Ninja Scroll: The Series

Publisher
MVM
Director
Tatsuo Sato
Production
Madhouse, WOWOW
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
13 eps; 25 mins each
Year
2003

Ninja Scroll: The Series Volume 1

By Adam Cook
14th Jun 04

Series based on films are tricky projects to get right. Do you continue with the well established characters and plough straight into a new story forgoing any need to introduce the characters and plots of the film, or do you try and produce a series that is friendly to complete novices of the film? In all honesty I am unsure which category Ninja Scroll: The Series falls under. I am one of the few people still not to have watched the film so I come to the series unaware of any of the characters histories and whether or not this series has any great relevance to the movie or not. What I can say as a novice of the Ninja Scroll universe is that volume one of the series (there will be a total of four volumes) is a little hit and miss.

From what I have read of the original Ninja Scroll movie the main protagonist, Jubei Kibagami a ninja for hire is the only character to cross over to the series. The main story in the first four episodes revolves around Jubei trying to deliver a sacred stone to a girl known as the Light Maiden. This task that he undertook as a dieing wish of another ninja puts him and the Light Maiden (along with her two companions) in constant danger. Jubei must contend with two clans that are both after the stone whilst protecting the Light Maiden, and also trying to get some much needed sleep.

The first four episodes do not hang around. Rather unusually for an anime series the opening episodes normally serve as gentle introductions to the characters and the story yet Ninja Scroll jumps in with both feet throwing the audience in the centre of a bloody and brutal battle within the opening 30 seconds. It is a refreshing approach to see an anime series that dispenses of the long drawn out battles that are evident in series such as Naruto and the Dragon Ball franchises. The action set pieces are brisk and efficient. The fights are often well choreographed and over in a matter of minutes rather than dragged out over several episodes. In fact the pace of the combat comes as somewhat as a shock if you are used to watching the slower series. There are on average two major fights per episode, each time leaving the loser incredibly bloody and lifeless. This is where the series becomes hit and miss. The combat is very satisfying, blood continually flows and limbs are liberally severed, but the characters that Jubei continually comes in contact with are very superficial. As suddenly as they make an entrance they are as quickly dispatched. The villains serve as pure cannon fodder for Jubei to dispatch with his trusty blade, never do they get the opportunity to expand their identity, their histories are never uncovered and they end up ultimately being very shallow and unsatisfactory foe. This problem does not just affect the antagonists in the series, but the entire story is hardly explored in the opening episodes. So many questions are raised yet none of them are answered. I only hope that this will be addressed in later volumes otherwise the entire series will be very shallow and just an excuse to provide a series with a high body count.

Jubei is an interesting and enigmatic lead. Whilst I assume a lot of history was explored in the film, he is a very mysterious character in the series and one I hope will grow to create a deeper protagonist than just a man with a talent for killing. Likewise the Light Maiden (also known as Shigure), and her two companions (Tsubute - a young thief that is always looking out for himself, and Takuan - a wise priest that has a penchant for explosives) are all rather vague characters. Whilst they are entertaining to watch I do hope their histories will be expanded upon greatly as the series progresses. It is testament to the series that so many questions have been raised and that I hope the characters will get the opportunity to grow as the concept of the series and the fresh combat provides an entertaining beginning, but it will be its later episodes that truly prove if this series will be great or merely a missed opportunity.

The series is incredibly violent. Foes repeatedly die in more bloody and gruesome ways. I have always enjoyed how Japanese films and series have a much more relaxed attitude to the use of violence. Whilst the combat is brutal and vicious it is always done with entertainment at the forefront of the creators mind. This is not a realistic portrayal of combat and should not be viewed as such this is cartoon violence at its visceral best. However there is an attempted rape scene during episode four which I felt sat at odds with the rest of the series. Once you get in to the realms of such violence it is difficult to place it alongside over the top and entertaining bloodshed. It is only a minor irritation though but was not necessary.

The animation is very smooth and the choreography of most fights is on a par with any other animated series of this ilk. The characters are very original and special mention must be made to the foes in the series. Whilst some are perhaps a little too odd they are all highly original which is refreshing to see. In fact our heroes our positively dull compared to the enemies they get to face throughout the opening episodes.
The colours and bright and vibrant and everything is drawn with clear and bold lines. Whilst it is pleasing to the eye a darker palette would have perhaps been more effective. The content of the series would appear to be suited to darker and more muted tones but the aesthetics of the series are commendable none the less.

The music is a let down on the whole. The opening and closing themes are very poor almost insipid musical numbers that could have done with drastically being reworked. The music throughout the series is merely satisfactory. Whilst there is a wide range of musical styles on offer none linger in the memory. The English dub is atrocious sadly, it really is bad and I only managed to watch half an episode before I had to revert back to the Japanese voice over.

Volume one of Ninja Scroll: The Series shows potential. If it maintains its current course then the series will end up being hugely disappointing but if they are able to introduce depth to the characters (most notably the enemies) whilst maintaining the entertaining combat then the series could be fantastic.

I look forward to volume two with baited breath.

R2 DVD Notes

Features: Engish 5.1 surround sound: Japanese 2.0 stereo sound: Storyboard to finished film comparison: Creating the coverart featurette: Interviews with the soundtrack composers: Art gallery: Original trailer

Release information: 10th May 2004, MVM

Notes: The 5.1 surround sound is always a welcome addition to any DVD so it is nice to see MVM introducing the option to all of their new releases. Likewise the original Japanese voice over is essential especially when the English dub is so bad. The storyboard comparison is a little pointless. It merely plays both the storyboard and final film together for you to compare the two. It would have been much more interesting to see a feature on how they create the storyboards. Likewise the coverart featurette will only be watched in full by the most committed fans as it is very tedius. The interviews are a little strange considering how uninspired the soundtrack is. I can only assume that other people that worked on the series will be interviewed in later volumes. The interviews are neither particularly informative or interesting sadly. The art gallery provides around 20 sketches of some characters and settings. They appear to be common place among MVM releases but are never particularly good. The DVD has a lot of extras yet sadly most are pure filler and I doubt if anyone will watch the extras more than once.

-- Adam Cook 14th Jun 04

Ninja Scroll: The Series Images