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YA Entertainment

Region 0 - NTSC

1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: avg. mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen letterboxed - 1.85:1

Edition Details:
• Korean television series, complete in 14 one-hour episodes on 7 discs

DVD Release Date: August 30, 2004
Hard outer case / 2 inner cases

Chapters 14

Edition: 7
The YAE edition has been much maligned for its being letterboxed. [Indeed, this was not the fault of YAE, but rather an accident of the material supplied by Korea.] If it weren't for the existence of an anamorphic edition, there might have been as much hue and cry. The now rare as lizard's teeth Region 3 Bitwin edition of the Director's Cut is about an hour or so longer, fleshing out some of the characters and refusing to cut away from some of the more intimate gore. It also comes in the most gorgeous presentation box ever seen. The image, too, is sharper, even at twice the size. It has a much higher bit rate (typically right around 9.5 regardless of the brightness of the scene) and is more dimensional. Even the audio is more dynamic and of higher contrast – making a little more of its subtle audio cues (forest sounds and falling rain) as well as the more dramatic moments of the clash of arms. Sadly, this edition does not have English subtitles, or I would not have been able to obtain one by the time I learned of its existence. All the same, I strongly urge that you make an effort to find one. You might still be able to obtain one from HERE.

Here's the deal: Buy the YAE now. You're going to want to watch this series more than once anyhow. Then watch the R3 soon after the YAE. You will be amazed at how much you have retained and how much more emotionally involving watching a series like Damo can be if you're not also trying to process the subtitles. Of course, I recommend this trick even if you can't find the anamorphic edition.

Image : 7 (5.5/8)
The score of 7 indicates a relative level of excellence compared to other standard definition DVDs on a 10-point scale for SD DVDs. The score in parentheses represents: first, a value for the image on a 10-point scale that accommodates both standard and high-definition DVDs – where any score above 7 for an SD is outstanding, since the large majority of high definition DVDs are 8-9.5. The second number in parentheses indicates how that image compares to what I believe is the current best we can expect in the theatre or, in the case of made-for-TV fare.

First, a word about the Region 3 Bitwin edition in comparison to the YAE. As noted above, the Bitwin is anamorphic, and therefore just about twice the size in their natural habitat, so to speak. On a large screen with front projection, it is not recommended that the YAE be zoomed out to fill the screen, but even in its correct size, the YAE is somewhat less sharp. Curiously, there are inconsistent differences in contrast between the editions, not particularly favoring one over the other (unlike the case with Jumong, where the YAE was clearly to be preferred). If there were no Region 3 edition and the YAE were anamorphic, we would not find all that much to complain about.

Enhancement and artifacts are at a minimum – hardly noticeable unless you were looking for them. Like the majority of YAE Korean TV dramas, this one is not progressive, but there are few distractions once we get into the story.

Audio & Music : 7/9
Even though only a made for TV DD 2.0, the soundtrack is fairly cinematic, lacking only the breadth of dynamic that a movie of a similar genre. The music is as exceptional as it is varied, in keeping with the fusion style. The Bitwin edition scores about a half point higher in clarity and dynamics.

Translation & Subtitles : 8/8
The translation is better than adequate, if not especially subtle. Some of the political intrigue gets a bit muddy, but the Reference Guide turns out to be quite helpful in this regard. Subtitles are white, bordered in black so as to always be clear against any background. The font is a bit large for my taste.

Operations & Box Design : 8/6
The YAE menu operations are simplicity itself. Of course, there aren't extra features to speak of, so there's little that can lead us astray. The outer box is especially nice: a tight fitting, magnetic flip cover which, when opened offers two cases, holding 3 and four discs respectively. The cases are clunky and take up more room on the shelf than is called for.

Extras : 7
YAE provides a very useful 24-page Reference Guide that [a] places each
character in context and reminds us how they relate to each other, [b] offers a good deal of background information about the role of the Damo and other aspects of social heirachy in this era of Korean history, and [c] summarizes the events of each episode. Unhappily, it does not list the actors who play those characters. Odd. On the other hand, the first disc provides exactly that as part of the two extra features: both in text and graphics only. One is titled Story Theme and describes the basic frame of the drama. The other provides a brief description of the main characters with photos of the actors in costume, along with their names.

Recommendation: 9
The only thing that argues against this set is its being non-anamorphic. Damo is must-have, must watch more than once Korean drama. My recommendation is to buy both the subtitled, non-anamorphic YAE and the unsubtitled anamorphic Region 3 Bitwin. Watching Damo on the big screen is like a huge classic novel unfolding in cinematic form.

 - Leonard Norwitz

CLICK to order from:

Region 0 - NTSC