“Excel Saga” is like no other series I have seen, it has no equal.
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When looking at the "Excel Saga" series, no one phrase can adequately sum up the level of insanity that takes place. It is both a masterpiece of anime, and a blight upon the anime community. I say the later because it systematically deconstructs classic anime genres in such a way that distorts the perception of any other anime. I will never be able to watch "Fist of the North Star" again without thinking of "Excel Saga" first.
I must say, that my mind is still processing all the information from this series. There is no way that you notice every detail in the first viewing. I watched the first few discs over, using the AD Vid-Notes option. It was boggling to see how much I had missed. Aside from some of the more obscure references, the notes really show how much is going on in the background. I must hand it to the animators; they know how to fill the dead space.
The "Excel Saga: IMPerfect Collection" presents the entire series in one handy box. I spent much of my time on this box set, comparing it to the individually released DVDs. The most important finding that I had was that the DVD content (i.e. episodes, extras, and menu screens) is unchanged between the two. The downside, however, is that some of the fun bonus items did not make it in the box set. In the individual DVDs, there is a color insert, and an assortment of various "Excel Saga" merchandise in each DVD. This merchandise ranges from an official ACROSS membership card, to a fold-out board game, to Excel and Hyatt paper dolls. While none of these items are crucial to the series, they were very amusing, and a nice addition to the individual DVDs.
The trade-off is very obvious. When comparing current prices, I found that it costs roughly twice as much to buy the individual DVDs, and they do not have the collection box. While I love my ACROSS membership card (especially since I got mine signed by Rikudo), I can see where the box set would be an acceptable alternative for someone who just wants the series. In this case, it is really up to individual taste, and financial means.
Video:
The video aspect ratio is 1.33:1 (full-screen on 4:3 monitors). The video in "Excel Saga" is high quality computer generated animation. This type of animation seems to be the new gold standard for anime titles. While it pales in comparison to visual masterpieces such as "Escaflowne the Movie: A Girl in Gaea", it certainly holds up to the other ninety-some-odd percent of anime titles. It does seem almost unfair to throw out the title, as it is currently the ultimate standard in animation, but a comparison does have to be made somewhere.
The bright colors and vast detail of the "Excel Saga" keep the viewer mesmerized, while their brains are under the constant barrage of strangeness from the series. It is a small bastion of beauty and calm, in a sea of chaos. Much of the humor in "Excel Saga" requires a precise attention to animation, especially when duplicating other animation styles and characters. This does not go unnoticed. When titles such as "Galaxy Express 999" are being parodied, the normal character design changes slightly to accommodate the prior style. Each DVD maintained this illusion with the absence of skips, or other visual errors.
Audio:
You can watch the show in either Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo Japanese or Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo English. There is an option for English subtitles. I watched it in Japanese with English subtitles. I highly recommend viewing the series in this manner. I do not intend to bring up the subtitle versus dubbing debate in this article. However, the sound of "Excel Saga" plays a vital role in its success. Specifically, the voice of Excel can make or break the series. The Japanese voice actress for Excel has massive amounts of talent for fast-talking. Unfortunately, this puts any dubbing crew at a disadvantage. Either the speed or vocal quality must be sacrificed for the sake of reading the entirety of the lines. In either case, the standard is set so high, that it can be considered a unique experience to listen to the Japanese sound track. Watching this series in another language is so different in experience, that I would almost consider it a different series. Regardless of which version you watch, the DVDs are free of audible error.
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[release]17144[/release]