Anime: Yuugen Kaisha

[br][br]Rate me! This review is based on the Exiled-Destiny dual-audio SD fansubs and the author has no intent of owning the DVDs, so no change is expected in the ratings.[br][br]Quick Take: Phantom Quest is an spritely, comedic foray into the supernatural world of exorcism and vampire hunting. It's the story of a female private detective working for her own phantom company, who is contracted to investigate mysterious deaths and dealings. There are comedic elements throughout, and the short OVA series of 4 30-minute episodes never gives much of a chance for character development, so the comedy develops over putting a very leggy, very pretty girl in mortal combat with supernatural foes with just a lipstick lazer and a lot of ninja moves, and have her helped by a feckless male assistant and a spunky computer kidwhiz. Fun, yes, but episodic.[br][br][br][br]Animation: An episodic technical wonder. Coming to this series, I am reminded how good (and different) the world of animation was before computers took over. This series was put out in 1994, just about the time of the "revolution" in anime. It has excellent character designs, good to sometimes excellent backgrounds, with acceptable in-betweens (done by a variety of animation companies) and character animation that is pretty darn good, especially in comedy or action portions. It offers a color palatte that reflects the subject matter: stark, harsh primary colors, dark chiaroscuro, and light pastels as a contrast. Action scenes are first-rate, especially for the day. Technically, it's behind the current standard, but for its time, it was excellent.  I'd rate the technicals an 8, using a pre-computer standard.[br][br][br]As a comedy, it takes advantage of well-animated character bits, slapstick and pratfalls, as well as sudden movements. The comedy works well, and timed with the speakers exceptionally well. As a fighting series, it's merely passable, so the audience is typical teenage males who like the legs that are often on display (mild fanservice alert). The animation by Madhouse Studios is first-rate for it's day, similar to Kimagure Orange Road (Koichi Chigira, the director for the first episode, also animated KOR). There are four episodes, each having it's own director, writer, storyboarder, art director, etc, so each episode really stands by itself. That's usually not a good thing, but in a 4-episode OVA, it gets by, even if it means the parts aren't tied well together. So, I give the animation a 8 for technicals, a 6 for continuity, and the result is a 7. Fansubs are perfect, and you have two english options.[br][br][br][br]Sound: Nice dual audio in the fansubs, with 5.1 English track and an excellent 2.0 original Japanese seiyuu track.  There are good technicals, with good foley, sfx and moderate directionality (no front-rear was noticed). The soundstage appears somewhat muted, not expansive. The Op and Ed are translated and sung in English in the English audio track, and are in Japanese in the Japanese track. The Opening is  "That's You-Gen-Kai-Sha" by Rica Matsumoto (voice for Ayaka Kisaragi in the series, and also the voice for  Satoshi in Pokemon) and is a Japanese jazz-pop style to a montage. The Ending is "Mahiru no Tokai" by Rica Matsumoto, nicely sung but the ending montage suffers in comparison with the OP. Rica even does an impression of a bad karaoke singer (singing remarkably well for a bad singer) in the second episode! [br]In the English dub, it's an exceptional outing, as the dub matches the fansubs which are excellent translations, and the actors do an exceptional job in translating it to the screen and and matching the mouth movements. In general, the sound options are excellent, and the technicals are good, so I'd rate the sound an 8.[br][br][br]Story: The plots of the four episodes are episodic; unfortunately as a series the overall storyline doesn't go anywhere. Each outing is directed, animated and written by different people, and not having a set source like a manga  meant they could just use the same characters as the only connecting item. We're introduced to side characters, but we don't learn much about them.  On the other hand, the comedy works well, and it's a mix of visual and textual comedy. Each episode is well-written but the lack of development is a problem to be discussed below. I give the story an 8 for plot and a 5 for continuity, so the result is just a 6.[br][br]I have seen this series compared many time to Ghost Sweeper Mikami, so any fan of that series should definitely check out Phantom Quest.[br][br][br]Character: The series is really about an energetic, leggy redhead who is well-drawn and nicely voiced, but who really doesn't develop as a character. Side characters are character parts for supernatural assistants (different with each episode) and a wimp male assistant with a smart, adult-acting child as sidekick. We don't have a lot of development of the other side-characters, and no real backstory. So, for a short series, it's only average. Since I didn't fall in love with any of the characters, I can only give it a 6. The lack of character development and continuity is the major disappointment.[br][br] [br][br]Value and Enjoyment: I hoped I would enjoy this series enough to collect the DVDs, but it failed to hit that mark. It's a quick-watch that will amuse you, but thrills, chills and whodunit are lacking. However, if you want some slapstick comedy with your supernatural, fine; I just think xxxHolic does a better job. 6 for Value, 7 for Enjoyment.[br][br]Conclusion: Fun, but forgettable.