Throughout history, it has been said that no family is free of dysfunction. Every family has its share of skeletons in the closet that the world turns a blind eye to. Some let it stew until things finally reach a breaking point, while others seek help and therapy. However, it is likely that no psychiatrist has seen a family like the Daichis, who bring a new definition to the word dysfunction.

From the very beginning, viewers are assured that the Daichis are far from the typical anime family. Instead of a lively, cheerful breakfast scene, the audience is served a more "real" family: two parents who have had it with each other, and the children caught in the middle. For this series, it seems that Kawamori decided to focus on this growing dysfunction as the family's members are forced to live together for their own reasons. However, as the series' title states, the show is an action show at heart. When the need arises, the family goes through the ever-familiar sentai transformation to funky battle uniform scenes before battle. The fight scenes are usually fast-paced, with a healthy arsenal of unique weaponry aiding the family at every turn. The mix between family drama and superhero action works in an oddly satisfying way as it blends in a healthy dose of often-perverted humor. In this first disc, the story probes at several prominent family issues, from the effects of divorce, to financial woes, and the loss of a family pet. Everything plays out well, with few obstacles to derail the story's progression.

To aid the series' off-the-wall atmosphere, characters have been crafted with both the humorous and the serious moments in mind. The entire cast holds its own unique charm, with designs that are enjoyable, but not overly "attractive." No female characters are aphrodites of the anime world, nor are the males Adonises (on an odd note: Mamoru, the family father, bears more than a passing resemblance to Anime on DVD's Chris Beveridge). Instead, the cast feels more like an everyday family, with no characters having the seemingly requisite top-heavy bombshell look. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Kawamori's mechanical designs are simply gorgeous and a true joy to look at. Everything from the massive Mighty Robo to the family truckster becomes a joy to study and dissect. The characters animate well, with no unusual jitters in the animation and fairly fluid movement. As a pleasant surprise, The Daichis uses very little CG, which is reserved mainly for minor effects. On a technical level, the disc shows a wonderful transfer, with no obvious cases of aliasing, rainbows, cross-coloration, or other major defects.

Slap-boxing is one of the Daichi family's many hobbies.	In the future, sentai heroes will ride hoverboards.

For the series' scoring, it seems that the creative staff has opted for a more creative route. Since the show was scored by Shigeo Naka of The Surf Coasters, much of the music has a twangy, surf-punk sound to it. The opening theme, "Samurai" by ROLLY is an entertaining hard rock piece that is basically a proposition for sex to an unknown person. The closing theme is a beautiful, somber song performed by Akino Arai that probes the coldest, darkest depths of the soul. For the Japanese track, the actors picked include several experienced players, such as Akira Kamiya (City Hunter) and Motoko Kumai (Chobits, Flame of Recca). However, the English cast tends to fall very short of its potential on this series. Instead of the spirited performance the show deserves, the Engish track has a performance that is about as flat as Hal Hartley's Simple Minds. The English script is a decent adaptation, but the feeling just isn't in the delivery. Technically, the disc's audio is clear, with no noticeable dropouts or distortion on either track.

For this release, Geneon stayed with the principle of "simple is best." The packaging for the disc features an image of the Daichi family clad in their battle armor as they strike a pose in front of the Earth. The back of the cover contains a brief plot synopsis, three screens from the show,and a description of the disc's contents. The insert features a return of the cover art, as well as a chapter list. The disc's menus are all set to a still from the show's opening. The main menu is the exception, with some video playing behind a yellow filter, while a pair of shapes shake in the foreground. The overall feeling is somewhat mixed, as the choice of colors is not overly attractive, but on the flip side, the menus are fast and functional. The extras on the disc inclue a creditless opening, a pair of promotional trailers, and a production art gallery. The art gallery is a collection of thirty sketches and character designs from the show's production. The highlight of these, though, are Kawamori's mechanical designs, which are surprisingly intricate, and simply amazing to behold.

While it is not destined to be the next Arjuna, The Daichis is shaping up to be a fun series that succeeds in both off-the-wall action and realistically grounded drama. This reviewer is confident that Kawamori can deliver a series that straddles this fine line with grace.

Distributor: Geneon Entertainment
Creator: Shoji Kawamori
Released: 2004

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