Video:

I have the two disc set and the video could have been a bit more clear then it was, it's hardly noticeable at all though. Maybe because the TV I'm using isn't a flat screen? I normally notice problems for other sets on the same TV...

Audio:

Sound quality is fine. I didn't like some of the voices in the English dub but the acting it self was good.

Subtitle:

R1 ripped English subs a line dropped here and there but it's a rare thing to happen, there's always the dub as back up. There seemed to be more dropped sub lines on my jWIN DVD player then my Coby dvd player so if have a jWIN brand player beware when it comes to the subs I guess. (DVD player model numbers in comments.)

Comment:

Notes* *I watched this series on a COBY brand DVD player (DVD-224 model) with AV cable on a 25 inch RCA TV. *Also tested some a jWIN DVD player (JD-VD 136 model)

Video:

I have the two disc set, and must say that grain and pixellation show themselves quite often. That said, it's fairly minor and doesn't greatly detract from enjoyment - more of a niggle than a hardcore grievance. I also suspect that it's not-so-noticeable on a standard CRT TV.

Audio:

Standard 2.0 which is quite serviceable, with a choice of English, Japanese and Korean tracks - which I liked. Also, they retained the old Manga Video dub - very much appreciated

Subtitle:

Subtitling also in the three aforementioned languages. Verrrry well done - when on screen! There's an annoying tendency for some lines to be only partially translated (on the English subtitle track - can't speak of the others);all the more annoyingly, this seems to haoppen at crucial moments in the story. Nevertheless, a very well-done job for the most part.

Comment:

I love this series - it has the perfect blend of action, drama and character insight which makes a great show (anime and otherwise). Whilst a nod to the campy feel of yesterday's sci-fi, Giant Robo contains more complexity and intruging elements than one may first think! The extras on the second disc prove interesting viewing (despite only - for the most - having Korean subtitles).

Video:

I've read all the other reviews of this set, and I can't help but wonder if this is the same set I've got. Mine is a MAC set, code MA231, yet it only has 2 DVDs and the picture has lots of pixellation and grain! This is the worst MAC set I have seen so far. There is a load of action in this OVA, which doesn't help matters. EDIT- I've now added 10 screenshots so you can judge for yourself. It looks worse when seen animated.

Audio:

However bad the video is, I cannot fault the sound. And on this set you get the opportunity to listen to it in English, Japanese and Korean.

Subtitle:

You get three subs- English, Japanese and Korean, which spookily matches the audio options. Ain't that weird!!! I think there were just a couple of missed lines...nothing too major.

Comment:

I've got mixed feelings about this set. The video wasn't so great, with all its VERY visible pixellation. However, I just loved this little series- lots of great robotic action. And it was really well animated too! And this set seems to have been redone to remove the disc with all the extras on (I don't really care that much about extras.) Where the heck can I get a better copy? R1???

Video:

Very clean and sharp picture. I don't think there is R1 release of Robo on DVD so maybe its from an R3 DVD set or LD set.

Audio:

The audio was very good- no audible problems.

Subtitle:

The subtitles were absolutely perfect EXCEPT for the few (3 or 4 maybe) times when they didnt show up. This is a little upsetting because the parts where the subtitle are missing are usually important ones. But that is not a big loss since you can also watch the set dubbed in English and I thought the dubbing was good. Also most of the extra stuff on disc 3 is not subtitled.

Comment:

This is a 3 disc set with all of the ova episodes on 2 discs and a 3rd disc for extra stuff. Sadly the extra stuff is not subtitled but luckily a good amount of the extra stuff does not need to be translated to be enjoyed (in my opinion). Giant Robo is one of my favorite ova series ever. Its got a great plot and great action and is in the spirit of classic bulky robot shows but with much more plot depth and mature characterizations. The animation is very good for its time and the soundtrack is unbelievable. Highly recommended.

Video:

In one word: PERFECT!!!!! That describe this set.

Audio:

The sound is really good with no problem at all.

Subtitle:

They are very well synchronised with the character changes, there is no mistakes in them. The only problem is then on 90% of the 3rd disc(Which is only a documentaries disc), all the features are in Japanese subtitled in Korean. Too Bad.

Comment:

I Bought my set directly from MAC and this set is now in English Dub and Japanese. Giant Robo is one of the best mini-serie I ever watched. There was supposed to be a sequel called "The siege of Babel", but the conceptors have made an alternate sequel called "Babel: The second" which is also a great anime mini-serie. Both a must have.

Video:

Video quality in this set is gorgeous... I freeze frame checked a few scenes with a lot of stuff on the screen and couldn't spot any pixellation. Real nice stuff.

Audio:

You have English, Japanese, and Korean dubs for your listening pleasure, all in synch and in stereo for your listening enjoyment. The soundtrack, by the way, is heavenly.

Subtitle:

Grr... Considering that there's only about one or two lost lines of subtitling per episode I wouldn't dock it a whole star normally, but in the final episode there are about three lost lines and they're all REALLY IMPORTANT, necesitating you to rewind and put on the english dub to hear what's being said. Overall, however, the subs are quite nice. There's a gramatical error here and there, and occasionally (I think I saw it ONCE) the last letter of one word is put on the beginning of the next. Furthermore, occasionally different character's lines will be separated by a "/". Overall, aside from the ocassional unsubbed line, the subtitles are of very high quality, with big, bold white text outlined with black.

Comment:

Package: The packaging is very high quality, with a nice gorgous printing all over the inside of the gatefold. Amusingly, it says "The Amination" instead of "The Animation" on the packaging. There's a lot of Korean text on the front and back of the case as well, as the art (and disc content) were taken from the Korean release of Giant Robo. Menus: The menus are nice and simple, and fortunately in English for the actual show discs. You have music from the series playing in the background, so you feel a bit like you're storming an enemy castle battlements while you're picking your subtitles of choice :p Extras: Hm. The entire third disc of this set is devoted to extras, including what seems to be about seven different trailers in different languages (including korean, japanese, english, french?, italian?, not so sure about the last two), live videotapings of music recordings, clips of korean VAs overdubbing the series (lots of screams. It's pretty funny), some interviews, and crew and character information. Unfortunately, everything is in Korean; subtitles and text both. So you probably wont be able to understand most of it. Still, the live orchestra videos are neat. Series comments: Wow. During the last half of this 7 episode OVA all I could think was "orgy of destruction." Only in this OVA could you have both giant robots, magic, and ninjas all rolled into one non-stop visual feast. The story itself is quite poignant and enjoyable, with an ending that'll have you thinking more along the lines of a greek tragedy than your typical giant robot anime. There's a lot left open by the end of the series, but the main plot is nicely, if not happily, wrapped up by its conclusion. Overall, an action fan's wet dream, and a great story to boot. Check it out.

Video:

Superb detail in both the bright and dark scenes. This is as good as it gets for picture quality.

Audio:

I listened to a bit of the Japanese track just to check it out and the sound is perfect. I ended up watching the majority of the series with the English audio track while the subtitles were running. The two translations are drastically different to the point where some major story points come across very differently. I'd have to say that I prefer the translation for the dubs over the subs (which are decent but still have a lot of room for improvement). The voice acting isn't totally horrible for the dubs either. It's just a few characters that have really irritating voice actors. Fortunately, they die.

Subtitle:

There are one or two dropped subs between the two discs. they are very easy to read and have decent grammar. My biggest complaint about them comes after listening to the translation used for the dubs and realizing how much better they could have been.

Comment:

This is one of the nicest HK packages I've ever seen. The quality of the printing is astounding for both the gatefold and the discs themselves. The third disc in the set is entirely additional material without any English translations. It does seem to have a Korean audio track and subs for those who either Korean or Japanese. For the content, I love the retro styling to the characters and the quality of the animation is breath taking. The originality of the characters in the series is only rivaled by Ninja Scroll and Read Or Die. Watching everybody jump around like super ninjas with special powers is a lot of fun. About the only thing I could ask for would be more robot fight scenes. Other than that, this is a really fun series to watch and I highly recommend it.

Video:

This set of Giant Robo appears to be a direct rip of the Korean DVDs and looks spectacular. No noticable pixelation of any kind, and no frames within frames. Everything is clear and crisp.

Audio:

You have the option to choose either Japanese, English, or Korean audio for this set, and I only watched the Japanese version, but I spot-checked the other two audio tracks and they seem to all be similarly clear and loud. No problems here.

Subtitle:

The weakness of the previous Giant Robo set was its horrible, incomprehensible subtitles. Thankfully, that has been resolved here for the most part. There are some minor grammatical errors every once in a while, and a line is skipped about once a disk but otherwise, the subtitles are great on this set.

Comment:

Giant Robo reminds me a lot of Read or Die in terms of sheer fun factor, not the deepest of anime, but just plain fun to watch. Manga has the rights to the Region 1 version, but I think it's in development hell on DVD, so buy this set without reservation.