SUMMARY
Jubei Kibagami is a
swordsman for hire. Normally, he earns a living traveling around from village to village,
helping those in need. Now, he is caught up in the middle of a war
between the Kimon Ninja and the
Hiruko Clan. The two groups are fighting for control of the Dragon
Stone. If the stone is joined with the Light Maiden, a woman named
Lady Shigure, a magical
treasure will be revealed.
Jubei has been "hired" by a government spy Dakuan to protect Shigure
and the Dragon Stone from both the
Kimon and the Hiruko. Every where they go, one side or the other
attacks, usually drawing innocents into the line of fire.
Little by little, Jubei learns the truth about the Dragon Stone and the
Light Maiden. Yet this knowledge, along with a vengeful Kimon, may
end his life sooner than even he expects.
DVD VISION TEST
VIDEO: The video is very well done.
The slight
wrinkling of the video from the first volume is gone. No color bleeds or overblasts to be noticed.
AUDIO: The English 2.0 is well done, and louder than the Japanese 2.0.
While the English 5.1 is rich and full bodied, when the actors speak,
there is a droning noise. This makes it very difficult sit through or
enjoy.
EDITS: Clean open animation was used while the Japanese
closing credits have been overlaid with English credits. Episode
titles have been changed as well. The "next episode"
segments are missing with the exception of the last episode.
EXTRAS: We have a multi-angle storyboard to feature comparison on key
scenes. Promotional trailers, interviews with Director Tatsuo Sato
and Character Designer Takahiro Yoshimatsu, a large art gallery, and a 2 minute
"Creating the Cover" short.
WIDESCREEN REVIEW
STORY:
There is not a really in-depth plot here. It's a typical gun for
hire story we have seen before. However, Toshiki Inoue truly
understands the spirit of the movie. His team of writers have given us
plenty of breath taking action, witty dialogue, and a pretty interesting mystery
to figure out.
ACTING: The
Japanese cast is a lot better than the English cast. Like Rurouni
Kenshin, their reactions are more appropriate in the original language.
I
prefer Rikiya Koyama's Jubei to Dave Rasner. Maybe it's the writing,
but Dave Rasner just isn't as funny. His one liners come off a
little too stilted. I also find Houko Kuwashima's voice more regal
and sexier for Shigure than Daisy Torme. It is easier to understand Dwight
Shultz as Dakuan than his Japanese counterpart, and the Japanese actor
lines are subtitled!
FAN SERVICE: Well, there is, but not
in any way I would find titillating. With the exception of Dakuan,
Jubei, and the Kimon, there are no real in jokes or references to the
movie. The exception would be the split in Jubei's hat.
CONCLUSION
The coolness
continues. Off to a rip roaring start in volume one, Ninja Scroll
volume two continues on its roller coaster ride of awesome action with
clever characters. Each episode is like watching a mini Ninja
Scroll movie. There is more action, more quips, and more freaky
monsters per episode than the entire movie.
In
this volume, we get to spend some time with the annoying petty thief,
Tsubute. As he is running away from another fight, he encounters
another petty thief, Tatsunosuke. The two of them hit it off quite
well. As it turns out, Tsubute has some good qualities, buried deep
in his smarmy personality. Yet, Tatsunosuke hides a secret, one that
the Kimon are interested in using.
From there,
it's some quality time with Jubei. We learn just a small tidbit of
his past. While recovering from his wounds, he encounters a
beautiful woman and her son. While he recovers, he learns that their
pasts are intertwined, and not in a good way. He also has to content
with a rather gooey foe.
The last two episode
brings back a couple of familiar characters, Azami, the "vine"
girl from episode 4, and the creepy Rengoku from episode 2. It is
through Azami that Jubei learns more about the fight he is in. With
Rengoku... well lets just say that there are many ways to be a cut above
the rest!
The
animation is solid, but nothing fantastic. It's pretty typical of
most broadcast anime. For those of you who were missing the visceral thrills of the movie
in the first volume, I have good news for you! The blood, guts and
extreme violence is back! The bad news, the rampant nudity, and explicit sex scenes seen in the movie
are limited to two brief incidents.
The members of the rival clans continue to impress me. Each
monster is nastier and at the same time, more interesting, than the
last. I give Character Designer Takahiro Yoshimatsu some major props
for his creativity. With his impressive work on Trigun, and now
this, he is one CD people should keep an eye on. I can't wait to see
his next project.
I love how the leader of the Kimon looks like a techno-Buddha.
Sitting on his floating lotus platform, electricity shooting from his
back. He could be a nice guy, if he weren't total evil. The
most inventive creature award goes to Nemu, the monster that can take over
people. The way he does it is way cool, and totally gross. The freakiest
goes to Rengoku, the spider Frankenstein lady.
The DVD looks
good, yet the droning sound on the 5.1 bothers me. The extras are
cool, with the interview with Takahiro Yoshimatsu the most informative. I
still don't get Urban Vision's fascination with watching an artist make
the cover. It's not that interesting.
Ninja Scroll:
Dangerous Path is a kick ass follow up to volume one. The third
volume needs to hurry up and get here. Until it does, I will be
hiding in the bushes, like a ninja. When the postman arrives, I will
strike to see if he has my copy!
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