".hack//SIGN" (2002) TV series

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

1 February 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

The only thing he can't do....Is log out

Plot:

A strange boy named Tsukasa appears in the online video game "The World". He claims to be alive, and without a computer.

Plot Keywords:

Multiplayer | Child In Coma | Cyberculture | RPG | Internet

Cast

Mitsuki Saiga	...	Tsukasa (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Megumi Toyoguchi	...	Mimiru (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Kazuhiro Nakata	...	Bear (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Akiko Hiramatsu	...	BT (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Kaori Nazuka	...	Subaru (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Isshin Chiba	...	Silver Knight (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Brianne Siddall	...	Tsukasa (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Amanda Winn Lee	...	Mimiru (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Paul Mercier	...	Bear (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Douglas Rye	...	Silver Knight (3 episodes, 2002-2003)
Rie Tanaka	...	Morganna (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiroshi Yanaka	...	Sora (2 episodes, 2002)
Mitsuyo Kondo	...	Grunty (2 episodes, 2002)
Kim Mai Guest	...	Subaru (2 episodes, 2002)
Valerie Arem	...	Morganna (2 episodes, 2002)
Donna Rawlins	...	BT (2 episodes, 2002-2003)

Runtime:

USA:25 min (25 episodes and 3 bonus episodes)

Country:

Japan

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color | Black and White

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:14 | South Korea:12 | Spain:7 | UK:PG (some episodes) | UK:U (some episodes) | USA:TV-Y7 | Australia:PG

Company:

Bandai Entertainment

Trivia:

As a special bonus for the fourth and final volume of the game series, Bee Train and CyberConnect2 (the companies who produced .hack//SIGN) created a bonus 29th episode entitled .hack//GIFT. In addition to a redesigned opening and a plot which features the characters from //SIGN and the games looking for a secret area called the Tasogare Onsen (Twilight Hot Springs), the episode contains radically different and cartoony designs for the characters that exaggerate their physical features.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the episode "Party" Tsukasa initially miscalculates the product of 331 and 3 in answering the second riddle. This is only in the English dub.

Quotes:

Sora: Tsukasa! Let's play red light-green light.

Movie Connections:

Spin off .hack//GIFT (2003) (V)

Soundtrack:

Obsession

A tedious work of art. 8-9/10

.hack//SIGN cannot be judged alone. This show was meant to be connected with many other forms of multimedia and many other shows. There is.hack//Liminality 4 episode series, .hack//DUSK manga and anime (a.k.a. Legend of the Twilight Bracelet), and the gaming series. Each seperate show/game/manga fills in those questions that are left by the others and you must even do some investigating yourself to fill in some of the blanks.

Standing alone, .hack//SIGN is a work of art. The scenery is amazing, the character designs are very original, and the soundtrack is mindblowing. Because the entire series takes place witin a digital world, the artists had a lot of freedom in the design of the enviroment; yet they also had the guidelines of keeping the same feeling of the enviroment in the games (.hack//Infection, Mutation, Outbreak, and Quarintine). This provided a challenge because the graphics in the games aren't exactly wonderful. But the artists pull through keeping true to the game and making an unforgetable world for us to enjoy. Anoter big challenge was to create a way to make the main characters recognizable while keeping them within design of the "extras" because the series is a game where there are skins for the players. The characters that stick out in my mind are Chrim and Mimiru. Finally, during the course of the whole series, there are very few moments where there is no music playing and whenever this happens, it is for dramatic effect. They even have a feature on the DVD to take out the dialogue and just watch the beautiful art and listen to the amazing muisc.

I don't want to talk much about the story because it is something you need to discover for yourself. All you need to know is that at times the story can drag and seem slow but all you need to do is stick with it and make sure you don't get lost in the many intellegent conversations that take place.

I HIGHLY reccomend this series espicially with taking part in the many other offered .hack media.