Not much more than a year ago, Bandai first announced their conviction to produce an ambitious new series of action RPGs for the Playstation 2 known as .hack(Pronounced "Dot Hack") with devolopment by Cyber Connect. As details on this project surfaced, anticipation continued to build. .hack was to span the online and offline RPG genres, as well as cross over between the media of both games and anime, weaving a very complex layered story. With a team behind the story and art of these games and anime series including Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, Kazunori Ito, and Koichi Mashimo, it did not take long to become clear that .hack was not just some attempt to start a new Pokemon-ish fad to sell video games. No, .hack was something much grander than that. While the .hack games are being released each with an episode of the .hack//Liminality OVA series, which took place at the same time as each part of the game series, .hack//SIGN was the first TV series to air in the .hack continuum, following the dark tale of one player's struggles before the journeys of Kite and Black Rose. .hack//SIGN is just the beginning to the masterful ongoing imaginative epic that is .hack.

After we are introduced to "The World" with a few moments of its vibrant in-game graphics, we see a collapsed Wave Master(Magician) rise from the floor of some cave, and look about in an unusually disoriented manner. Soon afterwards, a Heavy Blade user named Mimiru makes her entrance and introduces herself to our protagonist, but he immediately retreats from the unexpected confrontation, much to Mimiru's surprise. This was only the beginning of our reluctant protagonist Tsukasa's actions that drew attention to him from both possible friends and those who would use the unusual power he ultimately came to possess, all stemming from his being connected to an illegally-edited cat character. Tsukasa has a big problem. His memories have faded and he has become unable to log out of "The World." All he knows is that he is not in front of a computer terminal, and so he cannot simply reset to escape the game. It has become his world, his reality, and the intentions of several of those around him remain unclear. Who is the voice guiding his actions, who is the girl on the bed in the hidden room with that voice, who is Maha, the cat whom appears to Tsukasa? What are their true agendas? In this first volume, we are left only to speculate, as the Crimson Knights, upholders of justice in "The World," led by the Heave Axe user Subaru, go to any length to capture Tsukasa and learn what he knows. Also seeking Tsukasa are Mimiru, the first girl he encountered, Bear, a higher level Blademaster who trains newbies, BT, a crafty newbie Wavemaster who took to the game quickly, and Sora, a manipulative PK bent on collecting as many player member addresses as possible. Things certainly aren't looking up for Tsukasa, who only wants to be left alone.

.hack//SIGN is one of Japan's most recent series that we are finally seeing released here in the states, having concluded just back last september. As such, the animation is absolutely gorgeous, consisting largely of hand drawn backgrounds conveying the great level of beauty and detail that exists within "The World." Mixed with the beautiful backdrops are moderate amounts of CGI, most notable for effects such as the Chaos Gates by which players get around, the players' warp movement effects, and the scenes in which there is Data Draining involved. Otherwise, bits of CGI are laid over the hand drawn animation in creating several other styles of computer distortion effects, furthering the plot. Fans of Yoshiyuki Sadamoto will also easily recognize his distinctive art style, having picked up the acclaim he has from Evangelion and FLCL, among other projects. .hack is his first non-Gainax project, and his enthusiasm for the series really shines through in the unique designs of each character in the series, their faces and bodies accentuated by varying bits of paint, adding flair and further individuality to characters playing avatars in an online game.

Yuki Kaijura, after having been a fairly obscure composer for years, working on cult classics like Eat-Man, has finally been gaining the recognition she's due as of late. Her unique musical style filled the ears and souls of fans of Noir, her other most recent project, and now reaches out to capture the ears and hearts of fans of .hack. The series' soundtrack has a great number of vocal pieces sung in english, adding an ambience of being within a game to the series, while still conveying the emotion of each scene in which they play in an enchanting and captivating manner. The opening, "Obsession," was composed by Kaijura as well, and performed by the once-obscure group "See-Saw." The piece itself has a very intense, driving melody, accompanied by fantastically conceived lyrics, fitting a feeling I'm sure every RPG fan is familiar with: the driving need to get through each dungeon, not wanting to stop, even if they are kept up to the earliest hours of the morning, ruled by the burning obsession to complete each game to find the direction of relieving. The closing, another Kaijura and See-Saw conjunction, is "Yasashii Yoake," or "Gentle Dawn," a softer piece than the opening but still powerful, the theme of continually searching filling it. My only qualm with the audio was that, at least on my computer's DVD rom player, the volume of the DVD's audio fluctuated and became lower from time to time. I don't know if it is a problem of my DVD rom player, however, or a problem with the DVD itself. Don't let this set you aback though. Bandai clearly took the proper amount of time out to pay homage to the beautiful score, including an isolated score audio track with which you can watch the show as well, as opposed to just the usual japanese and english dialogue versions.

Now I know what you're all thinking, "Where's the omake?" Well, no worries. Bandai truly went to extra lengths to make this DVD a fantastic purchase by including plenty of extras in addition to the aforementioned isolated score audio track. Within the CD case there was included an insert with series credits and game terminology for the unenlightened on .hack, as well as art to display on another side of the insert. On the DVD itself, not only did we generously get the first five episodes, but we also got textless versions of both the opening and ending, a trailer for the .hack games, a small character design art gallery, and the usual Bandai translation trailers. In addition to all these wonderful extras, Bandai is also releasing a special limited edition version of the first volume that comes with a king's bounty of extras that I know I, and virtually every .hack fan, is dying to get their hands on. All in all, .hack//SIGN's first volume is an excellent start to the series, and something that belongs in every fantasy anime and RPG fanatic's collection. Keep in mind though, that this is not an action oriented show, but rather dialogue heavy, working to establish "The World" and many players within it. It is put one piece of the gigantic puzzle that .hack is. To truly appreciate it, you need to see all the shows and play all the games. Things do come together, the more you see and play. It is one of the most immersive and expansive anime/game projects ever, a true act of ambition on Bandai's part, and in my honest opinion, it is a complete success. After all, if you don't see .hack and find answers to all the questions, how will you find the Direction of Relieving?

Distributor: Bandai Entertainment
Creator: Project .hack (Bandai)
Released: 2002
Reviewer: Tsukasa


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