Product Details

• Format: Animated, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English, Japanese
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Adv Films
• DVD Release Date: February 6, 2007
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000L212DQ
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #237,283 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Based on the manga by "Oh! great" (Ito Oogure), Air Gear (2006) elevates in-line skating to a high-tech extreme sport, much the way Eureka Seven pushes snowboarding. Minami "Ikki" Isuki is a tough-talking high school student who freeloads at the home of the four Noyamano sisters. After getting the wasabi beaten out of him by a gang of Storm Riders, Ikki discovers the world of air treks: motorized in-line skates that go at extraordinary speeds. Not surprisingly, he turns out to be a natural rider, quickly picking up skills and catching a brief vision of "the Road in the Sky." But Ikki has to face rival gangs, beginners' races, and getting a job to pay for his skates before he can aspire to the mystical aspects of the sport. Although the misfit hero, athletic challenges, and other elements in the series are standard-issue shonen (boys') anime, the computer-animated racing shots, skillful cutting and winning voice performances make Air Gear a lot of fun. (Rated TV MA SL, suitable for ages 13 and older: violence, profanity, nudity toilet and risqué humor) --Charles Solomon

Product Description

In a world where street gangs zip around on super-fast motorized skates, Junior High Minami Itsuki has the need for speed! He will do anything to master the Air Treck skates and become a Storm Rider himself. But can he make it to the top? Based on the hit manga series by Oh Great!, Air Gear is a non-stop rollercoaster ride featuring cool characters, cutting-edge CGI animation, and of course lot of action!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Start, Good Finish, Let's Hope It Stays That Way, February 9, 2007

By 

Keith A. Jones "Sonic Jones... I'm Kind Of A ... (Philadelphia PA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Air Gear, Vol. 1 - East Side Showdown (Uncut) (DVD)

How does a kid live with 4 girls and basically know nothing about them? How does a kid live in a neighborhood filled with the most popular new type of inline skates and not know much about them either? I guess you could say that Air Gears main character Ikki is just about the most clueless guy on earth. Air Gear is based on a world of Inline skates called the AT, which is short for Air Trecks. The AT's technology is far beyond the skates we know. It has a built in motor that allow the skater to go to up to crazy speeds, do crazy tricks, and even fly if at the right speed. All the basics you need to know about the AT's is explained right in the beginning but you still have to watch more to completely figure out the known and unknown. AT riders form groups called Storm Riders that battle each other.

Air Gear was a pleasant little Saturday afternoon watch for me and it brightened a nasty cold day. To start the music is perfect for this stylish and action packed anime and it plays a major part on controlling the mood of the series. The action is cool; you don't get to see too many high flying tricks but more grinds than anything. A lot of the story is focused more on Ikki battling Storm Riders for their logos and to basically disband the teams so there will be one less team and he can make it to the top. Though the conflicts of the series are showed right off the bat the plot still isn't completely visible until you get into volume two. So for those who think the series is just playing around at first trust me the story gets better and more complex. I think that the total outcome of this first volume is descent and I'm definitely ready to see more but there are some flaws.

One problem is the fact that not every detail about the characters is addressed. Like who the heck are the girls that Ikki lives with and who are they to him? There may have been something saying who they were but I don't remember seeing it. Doing some Searching I found out that the girls are the Noyamano sisters and are Ikki's benefactors. Either way it's still a mystery of the history between them and why they took him in. With that said Air Gear is set for a nice looking future. The characters are great fun and very funny, the animation is very colorful and sharply done, and the voice actors sound pretty good also. So get ready for volume 2 because trust me after volume one there is no going back.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars First episode free, January 13, 2007

By 

Stuart Bachner "StuBach" (Alma, Mi USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Air Gear, Vol. 1 - East Side Showdown (Uncut) (DVD)

I recently found this series via some random web searches and you can watch the first episode at IGN at http://media.tv.ign.com/media/873/873849/vids_1.html . The series definitely has some great promise and I look forward to the release of the first episode. I have also been starting to read some of the Mangas and they also seem pretty good. Judging by those two things I rate this series at a 4 for now only cause I have yet to see much into the series.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FLYING WITH YOUR FEET, April 8, 2007

By 

Sesho "www.sesho.libsyn.com" (Pasadena, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Air Gear, Vol. 1 - East Side Showdown (Uncut) (DVD)

Ikki Minami prides himself on being a tough guy, being the leader of a gang on the east side of his town, but he meets his match in a showdown with the Skull Saders. The Saders do not fight fair. They are "Storm Riders" who use "Air Treks", roller blades equipped with tiny 3 kilowatt motors that let them move at extreme speeds and do superhuman feats. These engines are so powerful that the air treks almost let them fly. After taking a beating and wetting himself, Ikki decides to take revenge but first, he needs to get his hands on some air treks. Fortunately, the family he lives with, the four Noyamano sisters, are secretly a Storm Rider team known as "Sleeping Forest". Their name alone inspires fear and respect in other riders. Ikki steals one of the sister's air treks and sets out on his own to master this new extreme sport and take vengence on the Skull Saders. He also wants to meet an beautiful air trekker named Simca that he's been admiring. Unfortunately for Ikki, he's going to find out that the world of the Storm Riders is a bit more complicated than skating around and picking fights.

The thing that catches your eye when first viewing Air Gear is the great character designs by Oh Great! They are so beautiful and instantly appealing and cool that you are sucked straight in regardless of how ludicrous the storyline is. I mean, battling roller bladers with powerful engines on their skates? Get over it! Once you accept the basic premise, you're really going to enjoy yourself. The pacing and cinematography of this show is great. To me, it looks like they spent a lot of money getting Air Gear right. The soundtrack is good as well, with mixes of trance, techno, and jazz that suits the hip nature of the anime. Fantastic first volume.