Pucca: Ninjas Love Noodles (DVD)

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3) "Noodle to the Stars." In one of the alternate universe episodes, Pucca and friends blast off into outer space in an epic spoof of sci-fi movies.

4) "And the Band Played Rong." The chefs from the Go Rong Restaurant hold a talent search to try and find the perfect jingle for their new television commercial.

5) "The Shirtless Avenger." Sooga has a new superhero crime fighter calling himself the Shirtless Avenger, but who is the mysterious Noodle Girl?

6) "Four Alarm Fire." Just like the old proverb, "too many cooks spoil the broth," accidentally adding too many red-hot Dragon Peppers to wok oil is reason enough to have the fire department on standby.

7) "Sooga Size Me." Sooga townsfolk start becoming fat and lazy after a fast-food joint opens up in the village and steals most of the business away from the Go Rong Restaurant.

8) "Ninjitsu for Dummies." Abyo mistakes one of Pucca's girly journals as a secret training text of the ninja, but things become a little awkward when Tobe sets his sights on the book for himself.

9) "Tobe's Nighttime Troubles." After challenging Garu to a fight at dawn, Tobe puts a variety of ingenious schemes into motion to try and keep the skilled ninja up all night so that he'll be too tired in the morning to be competitive.

10) "Chef Slump." Disgraced by a patron that didn't finish all of their tasty noodles, Pucca's uncles embark on a journey to try and regain their culinary honor.

11) "Ninja License." Garu must face a series of tests to acquire his official ninja license, but a disguised Tobe makes the challenges practically impossible to complete.

12) "Woolen Warrior." Garu has the daunting task of climbing the tallest mountain in the land as part of his training, so Pucca makes him a sweater to keep him warm at the high altitudes.

13) "Feud Fight." After a major quarrel, the chefs at the Go Rong close down the restaurant and go their separate ways having a major impact on Sooga Village.

Video:
The aspect ratio for the "Pucca" animated series is presented in a standard-screen 1.33:1 format. The colors look fantastic, especially on up-converting players, and I didn't really notice any flaws in the transfer. The animation itself is quite the eye-grabber, but the exceptional backdrops are what make the whole package truly stunning.

Audio:
The sound isn't bad, but I'm not sure of the exact audio format integrated on the disc since it is not documented anywhere. It sounded like Dolby Digital 1.0 mono, but don't quote me on that. I could hear everything clearly throughout, and nothing was really overbearing.

Extras:
The only bonuses found on the disc itself are five Pucca Bumpers that are fifteen-to-twenty second animated sequences probably used as filler for television. They are called "Moon Spin," "Swords," "Ice Skating," "Crop Circles," and "Chefs." I suppose it's nice having these tiny clips gathered together in one place, but they are also included within some of the actual episodes and, therefore, don't really qualify as "Extras."

Inside the case, there's an insert that lists all of the episodes found on "Ninjas Love Noodles," with a brief synopsis for each. On the back is an advertisement for other products from Shout! Factory.

The last inclusion is a "Ninja License" that is taken from the episode of the same name. Basically, it's a cardboard membership in the same style as a driver's license with a list of Ninjitsu skills the owner can check off. It's highly detailed, as there is even an area designated for a photo and signature.

The Final Cut:
Aside from a few sketchy creative liberties, I found "Pucca" to be a refreshing and funny animated series. It has the animation and action to appeal to children, and parents certainly can respect some of the mature humor in the writing, making it something the whole family can enjoy. My only real complaint is that there are still a few shorts unaccounted for on DVD at this time, so I really would have preferred seeing a multi-disc collection of the entire first season rather than "Pucca: Ninjas Love Noodles" and "Pucca: Kung Fu Kisses," which only feature a portion of the episodes.

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