Customer Reviews

Case Closed - Starter Set (Season 4)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First off, let me say that Detective Conan (aka Case Closed) rocks, period. The show itself deserves ten stars, but this package deserves a negative five (for reasons explained below). I won't bore you with the details of the shows in this set and I hope other posters won't either. It's a good mystery that stands on its own; I would hate to spoil the story for you. However, that being said, there are several problems with this Funimation release.

1. The names are "Americanized." I don't think there's a single name that they didn't change. And if you play around with the subtitles, there's one that goes along with the English dub (with the Americanization) and one from the original Japanese (so you'll probably get confused as to who's who if you're not paying attention). Luckily the story remains intact after the translation; otherwise Funimation could have butchered a great mystery show.

2. Disk one contains the first four episodes from the first season. Disk two then jumps to season four and there's every indication that the next disks will continue from season four on. This is good news for those out there who want to hurry up and get it over with (well over 350 episodes and still going in Japan). But it's bad news for complete-ists like myself. I really want to know what happens in episode five from season one, especially after the teaser at the end of episode four. Not to mention 60 some odd episodes that take place between disk one and two!

3. Disk two only has three episodes. What a total rip-off! I've got DVDs with eight episodes plus extras, so I know Funimation can do at least five episodes per disk. If I didn't find this set for $26 there's no way I would have paid any amount of money for a three episode disk, just as a matter of principle.

All in all, the shows are great. You shouldn't expect to much in the way of resolving the main plot; the show is still running in Japan and Shinichi/Jimmy is still trying to reverse the shrinking. But if you want to watch a good mystery, laid out just as well as Sherlock Holmes (by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) and his less well known son Nero Wolfe (by Rex Stout, made into a TV show for A&E), then you'll definitely like Detective Conan (Case Closed). It's quite episodic in nature, so you can take in the separate cases at your leisure and in whatever order you wish (with the exception of the first two episodes). The individual cases rarely relate to each other.

I guarantee you'll enjoy the show more if you push the whole Jimmy shrinking thing out of your mind because it'll be a long while before you get any resolution (this is made easier by the show's episodic nature). After 350+ episodes and 8 movies, he's not any closer to getting big again. Rumor has it that the author is about to wrap the story up in the near future, but then we'll still have to wait a long time before it's translated and released on this side of the pond.

And speaking of the movies, Funimation has also picked up the rights to release the first few Detective Conan movies for US release. I sincerely hope they do a better job, but I'll probably pick them up whether they do or not.

If you like mysteries, and can find this for a reasonable price, by all means pick it up. If you're on the fence you can check the show out in the Adult Swim block on Cartoon Network (currently running at 1:00 am Eastern). Be warned: It's on Adult Swim for a very good reason. There's lots of killing, in nearly every imaginable way, but that's only natural for a mystery show.

As others have said Case Closed (Detective Conan) is an excellent anime. It is by far one of the most unique animes I have ever seen, it has a feel about it that reminds me of the "Poirot" mystery movies shown on A&E, and much like those movies, even though Case Closed is based on mystery, rewatching the same episode more then once does not get old. To me that is what makes this anime so worth the money, even knowing answer to the mystery the second or third time around does not seem to lessen the enjoyment of the series, and the depth and life that is breathed into the characters such as Rachel (Ran) and Conan/Jimmy (Shinichi) helps make this high amount of rewatchablity possible.

It should be noted too that some of the possible negatives that have been mentioned are true but nothing that takes away from the enjoyment of the anime. While many of the names become "Americanized" names, something that in and of itself is unusual these days with anime dubs, it somehow is not as annoying within Case Closed as it might be within another anime. Also as hinted at not all of the names are changed, and if anything with all those that are changed hearing the un-Americanized names almost sounds out of place within Case Closed.

Lastly the three episodes per disc which was mentioned and will be seen with upcoming releases is nothing new for Funimation releases, check any of their other series and you will find most if not all are also released three episodes per disc. So while releasing only three episodes per disc, even with the skipping of two full seasons, might take us a long time to reach the 350+ episodes of the entire series, these shows are very much worth watching and picking up as they come out and what a better way to start then with this wonderful starter set that gives two discs and a nice taste of Case Closed.

Don't let the "season 4" in amazon's heading decieve you. When I recieved this item I was extremely disappointed to find that this is not the complete fourth season. I don't exactly know how they have the episodes catagorized but this "starter set" actually includes episodes 1-4[The Big Shrink, The Kidnapped Debutante, Beware of Idols, Fish Marks the Spot] on the first disc and then spisodes 53-55[The Mist Goblin Murder Part I, The Mist Goblin Murder Part II, Weapon Of Choice] on the second disc. I was very disappointed because I actually already own both of these DVDs! It wasn't very clear what was included, and while I assumed I was going to have two copies of 4.1[the second disc] I didn't think I was only getting 1.1[the first disc] as well!

Yeah, the DVD hasn't come out yet, but just trust me. Buy this one, you will love it. Bassically, Conan Edigawa, (Jimmy Kudo's identity after being turned into a child) solves mysteries, which happen to occur every where he goes. But it is great. This seems like it is a kid show, but it is definetley not. Parents, do not buy this for your children if they are young. The episodes can be pretty brutal. For example, in episode 1, a girl beheads her boyfriend. Children will also be scared of this show. The scariest part to me, is not seeing the dead bodies, but as Conan solves the cases, to make the show very interesting, you see the crime commited as Conan narorates. This show is like none I have ever seen. This show is immersive. Those of you who are afraid of feeling stupid about watching an anime show, do not watch this show. As soon as the crime is commited in every episode, I find it immpossible to pull myself away. Simply put, everybody who watches this show will want to watch it every night. If you want to make sure you like the show, watch it, on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, Monday-Thursday at 1:00 A.M. The show is worth the wait. 5 out of 5 stars.

This series is the first to have ever grasped my attention and never let go of it. It's intriguing, imaginative, funny, and all-around great to watch. I am a bit annoyed that DVD 4-1 and all those thereafter only have three episodes per disc, but this is what happens when you have a series as long-running as Detective Conan. It's a fact that has to be dealt with, same as the Americanization... which, by the way, can easily be avoided by watching the Japanese version of the show, which is included on the discs with its own set of subtitles. Yes, they call Jimmy "Shinichi", Rachel "Ran", etc.. Just look for them. This saves you from whatever voices you happen to think are bad, as well. I personally don't mind the voicework. The main characters are what really matter, and their voice actors/actresses do a great job. The other characters could use work, but we don't care about them because they're gone within three episodes at most.

Detective Conan/Case Closed is a show that makes you think, and I've always seen that as a good thing... especially since my 13-year-old brother has pretty much stopped watching things like Ed, Edd, & Eddy on Cartoon Network in favor of Conan. Case Closed is pretty violent at times, but it's also intelligent, which is more than anyone can say for EE&E.

Oh, and don't be surprised if you slowly start to develop an interest in Sherlock Holmes/mysteries in general while watching this series.

I stumbled across a thread on a message board where people were coming up with possible reasons for FUNimation skipping from episode 4 to episode 53. One of those was that FUNimation wanted to give people episodes where the art was a little better, lead them into the series with the first few episodes and then give them something fresh after all that's been run on Adult Swim. Good idea... but I do hope that they release the earlier episodes.

As for the box itself, I have the entire collection of Season 4 DVDs, and it's a little bit of a tight fit getting all of them in there. (Getting one out requires some holding the box open side face down and shaking it.) Other than that, worth picking up if you're going to be collecting the series. Season 5's box is coming out in April, so it's a handy way to keep everything together.

17 year old Jimmy Kudo is a high school student detective who becomes a boy name Conan. One day Jimmy goes to a theme park named "Tropical Land," with his childhood friend, Rachel Moore He encountered a case where a roller coaster passenger is killed in a spectaculary bloody decapition. He solved the case and on his return home, he witnesses a suspicious deal involving some men dressed completly in black. Another man who was also dress in black spoted Jimmy spying so he knocks him and gives him an untested poison named Apoptoxin-4869 which is intended to kill him. The poison did not kill him it just turn him into a little boy.

I like this show better than any show. And just for you people who keep on and on about the american changes, get a life. It is very annoying listening to you and you giving it bad rating for just that reason. I like the American version better, and for you who say Funimation is bad you are crazy too. Funimation not only redubbed the episodes in english but they even did the songs, and they were the same song. Not to mention you get the Japanese version on the disc. So if it bothers you so much change it.

This is a great show, if you like mysteries, comedy, and some romance. It is also a very long running show, there are over 300 in Japan as well as 9 movies. We are only just about to the 100's for our dvds. So hopefully we will get the movies soon.

I love to watch Case Closed. Last year the show ran every night at 1a.m. I would stay up each night to watch. But now since the show isn't as popular as before the show runs Saturday - Thursday at 5:30a.m. I don't have the time to watch it that early. I'll try to pull an all-nighter but sometimes I just can't. I'd get up earlier but I tend to sleep in. If you're in the same situation as me this is a great opportunity to watch the show.

I was really happy to hear that Detective Conan had been licensed, since I really like a good mystery. However I could not for the life of me find "Detective Conan" anywhere, no one had anything yet I kept hearing people having DVDs the Manga by viz etc. It wasn't until someone told me that the name had horribly been changed to "Case Closed" that I could actually find anything in stores. That being said I decided to check out an episode on CartoonNetwork.
It was a train wreck, you want to look away since it's so horrible but can't. I turned off the TV and cried.
No more Ran, no more Shin'ichi, no more Megure-kebu-dono, no more Mouri Kougoro (who get's his last name from an Edogawa Ranpo character). Therefore I give this release the lowest star, in this day and age of manga and anime where the names have been retained, they took a mature mystery series and hacked it into something like Yu-gi-oh (which for some reason KEEPS it's Japanese name). True it's for kids, but really anyone can get into this and there was no need for changes. Not only that the voices are truly terrible, I would have though they would have tried harder, but to some anime is just a money maker and this isn't the same.
I just finished watching episode #66 of the fansub which is STILL going, which brings justice to "Detective Conan", so I would not spend a single penny on this Americanized garbage and grab the superior product from people who care about the series. Also the fasubs don't jump through episodes.

I do hope that the manga and anime are cancelled, it's time for fans to speak with thier money and not buy something that is inferior to the product they want. Manga and anime are here to stay so not support failing products like these isn't going to hurt the industry and prevent them from bringing over more, it will however send a good signal to the translation companies that we won't take their editing of our favorite series.
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