 |
Title |
| Pocket Monsters: Arceus: To a Conquering Space-Time - Music Collection |
| International Title |
| Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life |
| Music By: Shinji
Miyazaki |
| Record Label:
Media Factory |
| |
|
| Running Time: 53:50 |
Discs: 1 |
| Release: August 2009 |
CD Number: ZMCP-4912 |
|
| Comments |
 |
Anthony
Romero |
 |
|
|
First,
thanks goes to Jessica Stan for sending this in for
review!
The soundtrack for the 13th Pokémon film is an okay release, but a slight let down as it certainly is not packing the action motifs one would expect given the movie finally wraps up the Dialga-Giratina-Palkia warfare for the three film trilogy. That's not to say it's a bad score, in fact the CD is fairly even efforted, but a middle of the road entry for the franchise all the same.
The biggest fault of the score is that it's lacking in memorable cues outside of the usual suspects. Those usual suspects being the always good title theme, in this case "Title Theme 2009", and the Avant themes, which are kind of a second calling card for the theatrical films by this stage in the franchise. The reused theme for "Giratina" is also nice at points, being a little alien at the start before paying off and gets a few points for being different enough from the other theme to stand out. The rest of the score doesn't so much as have poor cues, in fact it's a fairly even effort from the composer, as much as it's lacking in the stand out area. Themes like "The Day of the Solar Eclipse" and "16 Plates" are okay, but do little to stir the imagination while listening to them and sadly too much of the soundtrack falls into that same category to the point the score is forgettable.
Weaknesses aside, there are some decent new themes on this release. For example, the rather simple "Journey ~ Antenna of the Heart ~" is a soothing, full orchestra piece, as is the slightly majestic "Jewel of Life".
The score does net one nice action cue in the form of "Satoshi vs. Gishin", a highlight from the disc, but it's a shame given composer Shinji Miyazaki's talent for these type of pieces that they weren't better represented.
In terms of the songs, the disc starts off with a movie version of "High Touch 2009", the opening song for the show at the time. The song has nice, energetic background music and vocal work, but the lead voice work from Rica Matsumoto and Megumi Toyoguchi is a slight missing, sounding a bit too bluntly juvenile to the point it feels like it's pandering. The other song, "Antenna of the Heart (Haruomi Hosono Original Mix)", is a mixed bag. It's pretty forgettable thanks to some uninteresting background music, which is unfortunate as singer Shoko Nakagawa has a great voice that is wasted as a result. Thankfully, this is simply a remix, and the original is infinitely better without Haruomi Hosono's awkward background choice.
Overall, an okay score for the franchise. There are certainly worse scores in the series, and is a worthwhile pick up for fans of the series... although after some of the better soundtracks releases like The Birth of Mewtwo - Audio Visual Box (ZMCP-596), Pocket Monsters:
Phantom Lugia's Explosion - Original Soundtrack (ZMCP-1007) and Pocket Monsters: Mew and the Aura Hero Lucario - Music Collection (ZMCP-2303).
Rating:  |
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| Tracks |
- High Touch 2009 (Movie Size)
By: Rica Matsumoto and Megumi Toyoguchi
- Avant Suite 1
- Avant Suite 2
- Awakening
- Title Theme 2009
- Journey ~ Antenna of the Heart ~
By: Haruomi Hosono
- Everybody's Swimming in the River
- Lake Michina
- Dialga
- Giratina
- Palkia
- Legend ~ Hikari's Picture ~
- Sheena the Guardian
- Battle of the Gods
- Beyond Time and Space
- The Day of the Solar Eclipse
- Arceus's Anger
- Carry On Spiky-eared Pichu!
- The Arrival of Arceus
- 16 Plates
- Jewel of Life
- Life Buds
- Spiky-eared Pichu's Great Achievement
- Satoshi vs. Gishin
- Conquer it! The Laws of Time and Space!
- Revival
- Farewell, Children of the Future
- Regeneration
- Towards the Future
Bonus Tracks
- Antenna of the Heart (Haruomi Hosono Original Mix)
By: Shoko Nakagawa
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