Crest of the Stars: Birth Review

By Sheex Published: January 31, 2008

STORY

6.5 / 10

For fans of the trilogy, Crest of the Stars: Birth is a worthy addition to the saga even if not all that impressive by itself.  Scattered with tidbits of Abh lore and history, it's an interesting watch that provides some background for some of the Abh customs prevalent in the main series.  The OVA chronologically precedes the beginning of the series, as it focuses on Lafiel's parents and the event inspired their decision to give birth to her.  As it's nothing too exciting on its own, I'd say give it a go only if you enjoyed the technical aspects of the Crest of the Stars world.  At only twenty minutes or so run time, however, I can't say you'd go wrong either way.

ANIMATION

7 / 10

As with the main series, Crest of the Stars:Birth  does show its age.  Even so, the animation is tolerable and by no means detracts from the atmosphere.  Being that those who would watch this OVA should have already seen at least the first installment of the series, the animation shouldn't be an issue.

SOUND

7 / 10

As usual, stay away from the dub - it's absolutely horrendous.  The Japanese seiyuu for the two main characters is much better, and the voice actors captured their characters' personas nicely.  Other than that, the insert music never really caught my attention, as its comprised of a handful of soft piano tracks that fade into the background.  Again, it carries similar quality to that of the series, so I have no complaints.

CHARACTERS

6.5 / 10

Unlike the rest of the series, Crest of the Stars: Birth focuses on Lafiel's parents.  I guess the purpose of this was to highlight the origins of Lafiel's rather unique personality, but there isn't really much time to develop them enough to tell.  Given the brevity of the OVA, there's really not much else to say; both characters are given more screen time and depth in the main series.  If you watch this it will be for the insight into Abh race and not so much the growth of the characters.

OVERALL

6.8 / 10

All in all, a relatively uneventful "bonus" piece for the Crest of the Stars epic.  Its provision of marginal Abh lore and decided lack of Jinto and Lafiel as leads take away some of its luster, but by no means is it bad.  For those like myself who enjoyed the series, I'd recommend giving it a once through even if for nothing more than the novelty of completing the series.  It's an enjoyable one-time watch, and for that I can't really fault it - recommended for fans.