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The Movie:
With this year marking the 10th anniversary since the first season of the series and the release of the feature film version coming in a month, it's a perfect time for this full series release of the MTV cult animated series "Aeon Flux". The series focuses on scantily-clad secret agent Aeon Flux, a mysterious operative in the future from the city of Monica whose mission it is to take down the operation of Trevor Goodchild, one of the leaders of the city of Bregna. The two could not be from more opposite backgrounds, and despite the fact that they remain opposed to each other, there remains an attraction between the two of them.
The series offered a striking, anime-influenced look. Despite not being much like "The Matrix" overall, there are certainly a few moments here-and-there throughout the episodes where one can tell that this series may have had an influence on the look and feel of the "Matrix" trilogy ("Flux" creator Peter Chung directed the "Matriculated" segment of "The Animatrix".)
The stories are often wild and abstract, and require both patience and attention, not to mention participation, as the viewer often will find themselves imagining the details of what's not said regarding the details of each story. The stories are also certainly adult-oriented, as the show offers intense action sequences and moments of sensuality. Despite the fact that the animation is not as "slick" as some of the CG-animated features these days, it's incredibly detailed, unique and beautiful, especially considering the fact that it's 10-years-old. Given that the only DVD release is out-of-print, fans should certainly be thrilled with this DVD release. It must be noted, however, that creator Peter Chung has gone back and added highlights and other animation details that he wanted to do, but were not possible when the show originally came out. In some instances, alternate takes were included. Some instances of dialogue were also re-recorded to add better continuity and the character of Clavius has had dialogue re-recorded by a new guest performer.
Main Episodes:
3- 1 Utopia or Deutoronopia
3- 2 Isthmus Crypticus
3- 3 Thanatophobia
3- 4 A Last Time For Everything
3- 5 The Demiurge
3- 6 Reraizure
3- 7 Chronophasia
3- 8 Ether Drift Theory
3- 9 The Purge
3-10 End Sinister
The DVD
VIDEO: "Aeon Flux" has been given exceptional treatment for its release on this 3-DVD set from Paramount. The series is presented in its original 1.33:1 full-frame aspect ratio, and looks exceptionally good. The presentation has been supervised by creator Peter Chung and work made to the DVD presentation includes going back to the original negatives, which were cleaned and digitally remastered, improving the croping of the image, color correction and, in some cases, material was taken from Chung's archives.
The result is a presentation that looks as good - if not slightly better than - I remember the show looking during its MTV broadcasts. Sharpness and detail are excellent, and the picture appears consistently crisp and well-defined. A couple of trace instances of artifacts and shimmer appeared, but these moments were very, very infrequent and barely noticable. Colors remained bright and rich throughout, with excellent saturation and no smearing or other issues.
SOUND: The show's original audio elements have been remixed in Dolby Digital 5.1, and the results are terrific. Despite being 10-years-old, the show's audio does have a lot of detail and that's certainly apparent here, as the 5.1 presentations are enveloping, involving and pretty aggressive at times, with the surrounds kicking in effects and ambience. Audio quality is quite good, as effects sound punchy and dialogue remains crisp and clear.
EXTRAS: Creator Peter Chung is joined by members of the crew and voice cast (participants vary) for each episode. The commentaries are very enjoyable and informative, as the groups keep the energy level high and the discussions going throughout. We learn a good deal about the animation process, MTV and quite a few small details about each episode are pointed out.
The third disc includes the "Aeon Flux" pilot, the "Aeon Flux" shorts, the "Liquid Television" shorts, "Investigation: The History of Aeon Flux" featurette, "Deviant Devices of Aeon Flux" featurette, "Production Art: Sketches, Storyboards, Model Sheets, Color Stills and Pencil Tests" gallery and a selection of additional short works from Peter Chung.
Final Thoughts: A fascinating, ambitious, engaging and entertaining animated series, "Aeon Flux"'s complex stories and unique animation still stand up very well today. The set itself also has had a lot of care put into the presentation, as we get both an excellent audio/video presentation and a strong helping of supplements. Recommended.
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