Devilman

Note: both the anime and manga are two completely different stories but as long as you bear this in mind, Devilman TV is an episodic series super hero series that can be very repetitive but manages to provide gruesome horror or other times some intentionally ridiculous entertainment.

The story begins rather unsettling as the main character Akira Fudo is killed by Devilman, thus he takes over his corpse and becomes Akira. So, in other words our main characters is actually Devilman (or Amon to be more specific with other Devilman material). Despite this key difference, Devilman falls in love with Miki and has sworn to ... protect her from the Demon Tribe. This leads to Devilman being branded a traitor where Demon Lord Xenon will send demons to kill Devilman. As you may have guessed, the series follows a formula where the beginning of the episode features the demon's murderous abilities which sets up the horror mood. Afterwards, Devilman has to fight him or her and usually ends the battle with a Devil Beam or a Devil Arrow.

A basic flaw of the show as a whole is the repetitive problems that it presents itself. As this Devilman is very much like a Tokusatsu series with Devilman turning into a giant and the demons usually arriving one at a time. While we all know it would make more sense to send everyone at once to get the job done, you have to watch this show knowing that it will play out like this. Of course this does hinder its story and instead relies on a fun factor which often led to some hilarious moments such as the iconic "Devil Jump!" . I think appreciating events such as that is what makes Devilman TV enjoyable.

What amazes me about this show is despite being aimed at a children audience, this is NOT a kid-friendly show. For its time and possibly even now, the series is too violent for any public broadcast with its constant use of human casualties, especially ones involving car crashes and airplanes. In a very Go Nagai fashion, many civilians aka extras are constantly killed adding to the dark tone of the series. A lot of demons are very over powered but certainly made their presence almost unforgettable due to their fearsome strength as some episodes are genuinely scary.

However, like any show there are some things that can't be ignored. One of my personal problems with Devilman TV is that the series may have been better is some battles lasted 2 episodes instead of a self-contained story. For example, a lot of the episode's time is spent on creating a terrifying atmosphere which leads to a few minutes of actual fighting. I don't mind short fights but it does get a bit annoying that a lot of the fights end very abruptly with Devilman struggling in a one sided match only to save his skin by using a Devil Beam (which you will hear a lot of.)

Basically, I had a lot of fun watching this version of Devilman but I can certainly see why people wouldn't like it, especially if they read the manga for it. The structure of Devilman TV is very similar to the other 70's Go Nagai series Cutey Honey & Mazinger Z due to their basic superhero plots. And very much like Cutey Honey, the series does end open-ended with Devilman never fighting Xenon or completely eradicating the Demon Tribe. However, I was really surprised to see Devilman gradually change throughout the series where he began as a despicable, violent person and by the end of the series he's an honest to heart good guy. The quality certainly shifts per episode but there's definitely something good to be found in this superhero anime. It's not a must watch series because its so good nor is it a show so bad its good; Devilman TV is the episodic journey of a devil whose becoming more and more human who vows to protect his love. As simple as it is, this type of series can only be enjoyed by a certain few who love tokatsu or just a monster of the week show in general. A recommendation that is inspired by Devilman but is better written is the series Hell Teacher Nube which offers more in terms of characterization and touching moments.

A very problematic show worth more for its historical value rather than the entertainment. the over all premise of the show is generally intriguing, intense, sweet and romantic but the whole potential is going to waste. I'd really love to see a new series that would try to bring this story to life.

I've watched it now for the 1st time so there was no nostalgic appliance for me. The show has an extremely episodic structure, and past the first 3 episodes there's no importance to the order you're viewing them, including the final episodes!

I myself got fed up with the show's static and unprogressive nature ... around episode 12 and skipped to 37 - I was amazed at how much nothing was changed storywise, and it seemed like a smooth continuation of where I left off. The last episode's later moments does have a small dramatic turn of events but it's way too little and way too late to be respected.

The monster of the day episodes, which are probably 100% of the show, are watchable and some has ok ideas but they have no effect on the story and they are all repetitive (monsters arrive, Devilman beats everyone, everything comes back to normal - Miki doesn't find out Akira is Devilman). Also, an average episode contains an unlimited amount of inconsistencies, questions left unanswered and plot holes.

Regardless of the story's undevelopped mess the show's strong side is its character balance and chemistry. I liked Akira and Miki's general archetypes. He might have been too aggressive for his own good, unlikely for modern shounen heroes, but Miki had the upper hand and Akira was hers.

On the visual department I actually like the art style although it failed to maintain its quality and the animation and movement is laughable, but you should expect that and besides it's the least of the show's problems.


P.S. I must say i got along quite well with the HK rips if you're looking for English subtitles.

I will be talking about the dubbed version. Why? Because I can and I will explain in a sec why I belive this is actually superior version.
The artstyle is nothing special for times it was made in, and is even a bit too bland in comparison to manga and even newest version. Characters are fun but you know, kudos to the manga rather than the anime here. And I would even go so far saying that the "I am DEVINMAAAAAN" thing was actually kinda anticlimactic comparing anime to manga, it was like attempt of making superhero movie with Jigsaw as the protagonist.
Let's go to the ... dub related stuff. The first thing that strikes the viewer is the noices indicating really poor quality recording tools and enviroment (like it was recorded with walkman in a basement or something), the second is lack of care about acting from the voice actors. It's like you were watching abridged version or some youtube poop. The edginess is overflowing from every sentence and I am really drawn to it. It is so bad it's good.

This is true out of body experience if watched with english dub. Otherwise don't even bother.

Devilman is a strange series. 39 episodes long and directed by Tomoharu Katsumata, Devilman is an adaptation of the very popular Go Nagai manga of the same name. However, the manga only started publishing about a month before the anime was released. Basically what this means is that Devilman is not so much an adaptation of the manga as it's just using the character of Devilman. The anime is actually more of an adaptation of Nagai's other manga called Demon Lord Dante. Never the less, Devilman is a classic, so I decided to give the anime a shot.

Devilman is about, well, Devilman. A boy named ... Akira Fudo goes to the himalayas with his father. There his father is killed and Akira gets possessed by Devilman. And that's basically it. After that cue monster of the week type tokustsu show and pair that with ridiculous scenes that you are not sure if they are supposed to be funny or horrific. It was really a strange show and not at all what I was expecting from "Devilman".

The first thing I noticed about this show was that visually, the show was not very good. The production was just a mess. For example there were multiple times where they didn't remove previously used key frames, so they just hung around on screen. After 10 episodes I felt I had seen enough of this show. It did give me a few laugh in the beginning, but as soon as you get used to the ridiculousness of the show it just completely stops being fun. I did not enjoy watching this show and because of that I could not make myself watch more than the 10 episodes I have. Overall I was very disappointed.

If you are already an established fan of the Devilman franchise, be warned, this series does not follow the narrative of the original story... at all. You should go into this story expecting more of a monster-of-the-week, "Kamen Rider"-like story, as opposed to a philosophical look at the dichotomy between good and evil. This show has not aged very well, and perhaps, is far too zany for its own good!

⚠️ This review of Devilman (1972) will contain light spoilers ⚠️

—Story/Characters

This is the fifth installment of the Devilman series that I consumed in a long list: the first was Devilman: Tanjō Hen ("The Birth"), second was ... Yochō Sirene-hen ("The Demon Bird"), third was CB Chara Go Nagai World, and the fourth was reading the original manga. So, by the time that I ordered the Discotek release of this series off of eBay, I was already entrenched in the franchise! I didn't really know what to expect from the cover, Devilman looks less like a monster and more like a man wearing a stag-beetle helmet with kabuki make-up... but the answer is: goofy, it is plain absurdity, this show is not a Devilman series at all, but more like what ※"Space Black Knight" is to "Mobile Suit Gundam"!

※"Space Black Knight" is a bootleg rip-off of the original Gundam series, where a cheaply rendered version of Char Aznable gets unmasked and is actually Amuro Ray. I would suggest looking into it, if you want a quick laugh.

Akira Fudō doesn't undergo much of a life-altering change in this iteration, he just demon whips the followers of Ghandi! Yes, this is something that actually happens. If there's a positive development to any given character, it would be to Miki Makimura — in other versions of the story, there is small moments of playful banter between her and Akira, but this series showcases her "comic strip"-like frivolousness and that was refreshing to see. We only see her transform into an Olive ("Popeye") in the manga, so it's refreshing to see her be a part of Akira's life in a more meaningful way. Which reminds me, the most pivotal character in the manga, Ryō Asuka, does NOT exist in this anime!

The episodic writing varies from episode to episode, sometimes it can be entertaining (in a trippy way) and other times, it's just boring and monotonous, tacking a poorly rendered "filler" monster at the end of each segment. The designs that aren't lifted from Nagai's manga usually look really corny! For example, in Episode 21 — Devilman battles a demon that looks like a red color variant of the Michelin "Tire Man"! Believe me, there are some really stupid-looking monster designs in this! There also doesn't seem to be a consistent continuity with what Devilman's utility belt does, Akira will shout "Devil Beam" and the command will account for several different attacks! It doesn't make any sense, at all!

There's a new character that becomes a reoccurring (love interest?) third wheel to Akira and Miki's budding romance! She's a demon named Lala, and while her voice is very cute, she was entirely useless to the story. It felt like she only existed to be a complete idiot and get in the way of their pre-established love affair. It wasn't a very well orchestrated plot point, but nothing in the story really has any staying power after a single episode. Even as an obsessed "Devilman" fan, it was difficult to immerse myself in any of it, I think I mostly zoned out when things hadn't gone completely bananas because (aside from more of a focus on Miki Makimura) none of the characters were the ones that I had grown to love; everything seemed to have been modeled to fit a televised time slot, rather than do anything in the story justice!

—Technical

Luna's Favorite Works by Each Respective Creator = ✅

Tomoharu Katsumata (director), notable works:
* Anderson Dōwa: Ningyo-hime ✅
* Captain Future
* Cutey Honey ✅
* Dai Yamato Zero-gō
* Daikū Maryū Gaiking
* Daisōgen to Hakuba ("The Princess and the White Horse")
* Entaku no Kishi Monogatari: Moero Arthur
* Ginga Nagareboshi Gin
* Hashire Melos
* Kagayake! Yūjō no V Sign
* Magnerobo Ga-Keen
* Mazinger Z ✅
* Nagagutsu Sanjūshi
* Ningen Kakumei
* Saint Seiya: Meiō Hades (series)
* Saleryman Kintarō
* Uchū Senkan Yamato: Kanketsu-hen ("Space Battleship Yamato: The Final Chapter")
* UFO Robo Grendizer
* Waga Seishun no Arcadia ("My Youth in Arcadia")
* Yamato yo Towa ni ("Be Forever Yamato")
* Yukiguni no Ōji-sama
* Yume Senshi Wingman

Commentary: I grew up watching "Anderson Dōwa: Ningyo-hime", a.k.a. the anime version of "The Little Mermaid", so I have a sense of nostalgia for Mr. Katsumata's work! From what I've seen in "Cutey Honey" and "Waga Seishun no Arcadia", his biggest problem is nailing the pacing and keeping plots from feeling tiring and repetitive, which is why his directing on a shorter project like "Anderson Dōwa: Ningyo-hime" may have been more optimal with his style of composition! I would say that the screenplay was okay, the scriptwriting is probably what plummeted this series down to the level of awful for me!

Good Seiyū Work = ✅

Really Enjoyed the Seiyū's Performance = ✅ ✅

One of Luna's Favorite Performances OF ALL TIME = ✅ ✅ ✅

Ryō'ichi Tanaka as Akira Fudō (or "Devilman"), notable roles:
* Amon, CB Chara Go Nagai World ✅✅
* Rō Kaioshin and Dr. Briefs, Dragon Ball Kai and Dragon Ball Super
* Cancer Death Mask, Saint Seiya ✅✅✅
* Rocky Andrew, Taiyō no Kiba Dagram
* Kentarō Takaoka, Tiger Mask (1969) and Tiger Mask W (2016) ✅

Commentary: Mr. Tanaka makes Akira Fudō seem like less of a friendly wimp, before his fusion with the spirit of "Devilman" and more of a harsh, mecha pilot protagonist — since, he emits the same kind of energy as Koji Kabuto in the first "Mazinger Z" cartoon! He's incredibly talented at what he does, and I love him as Cancer Death Mask in "Saint Seiya"! Incredible work!

Sumi Sakai as Miki Makimura, notable roles:
* Midori Hayakawa, Attack No. 1
* Yukihime, Dororon Enma-kun ✅✅

Commentary: Ms. Sakai voices Miki in a way that is, so far, my favorite iteration of her! She's stubborn, gutsy, and on the spicy side! The spiritual progenitor to characters like Frau Bō ("Mobile Suit Gundam") and Akane Tendō ("Ranma ½"), she did a wonderful job as both Miki Makimura and the original Yukihime ("Dororon Enma-kun")! Great job!

Hiroshi Matsuoka as Demon General Zannin, notable roles:
* Zenmaijikake ("Gizmo"), Anime Oyako Gekijō and Personal Computer Travel Tanteidan
* Geronimo Jr. ("005"), Cyborg 009 (1968)
* Muten-Rōshi ("Master Rōshi"), Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT ✅✅✅
* Jam Oji-san ("Uncle Jam"), Sore Ike! Anpanman (series)

Commentary: Mr. Matsuoka as Demon General Zannin is one of the more memorable roles in the series! He has such a ghastly eminence! I have only ever heard him in the Japanese dub of "Dragon Ball Z" as Master Rōshi, but he was superb in this show, too! Rest in peace, Mr. Matsuoka, your presence will be greatly missed!

Kōsei Tomita as Gelge, notable roles:
* Daemon Abashiri, Abashiri Ikka
* Dr. Hell, CB Chara Go Nagai World, Mazinger Z, and Mazinkaiser ✅✅
* Danbei Hayami, Cutey Honey ✅
* Jirokichi Suzuki, Detective Conan ✅✅
* Doraemon, Doraemon (1973) ✅
* Professor Saotome, Getter Robo
* Ayanoroji Mashumaro, Hana no Kakarichō
* Bakabon no Papa, Heisei Tensai Bakabon
* Oyaji Hige, in every Osamu Tezuka adaptation ✅✅✅
* Doctor Watson, Meitantei Holmes ("Sherlock Hound") ✅✅
* Sniff, Mūmin
* Hakka Don, SF Saiyūki Starzinger
* Yohei Hayami, Shinkai no Kantai: Submarine 707
* Bouleuse Gotho, Sōkō Kihei Votoms
* Gandal, UFO Robo Grendizer
* Dr. Oedo and Tamaga, Wakusei Robo Danguard Ace

Commentary: Mr. Tomita's role of a bumbling lackey fits well with other characters that he's played: Dr. Hell ("Mazinger Z") and Danbei Hayami ("Cutey Honey") being a couple of prime examples! His roles range from incompetent crony, to doddering old man, to reticent sidekick! Mr. Tomita had a very expressive voice to fit with his lively, cartoonish roles! Rest in peace, Mr. Tomita, your voice will be missed!

Hidekatsu Shibata as Zenon, notable roles:
* King Enma, Dororon Enma-kun ✅
* Igneel and Narrator, Fairy Tail ✅✅
* Geese Howard, Fatal Fury: Legend of the Hungry Wolf
* King Bradley, Fullmetal Alchemist (2003) and Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood ✅✅✅
* Backbeard, Gegege no Kitarō (1985) and Gegege no Kitarō (2007)
* Gregor von Muckenberger, Ginga Eiyū Densetsu ✅
* Bill, Ginga Nagareboshi Gin
* Count Mecha, Ginga Tetsudō 999 ✅✅
* Baron Ashura, Mazinger Z (1972) and Mazinkaiser ✅✅
* Degwin Sodo Zabi, Mobile Suit Gundam (movie) ✅✅
* Hiruzen Sarutobi, Naruto ✅
* Monkey D. Dragon and Calgara, One Piece
* Guilty, Saint Seiya ✅✅✅
* Mars, Saint Seiya Omega ✅✅✅
* Ching Tao, Shaman King
* Daitetsu Minase, Super Robot Wars OG (series)
* General Hengel, Tentai Senshi Sunred
* Mr. X, Tiger Mask (1969) and Tiger Mask W (2016) ✅✅
* Captain Dan, Wakusei Robo Danguard Ace

Commentary: Mr. Shibata has a legendary villain voice, this man's timbre can shake the temerity of any weak-spirited mortal! That's just how much of a prolific actor this guy is! I would compare his role as the main demon ("Zenon") to his performances as King Enma ("Dororon Enma-kun") and Baron Ashura ("Mazinger Z")... such a godly rendition of the Zenon character is wasted on such a silly show! I'm waiting for there to be a tit-for-tat retelling of the "Devilman" story with this version of Zenon incorporated into the script! That would be incredible! Amazing performance!

This show is really defective, when compared to the source material. I may have enjoyed it more if I wasn't already so invested in the manga and those beautifully animated OVA adaptations! The 1972 adaptation deracinates the story of any of the original solemnity and catharsis on morality, and how human history can repeat itself, and strips the marrow so much that it makes the original ※"Casshern" series look like the best anime ever made, by comparison! Devilman (1972) gets a 3/10!

※I really did like the original "Casshern" (1972) series, but I rated it a 6/10.

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Not gonna lie, I've been into a lot of older anime these days and out of all of them, this is one of them that's somewhat tolerable (I think since it breaks the stereotype of the clean-cut, good-looking main male character. Nice to finally get some variety).
Also, maybe it appeals to the romantic in me, but I do find it kind of a cute concept that a demon goes out of his way to save humanity all for the sake of one woman.
The only thing I find super silly is the fact that he's like "I must defeat this evil demon lord and the rest ... of the Demon Tribe!"
"Hmm, did you say something?"
"...nope."
Or he basically morphs right in front of them and they're like "Did you just see Devilman??"
It's ridiculous to the point that it's just amusing.

Monster of the week tokusatsu series with no real plot or character progression, with almost every episodes being carbon copies of each other.

Nobody figures out who Devilman is. No one is proactive towards achieving anything. Devilman doesn't need to train to get stronger since he's just busted right out the gate. Character relations aren't worked on. etc, etc. The fact that Go Nagai worked on this with Toei and decided to go the exact same route a few years later with Great Mazinger is wild to me, especially when he worked on titles with better narrative structure in-between. But hey, whatever makes money, I ... guess.

For being a tokusatsu, the fights are a bore. Akira has a few attacks that he uses. Three are brawling moves, two more are powered up range attacks, and lastly, he has this one big finishing move that can pretty much one shot anyone called devil beam that he can use multiple times in a row. Now, here's the thing, 95% of all fight scenes are structured in a way to pad out time. Outside of maybe two or three encounters, where there's an in-story reason for why he can't just his devil beam attack immediately and call it a way, they all happen in way to last as long as possible in order to stretch the runtime. Instead of just seeing whoever he needs to defeat and blasting them to kingdom come, he'll kick them, chase them around, wrestle, punch them, and finally, after jerking off for six minutes, he'll use his devil beam to finish them off. The fact that it bothers to give a reason a few times as to why he couldn't just one shot them makes every other battles all the more insulting, as well as making every fight scenes super formulaic.

Despite all the characters starting off as completely unlikeable some of them do get better. The MC becomes less of an asshole. He doesn't grow, he just becomes less of a dick. The little kiddo, Tare, becomes more than just a comedic relief character that pisses his pants every time something happens. This is mainly due to him him getting a little girlfriend. There's also one character that gets introduced in the last quarter that I found to be the redeeming part of the entire thing that made finishing the series much more bearable.

Unfortunately, it has no conclusion or resolution to speak of. The last episode may as well be any other. The big bad still has a legion of demons at his disposable ready to go hunt Devilman. The series just kind of ends abruptly.

Production-wise, outside of the first one, there's maybe five or six other episodes that are nice to look at. The rest are average to below average in terms of art and animation. Sound design is also pretty average.

In the end, much like Great Mazinger, 1972 Devilman is a show that doesn't care or try to be anything more than an episodic monster of the week series. If you really want to watch Devilman, watch any other entry in the franchise.