Customer Reviews

Doomed Megalopolis (Special Edition)

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

 

 

This is a four part series, originally created in 1992, that tells the story of an evil necromancer dead set on the destruction of Tokyo and the small group of people who desperately try to stop him. Kato Yasinori is the magician whose plan is to raise the spirit of Taira No Masikado a 10th Century samurai rebel. If woken, Masikado's anger will trigger the end of Tokyo.

Caught up in the opening stanzas of Kato's plot are Yukari Tatsumi and her brother, Yukari's daughter Yukiko and Naritake a close friend. The mage intends to use Yukari as a vessel for the re-incarnated samurai. When this fails he turns to Yukiko, but she is unsuitable because she is the result of Yukari's rape by her brother. Although unsuccessful at awakening the spirit, Kato manages to disturb the dragon of the earth sufficiently to trigger the devastating earthquakes of 1923, where over 74,000 died and millions left homeless.

In the last two episodes, Kato plans to renew his efforts at the destruction of Tokyo but taking advantage of the reconstruction effort. Secretly he works to draw down the moon, using a slingshot effect to ruin the city, and possible, the earth. This time, however, Tatsumi has married Keiko, a priestess of Masakado. With the help of a psychic, Kureda, she wages the battle with the necromancer, but it appears to be a hopeless struggle in the face of overwhelming magical powers. In its final form, it becomes a struggle between the Goddess of Mercy and the Spirit of the Dead.

Director Rin Taro based this screenplay on an original story by Hiroshi Aramato, oulling no punches in the process. This is a violent film - not do to a lot of killing, but due to an undercurrent of sexual sadism that periodically breaks loose, leaving the viewer more than a little unnerved. While the plot does stay within certain limits, it is decidedly and adult story, more properly a horror film than a fantasy story. It combines just enough of real history and common legend to make the tale compelling, but occasionally prone to unexplained events.

The basic art work is good, evoking the Japanese equivalent of gothic atmosphere. But the animation uses to many short cuts and lacks fluidity. Even so it has an atmospheric strength that is the perfect counterpoint to the rough edges of the story line. If your taste runs to noir horror make a point of seeking this out.

This anime is not for the younger generation as it has LOTS of sexual imagery, some of which is a little bizzare, but the anime is very good.
The story is very good, your basic good versus evil, and has lots of otherwordly stuff and magic too. I have bought it and think it is good to rewatch now and then so give it a go!
If u need help let me be your conscience; "BUY IT!"

Before I go off reviewing probably one of the most unfairly hated anime titles in existence, I'd like to share some personal history I've had with this anime.

It was Friday afternoon back in September of 2002, and my fascination with anime was still potent since I've only been a fan for two months. I wanted to rent more anime tapes, so me and my brother went to Popeye's Chicken after school for some good eatin', and we went to the now absent Hollywood Video in our region. I went through the anime aisle and these four tapes each entitled Doomed Megalopolis caught my eye (each tape contained a different installment in the OVA). I though the titles sounded awesome and the cover art was pleasing for my adolescent male brain (one of the tapes, I believe, had Yukari depicted with slugs crawling up one of her legs). I picked up one of the tapes and read the back description, and with the noticeable "Not for Kids" sticker on the front, my brain screamed with joy and I came home that evening with all four volumes of Doomed Megalopolis and waited for everyone to go to bed. Once everyone was asleep, I watched all the tapes in a row and despite the total three hour running-length, I wasn't bored once and I went to bed that night pretty freaked out by what I saw, and since then, Doomed Megalopolis has been a favorite of mine for nearly eight years.

STORY

The story for Doomed Megalopolis is that in early 20th century Japan, an evil spirit named Yasunori Kato (who dons a military outfit that makes him look kinda like M. Bison from the Street Fighter games) attempts to awake Masakado (the guardian spirit of Tokyo), which would cause death and annihilation at a grand scale. However, his initial efforts prove unsuccessful, but as some years pass, he sees an innocent young lady named Yukari Tatsumiya and decides she's a perfect tool for awakening Masakado. Shortly after kidnapping Yukari, he possibly impregnates her with a child and as the years go by, Kato plans to use Yukiko (Yukari's daughter) as an even stronger tool to awake Masakado.

SCARE TACTICS

Doomed Megalopolis, being a horror anime, has some of the creepiest and unnerving imagery and atmosphere in the horror anime niche, accounting for most of this anime's high score. One of the "horror" things that DM does well is fuse fantasy and reality. While not done quite as well as anything involving Satoshi Kon, it's done well enough for the desired effects, and are the effects intense!! Rintaro, being the wise fellow that he is, decided to avoid repetition by mixing it up with the "fantasy meets reality" visions by making some of them fake and some of them really effecting the character. For example, there's a scene in Part 1: The Haunting of Tokyo, where Kato possesses Yukari to have her see the annihilation of Tokyo and after collapsing, he tries to take her soul. Not too long after, there's a scene where Junichi Narutaki (Yukari's friend) sees living black ooze crawl out of a prayer stand and consume him, but it was just a terrifying vision, so you can't really tell what will be real or fake. Though the best "realistic nightmare" vision has to be when in Part 2: The Fall of Tokyo, where Yukiko is possessed by Kato and is engulfed by a giant, black oozing mouth with razor-sharp teeth. There's moments where Kato's possessions are fairly simplistic yet so brazen in their evilness. An example would be when Yukari sees a circle of kids playing and singing. They start off singing "Close your eyes and don't be scared, the evil will never find you" (not quoted verbatim), but Yukari gets encircled by those kids and the song turns to "Close your eyes and be scared, the evil has found you." Doomed Megalopolis also uses violent and sexual imagery very well to enhance the terrifying atmosphere it sets out to make. Fine examples of this would be a scene in the first part of DM where Koda Rohan finds Yukari's inanimate body by a river, and when she gains consciousness, a phallic demon slug crawls out of her mouth. The other is when in Part 3: The Gods of Tokyo, Yukiko is naked and consumed by the Underground Dragon's heart (though some may be really turned off by the fact that she's only 13). Then there's scenes that are just plain messed up for no particular reason, especially when in Part 2, when Yukari is cutting off fish heads in her kitchen, she says to Narutaki "I don't know why, but I've been feeling much better today." with a really creepy face while stabbing at the fish violently. There's plenty more, but I don't want to give you every little detail about the fantastic horror tactics in this anime.

CHARACTERS

Depending on who you are, your glass is either half-full or half-empty in this area. To me, my glass is half-full because the characters range from being interesting to so-so. Examples of the interesting characters are Kato and Yukari's older brother, Yoichiro Tatsumiya. Kato is interesting because not only is he one of the most intensely evil characters in anime (I had to reference him in my review for Morbid Angel's "Altars of Madness" because of how evil he is), he also has some intriguing reasons for his detestable actions (which is covered towards the beginning of Part 2, so pay attention when watching it). Tatsumiya is also interesting because of his slimy nature and his really mixed feelings about his sister, Yukari. In the past, he had a murky encounter with Yukari and has been haunted by this for a long time. After finding out about her supposed affair with Kato, he commits incest against Yukari in her sleep. I guarantee that you'll want to shank Tatsumiya repeatedly with a sharp, rusty improvised weapon after seeing that. Yukari and her daughter, Yukiko, sorta fall in the middle ground between interesting and dull because while they're certainly the lifeblood of this anime, you don't really get to see them in depth, other than to see their super passive personalities; even though the creators of DM were really pressed on time and money, it would have been nice if the relationship between Yukari and her daughter was fleshed out more. Though in defense of the way the two are fleshed out, it was probably because Japanese culture (especially prior to their defeat in World War 2) tends to bend their women into being passive and invisible when put up against the males. However, Keiko Tatsumiya (who'd be a crucial character in Parts 3 and 4: The Battle for Tokyo) is an interesting female character since when compared to Yukari and Yukiko, stands out due to her backbone and immense supernatural powers, but also has the will to confront her husband, Yoichiro, about his contempt for Yukari and Yukiko. However, some characters, like Narutaki and Koda just seem there to propel the story along. Which is a shame because they had some potential. All in all, the characters are decent, and certainly light-years superior to the walking cliches in Elfen Lied.

APPEARANCE

The animation, while overall decent, can be inconsistent at times. There's some scenes that are beautifully animated with great artwork, some other scenes look visually inferior and unfitting stylistically. However, these stylistic inconsistencies don't happen much, so they really don't effect the grade that much. The character designs have their good and bad sides. While the appearance of the characters themselves look quite pleasing (especially Yukari in Part 1, since I think she's one of the prettiest ladies in anime), they could have had some more stylistic diversity. The biggest problem is that once Part 3 begins, it can be difficult to distinguish Keiko from Yukari (especially at the very start of Part 3), but after a while, you can distinguish the two from each other. The background art is very painterly and finely detailed. Contrary to Charles Solomon's disdain for the color-scheme, I love the colors used for DM since they really make you feel unnerved and combined with the amazing soundtrack, also gives an ethereal feeling on some occasions. Also contrary to Solomon's critiques, I felt the characters were drawn pretty well; I don't recall much, if any "awkward" poses. The shape-shifters created by the occult parchments look like abominationss Don Hertzeld would see if he listened to a lot of early wave death metal (such as Morbid Angel and Nocturnus) while inebriated on large amounts of vodka and marijuana. In other words, they look quite creepy and bizarre. Because this was a low budget animation created in collaboration between Toei and Madhouse from 1991-1992, the grainy picture quality and minor imperfections (nothing terrible) in the artwork enhance the unnerving atmosphere this anime already generates, making it even better.

SOUNDTRACK

Doomed Megalopolis has one of the absolute best soundtracks I've ever heard in any anime. Infact, the soundtrack is so amazing, it's one of the extremely rare anime soundtracks I own in CD format. Kazz Toyama really pulled a doozie on us with this soundtrack since the only other anime soundtrack I know he did was for Cyber City Oedo, which was late 80's instrumental synth-pop cheese galore (though a guilty pleasure, nonetheless). However, for Doomed Megalopolis, Toyama uses keyboards, synthesizers, intense drums, and shredding guitars to create a truly chilling and heart-pounding sonic experience that really bolsters the fine qualities DM already has going for it. The keys and synths are used to employ organ-like sounds fused with more traditional horror-entry atmosphere with Steve Vai (not really him that did it) occasionally popping in to mangle his guitar to make it sound like hell in shred guitar format. However, it's not all doom and hellish excitement; there's some piano-driven pieces used for more peaceful and ambient effects in the few "brighter" areas of this anime. Toyama struck gold with this soundtrack and sadly, he doesn't get credit for doing so. All in all, the soundtrack alone is one of the best of its kind and if you can find it, I recommend getting it just so you can get an exhilarating audio experience.

THEMES

Doomed Megalopolis takes a smart path by incorporating themes in a subtle manner to actually make the audience think and not look at all pretentious. The two most prominent themes in DM are its use of history to build upon the story and the use of Eastern religion. An example of the former is the use of the Great Kanto Earthquake in the story and an example of the latter is embodied with Keiko's character since she's believed to be the Goddess of Mercy, or in more proper terms, a Kannon. There's also achieving the status of Bodhisattva (enlightened being) and the Buddhist principles of love and hate. I recommend you conduct some research on these topics so you can understand DM's ending better. There's even the use of traditional Japanese spiritual beliefs concerning paying respect to the dead since this is a big factor with the evils at work. While less implied, I believe there's a theme of the struggle between Japanese traditionalism and Westernization embodied in Yoichiro, since he often wears Western clothing yet maintains his devotion to rather misogynistic principles that were commonplace in Japan in that time.

MATURE CONTENT

This is an anime that you should never let your kids see because of how disturbing it is visually and mentally. There's quite a good helping of gore along with the previously mentioned nudity and sexual content. However, as stated before, I think for the most part, they're used very well to further the disturbing concepts at work and not just for the sake of having them.

UNFAIR CRITICISM

While I rarely engage in the following behavior, I feel it's necessary to vehemently counteract the negative publicity surrounding this anime because most of the critiques it receives are really unfair and inconsistent. So right now, I'll protect Doomed Megalopolis much like Ellen Ripley defending Newt in Aliens from an incoming horde of aliens with an M41A pulse rifle/flamethrower. Many people have complained about the misogynistic content in this anime, though it's not really that much greater in magnitude when compared to other adult anime from the same time period since that was a selling point for anime titles (such as Wicked City) in the then fledgling anime market in the US. What people don't really like to acknowledge is that as stated before, Japan's culture had strong amounts of misogyny prior to full scale Westernization, and since DM took place at a time when Japan resisted Westernization, I felt the creators were only being historically accurate about these unpleasant yet true acts that were common back then. The acts of gory violence are also condemned, which doesn't really make sense since it's roughly on the same level as popular titles from the early 90's like Ninja Scroll, so that critique right there is inconsistent. What gets me irritated even more is that many of the people who decry Doomed Megalopolis for its intense violence and sexual content, praise really trendy yet detestable anime titles like Elfen Lied and Gantz, conveniently overlooking the fact that both really outdo DM in terms of violence and sexual content. For those who hated DM for its extreme content, what were you expecting this to be? Smurfs dancing in the fields and picking flowers? The notoriety surrounding DM somewhat reminds me of the bashing movies like The Thing (1982), Alien 3 (1992), and Event Horizon (1997) received for being "too creepy, violent, and disgusting." While all three films managed to rope in respectably large cult followings and even newfound respect in more mainstream circles, DM unfortunately still lingers in obscurity without a noticeable following. I hope this review can get people to think about this anime and give it a chance.

FINAL WORD

Doomed Megalopolis isn't for everyone. However, if you're looking for a horror anime that will really freak you out all while delivering a unique and intriguing story, then Doomed Megalopolis will reward you greatly.

What is a WTF Movie you ask? A WTF movie is a What the (Fill in the blank) movie. Doomed MEgallopolis is a Mid 90's sci fi anime involving Sorcerors, Dragons, and gods. The story revolves around a sorceror named Kako who wishes to destroy tokyo. This two DVD set expands upon this story starting with Kako going after a young women in order to use her to resurect a god, after realizing that she is two weak he impreginates her and 11 years later he uses the daughter to destroy tokyo. However Tokyo is not so easily vanquished as a few years later Tokyo is rebuilt and he realizes that the spirit is to weak. So he goes for the dragon sleeping underneath to destroy tokyo for good. At this point the Goddess of Mercy shows up to stop him ending in a fairly bloody battle.

The reason this a WTF movie is the small things that catch your attention, and or disgust you. For example in episode one the woman about halfway through ends up vomiting out a demon that has a penis for a tounge. That is only in the first episode. There are other moments to include the bizzare ending which does not needed interpreted but is strange none the less.

Back in the early nineties, Streamline Entertainment seemed to be going after some of the explicit work from Japan. Most of them were very successful and lead to other series, but Doomed Megalopolis seemed to not have gotten the attention it so deserved. I mean it was directed by the famous Rintaro (Metropolis, Galaxy Express 999).

Doomed Megalopolis obviously takes place in Tokyo. The story occurs during the early 1990's when Japan was just starting to modernize. However, evil is afoot as an ancient ghost from China's army called Kato seeks revenge on Tokyo. He tries to summon the soul of Masakado to aid him, but to no prevail. Thus, Kato starts to manipulate certain people in order to get his revenge.

DM contains lots of Japanese mythology references such as the belief of the Earth is a dragon with arteries underground. Another element that is present is actual events like the 1923 earthquake in Japan. When you can successfully mix actual events with mythology, you have a great story. I've heard many people call DM a horror anime, but it doesn't seem to be setup like a horror movie. There is very little death, if any, of the main characters. There are some moments that will remind you of Nightmare on 34th Street, but the similarities end there.

Thats not to say there isn't any action. There are some strange, but quite pleasing battles of spiritual war. To put it simply, it's a good-vs-evil war. The characters all have good qualities and some seem pretty realistic. Actually, character development seems to be driving this anime. And, yes, there is some sex, but not much. There is are some tentacles in the first episode and there is a rape scene, but it's not explicit. However, with an exception for nudity during the last couple of episodes, DM is pretty clean.

I am proud ADV finally picked up this title, but they could have done a lot better. First off, they didn't include the Japanese track. I am happy that now I don't have to worry about wearing out those old DM tapes from Streamline, but the purpose of anime on DVD is to get both tracks. The dub is fine and all, but I wouldn't mind to hear the original track. Moreover, there is some kanji in DM that I really think they should have translated. Soft subtitles could have done the job, but all ADV did was just rip the original prints from Streamline and slap them on a disc.

Overall, DM is a good value considering you get all four 50-minute episodes in one convient package. Doomed Megalopolis is a great anime title that I think every anime fan should atleast try.

Lots of people dont seem to really like this film, Im not sure why, it has the typical amount of violence and strangeness that one would expect from most anime films. Who knows?

Anyways, for all of you graphic freaks out there, this movie will not sit well with you. As it is not up to todays standards, because it was released in the early 90's. However for those of us who arent graphic freaks, the graphics are still good regardless.

The story of this movie, revolves around a man hellbent on destroying Tokyo. This man is Kato Yasunari, and he isnt your every day Joe. He wields awesome power, at one point pulling the Moon into the Earth. To stop his crusade of destruction are an assortment of individuals, a scientist, a college student, a psychic, and most importantly a temple maiden who isnt all she appears to be. The charcters are all interesting in their own ways, and stay a large part of the story throughout the movie.

There are really two parts to the story, Kato, and the family he is using in his evil schemes. This family is really screwed up thanks to the older brother, who is a man obsessed with work and social status. You will not like the borther, as he is a very bad person. The sister is insane thanks to her brother and the demon Kato, who each in some way traumatize her. Later in the movie a focus is also placed on the daughter of the sister, who possess some magical power, and who is a tool of Kato.

This is a great story as far as anime standards go, and the ending involving Kato and the temple maiden is excellent.

Warning: This movie is definitely not for children.

It was a good video, but for some reason I can't put my finger on, it just didn't hit big with me. I really liked it when the villian finally realized the true nature of his rival. That was great. I still susgest getting this one.

Is not that bad but some time it gets pretty slow ...i got bored some times while i was watching it.

WOW! I remember when this first came out on VHS, and I LOVED IT! I have already ordered my copy of this and can't wait to see it again.

If you are at all interested in SCARY anime, this is THE ABSOLUTE BEST!

Since animation can rarely shock, Doomed Megalopolis wisely chooses the alternate Horror route: it disturbs. Taking a cue from the The Exorcist, the story revolves mostly around Kato's repented efforts to pocesses Yukari and later her daughter Yukiko (who may or may not be the offspring of Kato himself). He is temporarily successful each time; head-spinning and vomiting up strange phallic creatures are only some of the joys Yukari experiences time and again, and she is quickly reduced to a raving madwoman.