|
|
Home
|
R2 DVD Reviews
|
|
Written by maehara
|
|
Tuesday, 11 December 2007 16:00 |
 Karas was Manga Entertainment's big new title for 2006. Produced to mark the 40th anniversary of production studio Tatsunoko Pro, it's an all-action spectacular with top-notch visuals and a story that wouldn't be out of place on the pages of a western comic book. Unfortunately, the 2 individual releases were so far apart that you would've been forgiven for thinking Manga had forgotten about volume two - not the best way to be immersed in a series. This box set release should solve that problem, though...
A pair of flying samurai battle above a city in an action sequence that wouldn't look out-of-place in a Hong Kong martial arts spectacular - all improbable moves and slow-motion replays. One eventually wins and finishes off his opponent in gruesome fashion. The winner is Lord Eko, and he's not someone you want to be getting involved with.
Fast forward three years, to Shinjuku, and a series of brutal murders have taken place. The killings are rumoured to be the work of water demons, and the local media are on the case, poking fun at the theory and trying to prove it wrong - but it appears the rumours are true, as a TV crew discovers at the cost of most of their lives. Kure, newly assigned to the Shinjuku police, also escapes the attack in one piece along with one of the presenters. It's just the latest in a series of similar attacks - each victim is drained of bodily fluids and the modus operandi of the killer appears to be the same each time, but so far there are no other clues as to the killer. Sagisaka, a long-serving Shinjuku cop and Kure's new partner, firmly believes the water demon story is true - his daughter was the only survivor of the first such attack - but so far no-one will believe him.
Meanwhile, there's a new man in town - Nue - and he's no normal person. He's fully aware of what's behind the killings, and is on a mission to put a stop to them. While attempting a hit on a pro wrestler - the water demon itself in human form - he's interrupted by Karas, a ninja superhero who deals with the demon in very short order...
Some explanations, as Karas isn't all that easy to follow. The current Karas, real name Otoha, is the latest in a series of people to carry the title. Each one is accompanied by a Yurine, who controls Karas' power and in some ways acts as its guide and controller. Karas is intended to do good, to protect the human world from the demons that lie in a nearby dimension and aren't the friendliest. Lord Eko used to be Karas, but now he's bent on destruction. Both Otoha and Nue seem determined to prevent him from carrying out his plans.
While this goes on, Sagisaka and Kure are left investigating the aftermath of the battles going on around them. The battles themselves aren't visible to human eyes, but the wreckage caused by them certainly is, and it's one of the strangest cases the police are having to deal with.
The story itself is kind of "demon-of-the-week" at the moment as time is taken to set up the various characters and plot-lines, but it's interesting enough - by the end of this disc you have a general idea of who's who and how the main factions are lining up. Beneath the surface gloss, though, the story isn't anything hugely unusual - at its core it's a super-hero story with a Japanese twist, and once the initial "WTF!?" feeling passes and you begin to realise what's going on events play out pretty much by-the-numbers. Manga's PR for the show bills it as "Batman with a samurai sword", which isn't too far from the mark. They have big plans for the series (the dreaded term "franchise" makes an apperance), which is just the sort of thing Manga made their name with & that you'd expect UK fans to pick up in droves.
Volume 2 continues much how volume 1 left off, except with Otoha taking over from Nue as the main character of the piece. With his Yurine in Eko's hands he's unable to take the form of Karas, meaning Eko has free reign to put his plans into action. Otoha's initially in no real hurry to become Karas again - life without fighting has its appeal - but as the disc progresses and Eko's excesses become more and more obvious, he once again embraces his fate and goes to kick some ass. The disappointing part of this disc is that it takes two "episodes" to get that far (Manga have once again edited three episodes into one feature-length story, but you can tell where the episodes would originally have ended) - the good part is that, once Karas is reborn and goes into battle, it's quickly shown to be worth waiting for.
Karas is without a doubt visually stunning & has an excellent musical score. The animation is a hybrid of 2D & 3D techniques that in places almost has a photorealistic feel, it's that good - but every so often, particularly in the action sequences, you'll get little visual cues that remind you you're still watching an animation. It can be a little bit jarring, especially since the visuals at their best are so good. The style of the film is also rather abstract and at times difficult to follow - it's one of those shows where you really need to pay attention to what's happening, otherwise you'll quickly find yourself losing track of events, a trap I fell into with my first encounter with the show when it was getting its Japanese release. The advantage of all those lush visuals, though, is that they give you a hook to work with & make the show easier to watch.
Overall, if you enjoy your eyecandy or have the temperament needed to unravel the storyline, Karas is well worth a look. As a technical showcase, it's hard to beat - especially during the combat scenes - but the story in places tries to be too clever for its own good and just ends up confusing. The cast aren't the most likeable bunch, either. The good just about outweighs the bad, though, making this a series that's worth picking up.
A word to those who like their anime "unedited" - Karas has been presented by Manga as two feature-length episodes (one for each volume), but that's been done by slicing together the original, standard-length episodes that the show was made as (three episodes to each disc). If you pay attention it's fairly easy to see where the break between episodes would have been. While I don't believe anything has been removed other than the opening & closing credits, if you've got a hardline attitude to the use of the editing scissors, you'll want to bear this in mind.
For full details & more screenshots, check out our reviews of the original releases:
» Karas: The Prophecy
» Karas: The Revelation
PREVIEW CLIPS: Clip 1 | Clip 2 | Clip 3 | Clip 4
|
|
