DVD Review

By sothis Published: March 14, 2005

PACKAGING AND MENU

9.8 / 10

ADV really outdid themselves with the packaging for this disk. Just looking at the outer package was a treat. The outer slipcover is nothing but a solid black, with a shaded “Five Star Stories” logo, and a cutout which has the Mortar Headd behind it in a brilliant yellow. Though it sounds simple, it works very, very well for an outer cover. The inner DVD case is sort of like a digi pack (as opposed to a regular case), and has a brilliant yellow picture of a Mortar Headd on the outside (with Lachesis, I think, in front). When opening the case, the same picture is found behind the DVD. This is literally the only reason I marked down the packaging section. The DVD itself is black, with the same color picture of Lachesis on it. Truly though, this gets an almost perfect score because of one thing: the insert. This will be covered in the features section as well, but just to mention it here too, the insert is AMAZING. Five Star Stories is incredibly massive and complicated as far as the story goes, and the insert provided is invaluable. Not only does it contain things like a detailed timeline, but it also explains terms and gives character bios that otherwise would have been totally confusing. I know this from experience: I already watched this once at least a year ago, and was so utterly confused. Reading this insert before watching a second time was incredibly helpful, and I’m so glad it was included. The menu is static (after a nice animated lead in) but contains nice pictures, and works just fine.

FEATURES

6 / 10

There are very few features to be found, including the original Japanese promo spot, and the Japanese staff profiles. Really, the insert makes up for the lack of features, but since I have to rate this category separately, it would be a bit lower. It might have been nice to have an interview or art galleries, especially given how beautiful the artwork was.

VIDEO

7.5 / 10

Considering the age of the movie (late 80s), the video quality was amazing. It seemed as though it had been cleaned up from its original source. The colors were very vibrant and the level of detail was impressive. There did seem to be a problem with dancing lines, color bleeding and aliasing throughout the film, but did not detract from the overall presentation. I noticed some minor dust and scratches, but there was considerably less than I had expected, given the age of this piece. If you are a fan of Five Star Stories, you’ll be happy and impressed with the video quality of the disk.

AUDIO

7 / 10

The audio in FSS was only available in Japanese dialogue (with English subtitles), which didn’t bother me, nice if option was there. The overall transfer was quite good. There was no noticeable distortion, which is usually common in older titles. The music came across brilliantly, and the vocals were never drowned out. Although it was only a stereo mix, there was still no use of the separate right and left channels. There were no dropouts during playback.

CONTENT

8 / 10

The following contains excerpts from the full review found in the regular anime reviews section. Please visit that section for the full review!

To say that Five Star Stories’ story is expansive would be the understatement of the year. Based on a manga that has lasted well over a decade, this hour-long OVA covers what leads up to the most massive war of mankind – or so the story claims. I haven’t read the manga, but quite frankly, I might just do so after seeing this a few times. Without a doubt, I’ve never seen many things this epic or compelling, that’s for sure.

Unfortunately, unless you read the liner notes ADV supplies with the R1 release or check somewhere online, the story won’t make a lot of sense. Why? Well, just imagine that you are reading Dune, but instead of having hundreds of pages to get to know the characters, names, places and things, you only have 15. Think you could really get a handle on what everything is? Probably not. Five Star Stories is no different. We are immersed in a rich fantasy world full of names and places that we aren’t familiar with and don’t understand, and due to the length, have no ramp-up time to help us along the way. Again, I can’t stress enough the importance of reading the liner notes ADV provides, or read something on line extensively both before and after you view this, for the best effect.

I’ve beat around the bush enough… what’s the actual story? Five Star Stories takes place in the Joker Cluster, a group of four solar systems that contain a variety of worlds. The main story takes place on one of these worlds where a fatima debut is about to take place. I suppose I should back up a bit. Fatima are android women who act as intermediaries between Headd Liners (pilots) and Mortar Headd (the mecha of sorts that these Headd Liners pilot). They are bred to be emotionless and to obey humans, but can choose their own master in a ceremony known as a debut. Ladius Sopp is a young man who is on his way to visit the debut, and is consequently on a quest to find a fatima from his past, Lachesis. I can’t say much else without spoiling, but along the way, he runs into a variety of new friends, enemies, and hardships that stand in his way.

For something that was made in 1986, I was absolutely shocked at how amazing the animation was. Only They Were Eleven has withstood the test of time as Five Star Stories did, and that’s not very many series total (two?!). First, the level of detail was superb. Backgrounds were beautifully constructed, from the ruined wastelands of the desert to the planets above. Colors were vibrant and beautiful, impressing me throughout the OVA. Character designs look older and very bishounen, but also were very unique at the same time. One of the knights, for example, was partially cybernetic and looked perfectly badass.

Musically, Five Star Stories was good, but also a bit weird. The soundtrack was primarily orchestral, but almost had a 60s Disney movie feel to it. It was epic and booming, but also was a bit cheesy and kiddie-sounding at the same time. Overall, the music was probably better than worse, but could have done without the overly cheesy factor to it. Voice actors were fine for everyone involved.

As a one shot OVA, Five Star Stories shined. From the immense epic plot that teases you to read the manga, to the wonderful animation, there’s something to be said for this piece of art. Then again, the strength of the anime (the story) is also the weakness, since it ends on a very unfinished note. I guess the bottom line from me is that although Five Star Stories is quite good, it’s not for everyone, and it’s certainly not for light anime watchers. Unless you’ve seen quite a bit, or can appreciate non-mainstream works of art, you might find Five Star Stories not very accessible (as far as understanding it) and could get frustrated. Regardless, the animation is impressive given the age, and in general, FSS is an epic journey that will capture the hearts of many anime fans out there. Watch it for the visuals, watch it for the epic feel, just don’t watch it unless you have a lengthy attention span and can handle looking up names and places for reference!