The direction of this OVA is its saving grace; it has some truly wonderful, tense horror segments, and conveys incredible tone. The sympathy it builds up for Akira genuinely works, and it serves well as a bridge in the story of Devilman- he struggles with himself to mature into who he needs to be in order to face Satan and fight. However, it meanders in the middle, and- as much as I love the trademark violence of Devilman as a franchise- tends to stick its toe a little too far over the line with the shock value, scenes with Amon proper often dragging into pure tastelessness. The violence against women in the OVA is also extremely fetishized and goes on just a little bit too long, though if you're already accustomed to Go Nagai and his associated works then that comes as no surprise.
What is a surprise is that most of the OVA hardcuts away from the shock violence and shows only its stark, repulsive aftermath- a decision that makes the focus on grief and grieving more haunting. Akira grieves Miki; Akira grieves the person that he used to be- he cannot go back to who he was, and the slow death of the world around him feels like the death of his Self. Both of the actual onscreen fights are actually quite boring and poorly directed.
The art and cinematography are generally nice and interesting; the style is very 90s and occasionally shows its age, but it holds up. There are lots of novel and interesting shots.
The sound design is not as well-aged as the art, but it is never completely ostentatious, and the sound in the horror segments is generally very well handled. It feels genuinely tense and unsettling.
The character writing can be hit-or-miss; the two female devilmen present are cardboard flat and seem only to exist in order to be brutalized, Amon himself is a one-note force of violence. Akira is quiet, broody, and struggles with himself; the OVA is centered on his emotional crisis and does a good job of conveying it. Ryo's presence, understated, hangs over the feature, and the ending scene- completely silent and still- is one of the best in the OVA.
Overall I enjoyed this OVA and I think it's a worthy addition to Devilman's extended universe, as well as a rare example of effecttive horror direction in anime.
