The Princess Nine series strikes back with another wonderful outing in the fourth DVD of the series. Continuing the storyline of nine high school girls (and their manager) as they buck the system to play baseball against the boys, this release adds to the drama by delving into more personal stories.

The story starts off right at the cliffhanger from the last disc: the Princess Nine are in the bottom of the fifth in their first real game against students their own age. If they win, the Princesses are allowed to compete with the boys for a shot to play at Koshien; should they lose, they must give up.

However, all is not well. In the second episode, a scandal involving Ryo's father resurfaces in the newspapers, devastating Ryo and driving the parent association to demand the dissolution of the team. Ryo goes into self-imposed exile in the third episode, abandoning the team. The final episode deals with the aftereffects of a decision Ryo made in the previous episode and how it affects all those around her.

Ryo's cheerful pampering of her teammates is an important ingredient of the team's success, but she still needs to learn how to cheer herself on instead of giving up.	Izumi comes upon a quiet self-revelation in this disc.

After the first episode, the show very much goes into how each of the girls is dealing with the sudden exposure. Each one, to some extent, has to deal with the pressure and must come to the decision of whether or not the team is worth it.

Izumi in particular has some growing to do, but her part seems quite sedate as compared to the others. Still, her self-realization in the fourth episode has been growing quietly. Izumi's brusque manner is as important to the success of the team as Ryo's coddling of teammates. Neither has quite realized that you need both. Sometimes you need to be warm and understanding, and sometimes you just have to tell it like it is. Izumi is realizing what it means to be part of a team and part of a circle of friends. Ryo is learning that she needs to be stronger.

The only downside to the story is the fact that Ryo constantly seems to give up. Hopefully this set of stories will help her character mature a bit. While she is the leader and heart of the team, in many ways, she is much more immature than the others, even with all her skill. If she does continue to mature, it will just be another example of how wonderful the storytelling is in Princess Nine.

As with the previous discs, both the sound and the video are excellent. The extras include a clean opening/closing and continue the voice actress profiles from the last disc. As has been the case with the previous DVDs, you get one weird extra. This time around you get karaoke with the Princess Nine, including a bouncing baseball over the words. The disc includes another attractive cover featuring Ryo and Izumi, although there is a slightly scary Seira in the background.

If you have been enjoying Princess Nine so far, rush out and purchase this disk. It is a highly recommended addiction. The price is definitely right at $19.99 for four episodes, and it includes a surprisingly good dubbed version. This is an excellent series that really has something for everyone.

Video Quality: A+
Audio Quality: A
Presentation: A+
Content: A
Overall: A