Ranked #3446

Ichi The Killer: Episode 0

When someone pushes you, you want to push back. It is in our nature, that deep, animal longing to strike back when we have been struck. It is an understandable defense. It is the body's way of protecting itself. But what happens when you don't ever push back? You just sit there, day after day, taking it and taking it and taking it. What happens when you're finally pushed over the edge? Then what will you do?

Hopefully you won't become like Ichi.

Ichi the Killer is an anime where the edge has been met for young Ichi. He falls over, but he is making sure to take everyone down with him. The anime opens with one of the most confusing scenes ever, launching directly into intense violence. It then continues with some of the most haphazard storytelling and plotting, revealing to the audience exactly what has created the assassination machine known as Ichi.

Now, here's a life lesson we all should heed: do not be a bully. Or at least, make sure whoever you're bullying is not a potential sociopathic murderer. The story tries to follow the life of teenaged Ichi. His home life is cold and unloving and the closest relationship he has with his parents is sharing a thin wall (through which he hears their nightly copulation). His own younger brother calls him a loser to his face. In school, he is alienated and picked on by EVERYONE. He has no friends. Nobody likes him. Everyone beats him up. Eventually he cannot take it anymore, and like any psychoanalysis of him would reveal, he starts torturing small animals to vent his pent up frustration and aggression. From there, the nasty, dark side of Ichi is unleashed and soon he becomes not a character you pity but one you fear.

If you can call him fearful. The ridiculous thing about Ichi the Killer is that it turns what could have been a deep, malicious tale of one young man's descent into a murderous outcast into an unintentionally hilarious hack 'em up anime. For instance, whenever Ichi loses himself in the moment, he starts screaming and blubbering like a bad Bruce Lee imitation, snot and tears start flowing and then he proceeds to rip a person to pieces. The effect is immensely comical. The "story" plays out with how Ichi becomes hired as an assassin. Apparently this involves a lot of jizzing in his pants and crying.

The art is not spectacular. The only scenes worth watching are those where something disgustingly violent has occurred, but the animation and the art style is not the most attractive. Sometimes it is not even good, with sloppy character designs and bland backgrounds as well as innumerable recycled scenes.

Sound is actually pretty unimpressive. It sounds tremendously outdated, and the only commendable aspect of it is one repeated piece of music. It involves Ichi screaming, yet they take it and make a techno beat out of it. Again, hilarious, and it actually works for the scenes. But the rest of the background music is truly not the greatest stuff released.

As for the characters, there is Ichi. As aforementioned, Ichi is supposed to be pitied and then feared, but the effect is completely ruined by his insanity and his weirdness. He spends a significant part of the anime being a worthless victim, so pathetic that even you might be tempted to smack him around a little. Then he changes after beating a cat to death and tries to gain some power through the cowardly action. From there, he turns into a madman who gets aroused by violence.

I suppose another "character" in this anime should be Ichi's penis, since it has more screen time than some of the background characters. Yes, Ichi gets boners nearly every ten minutes; it's as though his dick just pops up to say 'hello' to us every now and again.

There is a crazy karate woman involved in this anime, but all of the women are portrayed as sadomasochists. Villains in the anime are left as one-dimensional as possible. Except some have really bad hair. That's about it.

Now, be prepared about this anime. It is definitely a hit or miss movie. There is no doubt that less open viewers will immediately hate this anime. That is justified--this movie has some of the most over-the-top, ridiculous, unbelievable scenes ever animated in the history of anime. Some people will love it. That too is justified--this anime is so intensely different from anything you have ever seen before that its shocking and surprising moments will remain as images that have been bludgeoned into your mind. For the impartial viewer, then Ichi the Killer is an odd anime with its highs and extremely low lows, and it should be taken as though it is nasty medicine: swallow it quickly, wash the taste out of your mouth and just sit back and wait for something good to happen afterward.

Is this anime enjoyable? It's like watching live birth. It's horrible and bloody with lots of screaming and crying but you just can't look away.

Ichi the Killer is the strangest anime you will see involving violence, sex and psychopaths. Recommended? Not really, especially if you're eating. It has a sloppy storyline, characters that leave much to be desired and its technical aspects are far from wonderful.

It will give you something to think about though. Or it will at least be another thing you might want to bleach from your brain after seeing it. read more

Man oh man. If you like twisted, violent, psychopathic and demented killers, YOU WILL LOVE this OVA. I laughed alot during this insanely twisted mindfuck of an anime. I watched it twice in a row, the second was to show my wife cause she got home about 10 minutes after I finished the first viewing. She thought it was stupid and sick. But she likes the anime Red Garden, so she don't know nothing. Animation was excellent and sound was great. The opening theme is a psychotic, energy filled kill song that may give you a siezure or at least the urge to laugh or be violent. This is a twisted story of how to make a psycho killer. Watch and you'll see. read more

This is NOT worthy of the Takaashi Miike film that everyone loves. Avoid this anime for bad art, reused cells, boring plot development and confusing situations that are supposedly revealing details about Ichi's backstory. The shock level of the film is rather tame, despite the overtones of marital sexual abuse and of course violent sexual frustration. Watching this leaves you feeling dirty, and not the refreshing enjoyable dirty like watching the real movie. Go see a Miike film instead.