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 volume 1
By otaku_kei
1st Dec 04  'Live By The Sword... Die By His' - says it all really. From this quote on the back sleeve of this title you can pretty much guess what this is going to be about. Ninja Scroll the movie came out just over 10 years ago and has since become a fan-favourite; it's steady stream of hulking demons, naked women and one very cool ninja assured it's place in the hearts of many anime devotees. But never having been a great fan of the movie I wasn't expecting much from this TV update but I was to be pleasantly surprised. Shigure, a ninja maiden living a secluded life in a small village in the mountains of Japan is one day caught in the middle of a battle. As her village is laid waste by a monstrous ninja of the Kimon clan, Shigure flees the destruction and falls under the protection of two ninja's. The first: a masked ninja of the mysterious Hiruko clan who dies protecting Shigure; and secondly Jubei Kibagami the eponymous hero of this tale, who finds himself pledged to the protection of Shigure pretty quickly. Shigure is presented with a destiny that she is told she must fulfil: apparently she is the Light Maiden and holds the key to the restoration of the Lost Dynasty. Entrusted with the sacred Dragon Stone to accomplish this path, Shigure turns and flees from this unknown future. Jubei, now acting as her bodyguard, travels with her across Japan seeking out the source of this destiny whilst protecting her from the clandestine designs of the mysterious Kimon and Hiruko clans. And that is pretty much it for the plot of this series: Shigure is hunted, Jubei protects her, repeat ad infinitum. This show does dissolve into a 'monster of the week' formula pretty quickly, but this formula works well and helps the show play to its strengths. Jubei. A big sword. Dead ninja's. Really the plot is used as little more than an excuse for setting up increasingly dramatic showdowns for Jubei. Characterisation at this stage registers close to null, with the 4 central characters being little more than stereotypes. Jubei - the strong, silent type (which he does very well); Shigure - the pretty yet tough lady with a secret destiny; Dakaun - the wise and wily old priest and finally Tsubate - the comic relief. Of greater interest are the ninjas and monsters of the Kimon and Hiruko clans. Both of these clans with collections of supernatural freakish villains make for the more intriguing characters, right up to the point that Jubei severs their head from their body. Some of the villains' showdowns could be slightly more protracted though. The show spends some time building up these characters just for Jubei to chop them down in moments. This is a particular letdown for the more interesting villains. Now this may all sound negative but it isn't really. This show does not pretend to be anything more than it is. It is not Anno-san's exploration of the human condition, or the questioning philosophy of Lain. It is pure unadulterated joy of action. So if what you are looking for is light-hearted violent fluff than this title really is for you. It isn't big or clever, but what it does it does very well. 7/10
R2 DVD Notes
Features: 5.1 English; 2.0 Japanese; English Subtitles; Interview with Soundtrack Composer; Storyboard to Feature Comparison; Creating the Cover-art; Art Gallery; Original Trailer
Release information: 10th May 2004 - OUT NOW
Notes: Once again MVM have provided a title with no noticable technical faults, the picture quality is great and both of the audio tracks are faultless. The extras on the other hand appear to be little more than filler. The 'Storyboard' feature is completely pointless, and has been carried through across each release of the series. Otherwise a good release and 4 episodes is a solid offering.
-- otaku_kei 1st Dec 04
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