Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)This show has been reviewed in detailed lots of times so if you want a review of the content then you should look at the various reviews for the dvd version as the content of the 26 episodes is in fact the same. I'll concentrate on the blu-ray vs. dvd debate that is brewing up.
Now, I've been told that this show will never actually be in true hd because of the various CG(computer graphic) elements that were done in SD. In order for us to see this show in true hd they would have to go back and redo all of the CG elements that were originally done in SD. A lot of earlier shows have this problem, such as Cowboy Bebop which when this comes out in blu-ray will probably be an upscale as well. Thus, this is probably the best we will ever get. Older animation that was hand drawn was done completely on film which in fact has an infinite resolution. Computer graphics are limited to the actual resolution at which they were created at, but they can be upscaled such as in this tv show. Since this was a tv show that aired on SD originally, the computer graphics were done in SD, hence the need to redo the CG for a true HD resolution.
I've seen pictures from an upscaled DVD and from this Blu-ray and overall the Blu-ray looks better in my opinion. If you look carefully at still shots you will notice that the dnr filter used removes some of the detail in the picture. So looking closely, the DVD has just a tad more detail in certain parts. You have to remember though, that the animation style does not have a ton of detail to begin with so you will have to look really hard to see the difference in detail. The ONLY time I could really tell that the DVD had more detail was on scenes were there were large pieces of wood paneling. On the DVD you see that there is more detail on the wood where the blu-ray version slightly blurs this out because of the dnr filter used. Again, in the still shots I saw, I could only tell on the wood paneling of certain scenes. On the characters, backgrounds, etc. I could tell no difference in detail.
A lot of people REALLY miss the benefit of blu-ray in these instances though. DVD's are much more compressed than Blu-ray's in both picture and sound. That is one of the reasons why the DVD version has colors that are not as vibrant and a picture that has a lot more noise and macroblocking. So while the DVD has just a smidge more detail in certain parts, this is negated by the fact that the DVD version is highly compressed, introducing artifacts into the picture and in the process giving you a picture that is not as good as it could be.
Overall, in my opinion, this makes the much higher bitrate sound and picture in blu-ray the winner. We can complain that the show isn't in true HD, but we have to remember that unless they redo the CG parts, it probably never will be in true HD. People can cling to their DVD's and say they are the best, but they will miss the fact that the higher bitrate of blu-ray in both picture and sound give a better overall experience.
The difference between the DVD and Blu-ray isn't night and day but it is definitely noticeable. If you have neither, then the blu-ray version is the one to pick up, but if you have the DVD set already then this isn't worth picking up unless Samurai Champloo is one of your all-time great favorites, or you just have money to burn.
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For the first time ever, the buck wild samurais of the Champloo crew are carving up the competition on Blu-ray…catch the action now before the game passes you by.
Let\'s break it down. Mugen\'s a reckless sword-slinger with a style that\'s more b-boy than Shaolin. He\'s got a nasty streak that makes people want to stick a knife in his throat. Then there\'s Jin, a deadbeat ronin who speaks softly but carries a big blade. He runs game old-school style, but he can make your blood spray with the quickness. When these roughnecks bring the ruckus, it ain\'t good for anybody, especially them. Enter Fuu, the dizzy waitress who springs her new friends from a deadly jam. All she wants in return is help solving a riddle from her past. She and the boys are tracking the scent, but there\'s ninety-nine ways to die between them and the sunflower samurai.
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