Anime: Basilisk: Kouga Ninpou Chou

Although Basilisk is essentially Romeo and Juliet with Ninjas, it becomes more like yet another example of why death games are bullshit, unless they are called Battle Royale. The inherent problem they have is that they are never about the story or the characters; it’s about seeing people die and, supposed, feeling sad about them. Only thing, you can’t feel sad about them because they die too quickly, too close to each other, and you already know that they will die at some point, so who gives a shit? It ends up becoming more like a game where you are cynically trying to guess who will die next. And even that becomes boring after awhile because as the contestants lower in numbers, it becomes easier to guess right, while at the same time, more apparent to tell who is clearly better than the rest or more favored by the story writer and is going to win at the end.

Battle Royale is a very old manga by now, and yet nobody figured out all these years why it works so well, despite suffering from the same issues. It’s because its contestants have no superpowers. They had talents which, for the most part, where within the realm of reason, and felt very plausible. Said talents were not giving them that much of a head start over everyone else, and were still things everybody knew they possessed right away. All other death games fail because they try to throw in so much supernatural nonsense it becomes impossible to take the whole thing seriously. One can teleport, one can fly, one is immortal, and nobody knows the other guy’s powers until he is about to die. Although keeping your powers secret is fun, if keeping them hidden is the only thing that makes them work, renders pointless the kind of power you have in the first place. It doesn’t matter what strategy you use to exploit the other guy’s weaknesses, it only matters if you keep it a secret. So what’s the point of having crazy powers? You can have something as simple as a hidden dagger in your sleeve, and it wouldn’t make any difference next to a guy who shoots lasers from his eyes.

Not only Basilisk made that grave mistake, it also made it worse by having characters that look like monsters. Despite being a colorful bunch the series revolves around just 3 of them; the main romantic couple and the imba immortal. They are the only ones you care for, not only because they matter to the plot but also because they look normal. The rest of them either are useless cannon fodder, or look like ugly mutants, accompanied by a silly voice and some really crazy ninja power. You cannot see them as people with some sort of drama surrounding them; you see them as Pokemons. Oh look, it’s the scaly guy who turns to water, and the bald guy who can walk through walls. It makes the whole thing seem like a silly kaiju movie from the 60s.

Even if you try to watch the anime as a spectacle full of action and gore, Basilisk is still pretty bad but not because of pretty colors and nice sounds. Visually and acoustically the series is quite good, with detailed characters designs, magnificent sceneries, moody music score, and interesting battle choreography. What ruins it, is the two ninja clans that are fighting each other to the death not being balanced at all. They keep saying that they have equal chances of winning, and yet you constantly see the Kouga being obviously stronger and smarter than the Iga.

1) The Kouga lost half their people because the Iga kept the order of annihilation hidden for several episodes. As soon as the Kouga found out about it, they even the score, despite being outnumbered and unprepared.

2) The Iga were not wiped out right away, only because one of them is immortal. Half of the Kouga were killed only because they could not kill this guy no matter how powerful they were.

3) Two of the Kouga can kill anyone they want by simply looking at him. No Iga had the slightest chance against that.

4) The leader of the Iga is a crybaby who refused to do the slightest thing until the final episode. The leader of the Kouga is a badass who kicks ass right away.

You know which team is going to win right away. And no, death games are not meant to be fair, or to have only balanced participants. It’s just that there is no challenge if it’s so obviously one-sided. And yes, there are many cases when the weaker guy wins, and it’s always because he kept his power a secret, or back stabbed a completely unsuspected opponent. It’s not a worthy victory, you cannot cheer for him, because he didn’t deserve to win. Not to mention how pretty much everybody in this show dies in a miserable way. There is no catharsis, they just die and kiss personal goals goodbye. And I am not saying that everyone deserves a heroic death, but it really makes the viewer not give a shit if the whole series is a monument of unfairness, based on imbalanced power levels which eventually mean nothing and overshadow any attempt at drama.

And wait, it gets even worse. Eventually you realize that none of them have control over their actions. They are all peons, controlled by the nobles. They never chose to fight each other, they were ordered to. Yeah, they did hate each other but they never took the initiative; they were always waiting for orders. And if you think that makes them noble because they were loyal to their masters, that assumption crumbles as soon as you see how they try to kill their opponents by cheating. As for their masters, it’s not like they are better either. Aside from being nothing but an excuse for the whole extermination to happen, they don’t even care about their ninjas. In fact, the real reason they want the two clans to fight each other, is so they can exterminate both, as means to not be a problem in the future. Meaning, there was never supposed to be a winner in this stupid war; they were all meant to die at the end. So why were we even watching this show? To watch mindless drones killing each other because nobody wants them? What is the point of all this?

Even the show becomes worse as it goes on. The pacing slows down more and more, because the amount of people left alive becomes smaller as time goes by. It was fun at first because of the variety and the mystery surrounding their powers, but then you get to see less and less things, about less and less people, of which you already know everything about. Even the ending is a mess. You don’t really understand what exactly happened. All three remaining warriors were so hax (and so painfully obvious they would be the ones in the finale) that it’s hard to figure out how their powers worked against each other. And it’s not like it matters much either, since by now you feel like shit since you know you are watching people die because of orders by leaders who don’t care.

It’s so easy to figure out a way for how all this mess could have worked much better. If we had the stupid Iga being wiped out in a few episodes by the superior Kuga, and if our two lovebirds had run away from all this mess, we would have an actually good story going on, where they are chased by the Kouga, who are still supposed to be annihilated by the shogunate. It would still leave the show as a death game, while spicing things a lot, even after most of them would be dead. But nope, instead of this obviously better story I came up with in 5 seconds, all we got was a lukewarm death game, with Pokemon ninjas, unfair battles, and a boring finale.

Basilisk is one of the best animes I have seen so far. If you are looking for some good fightings and a really original design, don't even bother to read what follows: go for it.[br][br]Animation[br][br]Perfect, really. It is fast, it is fluid, it is beautiful, it is flawless. The overall animation is not only excellent: it is a delight to watch.[br][br]Sound[br][br]Well, I am usually disappointed in anime soundtracks, except for a few series. Basilisk isn't one of them. It's not bad but it doesn't have anything special either.[br][br]Story[br][br]Two ninja clans that have been fighting for years and were then brought to peace by a treaty, find themselves at war again. The 10 best representatives of each clan engage in a fight to the death whose only goal is to eradicate the other clan. Pretty simple but martial arts animes aren't known for their deep plots.[br][br]Character[br][br]All characters have very specific fighting styles and weapons, most of which I had never seen in any other anime. This really brings a lot of freshness into the anime sphere. Except for one or two characters who are a bit boring, they all rock![br][br]Value/ Enjoyment[br][br]I had a great time watching Basilisk and I was really sad when it came to an end. I know I'll watch it again one day because this is the kind of anime I'm always looking for.[br][br]

Animation:
The animation throughout the series is consistent and unique but some characters are similar in design (difficult at times to know who's who) - however, the fight scenes (which literally happen once minimum an episode) are amazing in that the screen shots and character's movements are so well detailed that they add to the intensity of the fights and give this series the edge that it needs.

Sound:
The music is pretty damned good, you may even - if a Battlestar Galactica fan - recognise one or two (good times). You never once think at any point during the anime that the music is inappropriate, as, unfortunately often occurs in these types of anime. My only criticism is that there isn't enough of it! - but having said that I wonder if it blended so well into the anime that I didn't even notice?? (shifty eyes).

Story:
Ok, now here is where I lost my tether - the anime lacks depth - not many twists - you're sat there thinking "which ones the bad ones" - and that's about all the thinking it requires. The first couple of episodes or so lead the viewer to believe that this is just some standard action series where people just kill eachother needlessly - they wouldn't be too far off unfortunately - although it is the character development which makes you care whether the fights occur.

Character:
Characters were very well designed, voiced and acted, some you'll hate and others you'll love to hate. Now I really do have to emphasise here that the detail in the way the characters look, the skills they possess and their individual fights are phenomenally well done. BUT The main female in the series doesn't stop calling the main guy's name every episode which did my bloody nut in, but the main guy was pretty awesome - the naivity of the two however - not so good. Now my biggest problem was that my favourite characters were killed off early on in the series leaving only 2 or 3 worth watching. These being, odd looking, possessing the more bizarre powers and whining less. FYI - The flashbacks come in far too late on for me to care, which I would have to say is probably a universal feeling. But then you don't really need to know about them because their skills and abilities are ample enough.

Value: It's highly watcheable - well designed, choreographed and quite unique - yet lacks depth in story. I originally thought of it as quite tame, and more filler-esque than life-changing, but the anime stuck with me for weeks after and it's almost due for a re-watch!

Enjoyment: I had forgotten most of it quite quickly but what I did remember haunted me - pretty powerful stuff, it is highly enjoyable especially when your witnessing a fight scene..... so I may have to skip all the storyline crap... shame though.

Who it's for:
People who like action, gore, powerful characters and women with large breasts (cough)! (And if you like Ninja Scrolls it's a definite watch).

Ok firstly, this anime is definitely for mature teens or adults. It contains some very violent scenes and not too graphical scenes of rape.

This said I think that this anime series is one of the most realistic that ever watched.

The characters have reactions and emotions that are deeper than most animes out there.

The story is in my opinion slightly too dramatic, but again this maybe because because I watched too many crappy animes before this one.

Some charcters are better developed than others however, I guess they cannot expose everyone within 24 episodes, but very good insight into their reasons for fighting.

Okay, so it's obvious from the get go that this sort of anime isn't exactly my cuisine, but I thought I'd give it a try since I appreciate action animes with a controversial sort of plot.

Old prejudices.

After the warring between the clans of Kouga and Iga during the Tensho Era, Gennosuke and Oboro's marriage should at long last bring peace between the two clans. However, as the mighty Tokugawa Ieyasu faces his certain death, a covenant struck up long ago is soon to lose face. It will be followed by a battle between the two clans, who for centuries beforehand longed to finish each other off.

Basilisk first appears to me as a cheesy attempt at mixing the warring clans element of Ninja Scroll, the crazy technique-dumping repetitiveness of Naruto, and a dash of the bloodiness from Fist of the North Star. To my surprise, as the story develops, the plot complicates in such a way that the randomness of "who is going to die next" easily seduces the curious eyes of the watcher. It picks up the pace rather quickly, and rapidly the series gains more and more respect. Unfoprtunately it goes downhill after a certain point reducing itself to a turtle pace and fades away into a frustrating, almost infuriating imitation of a typical Manchurian "super warrior" tragedy (e.x. The House of Flying Daggers, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero).

Another irritating thing about this series is just how out of place flashbacks would occur. I can understand and appreciate the idea of putting in a flashback at certain places to bring a different feeling, but the eagerness of wanting to know what happens next shrivels away into a slighted interest as a toilsome atmosphere from the past ensues in the midst of the main story. I honestly would have liked to see many of these flashbacks at the beginnings of episodes, or during portions where nothing serious was going on. But no - the series has to place them in the worst of spots, as a horrible attempt to make the watcher eager for more. Once again, I can understand that it's a broadcasting tactic to the keep the story fresh, but when it's overdone the series looks like scribblings of a 15 year-old with ADHD.

Despite the rather fair rating I think I'm giving Basilisk, and despite how much I enjoyed it, I cannot comment enough on my disappointment with the unfolding of the events in this series.

Slug men, twisted hairy dudes, big-breasted shameless women...yeah, they're characters.

Not that I mind these people, since they seem quite interesting to get to know. Many of the characters had distinct personalities and back stories that fit them perfectly. I am a little frustrated at the lack of focus on the two main characters during the beginning and middle of the series. It wasn't until the very end that I really got a chance to comprehend Gennosuke and Oboro, so I felt somewhat cheated by the endless side story and flashbacks of the other characters. Also, this series kills off its characters like insects. Sometimes it was so soon that I couldn't feel the slightest bit of attachment to them as they approached their impending doom. The greatest examples I believe are certain female characters in particular, in which both of them had some particularly intense scenes that just couldn't absorb me due to lack of development.

Lastly, the only characters in this series that significantly grow and develop are Gennosuke and Oboro. Even then their development is insignificant compared to other animes of the same general time period. All of the other characters in Basilisk have such a short story to tell in comparison, anyways, so I guess they can't do much more than be static for the most part.

Surprisingly, a somewhat average animation.

While it's easy to brag about this anime's quality action and strategy elements, it's difficult to really assert the beauty of the animation. The designs are actually a little awkward for the violence that ensues within the series. This makes the deaths much less thrilling, and actually funnier in my eyes.

Nonetheless, the character designs do remain consistent, although they don't look like anything new in comparison to other anime titles of the same class.

Nice OP (minus the lead singer's voice.)

I do know that as being a singer myself, my harshest criticism on any OP/ED is the singer's voice. In this case, the singer sounds like a retired Enka wailer, barking out these insanely discomforting phrases for her voice range, and then probably wondering why she might've felt horrible afterwards. Pretty much, though, the instruments backing her voice do an amazing job, rescuing the song for people like me.

The background music, though, is altogether amazing. I cannot think of one track I heard in the anime that I did not like. It's classy, although not being anything new; it's not intrusive, despite how loud it can get - this list can go on for a while.

Lastly, the voice acting isn't all that bad the entire way through. I think the most unique voice acting I heard was the seiyuu for Jingoro, who makes him out to be the strangest sounding guy in the series. All of the other voice actors do a nice job as well.

Overall: depends...

I mean to say that this opinion is somewhat subjective on my part. Regardless, I rated fairly according to my tastes, and it is also reasonably comparable in weight to the general opinion of aniDB. Definitely a good choice for mindless violence addicts. People who have a need for Berserk-like bloodiness in their anime can easily scrape up episodes of this series to see if they are satisfied.

In my case, rewatching this would involve someone else just to either enlighten them with the action, or cause them to cringe in cynicism at the cheesy dialogue or special powers.

In conclusion, it may not be as bad as I say to you, so use this review as a judgment in comparison of my tastes to yours. Of course, if just happens to be that your taste is remotely near mine, I can guarantee you'll find holes in this series upon approaching it.

Ninjas ninjas everywhere.

Visuals
For the most part, Basilisk had some rock solid visual flare. The action scenes were handled well, keeping fluid whilst being meaty, and the overall quality of the artwork was excellent. The world was crafted well also, and the style of the series kept in good ninja-anime tradition. I was especially thankful at the gory nature of the series, and I felt right at home with it if comparing it to something like Ninja Scroll. So what are the flaws? Well, there are two. The first is the character modeling - the series involves about 20 main characters, both female and male, and unfortunately if was often hard to distinguish some of them from each other. They had very similar looks, with only subtle differences in appearance. It took me a long time to get used to these subtle differences, and along the way I felt confused at times. The second visual flaw is the end third of the series, where so much of it is covered in mist. The story is such that not only do the action scenes become non-existent towards the end, but the setting of the series takes place in fields where there is mist, and it hinders the visual quality, making it look horrendous.

Sound
Overall, the sound was great. The sound effects and ambiance are the real stars here, giving a very good atmosphere. The voice acting for the most part is also superb, except one of the character voices who I disliked. The musical score fits in well to the series and provides suitable melodies throughout the episodes. The opening and closing themes were ok, but nothing remarkable.

Story
The series is based on the book "The Kouga Ninja Scrolls" (which was also remade into the live-action movie "Shinobi" in the same year). The story has an awesome premise. Indeed most of why I have anything positive to say about the story is because of the main base plot and idea: 10 different ninjas from 2 clans have to battle it out. And they each have their own unique abilities. Excellent.

I was hooked after the first episode alone, but the next few kept me firmly glued to my seat. The twists and turns in character deaths, the glorious action sequences, and some of the ingenious abilities were the highlights of the series. But halfway through the series, the action was slowly siphoned out, and slow - really REALLY slow - moving drama came in to take its place. Oh dear. It became so frustrating that by the time the series ended I was actually happy to not have to see any more of the drivel.

For some reason the creators seemed to have thought that with the deaths of so many characters at this point, they would extend the narrative by boring the VIEWER to death with the insignificant ruffling of either the secondary characters or by toning down the remaining primary ones. The sheer decrease in the ferocity of the series is one of a kind - I can only liken it to a rabid pit-bull being muzzled and then shot with a tranquillizer. Even the battles at this point - what little there were left - were pathetic, with no reason to be so bad whatsoever. I can only assume the the creators stopped caring, or had to fill up time until they reached their episode quota.

Characters
Apart from Oboro, I thought the characters were superb in Basilisk. They all had their unique abilities and personalities, and were interesting to watch. There were times where I felt the series went a bit overboard to show the affection between some of the couples, and this caused the plot to slow down, but overall this was minor.

As mentioned before, it was often hard to distinguish between some of the similar looking characters, and this kept me mildly irritated also. Lastly, whilst I wasn't originally too bothered by Oboro at first, the more she became the focus of the plot the more the series bored and annoyed me. Thankfully the other characters outshone her for the most part.

There were great bonds between certain main characters, and the way they interacted and supported each other in battle was brilliant to witness. The support and secondary characters on the other hand, were the opposite - where I felt the series should only be showcasing them as necessary, instead there was (I feel) too much screen time devoted to these boring people, trying to engage the viewer in their political agendas.

Value
Unfortunately, this series was wrecked for me by the drawn out conclusion that made me want to gouge my eyes out. As it stands, I would gladly watch the first half again in a heartbeat, but seriously consider not going any further. For this, I don't think I would add it to my dvd collection.

Enjoyment
Overall, an enjoyable series for the better part, that's heavily marred by the long, dull, drawn-out ending. Of course above average, but only JUST. See it if you like Ninja Scroll mixed with Kenshin Reminiscence, but don't expect it to be quite as good as either.