Storyline
Akira Fudou is your typical kind hearted high school student. He looks after cute little bunny rabbits while at school and has a nice girl friend (not dating) that he lives with since his parents are away on an excavation in the South Pole.
One day while walking home from school Ryo, an old friend from Akira’s childhood turns up out of the blue and demands that Akira follow him as he has something very important to discuss with him.
After Akira agrees to hear him out Ryo starts to explain the horrifying details of what had recently become of his father who was a scientist.
Ryo’s father seemed to have gone mad after investigating the existence of demons.
At this point I should mention this first movie is somewot slow placed while the foundation of the story is being laid down. It’s a bit of a drag but stick with it as things start to spice up soon enough.
Ryo takes Akira back to his father’s study where a lot of his research is being kept. Here Akira gets to actually SEE some of the crazy revelations Ryo’s father discovered.
After that, all hell breaks loose…..why…because due to their snooping around with demon research / artefact’s, they get the attention of actual demons who start to chase them down.
So after some more entertaining chase / demon encounters Ryo & Akira come to the realisation that the world will soon become exposed to the threat of a global demon outbreak…..so the question is what can they do to stop it…
Well that’s the best part which I am not going to spoil for you…let’s just say it involves performing a certain ritual that involves alcohol, debauchery and violence.
Since the name of this anime is Devilman it should be obvious at some point someone or something will become the Devilman….and no surprise to anyone who has seen the cover art who it’s going to be.
So after DEVILMAN IS BORN true insanity ensues and Holy Shit the last 10 minutes of this anime is hardcore violence at its best.
So yeah, in summary the first half of this anime is mostly explanation and build up for the last 15 minutes of pure awesomeness…..It was kinda worth the wait but sadly just after it starts getting really interesting its over……and at the time I watched this there was no way for me to know there was a part II so I was like Goddamn it I wanna know what happens next!
Then luckily for me 2 weeks later (at the time 1993) on Channel 4 part two was broadcast….which I have also reviewed
Animation
Keeping in mind this is late 80’s animation it is pretty decent…I mean the character designs look a bit cutesy at first but when the demons get involved things change quite dramatically.
The standout thing for me in this movie is the strange opening sequence, the return to the strange opening sequence in the middle of the movie and the super gory action sequence at the end.
Compared to today’s standards it’s not top notch but I feel it has still aged pretty well and is still very watchable.
Sound
I like the music in Devilman…its got a melancholy feel to it. The English dub is really quite comical to me but not in a bad way…I mean, re-watching this now I can understand why some people may find it korny but overall I think it works out very well. Devilman in particular say’s some really funny shite when he’s killing demons…certainly not the sweet boy Akira he was before.
Overall sound is pretty decent…compared to the original Jap language it’s a bit spicier which worked out well enough in my opinion
Characters
Devilman has an extremely small cast, which works in its favour. There’s pretty much Akira / Devilman, Ryo, Miki (barely) and the various demons Akira and Ryo have to face.
For such a short anime I think the characters are developed well enough…In particular you get good foundation for Akira’s character which is the most important thing.
Enjoyment
I enjoy this anime on two levels, the first being nostalgia. I remember how confused and weird I felt about rooting for a demon to suceed…..this was way before the more recently accepted anti-hero boom we are surrounded by today.
The second level is the action in this anime is pretty hardcore, animated decently, barebone and VERY enjoyable to watch.
It’s a short fun crazy ride… I have enjoyed this title for many years and overall still find it of a high standard even after all these years.
Value / Final Thoughts
Over time Demon protagonist’s have become more common place in movies (Hellboy) and especially in anime, to name a few: Hellsing, Vampire hunter D, Inu Yasha, the cast of Saiyuki, Chrono from Chrono Crusade etc. So Devilman kinda loses the anti-hero shock value it had around the original time it was made.
But like I said before being very young and coming from a Christian upbringing in particular made this anime quite the shell-shocker.
I was hesitant to write this review at first as I did feel a lot of my praise for it would come from nostalgia but after re-watching it I am now reassured it is actually a quality title that still holds up to this very day
It’s short and sweet, thought provoking and many do hail it as a cult classic.
Surprisingly though I found more reviews for this anime on IMDB that on various anime sites….however the manga is vastly more popular than the anime incarnations.
Planet Tyro Rating: Solid B
Devilman Franchise Blog: http://bit.ly/157LdCG
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