Product Details

• Directors: Tatsuya Ishihara
• Format: Animated, Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
• Language: Japanese, English
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 4
• Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Bandai Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: July 29, 2008
• Run Time: 350 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0019HABE8
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,775 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Complete Collection" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Based on a series of best-selling novels by Nagaru Tanigawa, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2006) overflows with zany energy. Despite the title, Haruhi Suzumiya is anything but melancholy: she's a bossy, outspoken high school girl who's searching for "aliens, time travelers, and espers." To aid her search, Haruhi founds a new club, The SOS Brigade. Although she doesn't realize it, Haruhi has actually found what she's looking for in her recruits: Yuki is an alien; Mikuru, a time traveler; Itsuki, an esper. Kyon, the put-upon narrator,is normal--at least superficially.Itsuki warns Kyon that the existence of the universe may depend on Haruhi's whims. When she gets upset, dark gaps open between dimensions, haunted by shinji (ghostly giants) whom Itsuki and other espers must destroy. Kyon wonders if he's having nightmares or protecting the world from destruction, but this storyline recedes as the series progresses. Like Dokkoida and Magical Shopping ArcadeAbenobashi, Melancholy spoofs the clichés of anime and otaku culture. When the president of the computer club challenges the SOS Brigade to a duel playing "Day of Sagittarius 3," the episode turns into an outrageous spoof of sci-fi anime, with Haruhi shouting commands from the bridge of an imaginary space ship. But the series stops, rather than ends, with the story unresolved as Haruhi and Kyon walk off into the rain. Given the popularity of Melancholy in Japan and the US, a sequel may be in the works. (Rated 13 and older: cartoon violence, risqué humor) --Charles Solomon

Product Description

MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA:COMP CO - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Humor and crazyness all at once, July 23, 2008

By 

Cloud "..." (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Complete Collection (DVD)

There is certain shows developed in Japan that sort of slip under the radar and upon discovering it, you kind of wonder why you didn't hear of it in the first place (Fate/Stay Night, while admittedly a show with a distinct formula and some character moments cut from the story, instantly became a favorite). Then we have something like The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, a 14 episode show that quickly became a hit and could be accurately be described as a sensation. But all that hype and praise brings with it the inevitable "overrated" remarks and people not seeing the brilliance against other projects. Can Haruhi Suzumiya become a victim of its hype or is it a brilliant show regardless? I say brilliant.

In high school, it's hard to develop an identity and stand out without being an outsider but for Haruhi Suzumiya, she enjoys her offbeat sensibilities. Declaring in school that she's not interested in anyone unless they're time travellers, aliens or espers (psychics in other words), Haruhi soon is introduced to Kyon, a sardonic high school student who enjoys just not doing anything. But their world gets changed when in comes Itzuki, Yuki and Mikuru, an esper, alien and time traveller, respectively. Turns out Haruhi is seen as a sort of god-like figure who can bend the universe and possibly even destroy it and start over lest she get bored. Luckily Haruhi is quite...eccentric.

One of the more well-known factors consider the show was that the show's episodes were not presented in chronological order. While this worked in some cases such as episode 6 having all the makings of a "finale" and episode 11 which consists of Kyon narrating over a supremely amateurish movie Haruhi made makes for a unique and also bizarre premiere but then on the other hand, a 2 parter on an island vista is separated by a different episode so the cliffhanger isn't resolved until the following episode. My suggestion is to just watch the chronological order but exchange episode 14 (Kyon's trip for a heater) and 6's place and all will be well.

As for the episodes themselves, they're frequently hilarious from dialogue to Kyon's narration or Yuki's quiet badassness/bookish tendencies and just scenes played straight for comedy or using the moe conventions of nurse/maid/catgirl outfits for humor. But the main plot is also interesting and while Yuki's explanation of Haruhi's existence from her perceptive is Evangelion-level confusing complete with screen-filling text, it's quite intriguing and the idea that the world can literally revolve around you makes for good storytelling. Some episodes are generally good with at least one cool scene while others such as an arts festival, a computer battle or the hilarious baseball episode are definate highlights.

Will everyone like it? Maybe. Some people prefer the romance hilarity found in Love Hina while others are into more lighthearted affairs like Fruits Basket but I loved the show and can't wait for an inevitable second season and I heartily recommend you try the show out.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Anime's Bermuda Triangle, February 17, 2010

By 

Stephanie "Anime/Game Geek" (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Complete Collection (DVD)

**At Netflix this anime is listed as a 5 disc series. Disc 5 being labeled as "Bonus Material." I looked for info on disc 5 but all I could find was information concerning an extra music cd that comes with the Limited Edition box set (I believe). Please let me know if the bonus cd futhers the story in any way and I will revise this review.**

There are a lot of anime with unsatisfying endings, and ones that have decent endings but still leave tons of unanswered questions. However, I personally haven't seen many that have no ending whatsoever. MoHS would be the second, School Rumble was (if memory serves) the first.

It starts off perfectly fine. The idea that Haruhi creates and destroys just because she becomes unhappy, bored, depressed, etc, is interesting, but even more so because she has no idea that she is doing so. One starts to wonder if she will ever find out she's doing these things, or if her friends will ever tell her about what she's doing, or if they can find a way to...keep her from destroying the world without actually letting her know what's going on.

Sounds like a great, intriguing mystery right? Well, don't get too excited. About the time things start to get really good, the filler episodes start coming and don't stop. It's kind of like the creator got serious writer's block, and took the easy way out. Out of nowhere Haruhi starts acting like a (fairly) typical high school girl, and all the mysterious goings-on just...vanish.

I gave this series 4 stars though because it is actually entertaining. The animation is really nice, the characters are likable, and over all MoHS is a good series. Crispin Freeman and Wendy Lee are pro V/As. I have noticed quite a few people recommend watching in a certain order concerning episode numbers. Apparently, that way it seems like there is some semblance of an ending, but looking back, I don't think that would make much of a difference. It is what it is, as they say. With that in mind, I recommend renting instead of buying.

Bandai did a heck of a marketing campaign for this series. DVD extras include behind the scenes production shorts in Japan and America, as well as "The Adventures of the ASOS Brigade" featuring Patricia Lee (a.k.a the Pink Power Ranger) as Haruhi in a series of live action promo videos. The fact they spent so much time and money doing this for a series with no ending is, in my opinion, mystifying.

(This review is also posted at Netflix)

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzamiya, October 25, 2008

By 

Mark Haisley "from dimension X" (Ashford, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Complete Collection (DVD)

The "Melancholy of Haruhi Suzamiya" is one of the best new anime out there. It's funny, witty, exciting and wildly crazy. It grabs your attention like hardly anything else and holds it. I'm not exaggerating when I say that this anime changed my life. Now I keep asking myself, "Have I squeezed every moment I can out the the day? What would Haruhi have done?" "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzamiya," buy it.