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written by Juice / photos by Juice
Yet another edition of House of the Flying Daggers, this time limited to 2000,
which is a nice low number keeping this set fairly exclusive to serious collectors.
Serious collectors should be happy if they have a copy of this, as
it's a serious edition, stacked with some great extras. It comes in
a large, nicely built box. Large as in 28 centimeters tall, 23.5 cm
wide, and 5 cm deep. The paper that the box is built of is solid and
thick, with a nice texture look and feel to it.
You don't actually open the box, instead,
the right side is left open, and the 144 page booklet slides out of it, as well as a wide
folder that houses the DVDs and the rest of the extras.
The booklet is fantastic,
huge, with beautiful photography and storyboards. If only it was in English!!! It goes
through seperate chapters showcasing the costumes, stuntwork, storyboard work, actors &
actresses, director, etc. High quality, gloss paper, it's a book so nice that you could
leave it out and people would read through it commenting on the incredible imagery.
Opening the large folder, you see three indents, one for the "bamboo" pen, one for the OST,
and one for the DVD case. This is where the LE really gets exciting. Lets go over the
OST and "bamboo" pen.
First off you have your bamboo pen and OST. The bamboo pen is NOT bamboo, it is just a cheap plastic pen that looks bamboo. Not well made, but still a functional pen, it's the weakest part of the LE. The OST is wrapped in a gold paper, which is held closed by a sticker seal. You can slide the OST out of the top or bottom of this, so no worrying about about damaging the sticker! The OST comes in a nice case, which is the same material as the larger box that the entire LE comes in. It has a great textured feel to it, and comes with a slip sheet that has stills and a song list on it. I'm listening to the OST as I write this review, very fitting! Now let's move on to the DVDs and the secret surprised in their indent in the box!
Popping the DVD case out of the box, you notice there is actually something hidden below it! What is it? Well, we'll get to that in a second. For now, let's look inside the DVD case. Inside we find the two DVDs of the set, one with the movie, and second with extras. There is a chapter list, showing a nice wide scene of the bamboo forest. There is also a folded, nicely constructed folder. It has a velcro snap to keep it shut, and it houses 4 bookmarks. It is designed to look like a leather dagger holster, and is a great touch to this LE.
Let's go back to what was hidden underneath the DVD case! Yes, one of my favorite peices in any LE, the numbered certificate!
| The certificate is on a watermarked paper sheet, with foil stamped and ink writing. It lists the contents of the LE, as well as the number you own and the total number of sets made. Excellent! | 
|
Wow. I was really surprised with this LE. Seeing some of the early pictures posted on the web, I wasn't sure if it would stack up to some nicer LE's we've been reviewing. After receiving it, and really spending some time looking at it, I'm very impressed. If you are a HOFD fan, this is an excellent buy.
- Juice's Verdict -
- Build Quality: 8.5 -
A solid build, nice art direction, great booklet,
stylish bookmarks, a well designed OST package, it's a solid set. I'll put this on the higher
end of the LE's I've reviewed.
- Content and Extras: 9 -
The booklet is a stunner. This isn't a wimpy Troy booklet, this is a full fledged magazine style
booklet, complete with stunning imagery and incredibly interesting information. Add a great OST,
cool looking bookmarks, a pen and a nice certificate, and you get a solid NINE from me.
- Overall Rating: 8.5 -
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