Story :
"Laughing Target" is an adaptation of a one-shot written by Rumiko Takahashi. I have read the manga years ago, but my memories of it are rather vague, the only thing I can say is that the Anime is toned down in violence and gore, in comparision. But it has to be confirmed as it could just be my imagination.
For the story itself, I have two three things to say that appear odd and convenient to me (like the protagonist going to read a book with photographies in the middle of the night). But overall, I wasn't too particularly bothered.
Overall, I appreciated the "old story telling style". As a work of the 80th, it didn't follow the now modern trend of "telling", prefering to "show" iinstead. That lack of "holding hands" (which has become too common it seems), though, could be an issue for people not used to it. For example, not realizing that the 2-3 first minutes basically "shows" you how one chara is possessed, or "showing" you what the ghosts (introduced in the same 2-3 minutes) represent and are. Now, it should be pretty self-explanatory, it isn't like it is even trying to be subtle about it, but some people seem to need to be told everything through words nontheless.
In an era where "horror" mainly rhymes with jumpscares and gore, watching an old style horror felt really good. It might not be for everyone though.
As a last warning though, if you're familiar with Rumiko's work and expect something different, the answer is "no" ; it uses components you can find in most of her work, not only when it comes to story and characters, but also chara design.
Characters :
Another "old style" thing here, or rather "archaic" in comparision : some of you might be aware that, in terms of literature, "psychology" and "chara development" are at the same time recent and not an obligation. It solely depends of the aim of said work. You nailed it, this story possesses function-characters ; so it's useless to expect any type of psychology or chara development.
My only real issue is that the chara design are too basic in the sense they could be mixed with other charas she created. And I shall continue on the art departement in the next part.
Art :
When it comes to the art and animation, they have aged. That's for sure ; and I had sometimes issues with it (though it's a personal issue and not a formal issue).
What is well done though, is the "filming" : the choices of colours, contrast, the angles chosen, they all serve their purpose well. The flashback scene is especially memorable, starting in white and black only and later on red taking over.
Sound :
Once again, the treatment of it might appear outdated to some as silence has a much bigger place in old animes (and visual fictions in general) for nowadays standards. The sounding is effective, overall, but the soundtracks are quite forgettable, they just do their job.
The voice acting is ok, neither outstanding nor bad.
Overall :
A nice horror OVA. No, really, that's all I have to say about it. But as I pointed out, it isn't for everyone, because of its age rather than the concept itself, which is quite amusing, in a way.
