Review by Alex Irish

For Pokemon fans, many only are familiar with the english adaptions of the famed Movie series. The first five movies, for example, are love it-hate it experiences, as dubbed by 4Kids Entertainment. The movies have been released in the U.S. in theatres, yes. But on DVD, they were transfered into 4:3 aspect ratio, English-audio only, and sometimes picture-quality issues. Now, there's this Pikachu the Movie Box Set (discontinued since, sadly.) In this deluxe package are the first five Pocket Monsters Movies, unaltered and uncut. They include their 16:9 picture, original audio, and even content missing from their western counterparts. Also included are the first three Pikachu mini-movies, also unaltered. As a bonus, perhaps, the first three features and their shorts include the English audio. On top of all this, the set includes replicas of each film's pamphlet originally handed out in Japanese theatres! Along with it's second box set counterpart (films 6-9), this is the must-have DVD release of the year!

If you had already purchased the Pikachu the Movie box set of the first five films, this will complement it perfectly. This seminal volume continues the Pokemon film series with entries 6 thru 9. Several included films are often regarded as the best entires in the celebrated series, so you're in for a treat with popular titles as 'Myuu to Hadou no Yuusha Lucario' and 'Nanayo no Negai Hoshi Jiraachi'. Just like the first volume, these movies are presented in their original state: 16:9, Japanese audio, and all of the content left as-is. And this set around, there are next-to-no picture problems. Also included are replicas of each film's Theatrical pamphlet, and the last 3 mini-movies. Wrapping things up is a special disc with trailers from each of the first ten movies, from 'Mewtwo' to 'Darkrai'. Though the lack of an in-depth 'making of' feature stings, considering the importance of this release. The set has a blank space big enough to house the DVD of the tenth movie, which was released in Dec. 2007 in Japan. This set, like the first, is a great value, and a must-have DVD collection.