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Gyt again, and I finally got around to borrowing this title from my friend Alc, although I wasn't sure what to expect at first. In the end though, I was left quite impressed by this title, given the amount of distaste Speed Grapher seems to be held in by a lot of fans out there.
Let me start off by saying that this show is NOT for the kiddies. Violence, gore, extreme cursing, near-miss nudity, and lot of uncomfortable situations await the viewer of this show. With that said, it's no wonder the show was picked for airing on IFC. ^_^;
Speed Grapher chronicles the adventures Tatsumi Saiga, as he tries to get young Kagura Tennouzou away to safety. It all starts off with Saiga, disappointed with the life of a media photographer and longing for the days of war journalism, gets an assignment to look into a secret underground club in Tokyo. He manages to infiltrate the club, only to find the kind of twisted things that are best left to nightmares.
A ceremony is being held in the club that night, where a lucky member will have his deepest, darkest wish brought to reality. Kagura as 'The Goddess on High' is dropped down from the ceiling, and her kiss will awaken those latent desires. Unfortunately, Saiga is caught photographing her, interrupting the ceremony. He is ordered to be killed by the club's leader and founder, Suitengu, but before that happens, Kagura kisses him, awakening his innermost desire and power. Now, Saiga's camera blows people apart instead of taking their pictures, and that (along with his desire to free Kagura from the life she's been living) makes him target number one for Suitengu's band of freaks.
The series basically follows a 'Freak of the Week' formula earlier in the series, and even features a re-cap episode before it's all said and done, so early on it's not all that impressive, beyond showcasing things I never thought I'd see in an anime. For me, the re-cap episode, while amusingly done, was a bit much - you don't need a re-cap when you're only 16 episodes in in my opinion. However, I still enjoyed this show none-the-less, if for no reason other than Suitengu. About half-way through the show, you start to learn about the past of the primary villain, and after seeing it, it's hard to REALLY call him an evil person. Yes, he does evil things throughout the series, but his reasoning is very believable given his past.
Other than the 'trying to hard to be adult' comment I've heard many people make, the other chief complaint I hear a lot is that the art is less than stellar. I'm no art expert, my drawing ability is barely enough to get ideas across, but I just don't see it. It's definitely no Bleach, which has some of the most beautiful art I've ever seen, but it still is wonderfully executed, at least in my opinion.So now that the initial excitement over watching this series has passed, I can pass judgment on it fairly. In the end, I found that I quite liked this show. It's definitely not for everyone though - if you are easily offended by sexual things and intense violence, you'd best stay as far away from this one as you can. However, if you're into that kind of stuff, than this show is a must-see. I'm not bothered by the stuff, but it's not what I go looking for as a title I want to see, what attracts me is a good, engaging story, and Speed Grapher definitely has that. So, in the end, I'd have to give Speed Grapher a 6 out of 10 - It's not something you'll find me ranting and raving on years down the line, but I enjoyed it, and you might to. If you find the boxset cheap or for rent, go for it, or watch it on IFC. You probably won't be disappointed.
Gyt Kaliba here, and boy did I hit the jackpot. I was at my local Wal-Mart doing some shopping, when I happened to glance at the Red Box machine and notice a familiar looking title - They actually had an anime title in stock. One dollar to rent a movie I haven't seen yet? Great. One dollar to see an anime I otherwise might never get around to seeing? PRICELESS. ^_^
So, it goes without saying that I picked it up, and even put a stop to my re-watching of Fruits Basket, to watch Vexille. And it was definitely worth it.
First off, the plot was really good in my opinion. Nothing trend-setting, but definitely not particularly like something I've seen before. For starters, Japan is the villain in this...well, sorta. Let's start from the beginning: In the 2060s, technology had advanced to such a degree that cyborgs could be made far too human-like. The UN banned research into further advancements, but Japan protested, and left the UN to develop their technology. 10 years later, in 2077, an American police agency called S.W.O.R.D. has a run in with some dirty politicians, and while chasing one of them, an accomplice gets away by cutting off his own leg with a knife. When the agents (Leon, Vexille, and Zak) take the leg back to S.W.O.R.D's base, one of their scientists discover that though the leg has a bio-signature, it's imprinted. This could only mean one thing - the man was a cyborg, and one more advanced than is legal.
The U.S. secretly sends our heroes into Japan to find out what's been going on for the past ten years, but upon infiltrating, Zak is killed, and Leon and Vexille are seperated. Vexille awakens in a strange house with a woman named Maria, who takes her into the town to explain the current state of Japan. The Japanese government used it's own people as an experiment to create cyborgs, and as a result, not a single real human exists in Tokyo! Now it's left to Vexille to single-handedly save Japan, find Leon, and stop the U.S. and the rest of the world from sharing Japan's dismal fate.
Now, you can tell by looking that this isn't your normal anime. Instead of traditional animation, Vexille was created using CGI, much like Appleseed and Appleseed Ex Machina. The result is simply stunning - only a few times have I seen CG look this good, and never has it looked this good in anime style.The soundtrack is also simply stunning, with great songs from bands like the Boom Boom Satellites and Asian Dub Foundation. This soundtrack is only made even more remarkable by the stunning performances given by the voice actors.
I unfortunately cannot give a review of acting based on the original Seiyuu's work, as I had to return the film before getting a chance to watch it again in Japanese. However, FUNimation has done a great job with the dubbing, and Colleen Clinkenbeard should definitely win an award for her performance in this film. The rest of the cast is top-notch as well, which is to be expected from a dub directed by Mike McFarland, a man who clearly recognizes talent.
So all in all, this is a film that I would definitely have been happy purchasing. So if you feel safe spending money on something you haven't seen yet, this is definitely a safe bet. However, if you're hesitant to buy blind as I am, see if there's a Red Box near you, and give it a try. For a dollar, anythings worth a try, and you aren't going to get any better for a buck than Vexille.I give this film an 8 out of 10 - In the end, it's not something you absolutely HAVE to see, but you are better for the viewing.Cast List
Colleen Clinkenbeard as Lt. Cdr. Vexille SerraTravis Willingham as Cdr. Leon FaydenChristine Auten as MariaChristopher Sabat as ZakJason Douglas as SaitoLuci Christian as TakashiIllich Guardiola as RyoJ. Michael Tatum as KisaragiTodd Haberkorn as TaroJohn Swasey as Captain BorgPhil Parsons as SagaKent Williams as ItakuraBackground voices include Cynthia Cranz, Kyle Hebert, and Chuck Huber.
Gyt again, and I finally got around to borrowing this title from my friend Alc, although I wasn't sure what to expect at first. In the end though, I was left quite impressed by this title, given the amount of distaste Speed Grapher seems to be held in by a lot of fans out there.
Speed Grapher chronicles the adventures Tatsumi Saiga, as he tries to get young Kagura Tennouzou away to safety. It all starts off with Saiga, disappointed with the life of a media photographer and longing for the days of war journalism, gets an assignment to look into a secret underground club in Tokyo. He manages to infiltrate the club, only to find the kind of twisted things that are best left to nightmares.
A ceremony is being held in the club that night, where a lucky member will have his deepest, darkest wish brought to reality. Kagura as 'The Goddess on High' is dropped down from the ceiling, and her kiss will awaken those latent desires. Unfortunately, Saiga is caught photographing her, interrupting the ceremony. He is ordered to be killed by the club's leader and founder, Suitengu, but before that happens, Kagura kisses him, awakening his innermost desire and power. Now, Saiga's camera blows people apart instead of taking their pictures, and that (along with his desire to free Kagura from the life she's been living) makes him target number one for Suitengu's band of freaks.
The series basically follows a 'Freak of the Week' formula earlier in the series, and even features a re-cap episode before it's all said and done, so early on it's not all that impressive, beyond showcasing things I never thought I'd see in an anime. For me, the re-cap episode, while amusingly done, was a bit much - you don't need a re-cap when you're only 16 episodes in in my opinion. However, I still enjoyed this show none-the-less, if for no reason other than Suitengu. About half-way through the show, you start to learn about the past of the primary villain, and after seeing it, it's hard to REALLY call him an evil person. Yes, he does evil things throughout the series, but his reasoning is very believable given his past.
Other than the 'trying to hard to be adult' comment I've heard many people make, the other chief complaint I hear a lot is that the art is less than stellar. I'm no art expert, my drawing ability is barely enough to get ideas across, but I just don't see it. It's definitely no Bleach, which has some of the most beautiful art I've ever seen, but it still is wonderfully executed, at least in my opinion.
