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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, drawing innocents into the line of fire.

The Kimon step up their plans to capture Shigure and get the treasure for themselves.  Through a series of clever ploys, not only do they get their hands on the Light Maiden, they managed to kill most of the Hiruko.

Chasing after Shigure, Jubei encounters Yagyu Renya, an nobleman working for the Tokugawa Shogunate.  His mission is unknown, but he too is after Shigure and the Dragon Stone.  He also will kill anyone who gets in his way, which includes Jubei.

With the odds against him it looks as if Jubei will die before he learns the truth about the Light Maiden. 

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 over blasts 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.  The droning noise from the previous volume is gone.

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.

EXTRAS: We have a multi-angle storyboard to feature comparison on key scenes.  There is a cool behind the scenes of the English dub segment.  Text less open and close, a large art gallery, promotional trailers, 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 lots of suspense.

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

This has been one hell of a good ride.  

For 13 episodes, the folks at Madhouse have assaulted us with non stop action, bloody fights, and nail-biting suspense.  The closer to the end we get, the more intense the situations.  By the time "Ninja Scroll" is over, you will feel like you have just fought the entire Kimon clan. 

There is a lot going on in this volume. We learn the fundamental truth about the Hiruko clan.  As it turns out, there is more to their quest for the Light Maiden than monetary gain.  They are after something far more important, freedom.  The Hiruko is not really evil, but driven to come from out of the shadows and into the light.  They way they get there isn't exactly "Emily Post", but in 18 century Japan, what do you expect.

This volume introduces a new adversary for Jubei, the foreboding Yagyu Renya.  This bad ass is as cold as an iceberg.  His men are dying, he could care less.  The Hiruko want is to be free, he could care less.  Shigure just wants to go home.  He could care less.  All he wants to do is seriously mess some people up and protect Japan from evil.  Hey, he is the only one who can hold his own against Jubei, so he has a reason to be a bad ass.

Still no one can match my man Dakuan.  This crafty old lecher can get himself out of amazing situations.  Ninjas, samurai, Kimon, he can take them all on with his trusty staff.  Not only that, but any dude that chills out by hanging upside down is pretty cool in my book.  Besides, he and I have the same taste in ninja babes!

The ending is exactly the way a hard hitting ninja series should end; hard core, knock down, drag out fighting.  The body count is high, very high.  The way many of the secondary characters are dispatched will have you going DAMN!  The last three episodes are by far the bloodiest of the entire series.

The members of the clans really impressed me.  Each monster is nastier and 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.

The music by Kitaro is as beautiful as Peter "Peas" McEvilley is strong.  While McEvilley's techno/rock fusion was a bit disconcerting at first, it didn't take long for me to get into it.  I was impressed at how he incorporated Kitaro's Jubei/Shigure coda's into his music.  The two of them elevate Ninja Scroll's music from typical "synthesizer" music.  The soundtrack is one CD you must buy.

I like that Urban Vision released the entire series on three DVD's instead of 4, like Pioneer did for "Hellsing".  At $24.95 a pop, it's hard to spend that kind of money on only 3 episodes.  I will be honest, I loved the series so much, I would have bought all four anyway.  That being said, I applaud Urban Vision for thinking of the fans instead of their profit margin.

"Ninja Scroll:  Deliverance" is the kick ass conclusion of this awesome series.  When you need a strong dose of samurai action, this should be your first and last choice.

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