NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

Arrow Video have released all of the 4 Sister Street Fighter films on 2 Blu-ray discs. The dual-layered disc one houses both the original and its' R-Rated US Version (found in the extras menu). The R-Rated version is described as such; "The following 81-minute cut of Sister Street Fighter, edited for local censorship reasons and dubbed into English, was the only version distributed in English-language territories for 30 years. It is presented here for posterity.

Film elements could not be located for this version, so it is presented through a combination of HD and SD sources. We hope the resulting changes in quality do not affect your enjoyment of the film." The original version has a high bitrate and seems to be an improvement over the BCI/Eclipse Blu-ray. The image shows more information on all sides of the frame, implying that the previous Blu-ray was cropped. Colors look to be different as well, though blues seem to be showing more teal/green (see captures showing water/sky) reds look healthier. The real improvement here is in the detail, gone are instances of DNR (see the 5th capture with the close up of Etsuko Shiomi's face showing drips of sweat instead of a smeared appearance). This bump in texture is also true of the sequel (look at the capture of the woman being kissed, and her face showing much more detail). As for the following sequels, they are all housed on the dual-layered second disc with modest bitrates. They seem to be fair representations of the theatrical experience.

Thankfully, Arrow have included 24-bit 1.0 Japanese linear PCM audio tracks for all 4 films, as well as optional English subtitles. The first film also includes a linear 24-bit 1.0 PCM English track, with optional English SDH subtitles, which is a nice feature. The rest of the films just have the Japanese audio. The score by Shunsuke Kikuchi (Female Convict Scorpion series) nicely peppers the action of the film, giving the film a real 'kick'. Dialogue is as audible as I imagine it was in the original theatrical release. This is a Region 'A' Blu-ray from Arrow Video.

"Sonny China: A Life in Action, Vol. 3" is a new 10-minute interview shot by Arrow in 2016 with the famous actor and martial arts movie star talking about his role in discovering Etsuko Shiomi and her training as part of his 'Japan Action Club.' "Kazuhiko Yamaguchi: Kick-Ass Sisters" is also a new 10-minute interview, this time with the director speaking about his work in crafting three unique, female-led action series for Toei Studio and his work with Shihomi. "Masahiro Kakefuda: Subversive Action" is an 11-minute interview with the screenwriter discussing his work with director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi and co-screenwriter Norifumi Suzuki in writing the first three entries of the series. "Isolated Score Highlights" is a 12-minute sequence of scenes from the film, played with the isolated score. This makes you wish that there was the option of watching the whole film with this feature, though this is a welcome extra. Also available in the extras is the aforementioned R-Rated Version. A stills and poster gallery is also available. The film's original trailer, the US trailer, German opening titles and the German trailer all round out the first disc. The second Blu-ray, while housing the 3 sequels, also contains isolated score highlights (for "Sister Street Fighter: Hanging By a Thread" and "Return of the Sister Street Fighter") and trailers for the films.

Arrow Video have quite a hit on their hands with this release of all four "Sister Street Fighter" films. The films all have a great uncompressed linear PCM audio track, and the extras included are worth diving into. My favorite thing about this set has got to be the isolated score highlights, which amplify the great scores. Picking up this Blu-ray package is very enticing for martial arts fans.

Colin Zavitz

***

ON THE BCI (2008) : As this appears to be BCI/Eclipse's first kick at the can in 1080 - we decided to give it (and their The Night of the Werewolf/Vengeance of the Zombies Blu-ray discs a spin to see how they stack up). I'm afraid this exploration isn't very encouraging. Both films are on one single-layered Blu-ray (25 Gig) and interlaced (1080i) and although I'm quite positive the image quality improves upon their SD releases (I admit to not having seen) - the print has some dirt and marks in which some form of cleaning would have drastically benefited the transfer. Visuals are generally softish and waxy. Digital noise is still very prevalent throughout both films - as are compression artifacts. The only difference I could ascertain between the two film transfers was that the second seems to have somewhat brighter colors (possibly a more intact source). There is an inexplicable greenish/blue line at the bottom of the frame edge. So, neither escalate to the heights of the new format and fans who are bent on venturing beyond their old SD editions - just beware that this is probably not a head-spinning improvement - although both should be visually marginally superior to some degree. With the lights down - it can be quite fun ride as the heroine (Etsuko Shihomi) has an appealing onscreen presence.

Audio: No lossless but there is a fairly consistent Japanese 5.1 track with some minor separation and an original, very flat, mono offering. The (embellished) 5.1 has none of the benefits of a modern track but if that was the best they could offer - it will have to be acceptable. This is obviously not a film where audio plays the defining roll (being mono original) and it is standard quality at best. There are plenty of bone-cracking effects and they seem supported acceptably, if not remarkably. There is a humorous English DUB that could add some further fun to a showing - it depends on how much of a purist about the genre that you are. It is supported by often précised English subtitles in a reasonably visible white font (see sample above).
I should note that Menus are not available on the fly (no 'Pop-up" menu) as they are with most every other Blu-ray discs - but once you make an option change you can 'resume film'.

Extras:
There are none - save some trailers - which are an amusement in their own right.

BOTTOM LINE: Since our initial review it appears as though BCI/Eclipse have 'gone under' and while we would have liked to encourage them in releasing films, exactly of this nature, being put to HD - this is really limited in terms of what the new format can offer. I enjoyed both Street Sister films for their campy, genre-specific, charm but I would have hoped the a/v quality would have been superior to what was offered. While this is better than SD-DVD, and it is cool to have them available on one disc for a 'double feature' night presentation, the digital production leaves a lot to be desired. It seems out-of-print at present and I doubt anyone else will be putting these two films to Blu-ray anytime soon.

Gary Tooze