A friend of mine kindly gave me a set of DVDs with the entire 26 episodes of the Guin Saga anime which I have never seen and he was raving about it being one of the best made epic fantasy anime series ever made. So I watched it. Actually watched it twice. Once in English as the dubbing was excellent; and once in the original Japanese.

• Guin Saga Episode 1

OverviewMost people know Nobuo Uematsu for his works on the Final Fantasy series, but since his departure from Square Enix, he has written a lot of other scores. While he is most known for the mainly for the Mistwalker RPGs, Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey, he has also contributed a rock score to Lord of Vermilion and a jazz soundtrack to Anata o Yurusanai. Most recently, he was also responsible for the score to the anime, Guin Saga. Although he once contributed some pieces to Final Fantasy Unlimited and Ah! My Goddess alongside Shiro Hamaguchi, this is his first solo anime score to date.

Consider I haven't been particularly thrilled with his music since his departure from Square Enix, how does this one turn out. That was my initial reaction to the opening theme, 'Grand Opening - The Thread of Fate.' While I bought this album on a whim, due to liking the samples I heard on the promotional site for the soundtrack, this was not included. Fully orchestrated, the opening theme manages to capture an air of regality, yet without sounding intrusive with harsh instrumentation. It appears to be the work of new orchestrator Tsutomu Narita, who surpasses Hiroyuki Nakayama's efforts on the Mistwalker RPGs in every way.

The lovely harp opening, the fluttering woodwind passages, and the elegant string work makes this piece simply superb and it has to be one of my favorite Uematsu themes in recent years.Secondly, I should mention 'Guin's Theme'. In all fairness, this theme seems highly influenced by the main theme to Lost Odyssey, though it is also its own beast for the most part. The instrumentation in this theme is quite effective. There is a strong focus on brass, strings, and percussion. Hints of choir are also added into the mix, giving the entire theme a more heroic feel. In addition there are quite a few other character themes.

To portray another major character, 'Rinda's Theme - The Pearl of Parros' is a lovely composition that varies as it progresses. At times, it offers a more melancholy sound, while during others, it features a more classical oriented and brighter outlook.Remus has two themes. 'Remus' Theme - Sun Collector' is a very playful woodwind theme that tends to sound a bit more serious as it progresses. The other, 'Remus' Theme - Solitude's Shadow' sounds a bit more like chamber music and features darker passages at times. It's a nice contrast between his first theme's soundscape. The character, Istavan, also has two themes.

'Istavan's Theme - Main Theme,' has a slightly heroic sound with a focus on strings and brass, whereas 'Istavan's Theme - Where is the Light?' Sounds a bit more mysterious.

Rather than the regal strings and brass, it features more simplified instrumentation and is quite barebones. I really don't enjoy this version that much. There are other character themes, ranging from the bright 'Suni's Theme - The Angel of Nospherus' to the intense 'Skarl's Theme,' which features some fantastic percussion and a nice ethnic vibe.Included on the second disc is the Mongaul Suite. Broken into four short themes, it offers a bit of insight into the events regarding the Mongauls, who I assume are enemies. The first, 'Obsessed with the Sight of Tigers,' is a dark, militaristic piece that utilizes percussion and somber strings and piano sections. The second, 'Sortie,' is much more action-oriented, featuring militaristic percussion and string work.

It's pretty repetitive, but there are some interesting additions as it progresses, such as the woodwind flourishes and the switch to a brass melody. In sharp contrast, 'The Rose of Mongaul' is a very beautiful piano, woodwind, and strings piece that seems to have a slight 'Guin's Theme' influence in it. It's probably the best of the four-part suite, but unfortunately it's also one of the shortest.

Lastly, 'Advance of the Crimson Scorpions,' reverts back to the frenetic, action packed theme found in 'Sortie'. Militaristic in nature, it offers an oppressive atmosphere, but I don't find it entirely effective. All in all, the suite has some ups and downs.Lastly, I'll mention some of the softer themes. 'Peace of the Chamber of the Mound' is perhaps one of the most beautiful themes on the entire soundtrack. The piano led melody, with accompanying woodwind and strings passages, ensures a very calming and extremely pleasing piece. 'Out-of-Reach Feelings' is another piano and strings based composition.

It's peaceful at times, climaxing to something more heroic, before dying down to a soft, beautiful piano passage that leads to another orchestral flourish. The soundtrack ends with 'Hope'. This piece is utterly beautiful.

A soft theme featuring choir, it manages to convey emotions that the title invokes, yet at the same time, it manages to stir up feelings of nostalgia. It's a fantastic way to end the soundtrack, and subsequently this review. SummaryGuin Saga Original Soundtrack was Nobuo Uematsu's first major anime score. While there are some expected filler tracks, given it is a soundtrack for a televised media, there are also quite a few gems, from the opening theme to the more peaceful ones, and much in between. The orchestration quality has vastly improved since Lost Odyssey and the soundtrack has higher production values overall. It's definitely worth a listen and I found it more enjoyable than Blue Dragon, but it won't be everybody's cup of tea. Still, it should appeal to those interested in the more epic and cinematic side of Nobuo Uematsu's versatile musicality.

Here you can freely listen to preview tracks from GUIN SAGA ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK. Album was composed by and was released on June 24, 2009. Soundtrack consists of 42 tracks tracks with duration over more than hour.

Album was released by.Tracks preview provided by iTunes. If you like GUIN SAGA ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK, we strongly recommend to buy it. Support composers, artists and performers so they can release more music in the future. Prices and shops where you can buy it are at the right column.

CD 1 1Grand Opening - The Thread of Fate05:062Guin's Theme03:073Border Forest02:414Taut Bowstring02:355Visit02:576Reluctance to Part at Sunset02:297Rinda's Theme - The Pearl of Parros02:558Remus's Theme - Sun Collector02:019Infinite Time and Space02:2010Decisive Battle03:1111Peace of the Chamber of the Mound03:1612Istavan's Theme - Main Theme02:2213Istavan's Theme - Where is the Light?01:4414Suni's Theme - The Angel of Nospherus02:1315Sympathy02:1116muscle!

AKA: グイン・サーガGenre: Medieval Fantasy.Length: Television series, 26 episodes, 24 minutes eachDistributor: R1 DVD fromContent Rating: TV-14 (Violence, mature themes.)Related Series: N/AAlso Recommended: Record of Lodoss Wars, Utawarerumono.Notes: Based on the novel series by the late Kurimoto Kaoru, who passed away in 2009. There are also two manga works based on different parts of the novel series.Rating:Guin Saga SynopsisTheir kingdom under attack by the Mongauli forces, the twins Rinda and Remus are escorted out of the castle, but are immediately confronted by Mongauli soldiers. However, they are rescued by a huge man with a leopard head who calls himself Guin.

(Which is also just about all he remembers.) The three set out on a journey to bring the twins to safety.ReviewAnd that's barely even the beginning of the anime, much less the full novel series, of which the anime covers about sixteen volumes of the full 130 volume series, which should give some indication of the sheer scope of this series. It's one of the few that truly earns the term 'epic' when it comes to the content, more so the sheer scope of it all. Comparisons have already been made to fantasy fare like Conan the Barbarian or Lord of the Rings, which is certainly not unfitting.

For anime, titles like Record of Lodoss Wars would probably be a suitable comparison.Guin Saga is also very stylistically pure, which is both its greatest strength and its main weakness. Instead of broadening its audience, the show keeps to a rather set tone, which will probably alienate as many as it enthralls. It's not an overly flashy show - magic effects aren't abundant - but the character designs are clear, imaginitive and distinct; you won't ever mistake one character for another.

And the settings are spectacular, to say the least. The animation is generally good, given that this is a TV series, but it's here you'll find some of the show's limitations. Shameful as it is, not all episodes will look as great as the opening episode. The CG, however, looks great whenever it's in use; a far stretch from the hilariously clumsy CG usage for the war scenes in Utawarerumono.The music certainly suits the show to a tee, and the dub. The dub is a mixed bag, and perhaps the only part I would honestly call disappointing.

Mixed, though, because the voice actors for most of the main characters - Remus, Rinda and Guin in particular - do a fine job, but some of the later characters sound less than spectacular. (And not just because they speak in ye olde fantasy language.

Forsooth.)Some of the plot elements might have some people rolling their eyes. The kingdom of the main characters, Remus and Rinda was overrun by enemy forces, and they are saved by a large barbarian-like man, you say? But oh, no, our friends' forces are beset with enemy forces far superior. Oh, I wonder if reinforcements will arrive in the nick of time. But to get their help, our main hero must fight the village's mightiest warrior to prove himself worthy.

Guin Saga is this and more, and you certainly have to be in the mood for that sort of thing. Confoundedly enough, the more interesting parts tend to come later, when political intrigue enters the equation. This is unfortunately also where the bad parts of the dub does its darnedest to prevent you from taking it seriously.Remus is also very likely to get on your nerves at some point, being the whiny brat that he is. Also, Istavan (the dashing rogue, natch) immediately takes a liking to Rinda, which is a little bit unsettling, given that she looks like a prepubescent girl. But then, political marriages is as much a part of this as anything else, and he's not the only one with an eye for Rinda, and for ambiguous purposes at that.Outside of that, there's little to complain about.

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Guin Saga Episode 1

The show knows its target audience and gives them exactly what they want and then some. Guin himself is a collection of mysteries and questions, while Remus and Rinda provides the show with a clear goal. The rest of the cast, much like a pyramid system of allegiances, fleshes out and gives life to the world around them all, and the show's end marks itself as merely a beginning of a larger story. This will, of course, be another selling point, but Guin Saga deserves to be watched, even if it may never be completed in animated form.

Even if many of the questions you have aren't even close to being answered, and alliances seems to have shifted on a moment's notice. (I guess Guin must have missed that memo.) When it comes down to it, there's just so much to see and experience in Guin Saga that I doubt anyone will really be disappointed with it.So. Four or five stars? That's the question, isn't it? I guess the occasional corniness of the dialogue or plot, and the annoyance over the ending being of the 'really just the beginning' variety is what's going to influence whether you think this is a three, four or a five star show.I liked it quite a lot, and I would love to see this being continued. —Recommended Audience: Like any sword and sorcery fantasy, expect a whole lot of redskirt death. The show isn't particularly grotesque, but human life is often cheap and taken away on a moment's notice.

Fanservice is relatively light, limited to cleavages on display in the glamour of high life.Version(s) Viewed: R1 DVD, bilingualReview Status: Full (26/26)Guin Saga © 2009 Satelight / Aniplex© 1996-2015 THEM Anime Reviews. All rights reserved.