Medium: Japanese 2D animation
Rated: A (for all ages)
The Skinny: MegaMan and his fellow NetNavis take viral threats, hypnotists, and other NetNavis.
Where Found: In greater video stores/retail outlets near you courtesy of VIZ Media.

Pros: Four episodes (one of which haven't been seen at the time of the release) that's fun for the younger set and those that are looking for a diversion from the usual ultraviolence.
Cons: No Japanese track, but that's because this series is more for kid audiences.

My Take:

Mega Man is one of Capcom's biggest franchises, behind Street Fighter, Resident Evil, and now Viewtiful Joe (okay, Joe's not as big as "Rock Man," but he's close). Afterall, Mega Man has been on just about every major game console since the NES. The franchise's history in animation, however, hasn't quite been as outstanding. Sure, he was on Captain N, but he was not only green instead of his trademark blue, but also a virtual imp, smaller than Kid Icarus (I could see a generation of kids wondering, "Who's Kid Icarus?"). The Japanese-animated Ruby-Spears/BKN version (subsequentially released by ADV Films) was more faithful to the mythos of the franchise, but it didn't last long in the States (there was an additional season that didn't see the light of day here, unfortunately). When the game series shifted from the traditional platform to a series that's kind of like a cross between Digimon and YuGiOh, many long-time fans balked at the changes. When a series was announced in Japan and acquired by ShoPro Entertainment (an American-based subsidary of Shogakukan, one of the companies who produced the series in Japan and one of the co-owners of Viz, LLC), people were getting excited to see the popular character have one more chance in animation. When it was announced that it would be coming to Kids' WB, the fans were shocked and somewhat saddened.

But MegaMan NT Warrior is not as bad as people thought it would be. In fact, it's very good.

The premise is not unlike a majority of toyetic series. A group of friends (who have a group of virtual warriors known as NetNavis) take on a group of evil NetNavis and their controllers, led by a mysterious scientist named Dr. Wily. From taking on floating fish controlled by a mysterious NetNavi named SharkMan to competing in the NetBattle Tournament, Lan and his NetNavi known as MegaMan have fun in the real and the virtual world.

It's a dual-language DVD. Aside from English, this DVD has a Spanish-language feed. Yes, there's no Japanese dialogue on this DVD. Why? Well, the thing is, ShoPro's MegaMan NT Warrior is the same edited version seem on Kids' WB, so all the edited-out scenes won't be seen on the DVDs, not unlike earlier 4Kids and classic kid-vid anime DVD releases. The extras are sparse, which is kind of unfortunate. One of the few saving graces of this volume is the excellent vocal talents provided by Ocean Studios. I was kind of shocked to see that Lenore Zahn, the original voice of Rogue on Graz/Saban's version of X-Men, performing as Roll.

MegaMan NT Warrior is a great series for kids, but jaded otaku probably won't find much satisfaction on this. As a longtime fan of the MegaMan franchise, I was impressed, but I would have liked to see a more traditional version than this virtual version.