The Alter hunt has begun and HOLY is on a rampage. No Alter users are safe in HOLY'S campaign against native Alter users in this second volume of s-CRY-ed. In this volume, Kazuma takes viewers on an adrenaline-fueled trip that travels all the way from the wastelands of the Lost Ground to the very bowels of HOLY itself as he attempts to settle his disputes with HOLY and Ryuho once and for all.

Overall, this second volume was a strong showing that carried the momentum generated by the first volume quite well. The overall flow of the story continues to progress fairly smoothly even with the continual shift in perspective between Kazuma and Mimori. Instead of making the entire series feel "broken," this approach has managed to actually make the series seem more whole, fleshing out both sides of the story, rather than designating the traditional "do-gooder" and "evil-doer." Several of the episodes in this volume seemed to further blur these lines, as Kazuma's infiltration of HOLY provides an interesting third view of the situation: that of the outsider. A third party is literally watching the entire progression of this odd change of view, bringing viewers along for the ride. The episodes that follow this rather unique foray into the outsider's view of the action are rather generic, but still have a certain flair to them. I couldn't help but elicit a small chuckle at the clever jabs that were made against other fighting anime shows, and even sentai series of the past.

Behold! The master of fate is... a fool with a pink afro wig.	Meet Super Pinch Crusher: a living parody of the sentai genre.

Technically, this volume takes a huge step up from the previous. The video is clean, with no cross-coloration or rainbows. There are no cases of artifacting, macroblocking, or aliasing, either. The shimmer from the first volume has been corrected, leaving the final product looking wonderful. The audio has also improved, as there are no dropouts or distortions on either track. The stereo mix proves to be effective once again in expressing the aural part of the world of s-CRY-ed.

Following what seems to be the ideal of "more is more no matter what everybody tells you," Bandai has managed to collect another interesting selection of extras. The five textless openings return once again, as each episode's opening changes to fit the theme of the series thus far. The Lost Ground Express returns to give viewers another taste of the Lost Ground and its unique inhabitants. The Design Gallery is back, complete with the encyclopedic information about each of the featured subjects that sets these galleries apart from the standard slide shows. A subtitled Japanese promotional clip and a preview for the first episode rest comfortably into the extras slot, offering an intriguing look into how the Japanese marketed the series. Two character videos (which feature HOLY and Kazuma) round out the "usual" extras. The most unorthodox bonus on the disc would have to be the "Sound Comic," which is a video of the manga that is accompanied by sound effects and acting. While quirky, the Sound Comic proves to be quite possibly the most unique bonus feature I've seen on a DVD this year.

The packaging focuses more on the HOLY end of the story, with an image of a thoughtful Ryuho, a pensive Shiris, and a distraught Mimori. The back features several images from the disc, as well as a description of the disc's contents. The DVD insert contains English credits for the disc and a small collection of weapon and vehicle designs.

The second volume of s-CRY-ed matches the pace that the first volume has set, and continues to run with it. The contrasting tones of Mimori's and Kazuma's stories continue to exist in an odd, yet intriguing parallel that seem to be approaching an inevitable merge. I am highly anticipating the third volume, if only to see what will happen next.

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