h- .hack//Legend of the Twilight (Vol. 2)

Story
Alright, If you bought Vol. 1 then this is the disk you've really been waiting for, As I said in my Vol. 1 review; Episodes 2-4 really only introduce new characters and don't provide much in moving the story along. Well that all comes to a halt with Vol. 2. Shugo's sister, Rena, is data drained in episode 5 and falls into a coma in the real world. Naturally at this point the gang starts to sense that things are going wrong with The World. Their suspisions are verified when Balmung and Sanjuro reveal their own past and the truth behind The World. Shugo and Co. decide to fight to save Rena but a mysterious group of hackers and CC Corp itself is out to stop him. Its every party for themselves as chaos rains down upon The World.

Sound
I've already expressed my dislike of Rena's VA, oh sure, her performance is spot on. I just don't think the voice fits the body all that well. The rest of the VAs are great though so I guess I shouldn't complain.

Sound effects are also great in this installment. From the sound of clothes moving as charaters move to the awesome data drain sound effect (I just love that sound), you can't help but notice the amount of detail from the sound department for this series.

Animation
Movements are very fluid, but thats usually common among this type of anime. To be honest at some points the animation really shines and at others it... well, doesn't. Again, great work on the data drain effects though. Man that data drain looks cool. I am also impressed with the massive amount of background art that went into this series. Its all pretty nicely detailed. Overall, animation is good but don't expect anything ground-breaking here.

But is there an LE Disk?
No.
Its disappointing but there isn't really much they could've squeezed in here that would warrant an LE purchase anyway.

Extras
Character Art Gallery
Yes that's all.
Pretty pathetic.
Now I have to fill up this space with useless banter.
Like so.

Overall
I like this series. As I have stated it does have its faults, but I still enjoyed watching it. Even though the story does take a more serious turn in this installment it still manages to stay pretty darn funny without distracting from the plot or feeling "out of place."

.hack fans will definately want to pick this up.
I give it 4 stars. (8 out of 10)

Added: August 31st 2004
Reviewer: XenoSabre
Score:
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