honestly the first season was well done and this cut of the season to fit into two hours was great. They cut out alot of filler and what remains is important to the main story line. The dvd is well done and keeps a great pace when; granted for those who have watched the first season you will miss the side stories and humor / development of the Tachikoma's which can leave most new comers a bit behind near the end but its nothing major.
The feeling of the show translate well and leaves the dvd well off for those that are just starting in the anime world or for those die hard fans that want to introduce someone into the genre. Great for your collection.
The music was greatly composed by Yoko Kanno; the music helps move the story along with a nice upbeat pace.
What's great about it: Great cut of the first season
The movie which if you don't know already, is actually a cut of the second season to fit a two hour time frame. The movie it self keeps a great pace and unlike the Laughing Man dvd this one is more political based and deals with several troubling issues ranging from terrorist attacks to refugee mistreatment. I would recomend this to those that have seen the seires or for those that watched the laughing man as a starter. The only con I had with the dvd was that they cut out a few scenes that help define interest points that connect two major people in the movie but they did have a very small attachment clip that patches the major scene the removed. Other than that its a great addition to any collection. I recomend it to all new comers to the genre or even die hard fans.
What's great about it: Great cut of the 2nd season and nice blend.
What's not so great: missing some key sub plot that helps define somethings.