Customer Reviews

Ghost Hunt: The Complete Series Box Set

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'll be the first to admit that in the grander scope of things, I've never really been enthralled with paranormal-themed entertainment. Sure I enjoyed The Sixth Sense well enough when it was new and I may have even reviewed some anime titles in the past that bordered on supernatural, but I consider myself the type of guy who enjoys science fiction over mysticism and action over horror: In other words Star Trek over X-Files. That said, it's tough to argue with what an intriguing property Ghosthunt really is. But before we get ahead of ourselves here, let's take a look at the hard facts.

Originally released in individual season sets by Funimation, this set represents the first time the company is getting a Complete Series release out to the public. Coming in at a total runtime of 600 minutes, Ghosthunt The Complete Series spans 4 discs and comes packaged as a pair of thin packs within a cardboard slipcase.

The show wears an appropriate TV MA (14+) rating, which is due to some disturbing imagery and horror-themes over bad language or nudity.

Language options are typical sub & dub meaning the option of original Japanese dialog trackor an English dub (either of which is in stereo) and English subtitles available under either language choice.

Extras are quite thorough and include scans of the original manga pages, character case files, ghost sightings, textless opening, and of course, a nice host of Funimation trailers.

To explain the show to someone who has never seen it would go something like this: Take the mystery solving elements of say, Case Closed only center them on supernatural occurrences (ranging from ghost possession to legions of zombies).

Some of the scenarios are more realistic than others but each maintains a sort of creepiness throughout that is hard to dispute. The viewer follows the exploits of Naru, the founder of Shibuya Psychic Research, while he attempts to tackle such mysteries with John, Ayako, Houshou, Lin, Masako, and Mai.

Yes the names are a mouthful, but not to worry, they are easy to keep separate thanks to some unique and well assembled character development.

The cast is well rounded and plays well off each other (part of the show's charm): Naru represents levelheaded-ness and business aspects of running a Psychic Research operation. Ayoko is the intelligent and quick-witted shrine maiden (priestess). Housho gets the distinctive honor of being both a monk and a bassist for a rock band. John Brown (no, not the Sheriff) is an Australian priest straight out of the seminary (with Australian accent to boot), and a kimono-sporting psychic-hotline ghost buster Masako rounds out the crew. In other words, you'll have no trouble telling this motley crew from one another.

The source material was adapted from a manga that was itself based on an original novel series by Fuyumi Ono and pays homage to the material from which it was spawned surprisingly well (don't take my word for it, the manga pages are included here in this collection for your viewing pleasure).

Pacing is pretty slick as, and unlike most anime serials, Ghosthunt is actually a collection of several (two-part) self-contained mysteries. Once the individual case in question is solved, it's on to the next one. This formula works out thanks to the fact that the mysteries are pretty unique, save for the fact that they all involve the supernatural of course.

Voice work is a pretty even toss up between the languages. The Japanese version succeeds in terms of its dynamic flow while American counterpart introduces some interesting accents and ethnic touches.

In all, Ghosthunt is sure to appeal to fans of horror-mysteries and the paranormal alike. While a bit of the priest versus entity stuff comes off as a little too, um, cliché Americanized occult horror (over the generally more intriguing Asian thought-provoking stuff), on the whole the show meets some pretty lofty goals. It's especially nice to note that Funimation is bundling together the entire collection for the same price each of the two individual seasons has been selling for until now- An extra star for that!

Written by my teenaged son, approved by me:

I can't put this into words. This series is great! Not to mention that unlike other "supernatural" shows (some of which I could mention), it's extremely funny - sort of like the twisted brainchild of "Psych" and "Supernatural" converted into anime form. But enough banter, let's start the review!

Story: 9/10 - A paranormal entheusiast, Mai Taniyama, becomes indebted to the narcissistic Kazuya Shibuya ("Naru" for short) after breaking one of his expensive cameras. Sort of basic, but the separate cases each offer enough twists and turns to satisfy most anime fans.

Depth: 10/10 - The story starts off simply, but continues to grow in depth and, to an extent, emotion. How you get to learn about each character like you learn about people in real life - one step at a time - scores extra points, at least in my opinion. After all, big blow-out reveals are always long-winded.

Characters: 10/10 - Like I said, the characters don't show much depth at the beginning, but in time you get to know everything about them. Plus, unlike some other anime, the reveals aren't completely generic, either (Ayako's parents, doctors? Who would have thought?). The interactions between the characters also make for some great comic moments.

Entertainment: 10/10 - This anime is one of the most entertaining series that I've seen in a long time. It ranges from funny to serious to downright horrifying, and the changes are fluid enough that the audience is going to be glued to the edge of their seats throughout a whole file.

Overall: 39/40 - Almost perfect... but not quite. My only major gripe is that they never finished serializing the rest of the manga. After all, they completely forgot Volumes 10 and 11! Maybe they just didn't get released in time. Who knows? Either way, it's a good watch for anyone who's interested in the supernatural.

The series has a nice twist of having both a touch of the scientific and the mystical as a group of psychic researchers take on cases that involve the spiritual or the unusual, the seven(And later eight) all have qualifications and abilities that help them along their cases from a catholic priest to a spiritual medium. The team tries to solve the cases in order to discern if they're truly hauntings, psychical phenomenon, or just hoaxes concocted by thrill seekers. The series is a nice mix of the storylines of psychical research into the spiritual world and the need to believe in the unusual with only faith, the episodes are mostly stories that come in multi-parts meaning that a story of a school haunting will last about three to four episodes instead of just ending with one episode which is very good since some of these stories need more than just one episode to explain whats going on with the case. The video quality and audio of the series is wide-screen and clear and sharp no distortions or blurriness to complain about and as with most of the anime coming from Funimation the voice cast for both the English/Japanese actors/actresses were great for their character roles, the extras are decent but not much to really shout about but for the price very forgivable. The set as with some of the other Funimation box set comes in two thin dvd cases that hold two dvds each and than put into a laminated thin paper sleeve, so if you're a fan of ghost or spiritual anime series, shows about ghost hunting, or just looking for a great series here's a good choice for anyone's anime home library...

For the record, "Ghost Hunt" is an anime series based on a manga series based on a novel series. Surprising, it doesn't suffer in translation.

And "Ghost Hunt: The Complete Series" does an excellent job bringing home elaborate and genuinely eerie scares, based on curses, possessions, psychic powers and the occasional roaming ghost. It can be rather slow-moving at times and some questions are left unanswered (just who is "dream Naru"?), but it has a winning mixture of comedy, horror and suspense.

After she destroys his camera and injures his assistant Lin, the icy "ghost hunter" Kazuya Shibuya (aka Naru) allows Mai Taniyama to work with him as his assistant -- he's investigating a haunted part of her school. They're soon joined by some professional exorcists: slinky Shinto priestess Ayako, renegade Buddhist monk Hosho, psychic Masako, and Catholic priest John Brown.

The little group soon find themselves dealing with many strange cases: a house oppressed by an evil doll and the ghosts of tormented children; a high school whose students and teachers are being tormented by strange apparitions and accidents, pointing to a lethal curse; a Christmastime visit to a Catholic church haunted by the spirit of a child, and a ghost who likes to drench parkgoing lovers with water.

Then things take a darker turn when the gang is called in to deal with a school haunted by horrifying specters and fires, which are connected to a student's suicide; a vast labyrinthine house with a bloodthirsty secret that is still claiming victims; and finally a seaside hotel whose inhabitants have been possessed by vengeful spirits of the dead, who are determined to stop any spiritualists who come around. Even worse, Naru has become possessed as well.

The supernatural stuff in "Ghost Hunt" is pretty intense stuff -- howling ghosts, haunted wells (Sadako, is that you?!), voodooesque curses, onmyodo, exorcisms (complete with sizzling holy water), fox spirits, zombies, ouija, and a creepy possessed doll. Those who like a lot of action and melodrama will undoubtedly find all this to be rather slow, since every episode is a sort of supernatural detective story.

The overall series has a nice haunted house atmosphere, although the last couple arcs get flashier in their horror (bloodbaths! Zombies!). Instead we get a general atmosphere of overhanging dread, psychic/supernatural trivia (wooden effigy dolls) and eerie Japanese spectors (a buggy-eyed ghost that pulls a scythe out of its mouth). But fortunately the writers keep it from getting too grim with regular doses of humor, such as the rock'n'roll monk being swamped by fangirls, or a romantic rivalry popping up between Mai and Masako.

The big problem is that the otherwise satisfying open ending leaves some questions unanswered, such as Mai and Naru's budding relationship and the mystery of "dream Naru." Just what is going on there?

Mai is a likable heroine -- she's hardworking, honest and resilient, and seems to have some hidden psychic powers; Naru is a chilly, sarcastic teenage genius, but he has a lighter side that comes out in less stressful circumstances (his "talking pet coin"). And the supporting cast is a fun bunch -- the mellow, sweet Aussie priest, the strong-willed Ayako, the devious stalkerish Masako, the enigmatic Lin, and finally the hilarious rock'n'roll Buddhist cleric Hosho. And as the icing on the cake, all the voice actors are perfectly suited to their roles.

Ghosts, curses and bizarre occurrences abound in "Ghost Hunt: The Complete Series." It moves rather slowly at times, but has the right balance of comedy, suspense and horror.

Ghost Hunt has an addictive storyline that touches on folklore. The interaction between characters is addictive; you want to know and see what happens to them next, despite some predictability. One fault I do find, is that the ending seems incomplete- it leaves a few loop holes. After I check online, I found out I was correct- there is more to the story- but to find out what happens, you need to pick up the manga.
Despite this weakness, I was satisfied with the way the series ended.
I highly recommend purchasing for any anime fan/ mythology enthusiast.

i was recommended to watch this anime and it turned out to be breath taking.
The characters weren't so annoying like most anime girls/boys were in other animes.
They were all lovable in their kind of ways and i grew to be attached to them.
The storyline had some flaws, but it never stopped me from watching it though.
Those flaws was what made this anime interesting. The music went well with the anime.
The ending though, made me yearn for this anime even more...it kind of gives off that
it may be more than just how it was presented.

This is an anime that will send a chill down your spine that will make you stay put in your seats until the very end.

Nice box set. I preordered it so I got the preorder price which was better than the going price now. It is well done on the dubbing to English. Very entertaining.

unreal fun and humour with scary stories, naru deserves every mean comment but he's still such a sweetie, =p i'm only dissapointed that there is not more