[US DVD] Night Head Genesis Vol. #5

[Chris Beveridge]

Review by Chris Beveridge

Mania Grade: B-
* Audio Rating: B
* Video Rating: B+
* Packaging Rating: B
* Menus Rating: B
* Extras Rating: N/A
* Age Rating: 13 and Up
* Region: 1 - North America
* Released By: Media Blasters
* MSRP: 21.9
* Running time: 100
* Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
* Disc Resolution: 480i/p
* Disc Encoding: MPEG-2
* Series: Night Head Genesis

In Summary:
This is such a strange series in some ways as it really doesn’t utilize its potential but does offer some intriguing moments. The series opened poorly for me but got me more interested with the second volume. It was a rollercoaster ride after that though with what it wanted to do. Some segments were really interesting while others seemed to shuffle off characters never to be seen again when they still offered so much potential. Or were simply wasted overall. In the end, I think Night Head Genesis thought too much of itself and the kind of subject matter it wanted to tackle that it forgot how to execute a story well and tell something in an engaging way. It has a lot of good moments, but they don’t make a good whole. It’s almost an interesting experiment that fails at numerous points but should provide good ideas for how to do it right in the future. This is a series that may play out better in a collection simply because of the laid back pacing, but I wonder if the repetitive themes will hurt it even more in that format than it did in this one.

[sir_integra]

I found this series pretty tough going until somewhere in volume 2, also. Then it does get easier to watch, largely because the introductions to characters and powers are over. I'm currently watching disk #4, and while this series isn't all that great, there is something about it that really makes one want to watch. I look forward to #5.

I do wonder why this was chosen for an anime adaptation. The origin of the story was from a TV series circa 1992, not manga, and that may be part of the problem. There is a manga (by You Higuri who did the anime character designs) to be released in English by Del Rey and I'm pretty sure that followed the anime release and not the other way around. Love to see the live action series.

I didn't see much mention of the soundtrack music. There are some beautiful piano solos throughout this series. Reminded me of some of the music from Yami no Matsuei.

[LordGeo]

I haven't watched what I have yet, but I really need to get the last 3 DVDs... Too bad my local Best Buy doesn't get the rest of the DVDs anymore.

Anyway, from what I hear it does seem more like the original content might be part of the problem, since the original live-action show aired 17 years ago. Also, live-action material just might not always make the best anime adaptation. I personally can't see Night Head Genesis being as freaky and weird as Sci-Fi HARRY, though, which is a spin-off anime series that takes place in America and is probably best described as a horror/psychological-thriller mix with probably the freakiest character design style I've ever seen.

Still, nice to see that NHG got a pretty good overall score. I am looking forward to watching this show more now.