Review of Basilisk: Vol 6

Introduction

It happens far too often for comfort in entertainment, the damp squib of an ending. Producers realise they have a hit property on their hands, and extend it beyond its natural lifetime, try to recreate that initial glow of success, all to find that the final hurdle isn`t a hurdle at all, it`s a shark, and they`re now inexplicably wearing a leather jacket. Of late, I`ve been watching the Life on Mars parody, Ashes to Ashes, and wondering just where they went wrong. It`s no less of a problem with anime, long running series enter interminable stretches of inferior filler material, fixed run series have to end before the manga that inspired them can supply the proper ending, and sometimes the creators just don`t seem to care. I`ve just been lamenting how Gonzo, after establishing a strong premise in the Black Cat series, have failed utterly to build on that. Another Gonzo series, Basilisk, is the rare example of the reverse. It`s a series that on initial acquaintance was ephemeral and unpromising, but in the last couple of volumes has really come into its own, finally delivering on the promises that it made, and has become utterly compelling. With this final volume, it has the chance to seal its status as a must-see anime, something that I would have considered impossible six volumes ago.

It`s 1614 and the reign of Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu is coming to an end. There are two possible heirs, but the court at Edo is split over which one. Rather than see the nation dissolve into bitter warfare once more, the Shogun decides that the successor will be decided by a proxy war. For decades the Iga and Kouga ninja families have had an uneasy external antiwar pact imposed upon them. But seeing the proficiency of the ninja on both sides, Ieyasu decides to lift the pact, and select ten ninja from each side to battle in the name of his would be successors. The last family standing will determine who will next rule Japan. This isn`t good news for Gennosuke Kouga and Oboro Iga, who have fallen in love, and whose impending wedding was expected to finally seal the peace between the two families. But there are those on either side who are all too keen to see the fighting resume and old scores settled.

Previously, as the adversaries neared Sunpu, attrition took its toll on both sides, with more ninja falling by the wayside. The closer that they got to the Shogun, the more that they began to question their motivation, and the truth behind the war. Worse, the Iga had picked up allies in the form of the Lady Ofuku and her retainers. If the Iga win, then it is her ward that will become Shogun, and she isn`t beyond tilting the odds.

Now as we approach the conclusion, lies and truth intermingle, and Tenzen`s dark past and underlying hatred is unveiled. Ill-fated lovers Gennosuke and Oboro will face their final reunion.

Video

The 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer for Basilisk is very impressive. I`m used to NTSC-PAL transfers of anime to look a little soft, and exhibit a degree of jerkiness in the pans. This is practically absent in Basilisk, as the image is sharp and clear, and the animation is fluid and smooth. There is a hint of noise around moments of fast motion, but you would have to pause the disc to really notice. It`s filled with imaginative character designs that take a leaf out of Ninja Scroll`s book, while the less outlandish characters have a beauty and elegance to their designs that is very appealing. The show has a muted look and reduced palette that play up a very gothic feel to the show, and as you would expect from Gonzo, the animation is superb, especially in the action sequences.

Audio

It`s a dual language title as is typical for an anime disc, with DD 5.1 English and DD 2.0 Japanese accompanied by translated English subtitles and signs. The theme tunes are the sort of soft rock that would suit a group heavy on leather and lace. My usual preference as always was the Japanese track; the dialogue is clear and the stereo does a good job of conveying the action. I sampled the English track, and as you would expect the surrounds are put to work with the action scenes, giving the whole affair an extra oomph. It`s one of those tracks however, where the sound effects are much more prominent and louder than the dialogue. The English dub is pretty good though.

Features

You get the usual jacket picture, animated menus, textless songs and trailers for Speedgrapher and Witchblade.

Once final time there is a Behind The Scenes featurette. This collects episodes 11&12 of the Basidisk extra from the Japanese first run DVDs. This time around voice actor Nana Mizuki (Oboro) joins Kousuke Toriumi (Gennosuke) and Risa Hayamizu (Kagero). The episodes total over an hour in length (the final episode is extended to forty minutes) and we get some insight into the characters, the VAs choose their favourite scenes from the episodes, answer fan mail, talk about certain aspects of Basilisk, and at the end there is a wake held for the Basilisk characters that kicked the bucket in the relevant episodes. There is also a set of ongoing interviews with the members of ONMYO-ZA, the j-pop band that recorded the anime`s theme song. It all finishes with a brief poetry reading (Don`t worry, it isn`t as dry as it seems).

Conclusion

Early on, Basilisk couldn`t end soon enough for me, yet these last few volumes have changed my perception of it, and I`ve actually been lamenting the end of another fine anime show. With these final four episodes, it gets the ending it deserves, keeping character and plot central, and delivering a denouement that, while it may not satisfy all, it certainly underlines and encapsulates the Basilisk experience.

It also finally, and wholeheartedly embraces that Romeo and Juliet tone that was used to sell the series, as the relationships and tragic loves take centre stage for the final episodes. For the surviving Kouga and Iga, the politics and machinations behind their conflict take a back seat to the more personal issues that divide and unite them. For some, feelings long held dormant can no longer be denied, and the added passions, lies and manipulation simply add to the heart-rending conclusion.

Of all the characters so far, the most irredeemable of them has been Tenzen of the Iga. Every action he has taken, every move he has made has been calculated, vindictive and hate fuelled. If there has been a villain to hate, it has been him, if there has been anyone deserving of a painful comeuppance, it has been him, and his actions in this volume go beyond the pale. I think this is the first time that I have ever found a torture sequence in anime to be harrowing, and he once again turns his lascivious attentions to Oboro. But then Basilisk turns it all upside down, and reveals Tenzen`s past. And it manages to invoke sympathy even for this demonic wretch. At the end, I was feeling sorry a man who had committed the worst of acts, because the circumstances of his childhood were the worst possible.

Basilisk is truly a tragedy in the classical sense of the word. All hopes are futile, all dreams are tainted, and all love is doomed. Yet it works by holding out that slender chance of happiness, it succeeds in the end by painting its characters with a very humanistic brush. They are flawed, they are prideful, and they have positive and negative qualities. They strive and they hope, and even if they are overwhelmed by the futility and inevitability of the story, that only serves to make their struggles all the more important. The ending of Basilisk is tragic, it`s inevitable and the taint of senselessness inundates completely. It`s everything a tragedy should be.

No one wins when all is said and done. Even the most reprehensible characters in truth, the ones who engineered the situation, none of them gets any sort of retribution, no matter how much they deserve it, and in the end, the sacrifices made in the name of Shogun are all pointless. Unless of course the whole point was to make Japan a safer place by ridding them all of troublesome and powerful ninja…

I do have a reservation about the ending though. It saves a redemptive note for the epilogue, and I`m not sure that was the best place for it. It`s like a lifebelt cast into the ocean long after the ship has sunk. I`m of two minds whether the show would have been better if it had been placed earlier in the narrative, or if had been left out altogether.

Basilisk gets a damned fine ending, one that certainly elevates the show beyond the league of simple action anime, but it isn`t quite enough to make the show the all-time classic that it could have been. Taken in its entirety, those first three volumes still feel like dead weight to the show. They certainly haven`t improved in retrospect. There is a little in the latter half of the show that adds import and emotional strength to the first few episodes, but it`s nowhere near enough. It still feels like something you have to sit through to get to the good stuff. But once that halfway point is reached, Basilisk comes into its own, delivering when it comes to strength of story and complexity of character. I won`t urge you to take out any urgent bank loans for the show, but if you are looking for something with heart, thought, and high production values in addition to kick ass ninja action, then Basilisk won`t disappoint, and may indeed turn out to be a pleasant surprise. I certainly found it to be so. And if the show isn`t enough for you, then the Kouga Ninja Scrolls that inspired the anime also inspired a live action film, Shinobi, which offers another take on the battle between Kouga and Iga, and is available in the UK on DVD.