Product Details

• Actors: Blue Dragon
• Directors: Yukihiro Matsushita
• Format: Anamorphic, Animated, Color, Dolby, DVD, HiFi Sound, NTSC, Surround Sound, THX, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: VIZ VIDEO
• DVD Release Date: September 16, 2008
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001BP14E4
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #47,286 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Blue Dragon (2007) boasts an impressive pedigree: it's based on the Xbox 360 game supervised by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, and features original character designs by Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball Z.. Blue Dragon is set in a world where certain warriors are Shadow Wielders, capable of commanding powerful monsters. Shu, the 10-year-old hero of this fantasy adventure, aspires to become a great warrior, although his friend Kluke keeps his ego in check. When the forces of evil king Nene attack their village, Shu and Kluke meet the skilled fighter Zola and her apprentice Jiro. Zola recognizes Shu's ability to summon the Blue Dragon, an extremely powerful shadow beast. He becomes her second apprentice. Kluke decides to journey with them, as does another Shadow Wielder, the elfin Marumaro. The plot requires a lot of exposition, and the story feels like it was assembled from pieces of other series. The hyperactive Shu resembles a mixture of Gohan in Dragon Ball and Simon in Gurran Lagann--after a triple espresso. Kluke, who loves weapons and robots, feels like a mixture of Bulma and Winry from Fullmetal Alchemist. Blue Dragon is not a particularly original series, but it will please fans of the Xbox game. (Rated A: All Ages: suitable for ages 8 and older: violence, minor toilet humor) --Charles Solomon

(1. The Shadow Comes Forth, 2. A Fateful Decision, 3. Shu and Jiro: Rivals in Training, 4. A Member of the Deevee Tribe, 5. Front-Line Base Assault)

Product Description
Shu is a spirited boy with big dreams, but nothing he's dreamed of can prepare him for the world of magic and danger he's about to enter. When he awakens a legendary shadow named Blue Dragon, Shu finds himself thrust into an epic adventure as he and his new comrades seek to stop the evil Gran Kingdom from dominating the world.


Contains episodes 1-5

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Anime Series From Toriyama, August 17, 2008

By	T Boz (USA) - See all my reviews

If you are a fan of the animation style of Akira Toriyama, you really need to see this series. Toriyama, of course, gained worldwide fame for his Dragon Ball manga and anime series, but his creations go far beyond that, creating such manga as Dr. Slump, and being the character designer for the Dragon Quest and Chrono Trigger video game series. Toriyama is something of a national treasure in Japan, and anything he puts his name on is sure to sell millions. So it's with this preface that the anime series for Blue Dragon hits these shores. Based on the Xbox 360 game of the same name, and developed by the "holy trinity" of director Hironobu Sakaguchi, designer Akira Toriyama, and musical composer Nobuo Uematsu (all of Squaresoft fame) this anime retells the basic storyline of the game, but with added exposition. For example, the beginning of the game starts with a land shark attack, and quickly moves into the main storyline, whereas this series sets up the characters more, then shows their hometown being attacked by the evil armada, before the lead discovers his ability to summon his dragon. Overall, an excellent series from Japan that retains the game's light atmosphere while displaying the beautiful designs of Sensei Toriyama. A definite must buy for fans of his manga, anime and game designs.

EDIT: I had to deduct one star because this English release from Viz Video has chopped the anamorphic widescreen format of the original Japanese broadcast, to a lame fullscreen edition (to save money I'm sure) which sucks for hardcore fans.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Lousy English dubs galore, January 11, 2009

By	lain4ever "Ready, get set, review!" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

I don't mean to deter people from an Akira Toriyama anime such as "Blue Dragon." However, with awful dubs which could have been ripped off of a Pokemon anime, "Blue Dragon" just didn't cut it for me.

And even if the anime was good in its original subtitle format, the "Blue Dragon" looks like just another Dragonball clone.

Like I said, I really don't mean to deter anymore from watching this, but the 4Kids-style dubs are TERRIBLE. If anyone wants some good family-friendly anime from Akira Toriyama, just watch the original "Dragonball" series.

Not "Dragonball Z." Just "Dragonball." Just anything except for this.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Particularly recommended for fans of fantasy, anime, and dragons!, December 12, 2008

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Based on the hit role-playing game for the Xbox 360, Blue Dragon Volume 1 collects the first five episodes of the Japanese animated fantasy-adventure television series. Featuring the main characters from the game (all of whom were designed by Dragonball Z creator Akira Toriyama), Blue Dragon follows the plucky young hero Shu and his friends - his cool-headed rival Jiro, the sensitive girl Kluke, the boisterous Devee Marumaro, and the icy warrior woman Zola in their quest to combat the spreading evil of Nene and the Grankingdom. The titular Blue Dragon itself is Shu's shadow come to fierce life, the better to fight for courage and justice! The plot of the animated Blue Dragon series differs significantly from that of the Xbox 360 game, to the extent that it could be considered an alternate universe; anyone who has played the game is sure to enjoy the surprises in this new story. Blue Dragon Volume 1 is a family-friendly DVD, particularly recommended for fans of fantasy, anime, and dragons! English, 100 minutes, color.