To the masses Top Cow may not be a well known juggernaut like DC or Marvel but comic book fans know the company intimately. I remember when the publisher began releasing its first line of titles and spawned from Image. Operated by Marc Silvestri, Top Cow launched its most popular comic, Witchblade, in 1995. The series went on to be very successful with a continued release, a short-lived TV series, and rumored film in the works. About a year ago the franchise quietly jumped across the ocean and landed in Japan.

Last year GONZO worked with director Yoshimitsu Ohashi and designer Uno Makoto to produce an anime series based upon the Witchblade universe. If you were ever a fan of the comic book then you should know going in that this Witchblade is very different. Sarah Pezzini is nowhere to be found and the show takes place in a dilapidated Tokyo rather than New York City. This change in venue and focus may be jarring at first for fans but like many other franchise if you look at this anime as simply an alternate continuity then it's easy enough to accept.

The show seemingly takes place in the future judging by some of the available technology, though they never really discuss a time period. All we know is that after a great earthquake most of Japan has been left in ruins. When the show began a woman named Masane Amaha appeared with her daughter Rihoko and there was some trouble with the Child Welfare Services. Before long we discovered the Masane was actually the wielder of the Witchblade and all went to pot shortly thereafter.

In the fourth volume Reina showed her true colors as Rihoko's biological mother though the series had been foreshadowing that for quite some time. If you recall back when the two had a chance meeting with some groceries there was an awkward silence and some strange glances between them. At any rate Reina converses with Masane and eventually takes Riho into her care, which was devastating to be sure. Masane was crushed and as you'd expect Riho handled it with maturity beyond her years. Eventually Nora stepped up to fight Reina which killed both Cloneblade users and left Riho running back to Masane. Some interesting stuff happened with Maria as well and those actions have ramifications for these four episodes.

With only one volume left to go Witchblade is starting to tie up some loose ends and begin its descent. This series has certainly been a leave your brain at the door popcorn munching affair but as a fan of the Witchblade comic I must say that it's very entertaining; in an inconceivable kind of way. This volume explores some interesting areas as a few storylines are explored.

On one hand there is the emergence of a connection between Masane, Rihoko, and the Witchblade. It turns out that Riho is a suitable user but knowing what she knows Masane doesn't wish that upon her daughter. This creates and interesting personal struggle as destiny finds its way into the plot. Along the lines of personal stuff is the relationship between Masane and Takayama. There's an interesting "date" in a latter part of the volume that doesn't turn out quite as expected but it does leave the door open for some interesting developments. It'll be interesting to see where both of these storylines go in the final volume.

Another plotline that appears in this installment is some corporate mumbo-jumbo as Wado attempts to defame Takayama. For a while now they have had an interesting rivalry of sorts but in this volume that competitiveness takes a darker turn. Wado goes to lengths to knock his unflappable enemy down a peg and it's fascinating to watch as it all plays out. As if that wasn't enough there is also some intriguing stuff involving Maria that comes out in these episodes.

With only four episodes remaining there seems to be a mad dash to the conclusion for Witchblade. This series has been something of a rollercoaster with a few filler episodes and some low points combined with adrenaline packed scenes and fun bits. Overall it's an enjoyable series if you don't take it too seriously and this installment was one of the best in my opinion.

Technically speaking the video quality on this disc is fine enough but it's nothing entirely stellar. FUNimation has included four episodes here but the compression rate once again is slightly higher than average so you're going to see blocking and artifacts nestled in darker sections of the image. Some light grain was also present in scenes where lighting wasn't designed to be the best and I spotted a few instance of aliasing here and there. There are plenty of moments where Witchblade looks brilliant though and on the whole the transfer here is better than most. I just wish FUNimation hammered some of the nitpicky flaws out of this release.

Like most recent series released here in America Witchblade comes with three audio tracks. On the lighter side of things is a pair of 2.0 stereo tracks for English and Japanese languages. The audio quality in both is exemplary with precise and flawless sound but it unfortunately doesn't pack the wallop on the soundstage that you'd hope it would. The 5.1 English track is a definite step in the right direction with a greater sense of immersion and presence on the soundstage. Some of the effects don't provide as much impact as you'd expect them to but overall the quality is very good. With regards to the dubbing quality both the English and Japanese languages offer an enjoyable experience though I feel that the English dub has a little more fun with the "sexy" part of Witchblade.

The fifth installment of Witchblade offers the same trailers and textless animations we have come to expect. Along with those is an original Japanese feature that offers some voice actors talking about the show and their characters. The American side of the Witchblade franchise is explored once again as the origin of the comic and anime are highlighted.

Witchblade has become a fun show with gratuitous violence and T&A (always a winning combination in my book). A lot happens in the four episodes that make up the fifth volume and there are many moments that shine. This is a series that has been getting better since the very first volume but I'm not going to lie and say that it's been a smooth ride. This isn't a sophisticated show and it's not the greatest ever conceived; it's simple fun and a guilty pleasure. If you're looking for those two things then you'll find that Witchblade is an easy recommendation; especially if you enjoyed the comic books.

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