I almost wish that I hadn't given the honor of perfect score to the third volume of R.O.D the TV, because the series somehow manages to become more powerful in the fourth volume. The series grows in this volume, adding a lucid view into the far-reaching influence of literature, while maintaining its intrigue and its wonderful characterization. It gains the potential to become more than a mere work of entertainment.

The message the show has been getting at is becoming rather clear - that someone who controls a society's literature controls its people. It's no coincidence that the Dokusensha are a bookseller chain, or that the Library of Britain enjoys such prominence in the story. The fourth volume gives us a good idea of what to expect later on, and what the battles thus far have been over.

There are two big events in this volume: one I am at liberty to talk about, and one I'm not. For the latter, let's just say that fans of the R.O.D OVA should be ecstatic, as well as unpleasantly surprised. The man we know in the TV series as Mr. Carpenter comes into the foreground of the plot during this time, and will likely remain there for a while.

I wouldn't want to be chased by that guy.	Wendy meets her match.

The other event clues us in to something that happened between the events of the OVA and the TV series. It is a nod to Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury's cutting novel about a society that burned books to keep its citizens "happy." Book burning has always been seen as a sinister ritual - an attack on liberty itself. The ritual also symbolizes a loss of hope, and the accuracy with which the series conveys the feeling is scary. I didn't expect to get a taste for what Germany must have been like in the forties; not in an anime at least.

The series hits a new ending theme in this volume, titled Confidence. It's hard to let go of the relaxing Moments in the Sun, but the added emotional weight of the new ED is appropriate at this point in the series. The disc for Volume 4 has a clean video of the new ending sequence, which aside from a color scheme change, is much like the first ED video. The other extras are also standard fare, including a commentary track and production art gallery.

I couldn't have believed that R.O.D the TV could gain in appeal after the third volume, but Volume 4 proved me wrong. Perhaps they'll pull the same stunt in the fifth, so I can't wait to find out what happens. I thought at the beginning that R.O.D would be little more than a guilty pleasure, and now I'm thinking it just might become one of the more important series of the digital anime generation.

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