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R2 DVD Reviews
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Written by maehara
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 16:00 |
 Basilisk reaches the end of the line, and with it the centuries-old feud between the Iga and Kouga clans. But will Gennosuke or Oboro be able to end their journey without taking the life of the one they love..? Let's just say that this isn't a series that deals in happy endings...
21 - With All Her Heart
In the battle of two Tenzens, there can really be only one winner - and so Saemon finds himself undone by the real Tenzen, who he had thought was dead but clearly isn't. The Iga man is immortal - only decapitation or burning in the hottest of fires will kill him - and with the Kouga now reduced to just Gennosuke and Kagero, his continued presence must give the Iga the upper hand. Later, Kagero catches up with the Iga party, hoping to kill Oboro, who she sees as her rival for Gennosuke's affections - but she's unaware that Saemon is dead, and that the Tenzen she sees is not her ally...
22 - The Haunted
For the Iga, Oboro and Tenzen remain; for the Kouga, Gennosuke and Kagero - and Kagero is in the hands of the Iga and Ofuku. Not that they're having a easy time keeping her under control, as her repeated attempts to escape and kill Oboro prove. The plan is to use Kagero as bait to lure Gennosuke out, hoping that his loyalty to his clan will persuade him to try and save Kagero; in the meantime, Tenzen's taking full advantage of the opportunity to inflict pain on one of his foes. But Oboro's efforts to get him to show some restraint only lead to her once again almost becoming his victim - until Gennosuke arrives on the scene...
23 - Emancipation
For Tenzen, nearly two hundred years of hatred are close to ending - the leader of the Kouga clan is before him, and apparently unable to defend himself. Tenzen strikes, running Gennosuke through with his sword - and all Oboro can do is stand on the sidelines and listen to what's happening. But Tenzen hasn't considered the abilities of his foe, and finds himself also on the wrong end of a sword - and unlike his clansmen, Gennosuke makes sure to use a cut that will finish the job. That leaves just Oboro to kill to end the war - and as much as Gennosuke realises it must be done, so Oboro wants it to happen. But Gennosuke finds he can't kill his beloved...
24 - Requiem
Ofuku's party arrives at Hattori Hanzo's residence - the place chosen for the final battle between Iga and Kouga, Oboro and Gennosuke. It's only been 10 days since the war started, and now both clans are reduced to their respective leaders - and if Ofuku gets her way, even that situation will change soon. While Gennosuke is recovering from his injuries (fighting an injured enemy will bring no honour to the Iga, you see), Ofuku begins her manoeuverings with Hanzo, while Oboro seeks to come to terms with what she knows she must do...
If there's something that annoys me about Basilisk more than anything else, it's Tenzen - the man who simply will not die, no matter what injuries are inflicted on him. Every time he fights, he loses, and each time you're left thinking that's it, surely they must have got him - but no, like a bad dream (or Gauron from Full Metal Panic!, for a good comparison) he keeps coming back again and again. While he does finally get his come-uppance (especially welcome given the nature of his actions, past and present, that are covered on this disc), it really did take far too long to get to that point, and the whole saga has really tried my patience.
With the clans down to their final members and Gennosuke and Oboro naturally reluctant to face each other, there's a certain amount of betrayal going on as Tenzen and Kagero try to finish the job themselves. Tenzen is acting out of pure malice and self-preservation, but Kagero is acting out of a combination of loyalty and unrequited love for Gennosuke that makes her story all the more tragic. The poor girl is on a hiding to nowhere, and as this disc progresses and her situation becomes ever more dire you can see her mental state deteriorating in a way which almost makes her the real story of the disc.
Almost. Unsurprisingly, though, it all comes down to Oboro and Gennosuke, who much like Romeo and Juliet before them have the full weight of fate rushing down on them and very little room to manoeuvre underneath it all. You're clearly meant to get emotionally involved in their plight, but the big problem with this is that the events of episode 24, where the two finally face each other, have been so heavily telegraphed since all the way back at the beginning of the series that it's impossible to really feel any emotion at all about what plays out - yes, it's maybe not quite played out in the way you'd expect, but it's equally unsurprising, and that makes it no ending at all. Life goes on regardless, as the epilogue to the final episode points out.
Reading all that, you'd be forgiven for thinking I hated every moment of this volume - that wouldn't be entirely true, though. While what happens in these episodes is unlikely to surprise anyone, there are moments along the way where you do begin to feel for the characters, and for the unhappy end that you know is coming to them all. Yes, there are also frustrations at the predictable nature of it all, but it balances out in the end to give you a volume that is generally enjoyable.
I'm not a fighting fan, so Basilisk has always faced an uphill battle to impress me. It's never quite managed to do that, or to convince me that some of the hype that surrounded it was truly justified - there's just too much fighting and not enough real story in there to make it more than a passing interest. It does have its moments, and on the rare occasions when the personalities take centre stage, it shows what it can do and does make you genuinely feel for its characters. Put it all together, though, and the bad balances out the good and leaves the whole as simply a competently-done fighting show. If that's your thing, then Basilisk won't disappoint, but if you're looking for something more than that, there are better titles out there.
Watch the trailer for this release
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