These Black Jack specials are a combination of Dr. Black Jack's personal backstory and the stories of patients that he has treated. These episodes are a decent introduction to the world of Black Jack if you are planning on watching the 2004 TV series or do not want to watch the long episodes of the 1993 series. Since these specials are a prequel to the 2004 TV series, they have a lighter tone than the old 1993 one and are a good watch if you like the idea of watching a medical anime series but are not good with surgical gore. By themselves, these specials aregood, but not fantastic - I would only recommend them to people who either aren't sure what to expect with Black Jack and aren't sure if they'd like it, or people who can't get enough of the many series of Black Jack and want more fascinating surgery stories.