Product Details

• Format: Animated, Box set, 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: 6
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Section 23
• DVD Release Date: April 22, 2003
• Run Time: 600 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00008DDWN
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #100,012 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

At last, all the excitement of ORPHEN in one perfect collection! A must-have for fans of anime and magic alike, ORPHEN is the exciting and adventurous quest of a young sorcerer as he desperately tries to rescue a beautiful enchantress from a curse that has transformed her into a fierce, vengeful dragon. Together with his apprentice Majic and the spoiled heiress Cleao, Orphen must battle his treacherous instructors from the magical university the Tower of Fang, armies of stone golems, swarms of giant insects, rogue masked avengers, renegade robots, and two dastardly little trolls. It's an adventure like no other! And now you can have all the thrilling swordplay, captivating spells, wicked humor , and charming characters in one action-packed collection!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic experience, November 17, 2003

By 

Spirit Wolf - See all my reviews

This review is from: Orphen - The Perfect Collection (DVD)

Having gone into Orphen with no idea what to expect, I was pleasantly surprised from the beginning. I'm not normally a fan of fantasy titles, but there was something about this one that just demanded I keep watching.

The story is the highlight here; it's interesting and mysterious from the get-go and unfolds excellently throughout the series. One of my favorite aspects about this series is that it sort of begins in the middle of the story, and it unfolds not just forwards, but backwards as well, slowly piecing the past together via flashbacks and revelations.

I found the characters to be interesting and enjoyable. They made me laugh when I needed to, and made me sympathetic at just the right moments. Most interesting is the way things are turned on their head halfway through the series; you'll find yourself wondering who's an enemy and who isn't.

In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed this series. It was funny, intruiging, and dramatic. This is a title that definitely gets overlooked far too much; take my advice and check it out. I highly recommend it.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Flawed Masterpiece, February 23, 2005

By 

Rhys Corlett "- Rhys" (New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Orphen - The Perfect Collection (DVD)

I wanted to love this series so badly, and for the most part I did. If you are looking for a neat hybrid-fantasy setting with a good story - well look no further. This is a great anime with battles, romance, comedy and a very cool rune-bladed sword. The unquantified gushing from the other posters here are proof positive that this is a popular show. I won't go on about the nice animation style, neat plot-twists, well presented DVD sets, or any of the other bonuses you can read about simply by reading what others here have written. I won't even mention that the slightly uneven animation and repetitive "computer game" style music hardly matter when seen against the backdrop that is this series' story.
There are two MAJOUR downfalls in this series, and they are big ones. Ones so huge it almost makes me want to cry, because that they debase an otherwise priceless anime experience.
If the main episodes that push the story forward are heaven, then the filler episodes are hell. Boring, tedious and pointless - enough to make me want to throw the DVDs right out the window. I'm going to get specific and recommend that any serious anime watcher deliberately skip episodes 4, 5, 6, 11 and 18. These episodes are the bane of this series, and you can skip them without missing any important plot or character development (you may wonder where the annoying little purple dog came from, but trust me, you don't want to know).
The second problem are the `comic relief' characters, Volcan and Dortin. Their bizarre appearance and ridiculous characters almost sink this anime. The English Dub made a valiant effort to pass these two off as hobbit/troll type creatures, but there is no hiding the fact that they are completely out of place in this otherwise edgy anime. For comic relief they rely primarily on abusive insults and slapstick, dutifully avoiding anything witty or clever. Don't get me wrong, there are some genuinely funny moments in this series. But they are provided by the main characters doing or saying something that both adds to their character and doesn't disrupt the atmosphere. For example, Majic's spell the rock early in the series both contributes to the atmosphere while reminding us how immature his character is at this early stage - I won't spoil what he does, but it made me giggle, as does Orphen's response.
Perhaps someday someone will take this series and edit it into a series of two or three movie length episodes. They can edit out the pointless troll's jokes (although we may have to leave them in, we can edit out their annoying antics) and the pointless fuller material. Mark my words, that would have the potential to be the perfect anime... until then we have a fun series, a attractive boxed set, cool cartoon, a flawed masterpiece.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wish I'd Bought It Sooner, May 21, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Orphen - The Perfect Collection (DVD)

I waited for years to watch this anime because it didn't look too interesting. I wish I hadn't waited. This was well worth the money. The animation and music are good (esp the first opening, which I love). But it's the characters that really hook you. Orphen, Cleo and Magic have great chemistry. For humor, I suggest watching the dub although it does deviate and does use anachronistic language. I didn't have a problem with that, because it's not a typical fantasy world (i.e. set in the distant past). The storyline is great, and overall consistent though some episodes can feel more like filler. Glad I took a chance and bought this.