Monday, October 3, 2016

Hellsing Part 1 Episodes 1-3


When things go bump in the night in London, they’re the ones you call.  They are the Hellsing Organization.  For centuries they’ve defended mankind from monsters of all forms and menace.  What’s their secret? Hellsing has a monster of their own in their employee.  His name is Alucard and he is the greatest Vampire in existence.  His power is as infinite as his penchant for blood and destruction.  And he’s just brought in some new blood to the fold.  How will Hellsing and Cop Turned Vampire Rookie Seras “Kitten” Victoria handle her first assignments hunting the undead?

As we head into the month of costumes and scares (aka Halloween) I figured id delve into some Anime horror for the season.  And the only one I really have at the ready is the original TV outing for Kouta Hirano’s bad ass fighting force against the undead.  Believe me, if I had all of the Hellsing Ultimate OVA, I would be watching it front to back.  And in a way, I wish I did have it all.  While the opening episodes of the TV series have some good components, they pale in comparison to the source material from which they come from.

Don’t get me wrong, the series is bloody and twisted when it wants to be.  There’s down and dirty sex and gushes of red rain at various intervals.  This isn’t an Anime for kids or the squeamish.  That isn’t to say it’s as gory as Berzerk or Black Lagoon.  Actually, this was well before Black Lagoon came along and tested how much blood you could get away with in an action Anime without it needing to be an OVA.  So my question is, why go for it at all if you cant bring out the full awesome potential of Hirano’s artwork, action and grizzly images?

Ok, I know im ragging right out of the gate and I apologize for that.  Like I said, the first three episodes do have plenty to love about them.  Most of that falls to four elements: Alucard, Integra, Anderson and the Soundtrack.  We’ll start with the last one to lead to the former.  With a rare mix of blues and jazz (not quite the stuff of Cowboy Bebop but enjoyable nonetheless) and bizzare mixes of spooky sound effects, this is definitely the sort of playlist Alucard would have on his Ipod while hunting Vampires.  The intro theme, “The World without Logos,” is easily one of the coolest Anime intros ever conceived.  It sums up our lead anti hero nicely.  With a red jacket, shades and hat and an attitude that exudes confidence, arrogance and even a hint of gentlemen like behavior, Alucard controls every moment he’s on screen and never lets you forget him.  He’ll mow down your lawn of Ghouls and go on walking like he was stopping for a drink from a Convenience Store.  Handing down his orders is the stunningly beautiful Integra Wingates Hellsing.  She’s so commanding she doesn’t have to say much to get anyone to follow her orders.  Even Alucard, who clearly doesn’t need to answer to anyone, bows to the one human he sees as an equal.  Ok, maybe make that two humans he sees as equals, though the second not in a good way.  With an awesome Irish accent (I PURIFY THIS HOUSE) and a crap ton of blades, Alexander Anderson is the fourth (?) coolest aspect of this show.  It’s a shame his fight with Alucard didn’t last long and he got kicked out pretty quickly by a ready for war Integra.  But I’m sure he’ll be back again, just hope we’re not kept waiting too long.

And yes, this show can feel quite scary sometimes.  While not quite the Manga’s caliber of intense, the use of red and black for background colors (and sometimes really just those colors alone) offer a sense of dread.  The second episode, featuring a Bonnie and Clyde couple on a killing spree, having sex after butchering a family and smearing the walls with bloody vandalism is pretty cringe worthy and truly messed up.  As I said above, this show isn’t balls to the wall horror imagery, but it’s not fully wearing kid gloves either.  Not to mention, whenever Alucard is around and talking, you can feel doom more than hope, it’s just the way he is.

So, the first three episodes were ok but can the rest of the series measure up?  More importantly, can I simply ignore Hellsing Ultimate and judge this series on it’s own merits?  Well with a decent cast (not the biggest fan of this Seras atm) and a winning soundtrack, I think Hellsing will be more than suited for review this Halloween.  Here’s hoping it just gets better from here on out.

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