Customer Reviews

Samurai Deeper Kyo - Demon Awakens (Episodes 1-5)

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a surprising twist on the Samurai legends of arising in the battles that marked the rise of the Tokugawa Shogunate. In the carnage of the critical battle of Sekigahara a feared Samurai - Demon Eyes Kyo - comes face to face with another powerful swordsman - Kyoshiro Mibu. Just as Kyoshiro took the upper hand for the last time, they are struck by a meteor. All that is left is some dust and Kyo's sword - Murimasa.

The scene shifts to years later, and we find Kyoshiro in the part of a feeble minded intinerant apothecary, seeming the innocent victim of his own misadventures. Then the intervention of Yukimora Saneda triggers a terrifying change, and Demon Eyes Kyo's spirit regains consciousness - in the body of Kyoshiro. Suddenly we are catapulted into a drama of clan warfare, demonic ninjas and balletic (and ballistic) swordmanship.

What makes this story even more unusual is that it quickly becomes apparent that appearances and reality shift without warning. At first Kyo seems evil, but then we get glimpses of something deeper. Is this the influence of the unconscious Kyoshiro? Or is the relationship between the two of them something else entirely.

And what exactly are Saneda's motivations? Ostensibly he in the service of Kyoshiro's wife and clan, but why does he insist on waking Kyo. Throw in a beautiful bounty hunter and the heir to the Tokugawa empire and a genuinely complex and interesting story develops.

As is often the case when Japanese anime decides to experiment with a normally predictable genre, music, art, and script are excellent. Acting in the dubbed version is only average, but it stays fairly close to the subtitles and is listenable. I found this first DVD both intriguing and enjoyable with hints of potential greatness. Worth following.

I've seen Kenshin, loved it, and was eager to see another 'samurai' anime so I checked out Samurai Deeper Kyo (SDK). Despite a somewhat confusing opening - lots of place names and people plus told in flashback then fast forwarded 4 years - once the story got going and I got things sorted out I rather liked it. Initially I had been disappointed because from what I gathered of the story Kyoshiro is supposed to be the hero of our tale who is somehow afflicted with carrying the personality of his rival, an evil samurai (and possible demon) called Demon Eyes Kyo.

Unfortunately Kyoshiro seemed pretty bland and boring, and a lecher to boot. I had my doubts that this guy could be interesting and sympathetic enough to carry a series. But the spunky bounty-hunter Yuya and some intriguing glimpses of Yukimura Sanada helped keep me interested until the third episode, when things really start heating up. For one the milquetoast Kyoshiro's personality is completely subsumed by Kyo - who appears to be one legitmate, bad-a** dude. And not in the way Kenshin becomes the Battosoui when necessary, but reverts to his peace-loving self. If Kyo has any regrets it's likely that hasn't completely wiped out all his enemies yet. So far so good. There are also hints that the current situation has it's roots in a complex web of past alliances, battles and relantionships. Kyo is nasty all right, but there are hints that he might be that way for a reason, which sounds interesting. Also, who the heck is Yukimura and what's his deal? I don't know if he's helping Kyo or what, but I can believe he's got his own interests firmly at the forefront.

Besides meeting the main characters, Kyo, Yuya, Yukimura and Benitora, we also get a sense there are a lot of bad guys, some kenyou (monsters), rogue ninja groups, heirs in disguise, political intrigues, and some interfering women who also appear to be running the show behind the scenes. Oh, and there's some humor as well. Yukimura commands a group of ninjas (?) including a super-serious guy who works what could best be described as magic. Yukimura seems to enjoy yanking his chain once in a while which is rather humerous.

So overall the characters and the story show some definate promise. The animation is pretty decent, although there are a couple of shots of Kyoshiro where his arms have a really weird perspective which looks awful. There also seem to be a few too many stills and the battles themselves aren't too thrilling. No exciting action ala Kenshin since it's more implied than shown. Although who can resist an evil grin and the line: "You heard it too, didn't you? The voice of the wind."

I'm looking forward to the rest of this release, hopefully it will live up to it's promise. There's also an outakes extra (english dub) on this disc. Normally they ..., but this one actually had a couple of funny moments. And if there continue to be 5 episodes per disc that will be great. So if you like swords, Japanese history and demons and magic this might be the next anime for you.

This anime has moved to the top three in my list of favorite animes. I love Berserk, Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Big O, Armitage (all of them), Escaflowne, Rocord Of Lodoss, & many more. Demon Eyes Kyo is now tied at second place with Cowboy Bebop.
I absolutely loved each of the main characters. They had great humor and complete loyalty to one another.
I purchased the complete collection because of some happy reviews that I read. I had no idea what to expect and I fell in love with the series ten minutes into the first episode. It felt, somewhat, like watching the FOX TV series '24' in the fact that you just couldn't get enough and had to keep watching to see what was going to happen next.
To me, it was completely worth every dollar spent. I wear my new 'Samuri Deeper Kyo' t-shirt with extreme pride!

Looks like the beginning of a great series. I am hooked already. Will definately buy remainding dvd's. Good plot and very exciting to watch. Pretty funny in it's own way too. I've already become attached to the characters. The dubbing is pretty good and I've only seen some of the subtitles but from those, they are pretty good too. The beginning/ending songs are cool too. Don't have a bad thing to say about samurai deeper kyo. Can't wait to get rest of the dvd's!

This series is awesome! AnimeWorks has done a wonderful job with this DVD. The animation is flawless, the characters are wonderful and believable, and even the music is absolutely gorgeous. The humour in the series is well-placed (except for one comment the main character makes about breasts in the first epi). The outtakes extra alone had makes this DVD worth buying.

However, what shocked me about this DVD is that there are *FIVE* episodes on it! Unlike the trend of four -or worse, three- episodes per DVD, AnimeWorks gives a great deal of value for the buck. A great buy and highly recommended.

Hmmmm, what first sparked my interest in this series? Well I remember seeing a commercial for it on one of my other dvd's, and from the glimpse I got, it looked awesome! Plus the music was really catchy too. The animation is very crisp and clear, and the story line keeps you hooked, and the music really is super. The English voice actors are all right, you may recognize some from other series, but the Japanese is a lot better. Some of the English voice actors give them western and European accents! The series starts off at the battle of Sekigahara, where 2 legendary samurai face off, Kyoshiro Mibu and Demon eyes Kyo (for his stunning red eyes), but when a meteor crashes down on them, nothing is left except for Kyo's sword. Four years later a medicine man named Kyoshiro Mibu, who has no memories from 4 years ago, is caught by a bounty hunter named Yuya, but when a kenyou (or demon) shows up to kill Kyoshiro, the demon Kyo wakes within him!! The story line is really great and very exciting! Its interesting to see how the characters change from what they started out as. With demons, romance, sword fights, comedy, and ninja's this is one great series you won't want to miss!! If you liked Rurouni Kenshin or InuYasha, this is one series for you!! And even if you haven't seen those shows, this is a super title to start out with!!

WOW!... Samurai Deeper Kyo! What can I say! It¡¯s definitely a five star anime! There¡¯s romance, sword fights, ninjas, comedy, drama and much much more. The characters are well developed and drawn so superbly. The animation is top notch. The music is just really awesome. There¡¯s something for everybody. The story line is somewhat similar to rurouni kenshin¡¯s yet it still has a story of its own. In the Battle of Sekigahora, in 1600, two powerful samurais were fighting against each other. One was the feared Demon eyes Kyo who was said to have killed 1000 men during the battle. Because his eyes are bloody-red people believed that he was a demon hence the name. The other was Mibu Kyoshiro. During there fight, a girl named Sakuya-sama called upon a meteor. This meteor hit the exact spot where the two were fighting thus causing a big explosion. Everyone believed that these two warriors were dead¡­ but are they? Four years after the battle, a bounty hunter called Shiina Yuya who is looking for a man with a red cross scar on his back (apparently that man killed her brother) finds a druggist who has eaten a meal without paying the owner. This druggist says that his name is Mibu Kyoshiro. This guy is a weak ... druggist, could he possible be the legendary Mibu Kyoshiro that fought against Demon Eyes Kyo? However, Yuya decides to follow Kyoshiro because he knows something about the man that she is trying to find. What Yuya doesn¡¯t know is that this druggist has a secret. Buried deeply inside of him is the soul of Demon Eyes Kyo, who has remained silent since the battle that took place four years ago. The question is, how long will Kyoshiro be able to keep Demon Eyes Kyo inside him, for one day HE will awaken.

Sounds great doesn¡¯t it. Well it gets greater every episode. Like I said, this is something for everyone and even if you don¡¯t like samurais and fighting, you¡¯ll definitely enjoy this series!... I¡¯ve said enough so now that you heard so much about it, go out and buy it!

I really love this anime. These first 5 episodes were magnificent.

Basically a killer called Kyo has too find his body while he inhabits some boy's. The series is extremely well done, but it has a flaw.

The animation may be the only problem. Now, the first episode feels more like a pilot episode. The animation isn't that great but you get to see some awesome scenes and such. But the animation is little. The next 4 episodes on this DVD have a bit more animation. It seems to increase as they go. You will probably notice the first few fights having basically a guy cutting someone. You see him, then the screen flashes with a sword slash, then you see him in a different pose and the enemy is gone. This changes a little and by the end of the 5 episodes, you will probably be ready to buy the next DVD.

I haven't read the manga, but this series really is great. The plot is wonderful. There are new things happening a lot and by the end of episode 3 it hits you... this plot was really well done. DBZ ran out of ideas but had good animation throughout. This series relys more on beautiful pictures and effects. Namely, the blue shine of a sword, the wind, the night sky, the rain, and namely everything makes the pictures more vivid. Now don't get me wrong, this series does have animation. There is not as much as DBZ, but there is much more than fist of the north star and it is beautful.

Well one more flaw.... the ending song doesn't really feel like it belongs. It is kind of a pop song that comes out of nowhere. Not a good choice, but you can skip it.

Cool characters, nice plot, and wonderful drawings. Brilliant.

This series is awesome. I was hooked from the first time i heard the line "You heard it to didn't you? The voice of the wind." With a great storyline and awesome charecter development, this is by far my favorite series.

Hey this is a nice beginning to a series drawn nicely. ( I mean in the aspects of the story) I watched Kenshin and yeah i loved it but not in the first few epsiodes and you would be wise not to judge this anime from only the first five. In time this could probably become one even greater than Kenshin. The main character a split personality dude name kyoshiro has got big problems with a demon livin in him. The probable love interest between him and the young blonde bounty hunter keeps you pondering if she has what it takes to change him for the better.
Well i don't like to spoil so i will only say you would be wise to just give it a try I promise no matter what type of anime you are into you won't be dissappointed......