Mushishi: Box Set S.A.V.E.

This is among the most popular manga series in Japan being voted number one by the Japanese fans at several recent conventions. Unfortunately I have not read the manga, deciding to get right into the anime thanks to a $15.99 price on Amazon. This set continues the excellent lineup of releases on the S.A.V.E. series by Funimation. As a note: I watched this series in the original Japanese with English subtitles. Speaking of subtitles, Funimation has outdone themselves in this set. I almost wonder if another studio had prepared them. The reasoning is that Funimation rarely explains certain words underneath the subtitles. In episode 7 they use this a few times to explain one of the character's name. The translation is quite good overall and the subtitles are very easy to read. The backgrounds are gorgeously painted with a kind of soft watercolor style to them. They almost seem like a blend of watercolor painting and old Chinese ink and silk painting. There is a lot of green in the series, it's often used as a sign of life and vitality. The characters are all pretty straightforward in their design and drawing, so it does leave a lot of the characterization up to the dialogue. The animation is crisp and it looks great on a 46" HD TV. Everything is presented in widescreen as well. The story is the true wonder of this series. The episodes tend to stand alone with one story arc each. Early on the stories seem a little lighthearted and the Mushi (the little spirits) seem quite non-aggressive. It almost seems like these Mushi get mixed up in the human world and so some bad things occur because of this interaction. But it seems at first that this interaction is coincidental. As the series moves along, we encounter more frightening Mushi, and many characters who are affected by them have permanent afflictions. A few even die (though most of these are revealed in flashbacks). The stories are incredibly engaging, and the characterization of the supporting characters is nothing short of spectacular. The supporting characters only have one episode (for the most part) to make an impact on the viewer, and they do. I equate their characterization to Japanese Haiku. Their stories are told in few words, but their stories and their actions seem to grip the audience and resound with them. It's quite pleasing to watch and I never had the feeling that an episode was 'slow' or 'boring'. Instead I enjoyed getting to know these characters for their brief time on screen. I felt empathy for many of them, and I am sure most viewers will also. I have always enjoyed anime, and I do fondly remember the amazing 80s and the pretty good 90s. With a few exceptions the 2000 - 2009 years suffered a bit (maybe because of the Japanese economy, Korean outsourcing of animation, etc...), but I have encountered some spectacular series lately, and I am hopeful that this decade may signal a new golden age of anime. These days we are seeing more and more series translated and released in the US, and quality series such as Mushi-Shi are shining stars of modern anime. I highly recommend this series to anyone enjoying a stately paced series with lots of the supernatural and little action. Even my partner who isn't really into anime enjoys it. It's marvelous.

This series is greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeat, and so was the value of this box set!... hence the "S.A.V.E.", lol. High quality all around... and I just found out the cover is reversible! That's the icing on the cake. Highly recommended! As for a brief review of the anime itself, it's incredibly Eastern in its views, and the combination of smooth, simple animation (with the characters, anyway, and complex with how it depicts nature, which is excellent) and fantastically told stories (that don't always end well for the characters involved) makes for an incredibly unique, sensory experience unlike any other. Ginko really is just a wanderer who goes around and attempts to get people to be at peace with Mushi, and by extension, nature itself. I love it. The episodes are entirely episodic, and usually 100% self-contained... with a couple exceptions. It also jumps around tonally from episode to episode. You could go from a fairly straightforward love story in one episode, to a straight-up horror experience the next. But the thing to remember is that EVERY episode is amazingly written, and accomplishes what it sets out to do. In summary, I would HIGHLY recommend this, but caution you to look into other reviews and such before viewing it yourself. As someone who knows quality when I see it, you can trust me when I say that the less you know going into this series, the better. If you want a taste of what you're in for, look up the terrific soundtrack. It'll give you a feel for what you're in for, which is really an unforgettable anime.

I love this series and keep coming back to it again and again. It is a distinct counterpoint from other animation I have watched. While each episode is a self-contained story about the spirit detective/doctor Ginko, the fascination for me is more the incredible mood depicted by the story, art and music. Watching episodes of this series is like a form of meditation that engages the viewer on many more levels than just the plot line. This box set contains the whole series at a very reasonable price. Although my kids think me crazy for it, I prefer to watch it in Japanese with subtitles (though there is also an option for dubbed English).

I've seen this series numerous times upon streaming in Netflix. When they pulled it from rotation, I purchased it here. It's a delightful little series that encapsulates a feeling of ease, beauty, appreciation and finesse. I can't really put my finger on it, exactly, and i'm sure there is a word for it in another language, like the way "umami" is used in food. Everything about this series is beautiful. The imagery, the deliberate stillness, the attention to detail and scenery as found in other fine anime. And the stories are so wonderful. I also think they did fine job in casting the voices.

I love animes like Mushishi, there's great attention paid to the atmosphere, character, environment, art--it's a really beautiful series to watch. It's also kind of thrilling and ethereal--it has a lot more suspense and surprises than you'd expect from watching the first episode. It gets pretty spooky in some parts, but each episode is pretty different, so you don't really know if the ending is going to be poetic and deep, or just plain horrifying. But that's what I like about it :D Great animation, good Japanese voices. I haven't watched the dub, don't know how good the English cast is on this one.

yea, that title basicly summary the setting of the show. each story cover difference adventure of looking for ghost, and helping ppl(sometime). it a very casual show, where u watch and relax, but unfortually some of the adventure are so sad tbat it make u want to stop, cause u cant take it anymore. this show have a very specific audience, therefore u need to be in the right mood to watch this, the first 2 episode draw u in make u think that they all gonna be happy ending, unfortually it real life is a tragic tale, and this story follow closely to that. it really follow the saying that those who graze upon the darkness, are look back upon by the darkness it self, cause all those who get involve, with the mushi(ghost) are get affect by them, intentionally, accidentally, or not even knowing about it. it a good show, graphic is great, good story but audience specific. unfortunally for me, i am watching anime to get away from reality, so i expect a happy ending, this show slam me back into reality, and into a dark aspect of that too, so we couldnt, mix with each other. but even with that, i cant bring myself to hate this show, cause it is a work of art that should be watch at some point, whether u gonna agree to or not, just make urself mentally ready. it wont mindf@ck u, it just gonna make u very saddddd with some episode

Great classic series. Reminds me of some older anime's. The artwork is quite beautiful. What suprised me the most was the intro song was in english. The barefoot song. The only thing i wished to know before this though was that there are more episodes than this one. Apparently they expanded this series. Not sure if they have it in english dubbs though.

Once upon a time, anime was odd. The creators of Mushi-shi seem to know this and did a fine job of creating an Edo period monster anthology centered around a guy who looks like a doctoral student wandering through the countryside, looking for more samples. I love going to sleep while somewhere behind me something unusual flashes on a screen, accompanied by calming music. Well, mostly calming music.

Great anime series

シリーズが大好きなので一気に観れるのがとても良いです。ちゃんと日本語にも対応していますので安心して見る事が出来ました。

Eine wirklich sehr schöne Serie, langsam erzählt, ruhige Musik, schöne Bilder. Leider ist der Kopierschutz so gut, dass ich mit dem VLC-Player und verschiedenen DVD-Rip Programmen gescheitert bin und Region2 DVD-Spieler spielen die DVDs sowieso nicht ab. Ich habe schließlich einen günstigen Region Free Player gekauft. Ich hätte die Serie aber gerne unterwegs angeschaut. Das geht so natürlich nicht.

graphiquement superbe, la cadence tranquille de cet anime s'apprécie comme un moment de recueillement. Un délice à ne manquer sous aucun prétexte!

Love the mushi shi series, the package arrived quickly and it was nice to get an English dub version