The second DVD with Ayumi's PV collection.
In March 2002, Ayumi Hamasaki pleased her fans with a second DVD which contained a collection of her video clips, titled A clips vol.2. It contains ten PVs and a few bonuses in the form of CMs and an additonal PV.
vouge opens the DVD and is the first of three linked videos. However, the PV isn't particularly interesting. It shows two children leaving a destroyed city, and in the desert they find a book that also appears in the next two PVs. The most interesting thing in the whole video are the shots of Ayumi, which look like pencil drawings. vouge immediately changes into Far away, which keeps the same atmosphere and contains the same characters as the previous video. When it finishes, SEASONS takes over. Here is Ayumi at her loveliest, in a black dress and pearlsl. She is by far the biggest attraction of the three PVs so far.
The next one is SURREAL. The story in this PV is very simple: Ayu dreams about an ocean and an island, which she starts to explore. When she ventures deep into the wilderness, she meets a cute panther girl. Even though there aren't many special effects, there are a lot wonderful landscapes to please the eye. In next video, M, the first thing to notice is a modestly dressed Ayumi in a black top, jeans and a big cross on her neck. In this PV, a lot of nice special effects were used, like doves that flew out of a painting or the materialization Ayumi in a white dress. In this role, Ayu wore blue contact lenses, creating an extraordinary effect. The entire PV really fits the atmosphere of the song.
evolution is one of Ayumi's most popular songs, but the PV isn't much. It's basically a making of, which is a good idea in theory - a lot shots are great, and Ayumi just glows with energy. But despite everything, there's something missing from the PV. What's more, Ayumi's band isn't shown, and instead there are some men in ugly sunglasses that look like aliens. After the energetic evolution is NEVER EVER. It's a very short PV that was created for a CM which promoted Ayumi's CD. The singer appears here before a pink-violet sky and she's grimy in camouflage dress. This clip finishes almost before you're aware it's started.
Then things shift to the world of Endless sorrow. It starts with a man who has been stopped by the police for singing, "Give me freedom, give me hope." The world portrayed in this video is a world where people have been banned from speaking. This video touches on an important topic: mainly the lack of willingness to listen to other people. It shows what the world would be like if no one spoke or listened. The PV, as well as the song, are deeply moving and are definitely some of Ayumi Hamasaki's best works.
The next PV, UNITE!, is the same as NEVER EVER. It's a short clip made to promote the CD and shows concert footage. The last video on the disc is Dearest. At first glance, it's just a PV about a music star and the negative effects of being famous. Ayumi plays the girl who has found success and finds that she can no longer do anything for herself; her assistants take care of everything. No longer able to stand it, she runs from her bodyguards to freedom and happiness. Dearest is a beautiful ballad and a great PV that makes us think about what's most important to us.
As bonuses on this DVD, a lot of CMs of Ayumi's releases are included, and there's an extra PV for Dearest's piano acoustic version. One of the best things on the DVD are the short making of clips shown before most PVs.
Despite a few small mishaps, the DVD as a whole contains some great songs and a few really good PVs. Because of these incredible gems, every Ayumi Hamasaki fan should have in his collection A clips vol.2.
