Kaleido Star - Stage 1 (Animé TV)
Picture:
C+ Sound: B- Extras: C Episodes: C+
Sora is
trying to be a star, after a rough start upon arrival in the city that offers
her the chance to be a Kaleido Star,
part of a hot new circus act. She is 16
and already underestimated. This turns
out to be a Drama with Comedy and some Melodrama, but comes up with mixed
results. It is especially bad when it
tries to be a Backstage Musical, but there are enough moments for the 12 and up
crowd, especially females, who might find some of this amusing. Otherwise, it is choppier than expected.
Throughout
the first five episodes, the show never finds focus and soon resorts to fantasy
elements to fill in the gaps, which also falls flat. The result is a forgettable mush of ideas
that might have worked better if some of them had been developed. Otherwise, forget it.
The full
frame color image is soft and dull, even when it shows the glitz of the circus,
while the Dolby Digital 5.1 AC-3 English and 2.0 Japanese Stereo mix with Pro
Logic surrounds (the English cleaner, but not as natural as the Japanese) are
the best thing on this DVD. The few
extras include the opening and closing credits without text, previews for six
other ADV Animé DVDs and production sketches set to music that run just past 6
minutes.
- Nicholas Sheffo
