Goth-Cool or Dullard Ghoul(s)?

Though 'Requiem from the Darkness' sounds gothic-cool, it's actually not so much a translation as a re-naming from the original Japanese title: 'Kosetsu Hyaku Monogatari' which translates as 'One Hundred Ghost Stories' - a much clearer indication of what to expect from the series.

The narrative centers around the son of some wealthy merchants (Momosuke) who decides to leave the family business and write a book featuring 'one hundred ghost stories'. He then sets out on walkabout in an effort to experience and record these tales.



However, it's not long until he (coincidentally) falls in with a strange group who call themselves the 'Ongyou' who seem dedicated to eradicating wrong-doing from the Japanese countryside. This spooky trio comprises Mataichi, a spooky monk; Nagamimi, a master of disguise who appears in several forms, and Ogin, an Amazonian beauty who provides occasional titillation by appearing in various states of undress from time to time.



It's unclear exactly who the trio are, or what there purpose might be though they seem to adopt the young Momosuke without question - and then lead him towards one spooky story after another.

Whilst there is occasional humour, this is no Scooby-Do. You'll see occasional bloody violence, rendering this unsuitable for the young (such as an infant having his brains pulverized), and it's a little difficult to know who the show would have been intended for.



The animation itself is highly stylized and, were it not for the fact that it is occasionally so non-animated as to be a virtual slide-show, you might call it imaginative. There are some scenes which are positively bizarre, using a blend of psychedelic backgrounds to create nightmarish other-worlds. However, it's clear that budget will have been driving some of the decisions here and the reduction of animation to so few moving parts began to annoy me. Stuff like Captain Pugwash is OK for the under five's but very few adults will marvel at the animation here.

For those who like their anime to have some moral fibre, it could be argued that 'Requiem' does try to deliver at least one lesson per episode. After all, many of the stories it tells are ancient folk-lore.



Unlike much anime, it is possible to view the series as independent self-contained episodes with little linking the tales other than the central characters. However, whilst I have no objection to a show becoming somewhat formulaic (you could level that at some of my favourite anime), 'Requiem' becomes repetitive and is a case of increasingly diminishing returns.

PICTURE QUALITY
This aired in Japan in 2003, five years ago and was made in 4:3 which is what you get here. Despite most of the worlds 16:9 TV's originating in Japan they have remained curiously slow to adapt to the revised format.

This is a strange animation in the sense that it really feels 'comped' - almost like the 3D effect you get looking through an old Viewmaster set.

The transfer is first-class with little or no digitizing and with very solid blacks. However, the primitive nature of the animation may not be to everyone's tastes and though I'm no animation purist (well, you couldn't be where Japanese anime is concerned) this just crossed a boundary for me where too many shots remained too still for too long for me.



AUDIO
A very acceptable stereo mix. I watched (as I tend to do unless the dubs bad) the US English and it worked just fine.



CONCLUSION
On paper, 'Requiem for the Darkness' looks like a very attractive proposition. It's fairly cool looking anime (when you see the stills) with a slightly gothic look and an enticing promise of palatable horror and dark adventure. Too bad that, in the main, it's as dull as dishwater.

Many of the 'hundred ghost stories' are based on traditional Japanese myths and it's the shoe-horning of these tales into its 25 minute format that causes most of the show's problems. Despite the continuity of characters between episodes, there is precious little time to build up the tension of the story - and as a consequence they tend to feel rushed, slightly confusing, or both.

Add to that the highly stylized, yet barely moving animation and the results generally fell way short of the promise for me. With such a glut of top-notch anime out there, I'm afraid that I would recommend that you give 'Requiem' a wide-berth and opt for something better.