The smoking gun.

The packaging of the complete box of Black Lagoon is less impressive than the previously released seasonal sets, which had tin cases. Instead, you get a simple slip box with the logo emblazoned on the front and lots of screenshots and info on the back. Each slim DVD case has two discs per case that rehash the character pin-ups seen on the individual DVD releases for those particular discs and contain the episode listings and screenshots on the inner side of the jackets. The DVD menus are pretty cut and dry in terms of layout. The background for the main and sub menus all consist of the show’s logo and bullets. Each time you select a different submenu, a bullet shot is fired just before the feature loads. The animation of the show itself is absolute joy on the eyes. It feels as though Rei Hiroe’s artwork has been perfectly translated to the screen true to every detail. The show’s music also just kicks butt all over the place, reinforcing the story. The Japanese voices are excellent; however, it’s not recommended watching with the English dub track. The voices don’t suit the characters, and some of the accents are the worst feigned accents I’ve heard in a dub in a good while.

Fully loaded.

The complete set of Black Lagoon comes packed with all the extras on their own DVD. Like so much else of this set, the extras are pretty much unchanged from the series’ original releases. You get a small host of Geneon trailers and the standard-issue clean opening and closing songs. But along with that, you get an awesome music video for the opening song “Red Fraction,” a nifty interview with the show’s director, Sunao Katabuchi, and some interesting promo videos. It’s really a nice change of pace to find an anime box set that doesn’t feel lacking in extra content and goodies. All it really lacks is maybe a guidebook or merchandise, but that would just be greedy.

Bang. You’re dead.

Black Lagoon has everything a die-hard action fan could want—violent firefights, explosions, high speed chases, and smokin’ hot girls with guns. With all the rampant violence, swearing, and oft-times revealingly dressed women Black Lagoon easily secures its MA title, so it’s definitely not a show for younger viewers (unless you’re awesomely okay about that sorta thing). There’s also a good deal of dark comedic relief in the series, usually following up some obviously violent incident or dangerous act. It’s definitely a show that knows what its audience will be and caters to it, so it might not be a show for everyone. However, the action for which it excels at is practically nonstop and really does leave you wanting more with each episode.