Devil May Cry: The Animated Series Part 1 Episodes 1-4

Dante is the offspring of a powerful Demon and a mortal human woman.  He’s a Demon Hunter, one of the most feared around.  There isnt a job this unstoppable bad ass cant handle…until he’s tasked with protecting a young heiress from Demons on the hunt for her inheritance.  A simple job is only getting bigger and more dangerous.  Thankfully Dante’s got the right tools for sending monsters back to Hell on a regular basis.

Devil May Cry’s Anime inspirations are pretty obvious unless you’re blind or oblivious.  From the razor sharp swordplay to the use of slow mo to the endless amounts of bullets and one liners, playing a DMC game is one of the best instances of playing your own Anime adventure.  So yeah, Devil May Cry is tailor made for the genre if you get the right creative team and studio to bring the unchained wild card action to life.  Sadly, while I know a lot of people have their gripes about the new Netflix series, this first shot at a Devil May Cry Anime feels less like its namesake and more like a diet version of the first run of Hellsing back in 2001.  It’s not off to a good start and here’s why.
 
For me, Devil May Cry can be best summed up by the intro of the first game: Trish arrives, stabs Dante and throws her bike at him.  Despite being impaled, Dante whips out Ebony and Ivory, says “Time to go to work boys,” and blows the bike up before standing up and digging his sword out of his chest.  While DMC Animated has promise in its own opener with Dante blasting Demons away in a basement bar, it never retains that same energy afterwards.  A lot of the first four episodes are slow burners and each result in a payoff that hardly feels worth sitting through.  It works for the aforementioned Hellsing because that first adaptation had better atmosphere and gothic charm to it.  I’m not expecting balls to the wall action all of the time…just most of it.  But even the downtime feels dull and one thing you should never feel when experiencing anything Devil May Cry is boring. 
 
Giving this project to Studio Madhouse is a solid movie.  I can never stop singing their praises for Ninja Scroll, which is pretty much Devil May Cry without the guns if you think about it.  Unfortunately, those bad ass powers aren’t seen in any frame of DMC Animated.  The art feels pretty subpar even for 2007’s standards.  It looks underwhelming and the only time it does look good are the single shots of finishing poses struck by Dante and Lady.  Ok so Madhouse knows how to draw them in promotional stances.  This show doesn’t look great so it should be little shock the action isnt any better.  But that’s even worse.  It feels like Madhouse is holding back on the violence and gore big time.  It’s there to be sure but there are many times when an action sequence gets started and then the show cuts away only to cut back and boom it’s all over.  And while there’s a reason (a stupid one albeit) for that in the first episode, it’s no excuse for every other episode to be lacking in the one thing we’re all here to see from Devil May Cry besides bad asses and babes with big guns and bigger swords.
 
Part of the reason why I feel DMC Animated is keeping the gloves on is Patty, the new character who may be the worst addition to the franchise imho.  This little complains and whines and complains some more, trying to inject a form of youthful exuberance (?) that DMC doesn’t need at all.  It boggles me why Dante’s letting her hang around his shop.  And that reason for the lack of true on screen carnage?  Yeah that’s cause Dante’s trying to shield Patty from it in Episode 1.  But the rest of the show so far has fallen suit with either lackluster action sequences or just cutting away from them and cutting back when the “fun” is all over.  I blame Patty for this bizarre shift away from DMC’s trademark stylish escapades and if the shows main arc is supposed to be centered on her, God help us all, especially Dante.
 
So is there anything good about these first four episodes?  Very little but it’s there.  Reuben Langdon reprises the role of Dante after taking over for the character in Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening (and has been playing him ever since).  It’s nice hearing him sound older and wiser compared to the younger, cockier version he initially played.  Dante’s still a smart ass but he’s got a lot more experience under his belt from Demon slaying to the facts of life.  This show has its many problems but he isnt one of them.  DMC Animated also features the first canonical (yes this show is canon set between DMC 1 & 2) of Dante’s two favorite leading ladies, Trish and Lady.  And while the banter between these three is as good as you’d expect, the actual first showdown between Trish and Lady suffers from the same lackluster action.  Plus if i’m honest, I’m not big on Trish’s voice.  Maybe I’m just used to the more seductive low tones of Wendee Lee from DMC5. 
 
Watching the Netflix DMC series is what’s prompted me to check out this original iteration of Devil May Cry’s first foray into Anime.  Buuuuut I’m not really liking what I’m seeing.  All of the energy Devil May Cry unleashes when played on a video game console is mostly absent in favor of attempts at creepy atmosphere, introspective discussions and unnecessary kid characters.  Even the presence of Dante (with his go to voice actor) and his fellow Demon Hunting Ladies aren’t enough to really make this a suggestable title four episodes in.  Well 8 more to go.  Let’s see if it can even claw its way into the rankings cause it is far from Smokin Sexy Style.  Devil May Cry: The Animated Series continues Next Monday right here at the Gundam Anime Corner.