The Thrasher's Word
Karas
Format: OVA (2 movies of 80 minutes each)
Genre: Fantasy, Science fiction, Action, Epic, Thriller
Studio: Tatsunoko
Director: Keiichi Sato
“Karas” is mental. There. I can’t make that a great deal clearer, can I? A production made to commemorate Tatsunoko studio’s 40th anniversary, it’s a high-budget, high-production-value and pretty much high-everything visual extravaganza, a celebration of everything that makes anime the chosen form of popular culture of wide-eyed teenagers in both the east and the west. Granted, as a technicolour feast it has about as much of a knack for subtlety as Vin Diesel with several vials worth of amphetamine emptied into his bloodstream, but what “Karas” does – that is, deliver an action-packed sensory assault – it does very, very well. If you’re the sort of anime fan who demands their action of the highest octane of all, then rest easy, because you have come to well and truly the correct place.
In the review of “Witch Hunter Robin,” I mentioned that Japanese animation – by the token of it being both animated and Japanese – seems to have an inherent tendency to gravitate towards the more absurd and fantastical, but even by anime standards, the tale that unfolds in “Karas” lies at the more ludicrous end of the spectrum. Apparently, there are two planes of reality which lie world. At the crossroads of these two worlds, there is born an enigmatic force known as Yurine, which manifests itself as a young girl who, in turn, makes a pact with a human soul to become the guardian of the city they inhabit. This guardian is known as Karas. For centuries, the district of Shinjuku has been guarded by the Karas Eko, who has apparently gone a bit mental, turned rogue and is hatching a plan to wipe out the human population. To this end he recruits demons who (you’ll love this) he turns into vicious robots named Mikura with a taste for human blood. In response to this, Yurine forms a new pact with Otoha, a young member of the Yakuza in a coma, who she charges with taking Eko and the Mikura down. Throw into this explosive mix a rebellious Mikura named Nue and a pair of clueless detectives, and that’s just about all there is to it.
As crazy as it all sounds (and is), “Karas’” plot and characters are actually quite compelling, albeit in a kind of gaudy, grossly over-the-top fashion. The relatively little we get about Otoha’s back-story is interesting stuff, what with his search for redemption and his questioning his worth as a human as opposed to a Karas making for a surprisingly sympathetic if not overwhelmingly memorable protagonist. Nue, with his motorbike high-jinks and gold plated guns is cool in an obvious kind of way, and the eccentric detective Sakisaka makes for a nice little bit of sentimentality. Oh, and “Karas” scores high marks in my book for not making Yurine sound like she’s breathing helium, like small girls usually do in anime. The only real disappointment is Eko, whose motivation is thin at best. My main gripe with “Karas,” I suppose, is the obnoxious manner of the storytelling. The first movie, “The Prophecy” is so vague and obtuse in its relaying of the premise that it’s a chore to keep up with it. OK, it’s worked for other shows just fine. But then the first ten minutes of the second half, “The Revelation,” tells us everything we need to know is a chunk of straightforward exposition. I can’t help but wonder if anime filmmakers enjoy taunting their audience this way.
But let’s not let a petty little thing like storytelling distract us from why we’re really watching “Karas”; the action. The very first scene speaks for itself; the opening credits are spelled out from the sparks produced in a frantic duel between two Karas. Conducted in the upper atmosphere. On that evidence, there’s not really a lot else to be said. If “X: The Movie” taught me anything, it’s that an anime can be worth watching on the strength of stylised action alone. Well, “Karas” is basically “X” updated by ten years and several hundred thousand dollars, in that it too involves super powered guys ripping up the streets of Tokyo in the most beautiful manner possible. It’s worth noting too that it’s all quite visceral, particularly in the latter half when, in one scene, Otoha is impaled and loses what I’m almost certain is more blood than is contained in the human body. Put simply, if you have any love at all for action in anime, you owe it to yourself to see these movies’ fight scenes, on a big screen with the lights out and the volume up. At worst it’s awesome; at best it’s practically orgasmic.
And of course, I can’t not comment on the production values. “Karas” utilises the juxtaposition of 2D and 3D animation which has proven so popular in the last few years, and in terms of execution, it’s second only to “Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence.” The designs of the Karas and the Mikura are wonderfully detailed, and the cityscapes and particle effects are a joy to behold. If I have to fault it, I’d say I’m not too fond of the human character models. Note to animators: anime characters do not need such defined lips. I know it’s in the interest of realism, but they just end up looking like rodeo clowns. In terms of sound, “Karas” only really has one noteworthy track, but it’s a good ‘un: a big, glorious, soaring piece that wouldn’t sound out of place in a Batman film and compliments the fight scenes perfectly.
“Karas” is an anime that just about reviews itself. Obviously, it’s hardly a paragon of Shakespeare-worthy drama; what it is is a fantasy action epic on a scale like noting you’ve ever seen before. Style over substance? Sure, but if you don’t get caught up in style of this calibre then you may want to check for a pulse. It’s big, it’s mad, and it’s utterly joyous. Love it or hate it, in terms of what it does “Karas” is in a league of its own.
-Thrash Til’ Death
LAA Rating: ***
Rating System:
* - Horrible
*1/2 – Very Bad
** - Bad
**1/2 – Good
*** - Very Good
***1/2 – Excellent
**** - Masterpiece
