AnimEigo's release of Lady Snowblood, best known for being the prime inspiration behind Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill films. AnimEigo continues their trend of releasing some of the best Toho DVDs on the market with their Lady Snowblood disc. Now this isn't AnimEigo's best release, the video presentation has one minor flaw, but overall its still one of the better Toho DVDs with a excellent video presentation, a faithful audio presentation, and some worthwhile extras.

Video:
AnimEigo continues to display exactly why a DVD video presentation can be superior when compared to VHS release with this release. Like other AnimEigo releases, the best aspect of the video quality here is the vibrant array of colors, something which wouldn't have been possible on the VHS format. Unfortunately, the brightness level is a little low on this release, with some scenes appearing overly dark making details hard to see; this is most noticeable on the unusually dark Toho logo near the start of the film. Thankfully, digital inconsistencies introduced in the transfer to DVD are nonexistent on this release, with the picture quality appearing sharp with no visible signs of artifacting or shimmering. The print used in the transfer is in excellent condition, as well, with literally no noticeable scratches during the course of the film. Noise levels are also great, with very little grain visible.

Lady Snowblood's original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, or widescreen, is also maintained on this release and is Anamorphic for widescreen TVs.

Audio:
The audio presentation found on the disc is faithful to the film, despite the fact that it's supposed to be in stereo. In other words, it sounds like a mono track was simply doubled to the front and back speakers, as there is no noticeable separation between the left-right speakers, but Lady Snowblood's original audio track was mono anyway. There are moments, like the Lone Wolf and Cub DVDs, where the soundtrack becomes a little scratchy, but this is just a byproduct of the 1970's style of score done for the film. Most importantly, though, is that the dialogue comes through clear, and there are no pops or hisses apparent in the film's audio track. AnimEigo has complemented the Japanese audio track here with, removable, English subtitles that, like their other DVD releases, are color coded to signify when more than one character is talking during a scene.

Extras:
The extras being packed with AnimEigo's Toho releases appear to becoming standard, as apparent with this release. The DVD contains the trailers for two Lone Wolf and Cub movies (Sword of Vengeance and White Heaven in Hell) along with the trailer to Zatoichi the Outlaw and Zatoichi: The Festival of Fire, trailers which appear on numerous other AnimEigo DVDs. Unfortunately, like AnimEigo's Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx release, the disc is missing the film's own trailer. Also included on the disc are "Program Notes," which provide background information on the time period in which the Lady Snowblood series takes place. The "Program Notes" appear both in print format, on a small sheet of paper roughly the size of the DVD case, and as an extra on the DVD itself. An interesting side note is that the "Program Notes" also document the story behind how "The Flower of Carnage" ("Shura No Hana") ended up in Tarantino's Kill Bill: Vol. 1, as AnimEigo helped Tarantino secure the rights to use the song in his film.

Overview:
Bottom line, another excellent release from AnimEigo in almost every regard. Fans of the Lone Wolf and Cub movies and the Zatiochi series, or the Kill Bill films, should highly consider picking this DVD up.

This disc is also featured in the box set: Lady Snowblood: DVD Collector's Edition Box.