Reviews

There were several points while watching this anime, where i had the sudden realization that this is a show on a level that is almost impossible to achieve. Dark and horrific imagery that made me feel uncomfortable, Long winded villain speeches... that were actually good, and chilling at that, and set pieces that were so massive in their scale, violence, and sheer intensity that i started wondering if i had ever seen anything this epic in anime. I mean epic in its truest definition. Not a throwaway slang term, but truly, truly epic. Before i go on i must say WATCH THE DUB!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is important, if you watch the Japanese version you are missing out in a major way.
The story takes place in England, and the enemies are Nazi vampires. The British and German accents immerse you in a way that the native Japanese version can't. Listening to a militant Scottish priest, played by an actual Scotsman , say a battle prayer in his native dialect draws you in so much more. Its all very good too, i can't stress how important it is that you WATCH THE DUB
Okay now back on track the story is great, nothing revolutionary, but it has great pacing, FANTASTIC CHARACTERS who are insanely cool, creativity to spare, and the story is willing to go to places that most fiction is afraid to go. This is a mature anime. There is gore, blood, rape, necrophilia I could go on but i don't want my examples to give away too many story details. This story goes to some dark places man. The last 2 episodes can get a little convoluted, and the tail end of the last episode has a very weird shift in tone. Other than that though its great.
This is also clearly high budget anime. Solid animation, fantastic backgrounds, huge set pieces with tons going on in them, Great Action scenes, a sweeping score/soundtrack, high quality sound design and voice acting, and minimal cgi. This is a powerhouse on the technical side.
Now I'm going swoop back to those fantastic characters, because i need to talk about them a little. The protagonist, Alucard, is one of the coolest, most powerful, and bad ass characters in anime period. He's not really a good guy. He is a monster. The show makes sure you remember that hes not a good guy. Its not like the live action show "The Blacklist" Where they make James Spader's character seem good so they can remind you he is still a bad guy. Nope, They make it clear that Alucard is a monster. The Villain... Oh boy... The villain. He is a beautiful operatic, larger than life, grandiose villain. His speeches and cold demeanor push this show ever the edge. Hellsing Ultimate also has strong female characters. Both Seras and Integra (especially Integra) have strong moments in the show where their Bad Assery is put front and center for you to enjoy.

In conclusion... Why do i have to Write a conclusion. If you read this whole thing i don't need to sum things up. JUST GO WATCH IT.