Customer Reviews

Vampire Princess Miyu - Haunting (TV Vol. 2)

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

 

 

This is the first of the Vampire Miyu series I have viewed other than some of the OAV volume 1 at a SF convention. For those unfamiliar with the series, it is probably best to start with the OAV volumes 1 and 2 and then continue with the TV series 1 and 2. The OAV versions are somewhat darker than the TV versions, and the TV ones tend to be more episodic. Overall, this is a well done, bittersweet vampire series about an eternally young vampire, Miyu who is fated to track down the evil Shimna and defeat them. The animation is good, the stories are better. Those who like the tech or fighting animes will likely find this slow moving, since the four stories are more like ghost stories and fighting sequences tend to be brief. The relationships between characters are interesting and suprisingly moving--there is fairly little overt violence and no nudity, althought the subject matter of the stories will probably not appeal to younger children. Death and regret are fairly mature topics. I'm looking forward to finding the other DVD's to complete my collection.

In these episodes, we meet two of Miyu's spirit acquaintances - The snow demon Reiha and her doll like companion Matsukaze. Reiha likes to hunt Shinma, but more from a killing lust than an ethical trust. She and her doll have neither care nor interest in humans. Their real motivations are suspect as well. By contrasting Reiha and Miyu, director Toshiki Hirano underscores the Vampire's frustration with the tragic nature of her tasks. Rarely does the banishing of the Shinma undo the damage they have accomplished.

In "Reiha has come," Miyu is spending the night at a pilgrimage cottage, where she meets a young man and his daughter trying to heal from his wife's suicide. Reiha makes here introductory appearance. The next day the travelers have vanished. Reiha and Miyu trail them, and must unwillingly join forces to fight a Chinese demoness with the powers of Circe.

Then a curious set piece, "Sepia Colored Portrait," raises the question of what is real when a university professor resurfaces a film he once made of the woman who captured his heart 40 years ago. Unfortunately, a shinma chose to inhabit the film. To watch the dream is now death.

"Ghost of Miyu" finds the vampire wondering if she is haunted. An identical Miyu has been appearing, attacking cab drivers and menacing Miyu's friends. Chisato is put in considerable danger, and Reiha provides the kind of help one would prefer to do without.

"Fate" again underlines the essentially tragic nature of Miyu's task. Two orphans, a young boy and his sister are gifted with mental powers that have made then outcastes. When a shinma that appears as a large dog befriends the boy he urges the death of Miyu. Reiha's untimely intervention puts Miyu at risk and piles misfortune on top of misfortune. A gift, Miyu reminds us, can be a curse.

Having been introduced to Kyuketsuki Miyu through the OAV I was somewhat sceptical about the TV series and put off buying it for the longest time.
However I finally bought Volume 1 and while not as completely taken with it as I was with the OAV I kinda like it.
So I eventually decided to buy Volume 2.
Being kind of disapointed by Volume 1 which was good but not great, this one adds a little more of the tragedy that I was used to in the OAV.

4 episodes and the series starts to draw me in as we are introduced to Reiha, a childlike snowdemon, and her Doll companion, aswell as a little more depth in the various relationships Miyu has to deal with when it comes to her schoolfriends and the people she encounters on her adventures.

I must admit I was kinda confused by Reiha.
I always figured Miyu to be kind of like a slayer-type person who basically was trying to rid the world of supernatural beings(since there were no other supernatural beings in the OAV other than Shinma or Shinma-related). And here we have Reiha, who esentually is a demon.
But aparently she's no Shinma so she gets to live. Even though she's hardly the most peaceful kind as we learn on this DVD.
Apart from that and some minor problems I have with the change in the original story, I liked this DVD a lot.
Especially the last episode(Fate) on this disc where Miyu encounters 2 homeless kids who have paranormal powers was exquisite. Truly heartbreaking stuff.
The other 3 episodes also have their moments of tragic beauty.

Episodes on this disc are:
-Reiha Has Come:
We are introduced to Reiha the snowdemon, who seems to have a connection with Miyu, by way of her past.
-Sepia Colored Portrait:
A man consumed by his dream to forever remain like he was in a romance movie he made in Highschool makes a Shimna manifest inside his own movie.
-Ghost Of Miyu
A ghostly girl/shinma who looks like Miyu starts wreaking havoc in town as she apparently wants destroy Miyu.
-Fate
Miyu encounters 2 young homeless kids with paranormal powers, who get in trouble when a Shinma starts messing with them.

So in conclusion after a somewhat dissapointing start this series is developing into a pretty cool show. And from things I've read about the next couple of DVDs things only seem to get better.

So I wonder what I'll think when I've seen the complete thing... Will I like it better than the OAV or will the OAV still be my favorite.

Either way if you're looking for a good and moving and somewhat dark anime check both of them out. It's well worth it.

i for one think this seres is a little sad but all in all its a good seres.this chapter is where the girl i cant recall her name but if you look at the cover shes the one with the simbel on her head well any way she is like a snow child and cuses miyu troble but in a way helps her on the first story.one outher story is when a shinma makes herself look like miyus twin and cuses troble for her.the last story i think is the sadest its called fate where a little girl and her older brother live on the streets but they both have powers not like miyu but just as deadly. they brfriend what they think is a dog but a shinma in dicuse and trys to make the brother kill miyu. the last one is good but sad and the rest youll have to see for yourself g2g.

I started watching this series because it sounded so good, but it was so boring. I think one of the main problems was that I couldn't get into the characters. The only character I liked was Larva. He was so pretty when he took off his mask..why would you cover up such beauty? It seemed as if the story would get better, but I do not want to bore myself with every episode just to find out it doesn't get better. If you like the characters...this may be a good series. :)

As disappointed as I was in the first DVD, I was very surprised at the level of improvement in the second. Pretty much all of my complaints about the cutting of the openings and closings, and the lack of indexed scenes were taken care of. In fact there was even additional bonus material! While the TV series does not compare in quality and beauty to the OVA's, the story is still very interesting, and this DVD has been produced in a way that does justice to the series and its fans. I hope those who were as disappointed as I was a the treatment of the first, give the series another chance.

Why does Larva talk? I don't know. He's not supposed to. But other than that, this was a lovely second volume. The animation quality, I think, dropped down a notch, but who the heck cares? The voice casting is still excellent. I have a little trouble with that Reiha chick and her talking doll. Where in the world did she come from? She makes a nuisance of herself by popping in and ruining Miyu's fights with her Ice Blast. You should probably watch this if you're a Vampire Princess Miyu fan, although these TV volumes are nowhere near as dark as the OAVs. Plus, VHS doesn't come subtitled, which takes away from some of the mystery and haunting-ness.