Enter the New Gods universe where Chinese mythology is reimagined in a wildly original, steampunk-inspired world. Light Chaser Animation (White Snake, New Gods: Nezha Reborn) presents a timeless, high-flying adventure featuring one of the most legendary mythic figures.

Thirteen years after Yang Jian imprisoned his sister, the once-powerful hero also known as Erlang Shen now scrapes by as a poor bounty hunter. When a mysterious woman hires him, Yang Jian soon finds himself chasing down a familiar figure. He must stop Chenxiang, his long-lost nephew, who searches for a powerful, but dangerous artifact. As Yang Jian confronts his past, he must face treacherous vigilantes seeking to bring catastrophic destruction.

For thoughts on New Gods: Yang Jian, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

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Video Quality

New Gods: Yang Jian comes to Blu-Ray with a gorgeous 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The quality of the digital animation is much better than some we have seen in the past few months with very fluid character movements, distinct details in the environment and texture on every surface. We love traditional hand-drawn animation, but we can accept digital when it has this much care put into it. This transfer serves as a formidable representation of its intended aesthetic.

There are some brief instances of banding against some harsher gradients, but overall this is a transfer free of major encode issues. The colors really make an impression with hues that breathe life into the story with different shades saturating the frame. The film is a beauty with so much nuance within the environments. Black levels are quite strong with not much in the way of compression artifacts or digital anomalies. This is a top tier Blu-Ray presentation that should please fans of the film.

Audio Quality

This release delivers a pair of deliciously bombastic DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio tracks in the original Mandarin and in an English dub that brings some real stakes to the story. As always, we advocate listening to the original audio track with subtitles. Dialogue comes through perfectly clear without getting stepped on by any competing sound effects or score. The track engages all of the channels with panning effects and environmental sounds that provide a fully three-dimensional world.

The score adds a lot of thematic resonance to the action in a way that comes through with impeccable fidelity. There is a substantial amount of activity in the low-end due to the various momentous action sequences which adds great texture. Shout! Factory has delivered a top tier audio presentation that brings this story to life famously. There are optional English SDH, English and Spanish subtitles provided.

Special Features

Interview with Director Zhao-Ji: A 16-minute interview with the director in which he discusses the focal character, the ideas behind the movie, advancing the animation techniques from previous films, the characteristics of the other characters in the story, some of the Easter Eggs in the film, the voice performances and more.

Animating New Gods: Yang Jian with Zhao-Ji: A six-minute interview with the director answering a series of rapid-fire questions about the film and his background, the mythology of the character, some of the challenges during production and more.

Original Cast Interview: A nearly 17-minute piece featuring interviews with the cast and creative team in which they discuss what they wanted to bring to the characters, other adaptations of the mythic figure, how they got involved with the film, the most difficult parts to emote, the collaboration between the director and the performers and more.

Arts and Culture Spotlight: A 13-minute piece featuring interviews with the cast and creative team in which they discuss how the movie came together, the character designs and tone of the film, the environments of the picture and more.

Art Gallery: A four-minute gallery on character designs and early artwork is provided here.

Final Thoughts

New Gods: Yang Jian is a thrilling bit of Chinese mythology that is presented in a way that can connect with open-minded audiences outside of the culture. The character development is swift yet effective as you easily understand the stakes and even get taken aback by some of the surprises. The dialogue is not as poetic as a Studio Ghibli film, but it does the trick here. The film is structured like a Chinese comic book film, so those looking for some big spectacle entertainment should have a great time. GKIDS and Shout! Factory have provided a Blu-Ray with a terrific A/V presentation and some entertaining special features. As someone unfamiliar with this series, it makes me want to catch up with what I have missed. Recommended

New Gods: Yang Jian will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray + DVD Combo Pack on April 25, 2023.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Shout! Factory and GKIDS have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.