Customer Reviews

Devilman - The Birth/Demon Bird (Vol. 1 & 2)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Okay, if you're looking for something light and fluffy your kids can watch, this is not it!! If you don't get it by the kid friendly title of "Devilman" and menacing demon on the cover, then go ahead and by all means show it to the grandparents as well! For those of you like me who listen to very heavy music at volumes loud enough to shake the walls, love Dario Argento movies, and don't mind seeing loads of blood and gore, then this might be the anime for you. Yes, the dubbing isn't great, but that's not the point. The story itself is very interesting. Akira Fudo is an average student. When his friend, Ryo takes him to his house, and shows him a mask that allows him to see into the demon world, Akira is rightly freaked out (he wets himself okay). Ryo then tells him that unless they both merge with demons, that they will never be strong enough to defeat the demons who killed Ryo's father. They really don't have a choice, it's either merge and become a demon or die. And they really don't have a choice about which demon they merge with (as Ryo puts it, if they don't get one that is strong enough to defeat the others, then they will die anyway). Akira merges with Amon, an incredibly powerful demon, and becomes Devilman. Akira does not lose his humanity, but is able to control the demon to some extent. Highly recommended for fans of Urotsukidoji, Twin Angels, La Blue Girl, Mystery of the Necronomicon...

I got a real big kick out of this movie. Its references to classical mythology and biblical lore provided a serious backdrop to a mediocre and simplistic plot premise. Make no mistake, Devilman rocks. Volumes 1 and 2 are included on the DVD, don't go looking for more, here are both 50 minute OVAs. Volume one takes its time warming up but erupts into a bloody and thrilling climax. Volume 2 introduces a main villian and her attempts to destroy Devilman. We don't know why, and we aren't told much about his greater significance to the world. Devilman must destroy demons, so demons seek out Devilman. There's your story. The animation is good for its time. The dubbing is at best poor and the DVD does not have the original dialogue with subtitles. I doubt very much we're missing a heck of a lot. Violent, chaotic, but loads of fun for adult anime fans. Don't take it too seriously. I especially enjoyed the assorted demons and their powers and design. Enjoy!

Once in a LOOOOOONG while a group of japanese animators, producers, directors, and voice actors, will get together to try and, as faithfully as possible, re-interpret a popular manga (or Japanese comic book). This animated version is a tiny masterpiece, flaws and all. Unfortunately, it is rare that every important nuance in a particular manga is manifested into anime. With this particular crew of artists it would have been AWESOME if they would have made a longer series of more than just two episodes, hence this "tiny" masterpiece. So, in comparison to the manga, since lots of story is skipped, you may feel something missing if you don't know Go Nagai's story very well. Go Nagai is Japan's master of comic book macabre. Not only is he a great story man he is also a wicked artist. He has his own tweaked take on traditional style anime. Look at the eyes of his main characters. They always have this almost Egyptian eyeliner look. VERY cool. BUT! And I do capitalize BUT, here, this doesn't really matter. We're all intelligent enough manga/anime fans, here, to get the gist of this weird, dark, gross-out, erotic, action packed, horror/fantasy. Hell is rising back to the surface after being dormant for millions, maybe billions, of years. Demons are LITERALLY oozing out of your car parts, doorknobs, bathwater, and the only person who could save us is Akira who sacrifices his body and soul to be possessed by the most powerful of all the demons to become half man, half demon, hence DEVILMAN! Pretty twisted. The most horrifying and disturbing scene is the underground "party/club" scene in the first episode. I've seen it several times and it never fails to freak me out. Ultra-violent stuff. The second episode is like Spiderman/Daredevil meets Evil Dead. You get lots more action and still get the creeps. I remember, WAY back in the day, when I had to buy bootlegs on VHS, most of the times with no subtitles, just to be able to see cutting edge anime. This was back in the 80s when the market for anime here was ZILCH. Now its everywhere and most of it is GARBAGE. But, like I said, once in a while you'll come across a little gem like DEVILMAN! Unfortunately, the anime version of DEVILMAN LADY is absolute crap. It is nothing like the manga which is even MORE wicked than DEVILMAN. I don't blame 'em, though. The anime version of DEVILMAN LADY would have been rated XXX. It's truly amazing how Go Nagai can make something so violent and sexual into such good horror genre.

devilman is awsome its one of my favorites its a realy weird and sick movie and the demons look awsome.

This is the greatest Anime film of all time. It has all the best parts of anime - cheezy soundtrack gratuitous violence and nudity and a little something else... an engaging story line that will leave u begging for more anime - any anime just something to fill the knawing hunger. This is not a rent film this is a buy keep and worship film. Also a great film to convert the disbelievers among you If you buy one anime film your whole life this is it people!!!

Ever heard of Satan? You know, the ruler of hell? Well, get ready to hear lot about him in this bizzare anime based on demons. Ofcourse, it's not suprising coming from Go Nagai, the same guy who made Cutey Honey and Hannape Bazooka. Both those titles were primarily high on exposed body parts. Devilman is primarily focused on violence. Lots and lost of violence! The artwork is faily old, but not bad in any way. The music is pretty good especially during the end credits of episode 2. The first epsiode has Akira meet his old friend Roy and hears about his dads death. Later on, Akira makes a dangerous descion to become a devil in order to defeat other devils. And theres no better way to do that then at a sabath. In episode 2, Akira must now deal with Semin. After having killed his possessed mother, Akira vows to kill Semin. I was rather surprised with the way things ended in that episode. Go Nagai might be perverted and cynical, but he sure can write a beefy ending. So why did I give it three stars instead of five? Well, here's one thing that is absurd even for Manga. The DVD is English dub only! Anime companies will only produce English only DVDs if they are edited, but I think Manga might have hit a nerve in many anime fans with this DVD. The English dub sounds a little british at some points (not surprising since Manga also works with the UK) and every character in the whole show says the F word. Thats Nagai for you. Extras are ok, but no the best. The filmogrophy on Go Nagai is only on current Manga anime titles. So don't expect to see Cutey Honey or The Abarashi Family in the text. The bio was a little bit better, but I wish they added a few more paragraphs. The photo gallery was propably the only best part of the extras. Overall, they did a good job with getting the title to DVD, but anime purists can't live on English dubbed DVDs.

While the picture quality may vary, depeding on the quality of your DVD player, you will find the transfer of these two volumes to be exellent none the less. The colours are vibrant, and well defined throughout, with no distracting artifacts, shimmering or bleeding, and the sound is crystal clear.

My only complaint with the DVD is that it doesn't offer subtitled versions of these two volumes,which is surprising since other MANGA titles do offer 'subbed' versions on their discs.

All in all, this is a good disc. It's a very interesting and disturbing series, and will apeal to anyone who feels the need to want to see something a little different. Manga offeres many five-star anime titles on DVD. But I think it would be wise, on thier part, to always include both the 'subbed' and 'dubbed' versions of their movies on DVD, and make good use of the format. Perhaps when there's enough of a demand, Manga will do this. I know Funimation did it with their Dragonball Z series, after countless complaints from customers, and they not only offered subtitled versions with their discs, they remastered them and left them uncut as well, making them worthwhile.

In closing, I'd give this DVD five stars, if it contained the 'subbed' versions of these two volumes along with the 'dubbed' ones. But since they're not present on this disc, leaving the viewer with only the inferior version to choose from, I have to subtract a star. I just hope someday a superior verison of this disc will be released. Until then, I'm afraid the only subtitled versions you'll find are sold separatley on VHS. If you feel the need to want to see this movie, I'd suggest renting it first, like I did. It's interesting anime, but I don't think it's for everyone.

I saw the original subtitled versions of both Devilman volumes and that prompted me to buy the DVD, much to my dismay however, the DVD did not include a subtitled version, and the dubbing is amateurish at best, they alter plot-important lines, throw in profanity at every turn, and try and use british slang with american accents which only makes the characters sound really dumb. The original work of Go Nagai was a masterpiece of animation, but after the dubbed version was made it's barely worth even watching.

DevilMan is one of the prime examples of Go Nagai's anime. It'll suit just about everyone,except for the religious people. Action fans will adore both parts for its violence; Philosophers will love it because it takes a completly diffrent take on humanity as a whole, and states that both God and Satan are seen as products of man-kind's imagination. Horror fans will also adore this movie for its demons and suspense. I swear to God my heart stops at least twice during just the first oav. I also love DevilMan because of its supreme irony. (i.e. how the obligatory love scene is juxtaposed with one of the main charecters revealing to the other that demons exsist) There are also literature referances (Dante's inferno). Beautiful,stylish and heart-stopping. for more information on DevilMan, go to http://www.fortunecity.com/rivendell/demons/735

if you want a great anime whith lots of bloody action and a good adult story. This one is for you. Wach one of Go Nagais master works (like mazinger z and cutie honey)