Customer Reviews

Black Cat, Vol. 1 - The Cat Out of the Bag

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Train Heartnet, better known as "The Black Cat", is a killer for the Chronos organization which ironically fancies itself as a force for justice in an otherwise unjust world. He takes on any job he is assigned, even if it means killing women and children. He's just that kind of a guy. But he's starting to question the meaning of it all, especially after he meets a beautiful kimono clad girl singing from her heart on the rooftops. She too carries a pistol, but instead of being a assassin, she's a "Sweeper", a bounty hunter, but she chooses never to kill her prey. She encourages Train to listen to his heart and do what HE wants to do, instead of just following orders blindly. There's also another sweeper in town, a white suited eye patch wearing guy named Sven, who can see the future with his covered eye. He keeps on crossing paths with Train because they're looking for the same people. But Sven wants to bring them in alive, not dead. When Sven agrees to rescue the kidnapped little sister of a woman he meets, he soon learns that Train is after the sister too...to kill her!

While I have not read the original manga version of this anime, I was aware of it, and was gladly surprised by some of the improvements on the character designs, especially the deletion of the fruity looking collar bell that Train wears in the manga. Train comes across as a very complicated and complex character, haunted by the decision to become an assassin when he was a child. He has been so numbed to his work, that he has become more like a robot than a man. It's nice to see a woman begin to turn him from that path, which makes it a bit more grown up than the usual Shonen Jump title. Sven is pretty much the lamebrain comedy relief of the piece, but he has his heroic moments as well. For most of this volume Train is the villain, but we see glimmers that he is set to return to the side of good. The animation was pretty good, but the character designs varied from average to poor, which was no fault of the anime staff, but of the manga-ka. For example, Train's pistol simply looks like the artist drew it still in the holster and thought this looked cool and inventive, when it just makes it look lazy. It would seem like you could at least design a cool-looking gun for your main character! I really liked this first volume and will continue watching. It also made me want to read the manga as well.

I enoyed whole series. Train Heartnet can kick butt and take names. Loved the soundtrack. When Train decides to go his on way all bets are off. Because of an assignment that he does not complete it sets off a set of events that have a sweet ending. Enjoy

In a world that is just slightly different from our own, he's one of Chronos' Numbers, an elite assassin who's known for the XIII branded on his chest.

Kentaro Yabuki had a pretty cool idea when he used that for his action/comedy manga "Black Cat." And while the anime adaptation is not terribly faithful in its opener, "Black Cat, Vol. 1 - The Cat Out of the Bag" is a fairly decent opener for the series -- though rather slow-paced, it successfully introduces all the main characters, and sets up a complex, action-packed little storyline.

Sweeper Sven Vollfield is about to nab a notorious gangster when Train Heartnet, the notorious "Black Cat," bursts in and kills the man and escapes before anyone can react.

As he waits for Chronos to hand him his next assignment, Train encounters a quirky, upbeat sweeper named Saya on his apartment roof. Though he's usually alone, a friendship forms between him and Saya, and he even follows her when she pursues a lethal criminal whose bare hands can melt flesh. And along the way, she teaches him that a gun is just a tool -- and "its job is what its handler chooses."

Meanwhile, Sven is hired by a shady damsel to help her rescue a little girl from an infamous weapons dealer's mansion. Everything goes smoothly until he finds the girl Eve -- with Train's gun pointed at her head. Sven's determination to save Eve from Train and the weapons dealer is complicated by the fact that she's a living bioweapon who has no idea what the outside world is like. And can he possibly save her from an assassin who has never once failed?

Thieves, killers, nanotechnology, bounty hunters and a little girl who can transform her body parts.

Yeah, it's a pretty thrilling little story. The story is not entirely faithful to Kentaro Yabuki's original manga -- the first few episodes are very dark in tone, and focus on Train's life as a Chronos Number rather than a sweeper. But taken on its own merits, "Black Cat" is still a solid, action-packed story with some intriguing characters and lots of very odd humor.

The first three episodes are rather slow-paced, only to speed up in the fourth. They're all graced with shadowy, elaborate animation full of glowing roses, dark rooms and moonlit rooftop. And though there are some cute moments such as Sven treating Eve to ice cream, it's overshadowed by lots of fast-paced action sequences too, ranging from Train swooping around firing his enormous pistol to Sven's goofy assault on some street toughs.

And no matter how dark the story, Sven's offbeat way of handling things -- such as his catnip grenades or magic briefcase -- always brings a little comic relief into the plot.

Train Heartnet is still a bit unformed here -- he doesn't show much emotion, and usually comes across as rather numb. But we do see the inner Train at times ("You can tear my face off, but I'm not gonna lie to you!"), especially given his love of milk and kitties. And some brief flashbacks hint at a blood-soaked past that probably pushed him into the assassin biz.

And though he's responsible for most of the comedy, Sven is also a formidable and quirky character -- truly chivalrous and compassionate. Saya's too much of a flake to really be endearing, but there's definitely some promise in Train's partner Creed. Not only is he gorgeous, nutty and very vicious (cue gory death via boomerang), but he also has a glaring gay crush on Train. That ought to be juicy.

The four episodes on "Black Cat, Vol. 1 - The Cat Out of the Bag" are a rather slow opener for the series, but this action-packed anime has plenty of promise. Just don't expect strict fidelity.

when i got the box in the mail it was empty. called right away got a replacement the next day. this was a pre ordered item and did not recieve it until after december 19 when it came out and even paid the extra to have it before christmas. when i called they apologized and sent the replacement out the next day