Michiko & Hatchin - Complete Series - S.A.V.E. [Blu-ray]

Michiko & Hatchin is a 2008 anime series created and directed by Sayo Yamamoto (Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine) and the now defunct Manglobe Studio. Shinichiro Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo) served as its producer. This is an amazing anime and brilliant directorial debut by Yamamoto.Summary:The show revolves around the ill-tempered and ill-mannered Michiko Malandro and the cunning and more respectful Hana or "Hatchin" as Michiko calls her. The series starts with Michiko breaking out of prison and forciblely rescuing (read kidnapping) presumed daughter Hatchin from her abusive foster family. After some arguing and fighting, the two take to the road across a fictitious South American country in search of Hiroshi Morenos; Michiko's lost and presumed dead lover and Hana's possible father.The Show:This is a great show, so I don't want to go into spoilers so I will use generals. The anime has a great cast of charactera both from the recurring pool and the one off pool. All the characters are varied and always entertaining from Atsuko, a proud police officer and former childhood friend of Michiko, to an unhinged sociopathic gangster, to an illusionist co-artist doctor, and so many more. Episodes themselves run the gambit; with some being zany adventures, others non-stop action, and others filled with real chilling drama. The first serious arc, the two part 'The Saudade of Fools', ends with a succession of really intense and emotional scenes made even more thrilling by the great acting and animation. And as intense as that episode was the series isn't all dour; there are many just as good funny moments as well. It's great!Audio:Japanese or English? Want to you understand? Because both are excellent. I've watched this series both in Japanese and English and it's phenomenal in both languages. Every voice actor fits their character and gives fantastic performances on top. This is an A+ sub and dub. Special mention to the actresses who play Hatchin (probably the most complex character in the show) in both languages as they truly capture her subtleties and all the facets of her being.The music in the series is great. Being produced by Shinichiro Watanabe really shows with music playing a big part of the show. Brazilian musician Alexandre Kassin was brought in to compose the series and it gives it an authentic feel.Visuals:The visuals of the show look great with many different environments all beautiful realizing this fictional Brazilian world from densely packed cities to dirty ghettos to jungle villages to misty islands and more. And not just that, but the characters are just as varied and detailed. Many characters wear different outfits throughout, with Michiko changing her attire multiple times within some episodes. Another highlight are the facial animations. They convincingly display a wide array of emotions. The action scenes are great too; often being fast, fluid, and well choreographed.Extras:Funimation's Save pack includes a decent array of extra including: Episode commentaries for the first two and last two episodes, some Featurettes, and the obligatory previews.Con?:Nothing major. I would have liked some more extras, but for the price you get a nice set of extras. In the second half of the series there are some drops in animation quality, but nothing that's a deal breaker. It usually happens in the more humorous side bits.Overview:Honestly, I could praise this series all day and write something triple this length. I absolutely cannot recommend this series enough! With great production values, amazing characters, style that won't stop, and a nice price there is no reason not to try this phenomenal series.

There hasn't been an anime I've watched that's stuck to me like this before. If you haven't given this show a watch, I highly recommend it. It's got an outstanding soundtrack, a compelling narrative to follow, and characters within that narrative that bring so much to it.I could write a super long review for the show itself that'd be several paragraphs long but I'm saving that all for a video. What I do want to mostly dedicate this review to is the product itself.This is a 4 disc Blu-Ray set consisting of all the discs from the Part 1 and 2 releases of the show that came out before. If you're wanting to buy the show all in one go, this is the best option, seeing as how it is around $25 as opposed to paying around $50 or so for two individual releases. So with that in mind, this has absolutely nothing special added onto it despite being a complete series set. You get every special feature the Part 1 and 2 releases had and nothing else, which is a shame. Though, considering that this is supposed to be a set made to be sold at a price that isn't too high, I can see why nothing new was added.Still, the special features you get in the discs are pretty neat regardless. It was nice to get some perspective on the production from those who worked on both the sub and dub when there's such a scarce amount of info out about the show due its obscurity. It just would've been nice to get some more, but what I got is satisfying enough.All in all, this is a solid release for an outstanding show that doesn't get enough love. If you're a fan wanting to own the show physically or even someone wanting to watch it for the first time, this set is worthy of a purchase.

After seeing clips and pics from this show I finally bit the bullet and bought it. It's so much better and different from what I was expecting. I originally expected a ratchet woman just going on crazy adventures with the skill of Spike Spiegel and her trademark mouth.Instead it's a coming of age story for Hatchin (the little girl) combined with a story of a woman needing closure but seeking something that she once had and ending up with a bit of personal growth as well.The series is very stylish and it's mostly well told, but felt like it cut itself short at times. There are a couple of side plotlines that stop sort of abruptly or have conclusions that were definitely not expected.I'd still recommend this bluray. The picture and sound is beautiful and if you're not extremely discerning, the digital version that you can redeem from funimation with this version is dang near the same quality. I watched the bluray on a 4k tv with a One X that I ended up switching to streaming on since I didn't want to swap to the last disc when I was finishing this up.

Despite the fact that our heroine is a scantily clad, semi literate escaped convict this anime is a very bold feminist statement. In a country eerily similar to Brazil (where all the street signs seem to be in Portugese) Michiko Milandro escapes from a maximum security prison to kidnap a girl whom she claims as her daughter whom she wishes to reunite with Hiroshi, her scoundrel of a father who abandoned her. While searching for the elusive Hiroshi Michiko must evade corrupt police, a determined criminal syndicate, various small time hoods, lascivious married men, a Chinese triad, the common cold, a determined police detective who was a childhood friend and most of all a miniature adult named Hana (Hat-chin) who proves to be the most formidable of all. The Japanese cast is EXCELLENT as is the dub. It's a mother and child version of Thelma & Louise meet Crosby and Hope and definitely worth watching.