Red Hawk: Weapon of Death Anime Review

Red Hawk: Weapon of Death
Manga Entertainment
Movie - 90 mins. - 1 disc
$14.99 (2002)
ISBN 660200411428
English Audio
Director - Jung Yul Hwang/Sangil Shim
Studio - Daiwon

Synopsis: In the land of Chungwon a powerful gang called the Camelia Blossoms is terrorizing the countryside and destroying entire villages of people.  They make counterfeit gold coins  and anyone who refuses to accept their worthless coins meets a cruel fate.  The government is powerless to stop them.  The gang is led by the 5 Dragons Martial Artists with fearsome, almost magical abilities.  Among them are two brothers - the younger brother called Red Hawk and his older brother Muklyong.

Red Hawk is a martial arts badass!

When Red Hawk defects from the gang after refusing to commit inhumane slaughter against innocent villagers the Camelia Blossoms call for his death.  They force Muklyong to drink a potion removing his free will and turning him into a mindless killing machine.  Red Hawk opposes the gang and rescues the helpless when they are in need.  He is a champion of the people.

Honglyong only has eyes for Danlyong, not this other shrimpy guy!

Honglyong dotes over the clumsy, pretty-boy Danlyong when he visits the restaurant where she works.  Danlyong is a big eater!  When her father is killed by the Camelia Blossoms, both Danlyong and Honglyong journey to confront the gang.  Lunyong is a tough, female martial artist with a powerful secret technique.  She confronted the gang years ago and was defeated.  She was rescued from further humiliation by Red Hawk and has been seeking to meet him ever since.  She accompanies Honglyong and Danlyong to confront the gang in hopes of seeing Red Hawk again.

Pretty boy clutz Danlyong

Will the group of friends survive their journey to confront the leader of the Camelia Blossoms - Lord Seobong?  Can Red Hawk defeat the other Dragons Martial Artists and then face his own brother?  It's a battle to the finish with mystical martial arts action!

One of the Camelia Blossoms' thugs

Pros: It's a Korean anime and you don't see too many of these released in the U.S., fairly coherent story

Red Hawk fights!

Cons: Animation is pretty lame, character designs are goofy, final battle could have been better, seemed like a ripoff of Dragonball Z, terrible English dub

Red Hawk's red hawk

Mike Tells It Straight: Some anime (especially the old skool '80s stuff) can be so bad it's actually entertaining.  When I first started watching Red Hawk I was hoping this would be the case, but it stayed bad and got worse by the end.  This movie is a Korean animation set in a feudal era and focused on a martial arts 'superhero'.  He's kind of like Zorro crossed with Ryu/Ken from Street Fighter and Goku from Dragonball Z.

The evil Lord Seobong

I thought the main characters (Danlyong, Honglyong, and Lunyong) were fairly good and had interesting personalities.  Their motivations made sense.  It was amusing seeing the girls try to figure out Red Hawk's identity and his brother Muklyong was a tragic character.  On the other hand the bad guys were totally lame, their lines were made even worse with a bad English dub using too much swearing, and they predictably fell to our hero like paper tigers.  The ending was no surprise and I was completely bored most of the way through this movie.

Red-haired Goku?  No wait, it's just Red Hawk!

Aside from a few good character moments between the two girls and Danlyong there just wasn't much to like about Red Hawk.  It was a terribly mediocre martial arts  movie and Red Hawk morphed into a cheap Goku knockoff at the end.  I'm usually a sucker for 'bad' old anime, but just couldn't get into Red Hawk.  Check out some better Korean anime like My Beautiful Girl, Mari, Wonderful Days (aka Sky Blue), or Yobi, The Five-Tailed Fox.

TO BUY and Recommendations:

Blood The Last Vampire Anime Review

Blood The Last Vampire
Manga Entertainment
Movie - 50 mins. 1 disc
$19.97 (2009) Blu-Ray
$19.97 (2007)
$29.95 (2001)
$19.98 (2001)
ISBN 660200407827
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Hiroyuki Kitakubo
Studio - Production I.G

Synopsis: The year is 1966 during the eve of the Vietnam war.  In Japan, a girl who looks like a teenager works for a clandestine government agency and hunts creatures called Chiropterans.  Her name is Saya and she is the last vampire.  The creatures she hunts appear to be human, but can transform into truly horrifying monsters who subsist on human blood.  The chief field agent in charge of handling Saya is David and his partner is the less experienced Louis.  David knows how dangerous the Chiropterans can be and that Saya is their only real hope against them.  She uses an incredibly sharp and well-crafted katana sword, but the modern versions are poor quality and old swords are hard to find.

A mysterious death sparks Saya's involvement

A strange death occurs on a military base and David plants Saya as a student at the base's school.  She is tasked to sniff out the Chiropterans and finish them off.  The base is having a Halloween party to ease tensions from the current political climate and the recent death.  Saya meets the school nurse who immediately senses something decidedly wrong.  What are these monsters called Chiropterans and can Saya defeat them again?  David knows if they overcome Saya then there is no stopping the deadly creatures.

The deadliest school girl you'll ever meet

Pros: Great visuals and especially the early use of CG (computer graphics) in anime, good story with a unique take on vampires, Saya is totally badass, very cool action sequences, nice suspense moments, some extras, it was filmed in both Japanese and English language

The only way to kill a Chiropteran is to make it lose a massive amount
of blood with a single strike

Cons: Short running time, CG elements are dated, plot is very simple, no character development, more questions than answers, pretty pictures with little depth, not a lot of replay value

Now these are some suspicious looking students

Mike Tells It Straight: Blood The Last Vampire is a tease.  It gives us an intriguing character in Saya and the hints of a dark, unknown world filled with monsters, but then abruptly ends leaving a bevy of unanswered questions.  What are Chiropterans?  Why is Saya the last vampire?  Why does she work for a clandestine government agency?  Blood was highly touted as the next phase of animation through exclusive use of digital technology and computers in its creation.  It delivers a visually striking story, but the plot is notoriously thin with no character development and a highly unsatisfying ending.

"Damn cheap blade!"

The director and studio continued the story of Saya after Blood in a series of light novels and video games.  Many viewers who enjoyed the short film were disappointed to have no direct anime sequel.  Despite its short length and shallow plot/characters it delivers a unique take on vampires and inspiring visuals.  It's a good horror story crossed with a heavy dose of spy noir.  Saya is a complete badass.

Stalked by a Chiropteran

In 2005 a 50-episode television series called Blood+ was released which retells the whole story of Saya and the Chiropterans from the consolidated works.  Being a television series the violence, language, and nudity were completely toned down.  In 2009 a live-action version of Blood was released with overall poor reviews.  More recently in 2011 a 12-episode reimagining of Saya was released called Blood-C which was written by Clamp (Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, X/1999) and produced by Production I.G.  A blu-ray version has been released which beefs up the visuals, but it's still a short film and probably not worth upgrading (unless you love it).

Up close and personal with a Chiropteran

Blood was incredibly popular when it came out and essential anime viewing for many years.  This explains the long television series follow up to satisfy the large demand from the disappointingly short film.  The film probably felt shorter than it actually was in comparison to some other works due to the minimal amount of information offered.  I believe every anime fan should watch it once (and it's pretty cheap nowadays), but it's probably not necessary to own it.

TO BUY and Recommendations:

Baldr Force EXE Anime Review

Baldr Force EXE
Baldr Force EXE Resolution
Funimation
Complete Collection - 1 disc
120 mins. - 4 episodes
$9.98 (2009) S.A.V.E.
$19.98 (2008)
ISBN 704400074844
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Takashi Yamazaki
Studio - Satelight

Synopsis: In the future the world wide web has become a totally immersive experience where users jack in and interact in an almost perfect mimic of the real world.  The line between real life and artificial is blurred beyond recognition with people spending more time online than in real life.  Sound familiar?  It was all fun and games until a mysterious serial killer showed up in the Wired.  Whole virtual city blocks filled with users and information are disappearing.  The worst part - if you die in the Wired then you die in real life!  A strange girl is seen before the killer strikes.  FLAK is the organization charged with policing the Wired and stopping terrorists.  They operate with cutting edge Simulacrums - virtual mecha battle suits built to navigate the Wired.  Every team sent in to investigate the roaming phenomena ends up with their heads popped after their Simulacrums are violently destroyed.

One of the FLAK divers just died in the Wired -- POP!!!

Toru Souma is a member of the elite hacker group Steppen Wolf.  They're ready to call it quits, but decide to pull one last major hack.  Their mission goes awry and Toru watches his good friend get killed by an unknown Simulacrum from FLAK.  The survivors end up getting pinched and Toru is given an offer - join FLAK or do major time.  He agrees to join, but only to find his friend's killer and get revenge!

Toru meets a girl in the Wired - is she the one linked to the killings?

FLAK is constantly locking horns with a terrorist group known as Fei Dao.  Now Toru is a warrior for FLAK and battling virtual terrorists with very real stakes.  One false move and he's dead!  The other surviving members of Steppen Wolf were also recruited to cyber groups and not all of them are friendly.  Another government organization called VSS jockeys for position with FLAK.  Are their motives hostile and what link do they have with Fei Dao?

Toru runs into one of his former Steppen Wolf team - she's working for VSS

Toru notices one of his diver teammates, Ayane, is acting strangely.  Why is she so driven to work for FLAK and destroy Fei Dao?  What is the origin of the unknown killer and the mysterious girl who appears before it strikes.  Will Toru find his revenge before the killer gets him?  Who is the strange girl and what is her link to his past?

Toru uses his custom Simulacrum with spray-and-pray automatics

Pros: Animation is top notch (CG is passable), good techno opening theme and decent music throughout, characters were believable and had a little depth, builds a coherent virtual world, nudity, dark and twisted!

What secret is Ayane keeping and how far will she go?

Cons: Too short to explore the plot lines and character relationships adequately, mecha designs for the FLAK Simulacrums have a silly flat-foot thingie (it allows them to hover) and in general could have been better, rape scene

This guy is a super-douche squared

Mike Tells It Straight: I had seen a lot of mixed reviews for Baldr Force EXE before watching it and enjoyed it more than expected.  The animation was really good although the CG was a bit rough by today's standards.  The mecha designs for the Simulacrums could have been better, but were passable.  Character designs and overall artwork were surprisingly good.  I ended up liking the characters and thought their personalities/motivations were well planned.  This show borrows heavily from The Matrix and other modern cyberpunk concepts with only a few original ideas (most notably the Simulacrum battle suits for virtual users in the Wired).

A standard issue FLAK Simulacrum

This show immediately got my attention with a bunch of gory heads popping after the military diver teams got wiped out by the unknown killer.  I immediately knew this show meant business and was for mature audiences .  Do not let kids watch this show!  The revenge angle was pretty exciting and the rape scene totally caught me off guard.  This last one might be offensive to some potential viewers so sorry for the spoiler.  The plot made sense and the story had a logical resolution.

Toru fights for FLAK now

The only major problem with the show was being too short and racing through the plot.  They could have easily added a few more episodes and explored/strengthened the character relationships.  I thought Toru's FLAK teammates didn't get enough screen time and they could have built up more suspense/tension with his old Steppen Wolf members.  Despite its flaws I thought the show was a major thrill ride and worth watching.      

Ayane pushes it to the limit!

TO BUY and Recommendations:

Murder Princess Anime Review

Murder Princess
Funimation
Complete Collection - 1 disc
150 mins. - 6 episodes
$19.98 (2009)
ISBN 704400085819
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Tomoyuki Kurokawa/Shinya Kawatsura/Tomoaki Ohta
Studio - Bee Train

Synopsis: The king of Forland is besieged in a bloody coup d'etat by a renegade scientist once employed by the crown.  This scientist's name is Dr. Akamashi and he besieges the castle with an army of synthetic beasts.  During the coup the king is mortally wounded and sends his daughter, Princess Alita, to flee the kingdom to ensure her safety.  Alita's handmaid, Milano, takes her place so the attackers believe the princess has died.  Dr. Akamashi uses two deadly androids made to look like cute little girls to decimate the palace guard and massacre the royal family.

Dr. Akamashi and his army of synthetic beasts

Alita flees through the forest, but runs afoul of a monstrous creature and runs for her life.  Meanwhile a group of three bounty hunters led by a woman named Falis are killing deadly wolves.  She is a deadly fighter using a long sword and joined by two seemingly ghoulish companions - Dominikov is a diminutive skeleton using a scythe and Peter Armstrong is a pink-skinned, Frankenstein-looking biker.  Alita runs into Falis and the two fall off of a cliff together into the trees below.  During the fall the two girls swap souls due to sharing a near-death experience.  Now Alita is in the body of the bounty hunter, Falis, and vice-versa.  The forest monster attacks and Falis, using Alita's body, hacks it to pieces.

They may look sweet, but these androids are sadistic and deadly

Alita (in Falis' body) pledges herself to Falis (in Alita's body) in return for her help saving the kingdom.  Falis agrees and heads back to the castle.  She confronts and defeats Dr. Akamashi thus ending the coup.  He escapes with his two androids and their threat remains a constant danger.  The king's head man-servant, Jodo, is the only survivor of the brutal massacre and he realizes the truth.  Now Falis is to be crowned ruler of Forland because Alita's brother is away on a mission in a neighboring kingdom.  Alita takes the deceased Milano's name to honor her and becomes Falis' handmaid.

Falis realizes she is in Alita's body after looking at the reflection in her sword

Will the power of ruling a kingdom corrupt the bounty hunter Falis?  Can she stop Dr. Akamashi again if he attacks with his deadly androids and synthetic beasts?  What has happened to Prince Kaito - will his return herald good fortune or a deadly turn of events?  The doctor uncovered lost technology which helped him create the androids to almost take over the kingdom - what is the secret of this lost technology and how is Alita linked to it?

Falis (in Alita's body) massacres Dr. Akamashi's synthetic beasts

Pros: Lots of action and monsters/people getting chopped up, monster designs reminded me of Darkstalkers (minus the hot succubi), Falis is a pretty awesome queen, everything gets explained, decent story pacing (they fit everything into 6 episodes), music was good - a little modern heavy metal

From left to right: Jodo, Peter Armstrong, Falis (in Alita's body),
Dominikov, and Alita (in Falis' body)

Cons: Short, story and plot were only so-so, no way Falis could do the same moves in Alita's unconditioned body, practically zero fan-service, the android little girls are really annoying, Dominikov's mouth doesn't move when he talks, Dr. Akamashi's character design was pretty silly, Alita was just too damn forgiving

The goofy monster designs of Peter Armstrong and Dominikov

Mike Tells It Straight: I was expecting Murder Princess to be a much darker series (and longer).  It ended up being a short and rather tame show.  The body swapping of Alita and Falis was interesting - rough around the edges bounty hunter in the body of elegant, composed princess.  Now the poised princess is cutting up monsters and getting blood splashed all over her clothes.  I felt the show was too short and the viewer didn't have enough time to really empathize with the main characters.

The Dark Knight and evil sorceress Cecilia

Although the monster designs reminded me of Darkstalkers, I didn't really like Falis' two companions Dominikov and Peter Armstrong.  They looked like a skeleton and Frankenstein dressed up as goofy bikers.  Dominikov's mouth never moved when he talked which seemed a bit odd.  The other bad guys besides Dr. Akamashi were pretty cool and I liked their angle in the plot.  Those two little psycho android girls were utterly annoying.  I know the writers were trying to emphasize Alita's depth of character as a royal, but she should have been way more disturbed by the body swapping than she appeared.  I still don't get how Falis could pull off all of her moves in Alita's untrained body.

Falis (in Alita's body) gets woken up by Alita (in Falis' body)

Overall I found this show to be somewhat entertaining, but not terribly memorable.  It was barely PG-13 for the violence and that's about it.  If you're looking for a supernatural action-thriller then look elsewhere.  I found a few neat concepts and some good action scenes as Falis (in Alita's body) hacks up a bunch of monsters, but the story and characters just didn't win me over.  

Alita is now known as the Murder Princess!

TO BUY and Recommendations:

Ruin Explorers: Quest for the Ultimate Power! Anime Review

Ruin Explorers: Quest for the Ultimate Power!
Ruin Explorers Fam & Ihrie
ADV Films
Complete Collection - 1 disc
120 mins. - 4 episodes
$19.98 (2004)
$29.98 (2000)
ISBN 702727000928
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Takeshi Mori
Studio - MOVIC

Synopsis: Ihrie and Fam are treasure hunters searching through the ruins of a once-proud civilization.  The rulers of the old world possessed the Ultimate Power, but it was their undoing and the world crumbled.  Their lost power is legendary and thought to be a myth, but scores of explorers seek to uncover it along with many other secrets of the lost age.  Ihrie is the leader and a skilled swordswoman.  She can also cast spells, but an unfortunate curse as a child causes her to turn into a mouse when using magic.  Without an emergency supply of antidote she'll be stuck as a rodent forever!  Fam is a ditsy elf girl who worships the spirits of nature.  She only uses magic for constructive purposes and is a bit clumsy.

Fam and Ihrie listen to Galuff's story about a map to find the Ultimate Power

The unlikely pair eke out a living by robbing ancient ruins.  Ihrie wishes to find the Ultimate Power and break her curse while Fam wants to use it for helping people.  They meet a merchant named Galuff at an inn and he gives them information about finding the Ultimate Power.  He's a shifty fellow and another pair of ruin explorers show up to contest the treasure.  They are Rasha, the sorceress, and Miguel, the expert swordsman.  Now Ihrie and Fam must fight to keep their treasure!  Ihrie can't use magic and she's had enough of Fam's unwillingness to cast offensive spells.  Will the two break their partnership?

Rasha and Miguel cause all sorts of trouble for Ihrie and Fam

Lyle is the prince of a destroyed kingdom and on a quest for revenge against the sorcerer responsible, Ruguduroll!  The foul mage is out to get the Ultimate Power and destroy the world on a mad conquest.  Will the selfish treasure hunters help Lyle battle the frighteningly evil wizard?

The evil sorcerer Ruguduroll plans to destroy the rest of the world!

Pros: Lots of comedy, good adventure, the characters interactions were great, very brief nude scene, Ihrie turning into a mouse was pretty funny, okay plot

Ihrie takes a hot bath after a tough day exploring ruins

Cons: Fam was a bit annoying at times, music is weak, it ends

Lyle launches an attack with a mystical sword

Mike Tells It Straight: I was pleasantly surprised by Ruin Explorers and thought it was a nice little OVA (original video animation).  The storyline was solid and had a lot of amusing comedy moments.  The characters were great and despite their basic personalities had some good character development.  They really worked well together and have a fun adventure until Ruguduroll shows up to scare the crap out of everyone.

Fam summons her magical abilities

He was definitely a worthy villain and we get to see his origin.  I thought the ending was perfect and all the questions were answered - a rare occurrence in anime (which are notorious for lame endings). I came into this show with no real expectations.  I knew it had been around for awhile and was fantasy based, but that's about it.  Overall I would recommend this show if you like The Slayers and comedy mixed with fantasy.  It's a quick and entertaining watch.

Same scar on the cheek, yep, that mouse looks familiar!

TO BUY and Recommendations:

Black Blood Brothers Anime Review

Black Blood Brothers
Funimation
Complete Collection - 3 discs
300 mins. - 12 episodes
$19.98 (2011) S.A.V.E.
$24.98 (2011) S.A.V.E. Blu-Ray
$39.98 (2010)
$44.98 (2010) Blu-Ray
$49.98 (2008)
$29.98 (2008) Vol. 1-3/ea.
$39.98 (2008) Vol. 1 Starter Set
ISBN 704400059070
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Hiroaki Yoshikawa
Studio - Group TAC/Studio Live

Synopsis: Ten years ago Hong Kong became a battleground for vampires and the ensuing carnage announced their presence to the world.  Before then they lived in the shadows and worked hard to keep their existence a secret from only a handful of humans.  The vampire society is divided by bloodlines with each possessing differing abilities and weaknesses.  Strengths include telekinesis, pyrokinesis, energy manipulation, and a myriad of others.  Weaknesses include allergies to silver, sunlight, and moving water (not all bloodlines share the same weaknesses).  Vampires can glamour humans and other vampires through eye contact although the effect depends on the willpower of their subject.  They gain strength and power as they age and the Old Bloods are particularly formidable (compared to New Bloods).  Source Bloods are the most powerful vampires and said to be the source of all others.

The threat of the Kowloon Children makes the vampires and humans join forces

One bloodline stands apart and threatens all the others - the Kowloon Children who follow the Kowloon King.  This bloodline is relatively new (only a few hundred years old) and has the ability to infect anyone bitten (as opposed to only turning those who drink the blood of a vampire) and turn them into Kowloon Children.  Humans are turned after being fed upon and even other vampires will become Kowloon if bitten.  The Kowloon are known to be frenzied and violent.  Facing a threat this great both vampires and humans worked together to bring about the downfall of the Kowloon King in Hong Kong ten years ago.

Kowloon Children are torn apart by Jiro during the Kowloon Shock

The night of the Kowloon Shock saw a massive amount of human lives lost and turned to Kowloon Children.  Jiro Mochizuki is a relatively young vampire (only one hundred years old), but has the equivalent power of an Old Blood.  He massacred and managed to defeat almost all of the Kowloon alongside allies including humans and other vampires from different bloodlines.  The public believes all of the vampires died on this night and the site of the battle was set up as a Special Zone to keep them a secret.  Now vampires are called Black Bloods and humans are Red Bloods.  The Kowloon are not completely eradicated and their threat still exists.

Jiro, Kotaro and Mimiko spend time getting to know each other

Jiro and his little brother Kotaro are the only ones in their bloodline.  They have powerful abilities and Jiro is taking Kotaro to the Special Zone so he can experience the human world.  Little do they know the Special Zone is a powder keg waiting to explode from the tensions between humans and vampires.  Add a resurgence of Kowloon Children and the fuse is lit!  Jiro earned the name Silver Blade during the Kowloon Shock and has vowed to destroy the Kowloon due to losing someone special to him.

Jiro has incredible powers including telekinesis, but
aparently not fashion sense with that goody hat

He and Kotaro run afoul of the Suppression Team which is tasked with keeping vampires from endangering humans and destroying any illegal vampire immigrants before they can reach the Special Zone.  They are human and take their jobs seriously, often reveling in the slaughter of vampires.  They are employed by the Order Coffin Company which also uses compromisers to negotiate disputes between humans and vampires in order to avoid violence.  Mimiko Katsuragi is a compromiser who becomes responsible for Jiro and Kotaro when they attempt to enter the Special Zone.

Jiro drinks Mimiko's blood - did she give it willingly?

Jiro and Kotaro meet with these vampires in the Zone:

• Sei - an Old Blood with incredible powers.  He was there during the Kowloon Shock and erected a force field to contain the Kowloon Children within Hong Kong.  His current form is that of a young boy and he maintains a force field around the Special Zone preventing any Kowloon Children from entering (without an invitation).  He respects Jiro and likes Kotaro
• Zelman - an Old Blood with immense pyrokinetic powers.  His personality is very fickle and he doesn't hold strictly to traditions.  He considers Jiro and Kotaro to be amusing when other vampires shun them
• Cain - an Old Blood with magical and animorphic abilities.  He can transform into a strong wolf form (almost like a werewolf), but vehemently dislikes Jiro due to his age
• Cassa - a Kowloon Child and powerful Old Blood.  Jiro and she used to be friends, but she betrayed him for the Kowloon bloodline.  She expertly fights with a chain and sword.  Her return to the Special Zone is considered catastrophic due to her power and the potential of an outbreak of Kowloon Children

Cassa battles Jiro during the Kowloon Shock

What is Cassa's plan and will the Kowloon rise again?  Jiro must protect Kotaro at all costs as tensions rise within the Special Zone.  What secret does Jiro harbor about the bloodline he shares with Kotaro?  

Kotaro is separated from Jiro and runs into
Zelman - is he friend or foe?

Pros: Interesting take on vampires with different bloodlines having different capabilities, ending theme song is good

Yafuri is one of the Kowloon Children with special skillz

Cons: Opening theme song is terrible, Jiro's hat is kinda lame - he jumps around a lot and it would totally fall off, Kotaro is immature and annoying, Alice Eve was surprisingly immature for a Source Blood, not enough explanations at the end, the plot jumps around without giving a full backstory at times

Kotaro is one annoyingly cheerful little bugger

Mike Tells It Straight: Black Blood Brothers is a somewhat unique take on vampires and I liked the concept of each bloodline having different attributes.  The crisis of the Kowloon (pronounced Koo-lan) Children was a good backdrop for the series.  I felt like this was another show based on extensive source material (in this case a series of light novels) which attempted to cram too much into a meager 12 episodes.  The complicated backstory of the characters and inconsistent presentation of information left me scratching my head a few times.

"This blade is made of silver and they call me the Silver Blade!"

Despite problems with story pacing I felt the characters were fairly interesting.  Character designs and the various vampires with their powers were pretty neat.  I wish they could have spent more time on each, but the short length of the series didn't allow for it.  My only gripe on characters are Jiro's goofy 'witch hat' and Kotaro's annoyingly innocent cheerfulness.  The ending wasn't very strong and I got the feeling the creators of the series were hoping/planning to do another 12 episodes to tie up the loose ends.  I hope they get their chance because I would love to see the vampires really battle it out.  Overall a decent series a few good parts, but only slightly above average.

TO BUY and Recommendations: