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Now in Japan
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Written by maehara
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Wednesday, 27 September 2006 00:00 |
 Demonbane makes the jump from a one-shot OVA episode to a full TV series. The OVA was great fun (if a little confusing if you hadn't played the game), so can the TV series be just as enjoyable? You betcha. A magical book in human form, a demented evil rocker, and giant robot - what's not to like..?
1 - I Am Providence
Kuro Daijuhji runs his own detective agency - although work is so slow you could hardly call it working, really, so when he receives a summons from the Hadou Financial Group, a company so powerful they're the effective rulers of Arkham City, he's not about to turn the job down. The task? To track down a magical grimoire - something an upstanding citizen wouldn't normally go near, but the amount of money he's offered in payment overrides any objections Kuro may have. Makes you wonder what the Hadou group is doing looking for something of such power. The answer? Demonbane, a mecha of immense power that Ruri Hadou plans to use to oppose the Black Lodge, a powerful criminal group. But something that powerful's bound to attract the attention of more than one grouping, right..?
2 - Evil Shine
Al's power activates Demonbane, giving her and Kuro another powerful weapon with which to deal with Doctor West. In one way that's just what Ruri had wanted, although since she still doesn't know who's inside her precious Deus Machina, she's not happy with events. Doctor West, meanwhile, continues to press the attack - and with Kuro far from sure how to pilot his mecha, West's got the upper hand in the battle. Some rapid tuition from Al soon turns things around, after which all they've got to deal with is Ruri's anger at seeing her top-secret Deus Machina "stolen"...
Kuro has a bit of a past working with magic, and he once trained to be a mage - but dropped out of college before he qualified. With mages being a secretive bunch, though, it's that experience that brings him to Ruri's attention - he's the only person with magical experience they've been able to find, and beggars can't be choosers. Even he wasn't expecting the grimoire he was searching for to be in the form of a feisty little girl, though, as that's the form the Necronomicon has taken. Currently answering to the name of Al Azif, if you don't mind.
From there things fall into a fairly predicatble routine - Al takes Kuro as her contractor, and together the two kick the evil Doctor West's guitar-strumming behind, while behind the scenes the baddies begin plotting on how to deal with their new nemesis. What Demonbane lacks in originality, though, it makes up for in being simply fun to watch - this is one of those show's that fills the "mindless entertainment" slot, at least so far, and I'll confess that that's the sort of anime I often enjoy the most.
On the downside, Demonbane's animation quality's not as good as I've come to expect from recent shows - nice character designs, but a general lack of detail that lets the show down a little. It's not enough of an issue to put me off the show, though, and this is one series I'll be following for a while longer at least. Shallow, but fun. |
