Product Details

• Format: Animated, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Geneon [Pioneer]
• DVD Release Date: December 26, 2000
• Run Time: 270 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005094J
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #53,781 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
The two-disc Collector's Edition unites two linked stories, although the appearance of the characters and the style of direction change between them. Pai is the last Sanjiyan or holy demon: the rest were exterminated 300 years ago when their king, Kaiyanwang, turned to evil. She's spent the last three centuries trying to become human. In Japan, Pai meets Yakumo Fujii, whose scientist father discovered that transforming a Sanjiyan into a human requires the "Statue of Humanity." The evil creatures who hope to resurrect Kaiyanwang also want the Statue: Pai and Yakumo challenge them in a series of bloody battles. Pai turns Yakumo into a Wu, a spirit whose soul is bound to her own and who cannot be killed while she lives. Yakumo falls in love with her, although it's difficult to understand why. Immortals ends when Pai and Benares, Kaiyanwang's chief henchman, disappear in a violent explosion. Realizing that Pai must still be alive, Yakumo vows to search until he finds her again.

Divine Demon picks up the story four years later: Pa-Bo Ayanokoji believes she's a typical high school girl who likes to hang out with her friends. Her world is shattered when Yakumo reveals she is not a human, but Pai. Kaiyanwang is about to rise again, and his servants are trying to kill Pai, who can challenge his power. Pai's memories of her life in the blessed realm of Kunlun have been blocked by a spell; Yakumo takes her to Tibet to break it. Along the way, he fights assorted villains led by the sniggering Choukai. Pai and Yakumo cross the barrier to Kunlun with the aid of treasure hunter Jake Macdonald. There they battle both Choukai and Benares. Both stories end on weak notes, with enough plot strings left hanging to form a fringe. In Immortals, the viewer never learns what becomes of the sinister Mrs. Wong, the Statue of Humanity, or Yakumo's group of friends. In Divine Demon the expected confrontation between Pai and Kaiyanwang fails to materialize. Contains these episodes: 1. "Transmigration," 2. "Yakumo," 3. "Sacrifice," 4. "Straying," 5. "Descent," 6. "The Key," 7. "The Return." Rated 16+: considerable violence, minor profanity, and nudity. --Charles Solomon

Product Description
Legends whisper about the ancient Sanijyan, poweful three-eyed demons that possessed the secret of immortality. Yet their fascination with humanity led to their slaughter by one of their strongest leaders, Lord Kaiyanwan... Today, humanity's blind arrogance has built a civilization that believes only in itself and we preserve our senses of security only by refusing to see the shadow-world lurking beneath the surface of our town... One man, Yakumo, will be forced to confront this hidden world and discover the curse of immortality. What he finds will force him to embrace the demon world to find not only its humanity, but also his own...

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Little Known Anime Classic, December 27, 2000

By	"summerwolf" (USA) - See all my reviews

3x3 has to be one of the virtually unknown classics of anime-and this DVD set has to be the best deal for a fan there is. Previously only the first 4 parts of the 7 were release on VHS, leaving 5&6 hard to find-while 7 never actually came out for the public (at least in America, I could be wrong else where.)

The mini-series begins the saga of Yakumo, and his quest to make Pai, his demon-acquaintance, human. A strange bond develops between the two of them, binding them together through thick and thin. Their journey takes them to Hong Kong and back to Japan, where they finally become separated-how they get back together is a story in its own.

The animation is great is some places, and lacking in others-but the strange plot and crazy characters make up for it. The music might seem a tad familiar to any one who has seen Braveheart-you might even swear that the producers of Braveheart borrowed it from the anime :) 3x3 Eyes is, however, extremely gory, which is critical to plot. But the gore is well done, and a vital part of enjoying the anime, in my humble opinion. ;) The series is truly superb for any otaku or anime-fan, but perhaps a little too much for someone just getting started on their anime fix.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the best anime title of all time, now even better., March 6, 2001

By	Peter Clarke (Chicago) - See all my reviews

First of all, I own and have seen the old Streamline dub of 3x3 Eyes. So I'm speaking not of a long ago recollection of the old dub, but from an actual recent comparison of the old version vs. this new DVD. This new Pioneer DVD release is 1000 times better than that old crappy dub by Streamline. Not only does this DVD have great voice "acting" (note the emphasis on the word "acting", something which the old dub lacked), but it finally completes the series that has long been incomplete (thanks MGM/Orion for leaving us in the dark for 4 years). OK now before you say "why am I so gaga over this new dub", let me say that I still prefer watching the Japanese Language version with English subtitles (something that this great DVD version offers for the first time). But Pioneer gets an "A" for effort for putting serious work into making a good quality dub. A lot better than many dubs out there. I enjoyed it a lot, but who can resist Megumi Hayashibara as Pai. Although Christian Campbell does a great Yakumo. What I don't like about this DVD is the image quality of the 1st OVA series. But I blame that on the quality of the original source material and not the DVD authoring process. Still it's much better than my Streamline VHS. The extras are somewhat lacking (just some image gallery and cast bios) still I give Pioneer kudos for including a voice cast images & bios for both the English and Japanese actors, something you don't often see in an anime DVD. One important note comparing the old Streamline version to this new DVD, which makes this DVD version better. You can see that Streamline actually did some editing to 3x3 show when they made their VHS "perfect collection" in 1992. You don't get to see the images of Kayanwang's grave and the ruins of Kunlun which run during the end-credits of episode #1. And at the start of episode #2 & #4, Streamline decided to edit in their own music into the show rather than using just the voice over and sound effects. Plus it's nice to hear all 4 of the end title music scores from the first OVA. Speaking of the music, did anybody notice that the movie Braveheart practically stole Pai's theme from 3x3 Eyes as their own love theme? Kaoru Wada should be suing James Horner for theft. I have seen many anime sites list this DVD to their essential collection list and I am one to agree with them. It's well worth the extra money to own this classic.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Two stories, two goals (and monsters in the way), June 7, 2001

By	"kopfkissen" (Auckland, North Island New Zealand) - See all my reviews

3x3 Eyes was one of those not so 'normal relationship stories between a boy and a girl' from the early 90's. The set is a compilation of all 3x3 Eyes anime to date. This is definitely a region 1 DVD so those out of the US stuck with a non-region 1 DVD are out of luck.

Immortals is the first half of the story, and is about Pai's (the triclops) quest to becoming human, but she needs the help from a boy called Yakumo; who she has been looking for, for four years; and an ancient statue. I just so happens that an evil cult is also in search of this statue at the same time. The main characters are loveable. Yakumo is a silly character, but means well. He is also a hopeless hero does his damnedest to protect Pai in times of danger. Pai is a dual personality character. Most times cute and innocent, but the triclops character the opposite, but rational. The art from Immortals is dated, and perhaps slightly inconsistant. It was made at a time just before the use of bright and bold colours which is common in current day anime. The story it self has a good mix of action, monsters, comedy and drama.

The Legend of the Divine Demon is the second part of the series, and takes place some four years after the end of the first part. First of all, the style of art is noticeably different to the Immortals, but it does not alter the fact that it is a continuation of the original story. This time the story starts with Yakumo in search for Pai. When Yakumo does find her, Pai does not remember him, or the events from four years back. The original plot from Immortals takes a back seat in this installment of the story, which is basically about regaining Pai's memory, which in turn uncovers some other, perhaps unnecessary, convolutions in story. I would suggest people start the second disc with no expectations for it to be like the first disc. This part is certainly less comical, the characters are less likeable, but the action remains about the same. Yakumo is much more confident in fighting, although his adversaries have also gotten stronger.

Over all it is a good story to watch, there are strong themes of devotion and friendship, so it's not the regular mindless action for no-reason story.