I'm sick of people complainig its a movie that's created for the sole purpose of merchindizing and making money. I love nanoha it was and still is my favorite anime and has been since I was 15. I know eveyone complains about how fast paced it is but we all know their trying their best to fit 13 episodes into two and a half hours of screen time do you have any idea how difficult that is?!
Now onto my initial thoughts, I liked it in regards to its movie continuity and as a remake of A's. The animation was outsatanding as is expected from a theatrical anime film. I loved the devive designs and was happy to see Vita get a better looking rocket form. The only one I'm upset about is Hayate who's Kinght Armor recieved even less alterations then the Wollkenritter. I'm also pissed by the fact that she did not get her own theme, though her transformation sequence was slightly longer and better then her original so I guess that's a plus. i do agree with a lot of people that this movie did not give enough attention to charcter development, particuarly for Hayate, Reinforce Eins, the Wolkenritter, and of course Fate. But what did you expect with everything that needed to happen in the movie a bigger prority, considering both the original A's and this movie as an observer you need to be able to fill the holes in yourself and not be expected to be shown everything. For example at 52 minutes into the movie we have a small flash back where the wolkenritter first appear on the night the book is activated here we actually see Reinforce, and understand that Hayate technically does have some understanding and awareness of Reinforce and even Nachtwal but she for gets which is technically impossible. people technically don't forget anything we have the psyche capacity to remeber everything we have ever learned we just lack the necassary diciplines to have constant access to that knowledge with out deep meditation practices. Now I'm not saying this is true for the Nanoha universe as it is a work of fiction but it does have some merit when you consider what is said here and what Hayate says later when Nanoha faces reinforce.
Here is a dialouge of the Flash back,
Reinforce: Hello Good Morning. My first time to meet you. I am the Unison Device... of this Tome of the Night Sky. You have officially become our master just now. The Tome of the Night Sky and its four Knights will offer you wisdom and power.We are here to serve you.
Hayate: U..m... Okay...
Reinforce: There is so much I would like two tell you. But once you wake from this slumber, you shall forget most of what I have told you.
Hayate: I will? Actually it feels so strange. I feel like I've know you.
Reinforce: In the form of this book, I have always been by your side since you were small.
hayate: Oh I see. Huh What's this?
Reinforce: You're rising from your slumber, I may never be able to see you agian. So may i ask you this? The kind Kinghts have been... fighting agianst their will. Please show them kindness And foremost I wish for your happiness.
later at the end when Hayate wakes up during the battle she tells reinforce that she remebers and is aware of what has been happening however this occured in the original A's dialouge too so I won't post it. But this added scene from the movie sort of supports Hayate's staement of remberence.
Sorry I'm not going to put script actions only what is said plus everyone reading these should have watched the movie by now, I was happy that some people put it on youtube as I can't afford any of the discs right now. I will say though that the subtitles for this film at least the ones I saw on the video posted on youtube were horendous! I really hope they are not the official ones because if they are Seven Arcs is really slacking. They are so many mis translations in them and the wolkinritter device dialouge is not technically translated but simply romanjied. i will say that they do use more correct German in the movie then they did in the anime which is good. The battles were good though the confrontations between Signum and Fate in all regards was not as expansive as nanoha's and Vita's was. The battle with reinforce was outstanding I think that is where they put all their effort into this and the hellish landscape that is created sets the mood perfectly. I like how in the movie we can say or at least i believe the reason Reinforce is fighting nanoha and Fate so hard isn't because she hates them but rather she is trying to grant hayate a peacful slumberous death rather then a painful one at the hands of nachtwal and the only way reinforce can stay in control long enough for this to happen before nachtwal to ge berserk is to fight our heroes. We could also assume that deep down reinforce knows or is hoping that nanoha and her comrades have found a way to save hayate and stop nachtwal. One minor thing that did upset me in regards to nanoha was how it is stated in A's that her use of the Exerion mode could put both her and Raising Heart's life on the line as the stress form usung that much magic and mana consumption would have been great. However this is not brought up in the Movie. It is something small I know and would have only taken a minute of screen time to explain but it wasn't there oh well. As far as music goes I was disappointed at first. First Sano Hiroaki the original composer for the nanoha series up until the movie 1st left the nanoha project team and his place was filled by Misa Chujo. She did good her best tracks by far in my opinon were "Dear My sister Dear My Memory" where Alicia and fate part in the dream and fate goes to save Nanoha and the other track was "Eien no Kizuna" played when reinforce departs at the end (who else cried, come on you know you did.) The others were great too but in terms of musical composition and symphonic quality these two were the best. I also loved how in the track titled Hoshikatta Jikan which is played at the beginnig of the dream scene sequences incorporated elements of Watashi no Okkasan by Hiroaki from the first movie. You can here the rythm of that piano theme at about 2:30 onward in the track. It made me really happy that she included elements of her predecessor's compositions at least somewhere i wish she had done that a little more. (For those who might have forgotten Watashi no Oka-san is the piano track that plays during fate's flash backs during her fight with Nanoha in the second half of the movie 1st.) Nana Mizuki's music Bright Stream and sacred Force were awasome nothing less from my favorite singer. I'm not upset about the Graham family getting excluded i idn't really like them anyway.
All in all i think as a fan i loved this nothing beats more Nanoha. i think you can't complain, as an observer you must accept what the creaters feel is what should be done. If Masaki Tsuzuki felt it was best this way then i agree I feel if you can't appreciate a story and respect the creator and his intentions and encompass the story as a whole for what it is then you are not a true fan and a poor audience. Once you loose your ability to appreciate stories like these and go around jading and rating everything, then your just a critic and a critic is not always right and is too focused on analysing negative and positive rather then accepting and contemplating the as is. Even the things that I said sure so this was ghood and this was bad ultimately this doesn't really matter to me it doesn't mean anything as fan and a story writer and teller myself their is no reason to really say what is bad or good but merely that I appreciate and am thankful for the story that is Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha.
Mr.Tsuzuki thank you for providing me with a way to get by all the dead days. keep up the good work and know that i am joyously awating the Movie 3rd reflection.
