Blue Dragon Vol. 1

Product Description Blue Dragon, Vol. 1 (DVD) Amazon.com Blue Dragon (2007) boasts an impressive pedigree: it's based on the Xbox 360 game supervised by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, and features original character designs by Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball Z.. Blue Dragon is set in a world where certain warriors are Shadow Wielders, capable of commanding powerful monsters. Shu, the 10-year-old hero of this fantasy adventure, aspires to become a great warrior, although his friend Kluke keeps his ego in check. When the forces of evil king Nene attack their village, Shu and Kluke meet the skilled fighter Zola and her apprentice Jiro. Zola recognizes Shu's ability to summon the Blue Dragon, an extremely powerful shadow beast. He becomes her second apprentice. Kluke decides to journey with them, as does another Shadow Wielder, the elfin Marumaro. The plot requires a lot of exposition, and the story feels like it was assembled from pieces of other series. The hyperactive Shu resembles a mixture of Gohan in Dragon Ball and Simon in Gurran Lagann--after a triple espresso. Kluke, who loves weapons and robots, feels like a mixture of Bulma and Winry from Fullmetal Alchemist. Blue Dragon is not a particularly original series, but it will please fans of the Xbox game. (Rated A: All Ages: suitable for ages 8 and older: violence, minor toilet humor) --Charles Solomon (1. The Shadow Comes Forth, 2. A Fateful Decision, 3. Shu and Jiro: Rivals in Training, 4. A Member of the Deevee Tribe, 5. Front-Line Base Assault)