- STORY/CHARACTERS -
The story obviously suffered because the OVA is only 27 minutes long. It would have benefited hugely from being much, much longer. I feel parts did not get enough time focused on them and the explanation of things was rushed. I really enjoyed the action, mystery and overall darkness of the story though. If you like that kind of thing then you'll probably enjoy this.
Character development could obviously not be done all that well either but I quite liked the two main characters Charles Chrishunds and Johnny Rayflo and their interactions with one another. It's a real shame because from what the little the OVA gave us, it was truly promising. I need more! Preferably a TV series! I want to see a more detailed and longer story involving these two guys. The other very few characters were not memorable or likeable at all.
- ANIMATION/ART -
I adore Production I.G and everything visually in Vassalord. was beyond beautiful. Overall I really loved the animation, art, character designs and so on. It's just something really gorgeous to look at. Watch this if you adore Production I.G or just good looking anime in general.
- SOUND -
I liked the voice actors for the two main characters Johnny Rayflo and Charles Chrishunds. The voiced fitted the characters and they did a good job. The ED song Misunderstanding is a really pretty sounding song. It ended the OVA perfectly and was great to listen to as I reflected on what I had just seen.
- OTHER COMMENTS/ENJOYMENT/OVERALL -
I'm disappointed despite going in to the anime with no expectations at all. It kind of just felt like a promo for a manga. However, I want to read the manga now so I guess it did its job there. It does does its job well of giving you a taste of what Vassalord. is all about. I adore the overall darkness and the atmosphere of the anime. It left me wanting and literally needing more. I am very intrigued and want to see and explore more of the world of Vassalord. It seems like a really cool supernatural world.
It could have been something incredibly special (I wanted to say, "Really *swear word* amazing!") but it turned out as being a decent but too short OVA which left me with a great and difficult to explain feeling. Since I just clicked and watched it at random Vassalord. took me completely by surprise. After some consideration: I'd give it a 6/10, it just fell short of a 7. I wanted to be very generous with my rating for it but I felt I had to be harsher due to the disappointment and thoughts of "Huh? Is that it!?" I had at the end. I was not satisfied at all. It's a good job there is a manga to read next!
If you have nothing to watch and half an hour to kill then I suggest you watch Vassalord. Definitely watch it if you can't get enough of the supernatural (specifically vampires!). By the way, this anime also has a tiny, little drop of shonen-ai in the atmosphere but don't let that put you off if you don't like that kind of thing. If you do like it then you'll be disappointed by the lack of it but enjoy the little hints.
Please don't expect Vassalord. to be a masterpiece, just an anime that had some potential. It is definitely an interesting watch and I'm sure those who did read the manga before watching this enjoyed it more. Who knows, maybe when I've read the manga I'll feel differently...? If you're on the fence about reading the manga I think this OVA will give you an idea of what it's about and might leave you with a stronger desire to read it.
