Customer Reviews

Witchblade

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On the run from the Child Welfare Department that wants to take her 6-year-old daughter away from her, jobless and homeless Masane Amaha has come to Tokyo for a new start. Masane is a beautiful young woman with a tragic past. She remembers nothing of her life before a destructive earthquake hit six years earlier. When the Child Welfare Dept. catches up to her once again, she makes one final, desperate act to keep little Rihoko and lands herself in prison. While there, a confrontation with a local murderer that is more than what he appears brings out a hidden power in Masane. She has been endowed with the Witchblade, an ancient, living weapon that attaches itself to select women throughout the ages, turning them into savage warriors to satisfy its lust for violence and blood. As Masane's battle in prison allows for her escape, her clever daughter Rihoko pulls off an escape of her own with the help of a photographer with journalistic ambitions. Rihoko eventually makes her way to her mother's secret meeting place, but will Masane make it there too? She'll first have to work out an arrangement with a mysterious company that wants control of the Witchblade and whoever possesses its power.

"Witchblade" Volume 1 gives us the first 4 episodes of what seems to be an excellent 2006 Japanese animated series (Anime) based on the successful American "Top Cow" comic book series. No doubt, this animated series will get mixed responses from fans of the comics and the short-lived live-action TV series starring Yancy Butler from 2001. The reason for this, besides the fact that not everyone appreciates Anime, is that it has nothing to do with Sara Pezzini or any other Witchblade characters established in the United States. While it is my understanding that this Anime series IS considered canon, the characters and story are completely new and completely Japanese. But so what? The art is top notch for Anime, and this is coming from someone who is far more into American animation. The characters and story are engaging, and there's plenty of the traditional Anime violence and sex appeal too. While the show, thus far, doesn't have the overall darkness and grit one sees in the Top Cow comics, it's certainly not bubbly, cutesy Anime. This is definitely for the grown ups, and, after all, these are only the first four episodes. They have their sweet and colorful Ghibli-type moments, but they have their darkness too. Anime fans in general would probably love this, and for those who are less familiar with the genre, perhaps you have seen an American show called "Gargoyles?" If you enjoyed that show (probably the finest American animated series ever), you'll probably get some enjoyment out of this too.

With only the first four episodes, the Volume One DVD certainly leaves one wanting more. The episodes included are: The Beginning, Bewilderment, Defiance, and Movement. There are some nice extras included as well. The best is probably the fun tour of Top Cow Studios in Hollywood, led by owner Marc Silvestri. There's also a nice interview with lovely voice actress Mamiko Noto, who voices Masane in the original Japanese language. Yes, the DVD includes the original Japanese language, English subtitles, and English language versions. And, yes, there are differences between the Japanese and English language versions of Anime, so it's best to watch them both. One wants to see the more accurate text translations, but it's easier to enjoy the visuals fully when you don't have to try to keep up with reading the dialogue. The bonus features also include several Anime DVD trailers, video versions of the opening and closing songs, and a promotional video. The DVD is packaged with one of those cool, silvery slip covers that look great until you touch them and get your nasty fingerprints all over them. It's also the "opens like a book" kind. Plus, inside are two booklets. Okay, one is a little catalog. The other is an actual bonus. It's a booklet featuring production art and a great interview with the director, Yoshimitsu Ohashi. I highly recommend this DVD for fans of Anime, of Witchblade, of animation and comics in general, or just someone looking for a more adult kind of animated program. I'll be looking forward to future volumes!

It is said, by Westerners who have lived and worked there, that Japanese culture and society are so foreign to ours that most of us can't even comprehend the differences, nevermind their causes and effects. Perhaps the one popular medium where we get some feel for the divergence is the increasingly popular Japanese anime market. Even the most accessible films--the Ghibli Studio stuff or an adaptation of classic American animation, like Little Nemo--have aspects, subplots or even large swathes of narrative that are basically incomprehensible. Take a great family film like Kiki's Delivery Service: it's not only impossible to tell where or when the story is taking place but so much of the underlying mythos is left unexplained that each step of the plot is surprising, if only because it seems so odd.

This adaptation of the American comic book Witchblade is kind of like a Miyazaki film in ways both bad and good. On the plus side, the animation is terrific, pretty nearly Disney worthy, making it easy to watch. The voice work and translation is good too, so the extent anything makes sense we can follow it, which isn't always the case with Asian imports. This is a high quality art work.

The setting is the typical -- for anime -- post-apocalyptic world of big corporations and dubious government agencies combined with supernatural/metaphysical weirdness that beggars comprehension. A young woman who has survived whatever destruction is supposed to have occurred came out of the blast with a child and, at opportune moments, the titular witchblade, a metallic prosthetic hand which appears as she changes into some kind of magical being. Well-endowed to begin with, she loses a significant amount of clothing in the transition and becomes an erotic killing machine.

It all makes for great-looking eye candy, but the literary merits are debatable and it's hard to be either profound or emotionally-moving when you're challenging the viewer just to try and figure out what's going on.

The storyline of "Witchblade" is classic manga, with an interesting twist. Masane, the heroine, is a young mother, who with her 6-year-old daughter, Rihoko, struggles to cope after a disaster wipes out their home. Regaining her memory, she finds herself on the run and burdened with a mysterious glowing bracelet. Whenever Rihoko is threatened -- by a child welfare agency trying to putting her into foster care, or by mostrous felons -- Masane morphs painfully into a superhuman warrior. Aside from the government agency trying to help her, there are industrialists trying to capture her and regain possession of the bracelet, which courses with the power of the Witchblade, an ancient power-giving object. Masane must navigate between these powerful interests, with the reluctant help of a young freelance cameraman, to rid herself of the cursed Witchblade and gain her daughter's freedom.

The story line of WitchBlade is engaging, and its characters symptathetic and nuanced. The child welfare group is truly doing what seems in the girl's best interests. Masane truly (and convincingly) loves her daughter, but is really not in control of her life. Her possession of the Witchblade is her greatest strength, but also her greatest distress and the cause of her separation from Rihoko. I particularly loved the writing, as voiced by the actors, which was energetic and fun.

There are elements of the film I could do without. The script, as spelled out in the subtitles, was horrible and dull. I've never seen subtitles vary so much from the words spoken on screen. And the enormous voyeuristic element that was Masane's bustline distracted from an already-great storyline. This distraction only doubled (no pun intended?) when Masane morphed into her alter ego, a three-quarter naked warrior with naught but wisps of costume to conceal her "armaments." Gratuitous through-the crotch shots didn't help. Ho-ly Hannah, help us! The story is episodic, like a Saturday morning cartoon, complete with intro and outro music and credits. Watch these once and then skip the rest.

Yet, I got a kick out of this story of mother-as-manga-monster. It isn't suitable forn the preteens in your life, but might be fun for the 17-25-year-old male who can tolerate likes a decent story with a lot of female anatomy without having his head explode. Not so sure about the young ladies, who might be put off by the near-nudity or appreciate a strong female character. Your call.

The seperate Witchblade storyline that starts in this series is surprisingly well written and engaging despite being a bit removed from its source material. The mother and daughter team that are thrown into a War with the powers that be is the stuff that any good anime is made of, the artwork is above average and the animation could be a little more fluid but it is standard for this genre. I would have loved an animated adaptation of the original Witchblade comic series done in a more lush fashion but this is an excellent substitute and could prove popular with non anime fans if they ever gave it a shot. The DVD is nicely packaged in a platinum slip case and their are a couple of worthy extras M. Choi's cover art looks killer and the interview with Silverstri is intersting for fans. Original language options are nice for those who prefer subtitles although the english voice work is above average. This disc is the first four episodes and clocks in at roughly 99 mins.

I didn't quite know what I was getting myself into when I started watching The Witchblade. My only introduction to The Witchblade comes in the form of her character's (from the comic book) cross-over into The Darkness, another comic produced by Top Cow Productions. This Witchblade stars Ara Pezzini, a "tough as nails" NYPD detective who comes into contact with the sentient artifact called The Witchblade when she is mortally wounded and the blade chooses her as its next in line of users. This particular DVD series, an anime licenses from Top Cow, is completely different. While I had done some initial research to see what, exactly, the comic book series was about (thinking the anime would simply be a Japanese take on the series), none of what I found really fits in with the DVD.

This particular edition of The Witchblade details the story of Masane Amaha who, during a catastrophe in Tokyo, ends losing her memory and discovers a mysterious jewel attached to her wrist and a baby who she names Rihoko in her arms. Six years later, and Masane realizes the jewel attached to her wrist is actually The Witchblade that has chosen her as its new wielder. The series details her travails as she's caught between a huge corporation and the government when all she wants to do is take care of her child and live in peace. This is the bigger, over-arching story of The Witchblade anime.

Volume One contains the first three episodes which basically sets up the action that will follow. They introduce the National Scientific Welfare Foundation (NSWF) and Reina Soho who want to take Rihoko from Masane because Masane does not have a job and, according to the NSWF, can't take care of Rihoko. Additional characters are introduced, like Reiji Takayama, the Bureau Chief of Douji Group Industries, who wants to hire Masane. The main conflict is between the NSWF and Masane for these beginning episodes.

Obviously this isn't the entire season, unfortunately, so it's merely a taste of what's to come. I'm impressed, though, already and am curious to see where the story will go from here. The art style is very interesting, taking a cue from the original Top Cow comics and adding a Japanese flair to the proceedings. It's a pretty vicious and dark anime and this unrated cut apparently recolors the costume and skin color of Masane. One of the side effects of using the Witchblade, apparently, is losing one's clothes and in the TV version of this show, some of the skin was darkened in black to avoid excessive nudity. The coloring has been restored for this edition. Additionally, the presentation is great and cleaned up from the television series.

Audio is always tricky on US imports of anime. The voice actors chosen for the English voices usually tend to ruin the experience. While I've heard much, much worse translations, the English dubbing isn't the way to go. Overall, this is a great start to a new take on The Witchblade. While it's merely a taste, there's a hook in it that I'm willing to let drag me onward. Here's hoping more volumes are forthcoming soon.

This Japanese anime is based on the US comic of the same name, but it uses different characters. The story starts six years after an earthquake devastated Tokyo, when Masane Amaha and her daughter Rihoko are returning to the capital in search of their destiny. Sadly, Child Welfare is looking for them because Masane cannot provide a stable environment for her child, and the government organization soon takes Rihoko away. These are heart-wrenching moments and give us already a sense about the nature of this series.

Masane is not your normal single mom though, since she has the Witchblade, which can be defined as Earth's greatest weapon that has existed since the dawn of mankind and that chooses women, based on some unknown criteria, to be wielded by them. As expected, there are many people secretly trying to control this power, which allows for an extremely interesting plot, involving various murders, automats designed to kill, and much more.

When I started watching this DVD I was expecting a powerful action story, with a great amount of fights, but as the actress that provides the voice for Masane comments in the extras, this story can be defined much better as a human drama. The plot is really enthralling and contains a level of emotion seldom seen in anime, but the fights in this first volume are a little lacking in complexity and challenge. It is clear though that in the next volumes we are going to get much better action as more characters with singular fighting abilities emerge.

The graphics are crisp and clear and follow the typical pattern used in this genre. The creators can show off their talent a little more due to the characteristics of the heroine when transformed by the Witchblade, since she wears a revealing outfit that accentuates her voluptuous body. The music is pleasant and the lyrics fit well with the story, and the beginning and ending themes create a nice contrast. Also, there are some secondary characters that provide some passing humor that helps liven up the mood when the story needs it.

In the Extras, there are two features of interest. There is a tour of the Top Cow offices, the publisher and creator of the comic in the US, guided by a witty Marc Silvestri, who is one of the authors and editors. When I saw what this was about I expected a boring segment, but instead I found an entertaining piece that left me wanting to know more about this company and their products. The other extra feature I think was informative was the interview with the actress that plays Masane's voice in the Japanese audio. She had some interesting insights to share about the characters and the series overall, but I was extremely surprised by the fact that she had not read the comic. Finally, there is an Easter egg which contains deleted scenes from the tour of Top Cow. In order to play this you need to go to the Extras and hit left on your remote when standing on the first extra feature, a W will illuminate on the bottom left on the screen and you will be able to access this segment.

Overall this is a very good start to the series and it certainly left me wanting more, especially due to the intriguing ending to the last episode of the disc. I am definitely going to keep watching this new series, and I will probably even go back and read the comics for the US version. I may just have found a new favorite!

Hmmm, where to start? Well, this DVD contains two seperate styles and expectations mashed into one product. Let me explain.

The first is "Witchblade." If you are familiar with the comic book and the characters from that universe, you will be dissapointed with the watching of this film. The only thing that ties the two together is Witchblade itself, the artifact that grants its bearer awesome powers and abilities. If you are a fan of Sara Pezzini and the Witchblade universe created by Marc Silvestri at Top Cow, you will most likely be dissapointed here. There are new characters, a new storyline, and a whole new set of visual references and experiences.

If you are a fan of Japanese Anime, then you will most likely love this DVD of 4 episodes. True to form, there is great artwork, dubbing, violence, and skin flashed all over the place. The voice acting is okay, passable at best. I personally like to watch with the original japanese dialoge and subtitles, but- thats just my preference. This is not a DVD for children or early teens. There is plenty of violence and skin, as mentioned earlier. And one thing that is funny- yes, as stated earlier in another review/description, i too, noticed that the Witchblade granted Masane's breasts the ability to enlarge with the change from normal human to Witchblade bearer...lol. It just makes me laugh, thats all.

So- to purchase this DVD, you are at a crossroads. If you like Top Cow's take on Witchblade, shed those expectations and be prepared for a new experience. Its a little uncomfortable at first, but still a solid effort at story telling and great animation.
If you like Anime, get this DVD based on that alone. Its a great addition to the genre and its an effective example of the visual and storytelling style that has come to define Anime.
Just keep it away from the kids. It really isnt appropriate for the younger set, and unlike the product page states- this is rated TV-MA.

The premise seems simple enough. Take a single mom, throw in some mutant monsters, an ancient powerful weapon, and a tooth-achingly sweet daughter who is in many ways far more mature than her mother. Add a bit of violence, some well delivered one-liners, and fan-service (oh boy do you get some great fan service here!) and its destined to be great.
I am not a great fan of dubbing, most dubs I have seen seem off. The voices don't fit the character or there just seems to be a lack of emotion on the part of the voice actor, but this series is different. Whether its Rihoko's sweet voice, Masane's somewhat childish banter, or Marry's distinctly gravely, almost female impersonator, voice they all seem to gel well in these first 4 episodes. In fact that's the only thing I didn't like about this buy. Volume 1 is only 4 episodes! It leaves you hungry for more so fast, the first four barely scratch the surface of what you can tell will be a great story.

I enjoyed watching this anime DVD about but, truthfully, not enough to be interested in purchasing the next three DVDs and watching them also. The plot of a single mother contending with child welfare services in order to make her own child-rearing choices was different enough to keep me interested for awhile. I've viewed several anime films and series in the last twenty years but I have found my interest waning as I have gotten older. The exagerrated sexuality begins to grate on me after awhile.

I found the voice acting and animation on this DVD compared favorably with Vampire Hunter D and Akira, so if you liked those, or if you like anime in general, I am sure you will like this series. If you are not a fan of anime then this is not the DVD that will change your mind.

I laugh everytime I read many of these reviews. Hear is the low down.
This anime is definitly for adults (lots of tounge-in-cheek humor) The story line is very good, especially for those who have not read the comics. What can you say about the dubbing, its English dubbed over Japanese, enough said. If you are at all interested, definitly watch this show, you wont be disappointed.