I have to admit, that the task for reviewing or mentioning things regardingthe undead is one reserved for Brett. However this time around he`s missed some animated zombie action by playing one too many games, so it`s with great pleasure that I introduce to you a review of Gainax`s latest animation: Shikabane hime:Aka (Corpse princess: Red) based on the manga by the same name that`s written and illustrated by Yoshiichi Akahito since 2005. Since this show is relativly new with season 1 (13 episode run) just having been ended in Japan I wont include spoilers, so its safe to read on.
When somebody dies, yet remains to hold an incredible attachment to the world, he or she`ll walk the earth as a living corpse that`ll before long lose what shreds of humanity it had left to consume the living as vengefull beings. The show puts on a nice twist on the tried concept about zombies and the undead in general, they`re still around yes, less plentyfull but all the more powerfull and are apperantly a well kept secret from the human race as modern people refuse to believe such nonsense. Working in the shadows is a cult who`s priests battle these corpses by utilising their own; forming contracts with other corpses with the promise of allowing passage to heaven when a 108 corpses have been slain. Whether or not these priests actually allow their slave warriors dubbed; shikabane hime to pass on to heaven is an interesting question, seeing as the cult think of their tools as nothing more
but an ugly, unwanted existance as low as the corpses they themselves are forced to fight. The writers use this fact to create several interesting sidestories to fleshen out the characters and it isn`t uncommon to see a priest loathing the fact that he lusts for a vile existance such as his own hime.
The storyline itself is centered around not the priests of the kougon cult but a boy named Ori. Ori is adopted into a family of priests after having been found homeless on the streets, but is offcourse kept out of the loop of what goes around untill one night a rather bizarre talking cat out of all things, beckons him to the shrine where he finds the body of a dead girl. Before panic sets in, he hears people approaching and rushes to find shelter behind a Buddha statue before a pair of priests including his brother enter the shrine and what appears to be reviving the dead girl. The story slowly unfolds from that point on as Ori is encouraged to follow the living dead girl, getting in way above his head. Carnage and great action sequences ensue in what appears to be one of the most surprising anime for me this year around (2008 that is) Yet the more you watch the show, the more you realise that it`s not about Ori it`s the questions being raised about the Shikabane hime that is the focus. They are for all intents and purposes humans, granted with super-human strengths and regeneration but there`s only so much shit they can put up for having a human mind; is it just the promise of heaven that drives them and what compells them to hunt what is essentially their brethren ?
Being a Gainax production, the animation of the show is a step up from typical anime, but really shines during the plentiful combat sequences with Shikabane hime`s unloading their weapon of choice into the undead in a stylish, yet not overly over the top way. I really dig the OP and ED song, both done by Angela who you may know from shows like Soukyuu no Fafner and Heroic Age, the rest of the soundtrack doesn`t really excell to pieces of music that I`d listen to on my MP3 player, but it`s fitting and non-intrusive.
A second 13 episode season Shikabane Hime:Kuro , is sheduled to air this January in Japan, and Funimation has already licensed Aka, and are now in the process of digitally distrubuting it for free, or as a high quality download for a slight fee so by
all means, go watch it and do support Funimation if you enjoy this show, cause it`s innovations that they make that`ll make anime more feasable to the Western fan.
For doing something different with the zombie-theme, having some great character interaction going hand to hand with top-notch action scenes makes this a recommended show to watch !
RECOMMENDED
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Gwenster
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