Customer Reviews

Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales, Vol. 2 - Yotsuya Ghost Story

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I found this arc of Ayakashi to be most scary. The first arc tried to be everything and ended up doing everything blandly, while the third was some real eyecandy and had its moments, but didn't really get under my skin. This arc, however, is really terrible, in a good way.

Live action and animation are combined in a way that screws with your mind a little and facts and fiction are toyed with in the same way. The narrator is as much a part of the story he tells as he is just a storyteller.

I don't see too much animated horror that delivers, so if you're a horror, history, or drama fan, I don't see too much of a reason not to give this a chance, especially since right now, it's so reasonably priced.

The second story arc of the Ayakashi series focuses on a playwright's recounting of the story of the kabuki play Yotsuya Kaidan. The real play is a recounting of a series of murders and hauntings in Bunsei-era (early 19th century) Japan based loosely on a combination of actual events. This anime is interesting in that it exposes a Western audience to a major work of Japanese drama, animated in a comparatively realistic, serious fashion. I suspect that to Japanese audiences it was the Western equivalent of watching an animated adaptation of Macbeth.

If this review makes this anime sound somewhat esoteric, then I've done my job. It's a challenge to judge the literary merit of a horror anime about a famous kabuki play most Westerners have never heard of. If you aren't interested in kabuki, you would likely experience this anime as a samurai-period drama with supernatural elements about villainous people doing awful things to each other and their unfortunate victims before karma catches up to them. If you're on a limited budget or want to see the best of what Ayakashi has to offer, skip straight to Ayakashi - Samurai Horror Tales, Vol. 3 - Goblin Cat.

I own the demon cat and am currently awaiting the dark tower dvd. All are apart of this series and I love them. Vibrant colors and haunting stories all with a moral interwoven into them.

I was skeptical that this would be a low budget, quickly put together production. However, the quality is quite good. The stories aren't 'quickies' but they have actual substance to them. This isn't in the same league as Ninja Scroll but was still very enjoyable all the same. For this price, it's worth it.