Legend of the Dog Warriors - Hakkenden
| Legend of the Dog Warriors - Hakkenden |
Manufacturer: Pioneer Video
UPC:
013023148697 Retail Price: $54.98 Avg. Rating:
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 "Had a lot going for it.., but falls short" | 2008-03-25 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2MK75WV9XCVVP |
First off I would like to applaud this series for the good things that it did accomplish. The whole story which is based off of a book, invokes a wonderful setting for the series. The narrative over the characters and events is an essential that the people making this didn't overlook at all. The first episode sets up the story with a prologue of a mini story that unfolds and at the end sets up the scene for the rest of the series. The first couple of episodes are very well done keeping you interested and not moving too fast or slow. No complicated plots, simple yet engaging, with gradual build up to the main plot.
Unfortunately this is where the series begins to slowly deteriorate; the art of some episodes on each disk (about 3-4 in all) goes from relativly good quality to much poorer quality. Whether this be budget related, or an attempt to change the mood or something it heavily dampens the effectivness of the entire viewing. On the first disk it was tolerable, but on the last disk, first episode I didn't know who was who, or who was where, or what was going on until about half way through and by then I really didn't care anymore. I pieced it together forgot abut the blanks that were left and continued on.
Before I go on to talk about the bad, a good thing to point out is that there are more than eight major characters in this anime. There are only three disks in the series. That is like squeezing Ruroni Kenshin onto three disks, it just doesn't work. I guess low budget and not enough time was the issue here, for example not enough money for higher quality animation. Not enough time, money, and backing from producer and company so they could only spare three disks for the series. Still I could be wrong. A similiar thing happened to the anime for "His and Her Circumstances". The money was short so they went from regular animation to cardboard cut outs I think... Yeah the budget is important, again I'm not entirely sure about that either.
A good point I want to make is the similarity it has to Basilisk, both have many main characters, both are based off of novels, both have a story dedicated to the first episode alone that begins and ends in it, both take place in similiaresque (yea i jst mde tht wrd up) settings in time of war involving large military like powers. Both set of protagonists are aligned with said military powers for reasons that they are both sure and unsure of. A major difference though is Basilisk is six disks, The Hakkeden, though, is done in three disks. Basilisk felt short and it was six. The Hakkenden had about twice if not thrice more characters in THREE disks. It really upset me because this series could of been SOOOO much better had it been given the proper circumstances to "shine".
Otogi Zoshi which again same kind of setting, less characters, but again a 3 disk arc, but followed by another 3 disk arc. The series starts off well, but again slowly gets worse and worse until it hurts to see how good ideas and some good episodes were put together to make a bad series.
One thing though that I just can't stand what so ever is -SPOILER WARNING, SKIP TO NEXT PARAGRAPH- the how it ends. I get the whole circly thingy that it tries to pull off seeing of how it mirrors the ending of the very first episode almost entirely. Just as Otogi Zoshi, but instead it's the end of the 2 arcs that mirror each other, but in totally different time settings, but the same main characters. Anyway the full circle thing is intruiging when done well, but they totally destroyed the last disk of this series.
The reason that I'm giving this series four stars is because even though there are major problems with The Hakkenden, I'm giving the series the benefit of the doubt and assuming that most of those problems are budget related and not the people who actually directed, drew, and essentially created the serie's fault. The parts that are good are really good and as I said before if this was put in the right light I'm sure it would shine MUCH brighter.
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 "Really good story, captivating" | 2008-01-02 |
| - Reviewed By razor@unm.edu |
| This is a very good anime, its a strange story, and in some small sections I do believe it leaves a little to be desired, but it is good. The first episode sets up the story and plot well, and the animation is OK in the Begining episodes. beautiful landscapes, and the stories have thier own merit. IT has elements of wierd, but doesnt ruin it with over eccentricies. The story follows several seperate peoples lifes as they come together, and these are the dog warriors. Shortly after they all unite (usually after battling eachother) the animator changes who is creating the visuals.... whoever picked the new animator picked a champ, the final episodes animation is flawless and beautiful. The story gets a little weak here. Its got one of those meaningful endings that you can ponder, and you can wonder did they just give up and leave an open ending of funding so on.... I wanted a more closed ending to the story, but it is a good anime in any sence... I'd recomend this one. |
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 "This was painful to watch" | 2007-11-04 |
| - Reviewed By drainclogger |
I had to get really drunk to finish watching this series. Animation is bad, and following this story was a pain. This is something else I bought from the suggestions of the rabid fans I decided to listen to.
Buying an animated series based off the customer reviews is a waste of time and money. I'm sure if I look at Hello Kitty or Sailer Moon reviews on Amazon, there will be someone there that will give it 5 stars claiming that the artwork and the story line are absolutely beathtaking!
Exploring anime is extremely difficult when almost every review is seriously skewed by some rabid fan! |
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| "Avoid at all costs!" | 2006-01-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3B6QPU3XN37Y7 |
Worst anime I have ever seen. Don't be fooled by the neat looking cover. I'm going to say I'm writing a harsh review on this title to try to save people from buying it.
I find the other reviews here to be pretty ridiculous. Avoid this anime like the plague. I've been an anime fan for fourteen years and this is one the most poorly and cheaply animated things I have ever seen. So what if it's based on Japanese folklore? You would honestly be better off buying a book then buying this anime. If its Japanese culture and so on you're interested in there are much better anime to watch then this one. Spend your money on something else- it's garbage. My Oriental History major friend finds it garbage, so don't buy it for that reason.
The animation in Legend of Dog Warriors goes from "could stand it" to "so horrible I'd rather be wounding myself". It's so horrible you can't even keep track of what is going on and who the characters are, since in every other episode the character's appearance completely changes. The storyline is had hope but there are simply too many terrible and horrible things in this anime to even make you want to try to understand it for the sake of the story.
The animation of this anime is not amazing, nor is it true art. I would take a strong guess and say most of this anime was send over for cheap animation in Korea. To the people that understand what that means, you know what this looks like.
As for buying this anime because it's a good samurai-based anime. Yeah right. My favorite anime is historical and samurai anime, this anime puts those to shame. This is not even on the top 200. You can, again, find so many other anime to watch with samurai that is a billion times better than this even at its worst. Do not waste your money and more importantly your time on this piece of trash anime show. It's not a classic and it's never been one. It's terrible. If you still feel like you need to see this anime, RENT IT. Do not buy it.
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| "Its the animation. That's why you should take a look." | 2005-07-15 |
| - Reviewed By hal5000_02910 |
I know story matters." Hakkenden" does have an interesting premise. But Please! Only use the storyline as a springboard to watch some truly magnificent animation in this set though.
I'll be blunt in saying that most of the time the animation is mediocre. Often varying from scene to scene. But just utilize the storyline to breeze through this muck. OK ...
What your really here to view are episodes 1,9,4 and 10 (10 being the most important). These episodes are beatuiful and truly briliant pieces on their own. They should have their own DVD cases. These episodes are truly bizarre in the fact that the animation in these episodes have no connection design wise, but for the clothes on the character's backs and the Japanese backdrop. The greatest estimation is that the purpose of this OVA series was to test each indivudal animation director's limits and style. In the end this choice doesn't lead to a complete and whole series, but it does create some of the most beautiful, masterful and ultimately individual animation in any series during the 90's. Be honest good animation in a series isn't even an option in America unless you send it over to Korea, Japan, or the Philippines anyway.
I won't go into detail on every episode mentioned, but I will have to section out episode 10. It is without a doubt the single most brilliant animation in any series I have ever viewed. Its like a short film in an ANIMATED SERIES. Most animated series are known for cost cutting and quick animation techniques, but episode 10 has no hints of this. The animation has purpose and flows with a realism unheard of in studio driven animation, on any side of the world. The entire episode is animated by one man, Ohira Shinya. The closest link I could make with Shinya's style is Bill Plympton, but it's not even close. Shinya's style has a hyper realistic kinectic charge, making it all its own. To see this episode alone gives you reason to buy or rent this series. Shinya's technique can also be viewed in the enitre skateboard sequence in "Kid Story" Animatrix, the "Kill Bill" animated sequence (Nishii's father fighting the mob), "Samurai Champloo" episodes 14 and 21 (most notably the cool gun sword duel w/ Jin in 14) and the amazing whale escape sequence in the already amazing "Mindgame" (I believe he is due credit for the rocket butt scene in the final escape shot. I'm crying).
I also mention "Mindgame" towards the end of this lengthy review to recognize Masaaki Yuasa ("Mindgame" Director) as Layout artist and animation Director on the "Hakkenden" series. You can see Shinya's influence on Masaaki's work. It's full of motion and life.
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Whew
I'm obviously a fan of the series and animation. Guess I'm a little biased. Let me pepper the argument with some negative facts. The stories are intriguing to a point, but I wouldn't call them splediferous by any means. The whole ... fate ... thing has been done to death. Maybe. After episodes 1 and 2 the plots revolves around all the character meating (ha meat) up for one last battle. The episodes I didn't mention are fun but only to pass the time till a good episode pops up. It took me a couple viewings to keep up with the narration for some reason also. And don't listen to the English dub! See. I just saved your life. There ... Oh! And its definitely not a kid safe program. Some blood and stuff. Guess that covers all he bases.
Well there's nothing more to say about this series then to give it a try. There is some gold in this set and some dirt but just dig ... stupid metaphors. Some of the animation is mediocre, but the good outweighs the bad by a grand margin. Fellow animators rejoice at episode 10. |
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| "Legend of the Dog Warriors- Unusual and generally enjoyable" | 2005-06-04 |
| - Reviewed By User: A37ZCYY3CGEJFX |
This is the story of eight men linked by a common destiny, based on a series of novels, which are in turn based on Japanese mythology. The whole thing has a very old world feel to it, which makes sense if one goes in with this information. The look of the animation will be particularly enjoyed by those who are fond of ukio-e prints from the eighteen hundreds and earlier. The animation style resembles these watercolor prints much more than it resembles traditional anime, which is perhaps why some anime fans find it jarring.
That said, with the first episode of disk three, I almost put it down. That alone lost the fifth star from me. They clearly had new "artists", and the already complex plot was made even harder to follow by the fact that the characters didn't look like themselves at all. After an episode and a half of that, it got back on track, although the earliest episodes are still the most aesthetically pleasing.
Regarding the story, yes it is complex and at times, hard to follow. It is rich and full of symbolism that might not be familiar to everyone, myself included. If one gets lost, there is a "blow by blow" in the bonus features that will explain it all, until disk three. The hardest thing to keep track of is certainly the neverending shell game known as "who has which bead NOW?" This is an important detail if one assumes that the character holding the symbolic bead is supposed to represent that virtue.
I should make a note of the music. It's beautiful. Anime music usually makes me twitch. There are no little girl voices singing off key. There are no weird half English vocals. Just pleasant instrumentals which set the tone admirably.
Many anime stereotypes are not present in this series. I'd reccommend it to fans of Japanese art, or perhaps of the film "Seven Samurai" before I'd reccommend it to an anime buff.
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| "Nelly B Reviews "The Hakkenden"" | 2005-05-28 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1MB6CDJO2R6LE |
Imprimis, I would like to say to all of those who, in previous reviews, trashed The Hakkenden for its "bad animation" and "lack of action": You are missing the point.
The Hakkenden is nothing short of a masterpiece. It is neither the animation nor the action that make a great anime, it is the story; and The Hakkenden is certainly not lacking in that department. Besides, the animation isn't that bad at all; and neither is the action to storyline ratio. (Although, I admit, I would have loved to have seen Aboshi fight a little more than he did, but that's just because he is such a badass)
If you enjoy tales of redemption, filled to the brim with involving characters, supernatural intrigue, bloodthirsty demons, and samurai action, then The Hakenden is the series for you.
It is clear that those who scoffed at the series due to the fact that the animation wasn't top notch, and that people weren't being chopped apart by bloodsoaked katanas every five seconds, lack the level of maturity and openmindedness that a tale such as this one demands of its viewers. |
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| "Incredible!" | 2003-12-29 |
| - Reviewed By lotus_scrum |
I find most of the above reviews utterly ridiculous! The animation isn't that good? the episodes aren't that well put toegether??? whaaaaaat??? This series is based upon Japanese folklore with buddhist/shinto hints...Now the animation here is SUPERB! it changes many times in look and color for a reason! I find it AMAZING! it is a true piece of art! The story and animation are truly a one of a kind find!
Now the story has been told many times before .In the eighties one incarnation was the Amazing film "The Legend of the Eight Samurai" starring Sonny Chiba which is a good kung fu saga...but I prefer this new re telling! This story is full of gore and guts and ultra violence, so be warned due to this content. If you know a bit about shinto beliefs or Japanese folklore etc then you might have a better understanding of the story here, if not then open your mind and try to watch it thinking only what the director gives you. It seems weird to Western audiences at times because Japanese culture is a "culture shock"... The animation is amazing, true art....if you are a fan of samurai stories or Japanese Anime with a good story give this a shot! |
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 "Ethical dilema of strangling animators...." | 2002-10-11 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3S7MGUCPXQEJU |
| I was given this as a gift from a friend of mine for a birthday. First off I want to say that the idea behind this series is awesome! Its rare you find a good Fuedal Era Japan series but this definatly ranks up there with the best. I will get to the point quickly tho: why the 3 star review? Well like I said, the STORY is great but the animation is sorely lacking. Everything else about it (except maybe some of the english voice overs) are great, but for about 2/3 of the series you just want to walk away from the bad animation. Some people say that only the parts where they switched animators is where it falls apart, but I disagree. If you watch even the first episode you catch little nuances that are very very annoying. I am going to cut this short but be advised, I STRONGLY recomend a rental (if you can) before you buy this. Or better yet, get a friend to buy it and watch it that way ;) |
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| "Not verry well put together" | 2002-09-01 |
| - Reviewed By danhartley3 |
| When I watched the first disc I thought this was a really good series, but once I went on to the next disc I was outraged. The next disc starts out with what looks like a 1rst graders attempt at animation, I think the next episode had bad animation too. But after that it seemed like they went back to the original animators, I was a little mad but I figured the worst was over now. Well a couple episodes later the 1rst graders where back in the animation studio. Changing animators like this is the worst thing you can do, I could see if the animation started out horrible and they upgraded it but why make it worse. On top of all that the story was another one of those stupid make no sense Akira, Ghost in the Shell types. The ending was horrible, the only reason I give it 3 stars is some of the episodes where actually really good. I will bash any anime I dont like, I dont care if everyone else thinks its great or not. |
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