areaseven Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 (edited) http://areaseven.net/anime/ratings/adv13.jpg FF:U - Final Fantasy: Unlimited ( ファイナルファンタジー：アンリミテッド ) Square-Enix/GONZO Digimation/TV Tokyo/Dentsu, 2001-2002 ADV Films, 2003-2004 Directed by Mahiro Maeda (The Animatrix - The Second Renaissance, Last Exile) Rated 13+ for violence and mature situations. Inspired by the best-selling Final Fantasy game series by Squaresoft. Twelve years ago, mankind experienced an unusual phenomenon when the Pillar of Chaos of Darkness appeared in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Now, a new adventure begins when two children board a mysterious train on a journey to Wonderland to search for their missing parents. In the beginning of their journey, they meet magic user Lisa Pacifist and a mysterious gunman that goes by the name "Kaze." Story: D+ A lot of fans have said that Final Fantasy should remain on video consoles. They were right when Sony and Square Pictures released their ambitious 3D film Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within in 2001, only to suffer from the backlash of bad reviews and poor box office sales. As for this recent adaptation of the famed videogame franchise, FF:U is too cliché and predictable from the start. Hell, I nearly fell asleep after the first 10 minutes of the pilot episode. Animation: B As always, GONZO (Vandread, Yukikaze) did an excellent job with the digital 2D and 3D animation. However, Kazuto Nakazawa's (El-Hazard, Tomorrow's Nadja) character designs leave a lot to be desired, as they lack detail and somewhat clash with the backgrounds. Much like The Legend of Black Heaven, the character art looks like it was drawn on an Etch A Sketch®. Soundtrack: B+ What's Final Fantasy without Nobuo Uematsu's (Ah! My Goddess: The Movie) legendary opening and victory themes? Well, that's all he's credited for here. The soundtrack by Akifumi Tada (Nightwalker) and Shiro Hamaguchi (Ah! My Goddess: The Movie, Kiddy Grade) sounds good, but can't compare to Yuki Kajiura's score for .hack//SIGN. Sub vs. Dub FF:U features Nobutoshi Canna (Guts in Berserk, Ban in GetBackers) as Kaze, Yuka Imai (Rio in Burn-Up W/Burn-Up Excess, Otaru in Saber Marionette J/J Again/J to X) as Yuu, Haruko Momoi (Chika in Ai Yori Aoshi, Mii in Popotan) as Ai, Kyoko Hikami (Rabi~En~Rose in Di Gi Charat, Dojima in Witch Hunter Robin) as Lisa, Akiko Yajima (Dorothy in The Big O, Anna in Battle Athletes) as Chobi, Takumi Yamazaki (Isamu in Macross Plus, Incognito in Hellsing) as Joe, Yuko Minaguchi (Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl, Sailor Saturn in Sailor Moon S) as Mary, and Kikuko Inoue (Belldandy in Ah! My Goddess, Mizuho in Please Teacher!/Onegai Twins) as Fabula. ADV's English dub sounds too much like a Saturday morning cartoon. Stick with the subtitles. DVD Extras This review covers episode 1 as featured in the October 2003 issue of Newtype USA. I don't know if I'll ever rent the full version. The Bottom Line Final Fantasy: Unlimited isn't really bad; it just has a dull, boring plot. At least it's better than the 2001 flop Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Do yourself a favor and watch .hack//SIGN instead. Links Official Final Fantasy: Unlimited Fan Site (Japanese) Reference Anime News Network Edited August 1, 2004 by areaseven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
areaseven Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 Ah, crap. The poll is supposed to be for Worst Use of the Final Fantasy Trademark. For some reason, the question got erased when I previewed this post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Jenius Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 I thought the Demon Sword and Gunman were cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Effect Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 I didn't vote but I've actually enjoyed all of the Final Fantasy shows and movie that has been done. I don't consider myself a fanboy since I can't stand FF8, no matter how much I try and feel that FFX isn't as good as other say it is. Its a shame the movie didn't do well in the theaters but I though honestly thought it was pretty good, so did the other people I saw it in the theaters with and the people I've talked about it with. Crystals wasn't the deepest show. I did like how it was a sequel to Final Fantasy 5. I'm still watching Final Fantasy Unlimited, only up to episode 5 or 6. While not great it isn't bad either. I'd have to give the story right now a C+. Its pretty simple right now, here's hopining it picks up more. Never heard the dub of it. The dub in crystal is actually quite nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jemstone Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 Ah, crap. The poll is supposed to be for Worst Use of the Final Fantasy Trademark. Then why isn't FF8 up on here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
areaseven Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 Then why isn't FF8 up on here? It may be bad, but it's still a game. The poll focuses on non-game adaptations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jemstone Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 Then why isn't FF8 up on here? It may be bad, but it's still a game. The poll focuses on non-game adaptations. Ok, then I go with Legend of the Crystals. I still think Unlimited was a flaming pile of poo yet it didn't stink as much as Crystals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abombz!! Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 I was wondering how Mystical Quest escaped the poll. I vote for unlimited. <_< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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