countdown to armed revolution and panic on the streets of Tokyo begins now!

Audio:

The audio for the disc is in Dolby stereo for both the Japanese and English language tracks. Surprisingly enough, the audio is rich and LOUD! Even without the 5.1, the audio is incredibly present. The left to right action in the fronts is pretty decent however a 5.1 platform would have been preferable given the anime soundstage. The dialogue tracks for both the Japanese language and the English are full and clean. One thing that the Japanese track has over the English track is the profanity. The English track is extremely vulgar most of the time. If you turn the subs on, it's almost as though you're watching two different movies. The subs don't convey any of the venom that the English track has. The Japanese track is full of all the life and intonation the English tracks never has. As a rule, I always listen to the Japanese track because the voice actors they get are never as good as the original voice cast for the film!

Video:

The video was not the brightest transfer nor where the colors that brilliant. Overall, the film had something of a washed out feel to it. The blacks were not deep and definitely exhibited pixelation upon closer inspection. The film was presented in a non anamorphic widescreen transfer. Other than the problems noted, the image was otherwise unremarkable in its presentation.

Extras:

The only extras on the disc are trailers for Patlabor 1 and Patlabor 2 as well as trailers for the currently available DVD titles from Manga entertainment. In addition a stale catalog listing of their films is presented.

Overall:

Patlabor 2 had nothing at all to do with Patlabor 1. Instead of being a Mecha driven feature, it dealt more with a political storyline that was convoluted and at times very difficult to follow. I am into anime that not only provokes thinking but excites the senses as well. This played more like a watered down version of "The Siege" than it did an anime title. Is it worth checking out? It depends on when you see it. I think if you see this film before you see Patlabor 1, it will spoil the milk for you. Patlabor 1 was not groundbreaking, cutting edge anime by any stretch, but it was fun and exciting to watch. So in the end, if you happen to get this title before seeing the first, you'll probably not see the first and if you've seen the first, you'll be really disappointed by the second. Rental