Customer Reviews

El Cazador de la Bruja, Volume 2

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El Cazador De La Bruja has the most-unique distinction of having both volumes release to the North American market on the same day. No need to wait around to conclude the 26-episode tale that comes from the animation studio responsible for such titles as .hack, Murder princess, Noir, and Madlax.

Coming in at a total runtime of 325 minutes, El Cazador De La Bruja Part Two consists of the final thirteen episodes (14-26) of the show spread across two discs (housed in a pair of thin packs within a cardboard outer sleeve). The show wears an appropriate TV MA rating due to animated violence, some suggestive material and a bit of light adult-oriented dialog.

Language options are standard sub and dub fair, which means the viewer has the option of running the original Japanese dialog vocal track (stereo) or an English dub (Dolby 5.1 Surround) and the choice of displaying English subtitles under either track.

Extras in this collection and include textless songs, a commentary track with the English production crew over Episode 24 and a crop of FUNimation trailers on the second disc.

The story of amnesiac Ellis and her bounty-hunting bodyguard continues with the tides turning to offer a bit more answers than questions this time around. In fact this time the themes themselves shift to include the bonds of friendship and the deeper intentions of those who seem to be hunting Ellis down. The nomadic duo come across Ricardo and Lirio quite frequently and eventually come to form a loose partnership based on their similar travel arrangements.

The lines between the good guys (or girls as the case may be) and bad guys is also more firmly established with characters like Jody, as she's revealed as an operative for the group that's trying to stop Rosenberg's research. Returning to her former codename (Blue-Eyes), Jody sets off to track down and destroy the deflector, Ellis. It turns out our little innocent heroine witch has quite an affect on people however as indicated by the fact that bumping her off seems to allude even the most heartless assassins.

As expected this volume also sets up the unraveling of Rosenberg's twisted ambitions. Unfortunately, the idea that there are two sides to every story is taken a bit far here, as a true hatred for the Organization never seems to really manifest itself. As a result the satisfaction in triumphing is compromised (or at the very least, not as rewarding as it could be).

Viewers hoping for quick resolve or a solid thrill ride to the end will likely find the pacing, as was in the first volume, a bit too consistently slow and methodic. The key is to remember that this is a tale of a budding relationship first and foremost; character motivations and grand schemes serve only as the catalyst to advance this development.

As is often the case with anime serials, the final episode serves as an epilogue to tie up the loose ends of the show's conclusion. In all this may be the set's greatest asset in terms of solidifying the overall plot (something that appears to wax and wane throughout the series).

On its most superficial, this is the story of Ellis attempting to find herself through a poorly planned pilgrimage and unfortunately even this plot point is never fully developed. Viewers will likely conclude the show feeling one of two ways: One, satisfied simply in the dynamic of the two lead gals and the relationship they managed to establish by traveling for so long together. Or two, a bit soured and dissatisfied in that their mission doesn't conclude so much as it unravels to the point where it's no longer significant enough to continue further.

Like last time, the audio presentation is appropriately modest throughout with just enough inflection to place tension where appropriate. This is one of those instances where the original Japanese dialog track gets the nod as being the superior of the two options presented. Not to discount the stellar vocal work of FUNimation's ever-impressive roster (in fact the native Texan drawl of many of its actors works fantastically in the southern setting), this is one of those occasions where the Japanese inflection adds to the mysteriousness and zaniness of our gun-toting gals.

In all El Cazador De La Bruja can be best be described as an acquired taste. There are moments where genuine connection with the characters starts to solidify but unfortunately many viewers are going to find the lack of steady plotting too unnerving to reach these rare instances. However, don't let my slightly grim appraisal hold you back especially if you've enjoyed the first 13 episodes and seek closure to the women and their exploits. Additionally fans of lead character growth and the dynamic of an evolving friendship just may be able to overlook the story's shortcomings for what's presented in the foreground.

The mysteries that only started to be answered at the end of volume 1 are more fully answered by the end of the series, but there are still questions left unanswered. I was disappointed that the most interesting of the scenes shown during the openning and closing credits did not actually occur in any of the episodes. Volume 2 still had the same great music that Volume 1 had. The ending leaves an openning for a second season if they wanted to do a second season.

After watching the atrocious first box set I was a little hesitant to buy the second, but feeling that since I already bought the first set I might as well complete the collection. While the last half of the show is still a little bland with the storyline all in all entertainment the series does give you a somewhat decent closure for all characters but not by much, the set will give you some answers on the history of Ellis and her powers and what the main goal of the people who are trying to capture her are but also leaves some plot holes and unanswered questions as well. The series tries to captivate you with the drama and situations that the two heroines find themselves in similar somewhat to the two similar previous series Noir and Madlax but not remotely as dynamic as Noir or even Madlax was. The animation again is very good for the series and the soundtrack matched the series as well the only problem was the dubbed voices for the two main female characters which just weren't up to par unlike past Funimation Films actors/actresses in past series while most of the other dubbed voice cast played their character roles great. So if you are going to watch this series the best bet is to watch it with the very talented Japanese voice cast which played all their character roles perfectly. So if you've already have the series Noir and Madlax and are thinking of buying this series I suggest trying to see a few episodes online first and see if the show is your cup of tea..