Saturday, March 12, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Anime Review: Strait Jacket OVA
Quick Info
Director: Shinji Ushiro
Distributor: Anchor Bay
Released: October 7, 2008
Runtime: 76 minutes
Rating: Not Rated, MA
Availability: On DVD, out of print
Distributor: Anchor Bay
Released: October 7, 2008
Runtime: 76 minutes
Rating: Not Rated, MA
Availability: On DVD, out of print
Plot Summary
Strait-Jacket is an anime Original Video Animation or OVA; it is not based on a manga.
In an alternate universe in the year 1899 in the city of Tristan, magic is the science of the day, and it is used for everyday tasks. But using magic is addictive, and if you use it too often, you’ll contract a disease called the Malediction and become a demon. This can happen at any time, and demons will go on rampages and kill people.
To stop them, Tactical Sorcerists are called in, people who use magic to fight demons while running the risk of becoming demons themselves. People call them Strait Jackets.
Nerin Simmons works for the Sorcery Management Bureau and is called to the scene of a demon attack. There she meets the mysterious Leiot Steinberg, an unlicensed Sorcerist who is renowned for killing demons and leaving a chaotic mess in his wake. Isaac Hammond is another Sorcerist who sees him as a rival and dislikes him while feeling a strange connection to him.
The Story Is Very Average by Anime Standards
This OVA is an all right piece. It’s not outstanding or particularly innovative. It has its share of cliché storytelling, but it’s still entertaining, it has decent characters and a decent storyline, it’s just not new or innovative, and we’ve seen plenty of things that are in the OVA in other anime.
It also tries to be an action anime OVA, but there isn’t a whole lot of action. It’s mainly Leiot showing up and using magic to blast away the demon with his big gun using a magic spell, but there aren’t even a lot of fight scenes in this anime OVA.
It also has the problem of having some cliches that show up in a lot of anime, with the hothead, the veteran, the mysterious girl, and the audience POV character dealing with supernatural creatures.
The Animation is Decent
The animation for the Strait Jacket OVA looks decent, the art style is good, but it's not an amazing anime. The fight scenes are decent, but not the most memorable fights I've ever seen.
The animation is decent, but it's not the best I've ever seen. It's nothing that really stands out. It's just an average anime that you'll only watch once.
The Music Isn't Memorable
The music composed by Takeshi Yanagawa is good, but not very memorable. I can't recall a single thing about the score that stood out to me. The opening song was "The Last Hope" by Takeshi Yanagawa, and the ending song is "Le Chemin" by Kyo.
Parental Advisory
As a note to parents, this is a very violent and gory film. There is a lot of blood and gore in this OVA. People tend to die in gory deaths that involve exploding, and it is not suitable for young viewers. This is definitely for ages 17 and up.
There is nudity, but it's not sexual; it's mainly characters showering.
It was Decent
While the story and the music are okay, what makes up for the lack of deep plot and character development is the English dub voice acting. Steve Blum gives a good performance to Leiot Steinberg.
Crispin Freeman is also good as Isaac Hammond; he’s a good actor, and his performance is something his fans should expect from him.
Bridget Hoffman is a great actress, and she does a really good job in her role as Nerin Simmons. I like her acting, even though I haven’t seen her in a lot of anime roles, even though she’s in quite a few anime.
Kari Wahlgren’s work as Rachel Hammond is good too, but her role is very short. She still did a good job, though.
My Rating: C-
Overall, I would recommend renting this if you’re unsure. It’s not bad, but it’s not the best anime OVA I've ever watched. It's interesting but not very memorable. It’s worth watching, but you’ll have to decide for yourself if you want to buy it. If the story weren't so average, I would recommend buying it, but now that it's out of print, it's not going to be worth the inflated price online sellers have listed.
If it could have been something that wasn't a one-off project, the story might have been better. It just didn't quite turn out to be an outstanding OVA.
The only reason I watched this OVA is that it aired on the Sci-Fi Channel's AniMonday block, and I watched it on TV. I managed to borrow it from my local library system to watch it again. Unfortunately, it's out of print, and the library no longer has it available for me to borrow.
Overall, It is going out of print and will probably end up being very expensive for collectors to get a hold of.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Manga Review: Hellsing Volume One by Kohta Hirano
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Read my review of Hellsing Volume 1 by Kohta Hirano here
Buy Hellsing OVA anime adaptation here:
 Hellsing Ultimate OVA Set 1 Blu-ray/DVD - $44.99 Hellsing: Ultimate Set 1 contains episodes 1-4. The rogue vampire Alucard is the Hellsing Organization's deadliest instrument in its mission to protect the British Empire from satanic ghouls and Nazi freaks. He is not alone in his assault on the occult; the master has a servant. Policewoman Seras Victoria accepted Alucard's gift of dark salvation after falling in the line of duty, and now the remnants of her human soul struggle against her growing vampire urges. Together, they haunt the shadows as a sinister force of good - and tonight the foggy streets of England shall flow with the blood of their evil prey. Special Features: Episode Commentary, Interviews with English Voice Director and Cast, Anime Expo 2007 English Cast Panel, Geneon Booth: Featuring Hellsing Mansion, Promotional Videos, Japanese TV Commercials, Karaoke of Major's Speech, Trailers. Spoken Languages: English, Japanese, English subtitles. |
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