A street level action-drama that’s not as grimy as it should be.
What They Say:
In a city filled with sin and scandal, the charming Worick and powerful Nicolas have made names for themselves as men who can get even the dirtiest of jobs done. Working independently, taking jobs from both the mafia and police, these unique Handymen navigate the seedy underworld of Ergastulum in style, leaving a trail of chaos behind them.
The Review:
Audio:
The audio presentation for this release brings us the original Japanese language track in stereo while the English language dub gets the 5.1 bump, both of which are encoded using the lossless Dolby TrueHD codec. The show leans more heavily on the dialogue since it doesn’t want to commit to nonstop action but it handles both side of it very well. The dialogue is very well placed throughout it as there are some really well done quiet moments, especially in terms of placement with it because of the closeness of the characters. The more outgoing dialogue pieces are fun as there’s some good directionality to be had there but it’s the action sequences where everything steps up, including the music, to make it feel like a more immersive mix overall. The fighting itself is very well handled with lots of movement that’s distinctive and fun, making for a number of very engaging scenes. Dialogue is clean and clear throughout and we didn’t have any issues with dropouts or distortions during regular playback.
Video:
Originally airing in 2015, the transfer for this TV series is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.78:1 in 1080p using the AVC codec. The twelve episodes are spread across two discs with nine on the first and three on the second. Animated by Manglobe, Gangsta works an earthy tone to it that plays up its city surroundings well, giving it that heat of the summer but without the oversaturated colors you might expect. It feels like it could be a city almost anywhere and the color design for it works really well with the browns and other shades used to it, a kind of palette that we don’t often see. The character designs also work these flat colors and that gives them a rougher look that clicks very well for and allows them to feel distinctive. The encoding captures it all in a great way with a solid look throughout and no problems such as blocking or newly introduced noise.
Packaging:
The packaging design for this limited edition release is kind of frustrating as we get a solid chipboard box that holds the two Blu-ray cases inside and then the pack-in box with the extras just shrinkwrapped against the back side of it. Normally, this is done up inside the box but it would have made the box too big, I presume, but it makes storage of items if you’re not keeping them out problematic since the spacer box – which is cool as it’s done as a cigarette box – doesn’t fit inside and is likely to get crushed sooner rather than later. The chipboard box is a nicely done piece with it being in a flat matte black with the character artwork given over to the two leads with one on each side done in rough sandy browns. Add in the blood splotches and the logo in red and it’s very distinctive.
The Blu-ray cases in the box hold the two formats separate and the layouts for each are essentially the same where the front cover has some spread legs that let us see the two leads on the Blu-ray disc while the DVD set has some of the supporting cast between the legs. The back covers mirror these as well, giving us a good look at the Japanese artwork that’s certainly distinctive. Within the case we get more of this on the right side panels while the left breaks down the episodes by number and title along with the extras.
The spacer box has some very fun extras as there are two cork coasters included with the Bastards logo on it as well as a small Paradise mint tin box. These are some nice in-theme pieces and are definitely unique perks that I don’t believe were made available to the Japanese market, which is always a welcome event.
The menu design for this release is one that works well but technically but kind of frustrates a bit visually. The general design is familiar with lots of clips playing that definitely set the tone of the show. But they’re behind a large orange logo for the show that takes up far too much space and makes the clips fairly useless in setting said tone. And then we get an oversized strip along the bottom for the navigation and that’s done in a bright red that’s almost pink tied with small selections in white. It’s such an odd color choice for this show in particular that it stands out all the more. Technically, everything moves smoothly and problem free both as the main menu and the pop-up menu as selections load quickly and everything is laid out well. But it’s just a weird mix in design aesthetically.
Extras:
The extras for this release are a bit slimmer but there are some good things to it. We get the promotional video and commercials for the original Japanese side as well as the clean opening and closing sequences. For dub fans, we get the commentary track from the leads for the first episode while they also come back to do a video commentary for the second episode that’s fun to watch. Additionally, we also get the 9.5 episode OVA that’s essentially a recap. I’m glad it’s kept to the extras as opposed to being inserted into the series like broadcast/simulcast fans had to deal with due to production delays.
Based on the manga by Kohske, Gangsta is a twelve episode anime series that aired during the summer 2015 season. The original manga kicked off in 2011 in Monthly Comic Bunch, hence it having only seven volumes as of this writing and because it went on hiatus in late 2015 due to the creators health issue, only resuming this past spring. With a localized pickup by Viz Media that’s also caught up, fans have a pretty good deal when it comes to the property as most of its main elements are available, especially now that the anime has released. Funimation gave this series the broadcast dub treatment when it came out and while there were some production issues in Japan during the broadcast that caused some delays, those digging into the show now just get to enjoy it uninterrupted and without any of the other usual “live” drama that comes with some shows.
Gangsta is a pretty tight little character drama overall that definitely appealed to me the more I dug into it, though it’s one that’s best to just talk about in the broad strokes at this stage. Taking place in the fictional town of Ergastulum, we’re introduced to two “Handymen” that do odd jobs for both the police and the mob that exists here as run by the Four Fathers in different aspects. Worick and Nic are two men that have a long history together with Nic being Worick’s bodyguard for the longest time and Worick being involved in a mafia family. Worick, for his part, left all of that behind some time ago and operates outside of the various families which allow him to exist in this gray space all while being invited to come back into the fold at any time. There’s an appeal in that, romanticized here to be sure, as he and Nic lead their lives and do what they feel is right without the usual constraints that come from working for a mafia family or getting involved by being on the police force with its rules and restrictions.
There are no surprises there in that regard and that’s good because it’s an easily accessible foundational aspect of the show. Working as a slowly developed subplot over the series is a look at both of their pasts that bring them to where they are now and the bond they share. Worick, known as Wallace before leaving the family, is somewhat underdeveloped with all of this because his path is fairly familiar and he ends up really caring for Nic along the way. Nicolas is far more engaging for two reasons. One is that he’s deaf so we get a lot of sign language and that makes for some creative scenes in how dialogue plays out and the flow of information between characters. The other is that Nic is known as a Twilight, someone who has been enhanced thanks to a drug that they require to keep living. They were useful during a dark time in the region’s history but ended up being cast off afterward, resulting in them becoming dogs under the care of mafia types. Nic’s story shows a whole lot of ups and downs, mostly downs, to be frank, for the character as he tries to survive. That ends up bonding him to Worick in those younger days and it really paints a beautiful picture of the two men in why they’re so at ease with each other in the present and simply flow so well in their work and general existence.
The show works some familiar things with the dangers of the city, the interactions of the various groups that jockey for position and power and those that seek to upend it, plus the cops as well. The Handymen have one that they work with regularly that’s pretty laid back and fun with them and I also really liked the use of the current head of the Cristiano family with Loretta, a fourteen-year-old girl that could easily be a Lady Mormont type character. She’s the one I want to see a spinoff for even though I know it would devolve into some far too predictable areas. The supporting cast is decent with a few recurring characters here and there but mostly just a series of events that play out alongside the exploration of Nin and Worrick’s past. That may keep this from feeling like it has a destination but that’s something that actually works for me as it doesn’t try to overly force things in this adaptation but rather to just be more of a solidly done character drama with some intense action sequences.
In Summary:
While there was plenty of drama around Gangsta with its delay and the impact on the animation studio behind it with them falling apart due to low sales on the release, the show itself clicked surprisingly well for me. Having not read the manga and just taking it in from this experience i found it to be engaging with its characters and their stories, a really nicely designed city that made me want to see more of this world, and some intriguing elements with the Four Fathers setup and those of the Twilight with their label as Tags and all of it. It may not click for everyone but it’s the kind of show that gets a reputation that upon seeing it you wonder why it does because you enjoyed it a whole lot. Funimation’s limited edition release has a minor problem or two for me in terms of packaging but they otherwise did a solid job with it and fans of the show should be pretty pleased by it.
Features:
Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 Language, English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 Language, English Subtitles, Episode 01 Commentary, Episode 02 Commentary, Episode 9.5, Promo Video, Commercial, Textless Opening, Closing Song
Content Grade: B
Audio Grade: B+
Video Grade: A-
Packaging Grade: A-
Menu Grade: B
Extras Grade: B
Released By: Funimation
Release Date: May 16th, 2017
MSRP: $84.98
Running Time: 300 Minutes
Video Encoding: 1080p AVC
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen
Review Equipment:
Sony KDL70R550A 70″ LED 1080P HDTV, Sony PlayStation3 Blu-ray player via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.
