Bandai, Lucky Star, Vol. 1 [DVD]

When I first laid eyes on Lucky Star, I really had no idea what I was watching. From the obscure yet (amazing!) opening theme, questions will rise to the head very quickly as you try to assume what this series is made of. Of course, as I watched Lucky Star, I grew more and more into it, and so first impressions affected me no longer. Set to the everyday lives of four Highschool girls, Lucky Star is a comedy anime which questions the aspects of everything. Each episode is composed of multiple short scenes (like Peanuts or Garfield) in which they talk about or refer to specific subjects (commonly refering to pop culture), and many times you find that you can relate to what they are talking about, this is why I enjoyed it so much. There are tons of referances to other anime and videogames, and this is why I assume it gained popularity so quickly as it was dubbed the most popular anime of 2007 in Japan. However, I can foresee that the English version might not appeal to as many viewers, probably because many of the jokes and subjects that are popular in Lucky Star pertain to the Japanese culture. Of course this doesn't mean that casual anime fans will dislike the show, as I know people who do not even watch anime who loved the show. Yet, I believe very few people know what it is so far, and so its possible only the huge anime fans will know it even exists. I've heard that the English voice cast was good, and I look forward to discovering exactly how good they are. I was incredibly pleased with the Japanese cast, as Hirano Aya did a flawless job on Konata Izumi, the main character.I also hear that the manga is coming to America; under Tokyo Pop. This I really look forward to, as the manga was done in 4-panel comic strips throughout each volume, and has the same comedy from the show, if not better. Keep a lookout for it!All in all, I believe that people who find the series will enjoy it, Lucky Star kind of has something for everyone. However, I will admit that the first episode can be a bad first impression, and in my opinion I found that after that episode, the series escalates into a great show. The characters are designed well, the humor is fresh, the animation is well done, and despite american appeal, I believe it has surprises in store for any anime fan. 5/5

I am immensely impressed with the delivery time as at first before it shipped out it estimated that it would be delivered a week later; instead, the date changed to two days after being shipped! Barely one day after I ordered the item too!You must have already have made your mind up about the show otherwise you wouldn't be buying something Limited Edition, right? So let me review the product overall:The art box is absolutely wonderful with amazing quality. My boyfriend had to open it for me because I was so entranced with admiration, when I finally got to dissecting the box of goodies I found the true to its XL size T-shirt all neatly wrapped up, two CD's that contain four tracks on each (one is based on the opening song/ knee-socks remix with off-vocal tracks too, while the other CD features sung in a horribly cute manner by the much loved otaku, Konata), the DVD containing the first four episodes with a drawn picture of Kagami in her shrine outfit by Konata as the cover, and of course the adorable pun widely known by lucky star fans: the chocolate cornet shaped screen-wiper. In my package everything besides the t-shirt was in its original plastic wrap.I love EVERYTHING that came in the box, but the size of chocolate cornet was a tad disappointing. It's actually a tiny plush with the cloth (screen wipe) with Lucky Star printed on it folded neatly with a cell phone string attached to it, and that string is threaded through the top of the cornet plush. Essentially one could take out the cloth, put it somewhere memorable and have the cornet sitting in a cute place such as on top of a desk.Despite my finickiness of the cornet, the price of the product, the product itself, and the shipping: Excellent.If you're a Lucky Star fan, why are you hesitating to buy this limited edition? It's completely worth it for such a great price!

so i chose to buy the LE instead of the box set because, 1. the box set was 39.99 and the LE averaged around $10 apiece. 2. the LE comes with A LOT of cool stuff. this vol is by far the best by way of extras. it comes with the dvd, t-shirt (summer uniform), 2 cds, a lucky star screen wipe, and a chocolate cornet plushy. so if you buy the 5 vols of the LE and the 6th SE at around 10 bucks apiece, your only paying 20 dollars more and you get 5 shirts and some cds. sounds good to me.as for my order...it was a lot better than i was expecting. the box (one of the best parts) was really well made, and magnetically seals closed. the art on the box is really nice, and the product description on the back peals off to reveal more. the cds really only have 2 songs each, which is kind of sad. the shirt is XL, but since you probably wont want to where it out in public too much, it shouldnt matter if its a little too big. the cornet is a little smaller than i expected, but in the end its good because im going to attach it to my keys. the dvd comes with a page that explains the cultural and obscure references made in the show.if your a fan of the show, you'll be very happy. if your just getting into it, its a cool and cheap way to see if you like it. if you don't like the show your probable insane and should seek help.that's all for me.