Product Details

• Actors: Greg Ayres, Aaron Dismuke, Sean Michael Teague
• Directors: Christopher Bevins
• Format: Box set, NTSC, Color, Widescreen, Subtitled
• Language: English, Japanese
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 4
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Funimation Prod
• DVD Release Date: August 24, 2010
• Run Time: 625 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B003NE8B6U
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,280 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Big Windup: The Complete Series S.A.V.E" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Most guys can’t wait for baseball to start. But not Mihashi. For this kid, the crack of the bat is the sound of failure. Every summer he gets caught in a pickle between wanting to stay on the mound and watching his pitches get blasted out of the park. But each spring brings a fresh start, and this year, Mihashi’s at a new school with teammates that don’t know how bad he used to be. Most importantly, he’s got Abe – a real superstar behind the plate. If Mihashi can learn to trust his new catcher, this could be the year he falls in love with the game all over again.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Teamwork Fundamentals, August 19, 2010

By 

DC_Fan_52 "-Weasel!" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Big Windup: The Complete Series S.A.V.E (DVD)

I've written two reviews for Big Windup before, and since this is a repackaging of the previous two sets, I feel compelled to write a third.


Big Windup is a baseball anime centering around Mihashi, a highschool student with a crippling shyness and the dream of becoming his new team's star pitcher. This is not a shonen series. This is seinen, aimed at a slightly older, more intelligent audience. If you're looking for the Heart of the Bat, Anything Goes Baseball Martial Arts, or the State of Self Actualization, you're looking at the wrong DVD. The series focuses on real teamwork, not a once-in-a-lifetime, special homerun hitter. Oofuri (as it's called in Japanese) derives it's tension from an in-dept analysis of baseball strategy. I'm not a baseball fan, and I can say that by paying close attention, you'll rarely be overwhelmed.

Besides the baseball action, Big Windup focuses on personal growth for the Nishiura Team. Mihashi takes babysteps to overcome his crippling shyness, he slowly feels better accepted by the rest of the team. The Nishiura Nine will really grow on you. They're not like shonen characters, they don't leave a strong impression at first, but their personality trains will shine on through on and off the field. I grew to love Mihashi, Abe, Tajima, Hanai, Izumi, Sakeguchi, Oki, Suyama and... and... and... those two other guys. (Almost got it.)

Production wise, A-1 Pictures produced some great animation. It looks great when they're out on the field, definitely looks sunny, and there's some good rain effects in the later half of the season. The original Japanese voice cast is excellent, that should go without saying. But, Funimation really hit it out of the park with the English voice cast. Everyone is excellent, except for Mihashi, the main character. Sad truth is Mihashi has a voice that's hard to fill. In Japanese, his voice is "not manly," and they play it as wimpy in the English Dub. But, everyone else is great, and Mihashi pulls it together when he's up on the mound.

Okay, some people might call this series "kinda Gay." Rest assured, it never gets stranger than holding hands and crying in episode three. But, any type of male bonding gets labeled "GAAAYYY!!!" So, if you can't handle two teammates leaning on each other, then you're better off giving this a pass.

Lastly, bad news is there are very few Extras on the DVDs, just trailers and clean openings and endings.


Big Windup is a good series, character focused, with great animation and an excellent dub. You don't have to be a baseball fan to find something to enjoy.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heartwarming, Hilarious, Exciting!, October 6, 2010

By 

D. L. Wise (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Big Windup: The Complete Series S.A.V.E (DVD)

First of all let me say when it comes to sports I know next to nada. However, if asked what sport I most enjoy watching I'd definitely answer baseball so Big Windup: The Complete Series S.A.V.E had that advantage from the start. Other than that, I really knew nothing about this series, save for the manufacturer description and the opinion of 1 reviewer. For those in the same boat, let me give you another opinion. This is one great anime.

When I first started watching, given the ace pitcher, Mihashi's, personality, I wasn't sure if I should laugh or be annoyed and maybe it was a little bit of both, but the kid really grew on me. Here's someone so shy and so tramatized by his previous experiences as a pitcher you'd think the last thing he'd want to do would be to continue the agony into his high school years, but that's just what he does. Why? Because he loves baseball and most especially he loves to pitch. Fortunately a transfer of schools and becoming part of a team whose members, most especially the catcher, Abe, recognize Mihashi's talents, makes all the difference. Ever so slowly, Mihashi begins to believe in himself. It's a joy to watch.

The previous reviewer made mention of someone possibly thinking some of the boy's actions might be considered gay. Why is it when two persons of the male persuasion so much as touch, such a thing even comes to mind? It's stupid (and no DC Fan 52, I don't mean you <grin>). Not that I would mind in the least, but there are no gay/bl overtones here. What we get in this anime is a healthy, touching dose of comraderie and friendship that's expressed not only by words but by the touching of hands. Sure the guys cheeks pink up a little now and again and Mihashi certainly cries readily enough but hey, when expressing the deeper emotions don't we all get a little embarrassed and sometimes teary-eyed? And not that it's all that important, but might I just add that the touching of hands the boys do is actually part of the mental/meditation training they recieve.

Anyway, the most important thing to remember here is the story and the characters and let me just simply say they're both fantastic. The boys are shown to be not only a team but individuals, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. It was a real pleasure to watch as they learned about each other and supported each other when those weaknesses threatened to overwhelm an individual member of the team. As for the story, again wonderful. I knew on a certain level that some analysis of the opposing team was done when playing a game but I didn't realize the extent of it and how complex it all is. It's amazing, as is the actual game play. Talk about a nail biter. I'd get so engrossed I was watching episode after episode and the only thing that made me stop was becoming bleary-eyed and realizing it was 3 o'clock in the morning!

As far as anime production values etc etc, again I know nada. All I can tell you is it looked good to me. So, to sum it up, great story, engaging characters, heartwarming, exciting, funny, touching. What more do you need? To save money? Buy the S.A.V.E. edition. I did, and it's worth every penny.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Big Windup is Super Special Awesome!, March 20, 2011

By 

DShisler - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Big Windup: The Complete Series S.A.V.E (DVD)

I just fell in love with this anime, especially considering that I have played fastpitch softball since I was young, and even though baseball and softball are very different, I found a lot of things that I could apply to softball. The plot is awesome, I love the competitive and intense strategy that is portrayed in the show, and above all, to say that the cast for this show is awesome would be an understatement. I just stayed up all night watching the second season in Jap. subs, and the whole time I was saying to myself, "I so want to hear this with that awesome English cast!" Especially considering the dramatic character development that goes on in the second season. Funimation: PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE dub the second season!!!