Review of R.O.D. (TV Series): Vol. 7

Introduction

If you haven`t already joined in with this fun series then disc 7 is certainly not the place to start. It`s the final disc of the series - at last! Containing just three 35-minute episodes (and a few extras), it ties up all the loose ends in this fantastical tale, rendering it completely befuddling, I`m sure, for anyone who hasn`t viewed the previous 23 episodes. Fortunately I had so I enjoyed it immensely.

The three episodes on the disc are:

24 - You Know Me
25 - It`s Not A Big Problem
26 - From There On

We rejoin proceedings at the point where Mr. Joker is about to complete his global brainwashing operation (the disc starts with the fall of the U.S.) and then begin his huge information download to bring `Mr. Gentleman` back to life. Junior (captured in a previous episode) is the vessel into which the mass of information is to be poured, and within whom Mr. Gentleman can re-live.

Nancy, Drake and Yomiko have already gone to England to try and stop Joker`s plans, and the three (scissor) sisters all drift their separate ways across Tokyo to meet back at Nenene`s apartment where they pour their hearts out before concluding that, despite the falseness of their past, they should continue together. They decide to head for England to search out the British Library and put a stop to Joker`s plans.

If Joker`s plan`s seemed a little incomprehensible up to this point, they are made perfectly clear here. Whilst it could be argued that he is merely a power hungry megalomaniac, you get the sense that he might believe that what he is doing is right for humanity. He sees the loss of personal freedom and personality as a small price to pay for w world that is able to live in perfect accord, free from wars and disagreements, where everyone can work for common good. To achieve this, he aims to re-format people`s minds by downloading new software to their brains.

Fortunately, not everyone agrees with his plans and Yomiko sets out to single-handedly prevent him, though she falters at the critical moment.

To add to the strange charm of the piece, the group find themselves in Victorian London, though time is moving forwards at about two years a day. It is only themselves (and the British Library) who are on `real-time`.

They spend much time in the penultimate episode (25) reading books and searching for clues as to where the British Library might be. Nenene is locked in a cell with Junior locked in next door; both unable to do anything other than wait for the inevitable rescue. The gentle and dreamlike pace of the episode is in stark contrast to the emergency at hand. You know the big action is still to come but are never quite sure when (or how) it will begin.

The final episode starts with a countdown to the giant download, which will allow Mr. Gentlemen`s revival. In the culmination of the piece, something is whispered into the Joker`s ear that seems to have a profound effect upon him as he is defeated. There`s a generally happy ending, though the programme is true to imaginative and surreal form as we see Joker resting in what looks like a retirement home. We see a mysterious wolf appear, and then Joker leaves with it. More frustrating enigma at the end of a thoroughly imaginative and entertaining series.

Video

Presented in its original 1.33:1 full-frame format, this carries on the high standards served by previous editions. This is as good as it gets - until we get to blu-ray!

Audio

There`s a choice of 5.1 and 2.0 Japanese language tracks, and a 5.1 English track. As with the previous episodes, I`ve been watching this in English and it`s a really nice dub with really well cast voices that bring real character to each of the roles.

Features

There`s the usual batch of half-baked extras, not really compensating for the lack of content on the disc (I still can`t see why these are limited to three episodes a disc when 5 or 6 could have been managed with no real detriment to image quality).

There`s a very tired audio commentary for episode 26…which is a mutual feeling. The US voice artists have really run out of steam after all these commentaries (after all - what more can be said about dubbing?).

There`s a gallery of about a dozen pictures, mostly black and white. There are also two trailers - one for `Full-Metal Alchemist` and one for `Burst Angel`.

Then there are some weird Japanese TV trailers for the series that show scenes through a fish-eye lens with random commentary from the cast.

Conclusion

So was it worth the wait? This seventh disc finally concludes the journey that was `R.O.D. - The TV Series`. If you`ve been part of the ride so far I`m guessing that you won`t want to miss these final three episodes.

There`s no doubt that it`s a predictably epic finale, showing flights of extreme imagination that I think are truly inspiring. Whilst you`ll need to suspend disbelief in a way that only religious zealots seem able to in real-life, you`ll be glad you did. The writing here (taking its inspiration from a love of books … `Read or Die`) is free-flowing creativity where everything and anything is possible. It`s the type of surrealistic adventure that made programmes like The Prisoner or Twin Peaks so timeless.

I`m not sure that I`d recommend buying these 7 discs one at a time unless you get them for a little less than the RRP. It`s probably a better bet to buy or rent the box-set to allow you to devour all 26 episodes in a shorter timeframe than I did.

All in all though, a very satisfying anime with colourful characters, an unpredictable narrative and a pace and atmosphere all of its own. The fact that it comes with such a convincing US dub is a real bonus too.