Friday, March 27, 2009

D. Grey-Man Episode 01

What you have all been waiting for! Finally I get on D. Grey-Man. This has taken me forever to write and I'm sorry to make everyone wait.

Recap:

Now we find out that exorcists are the ones watched over by god to bury the evil ominous things in our world. This anime takes place in the 19th century, and we start off with the arrival of a boy to a riverside town with his flying, gold ball of a companion Timcanpy. In this town a female police officer named Moore is checking out an old abandoned church which is rumored to be cursed. If only she knew the half of it. Another officer enters the church with Moore, and at first they only find a ruins. At first it seems as if the officers had disturbed a colony of bats, which sweeps Moore away, however she sees that there is actually another person holding her arm. The white haired boy who grabs Moore expresses his shock and surprise at seeing another human and claims that a cat ate something that was very important to him. Soon after the two hear a scream coming from the main room and Moore rushes back to find the other office backed up against a wall with a black pentacle pattern that gradually engulfs his body. After his body is totally consumed by the black marks he explodes into smoke. Moore chokes on the smoke until the white haired boy covers her mouth and explains that her companion was killed by and Akuma (devil in Japanese), but we will learn about these a little later.

Moore passes out due to the poisonous smoke and wakes up in the police station some time later. She finds one of the detectives is interrogating the boy who brought her back to the station. We find that this boy's name is Allen Walker, and he has a green cross embedded into his disfigured left hand. Allen reveals that the crime had been committed by an Akuma and the cross in his hand is actually an anti-akuma weapon. Allen also explains that he is an Exorcist, but the detective isn't sure about this so he puts Allen in Moore's care. While this is going on at the station a large person with an umbrella shows up in Moore's home and he refers to Moore's brother as an Akuma. This person disappears before Moore comes into the room to check on her brother Mark, and Mark seems normal to her. Later in the night Moore wonders if the crime was actually committed by an Akuma. She does not believe in such things for she takes Akuma as it's literal meaning of Devil, and she thinks that they are only a fantasy created by the human mind out of fear. Moore who doesn't believe in Akuma hates and curses them. Allen corrects her however, because the Akuma he knows isn't what she is referring to. While she refers to the devil of hell, he refers to weapons that take a human form. It is at this point where things get interesting. Mark comes into the room and Allen realizes that he is an akuma. Mark then transforms into a large, floating, egg-like creature. The creature shoots it's guns at Moore, but fortunately Allen saves her and they get pushed into the church next door. Allen actually catches one of the Akuma's bullets but warns Moore not to touch it for it carries the Akuma's blood virus. The effects of this virus can be seen in the cat which Allen fails to save. The poor feline's body is slowly engulfed in black pentacles before it shatters into itty bitty pieces. Allen explains to the tired police officer that the person they saw was not her brother Mark, but the thing that killed him and took him over. The Akuma interrupts their conversation by bursting through the wall. The detective we saw earlier and some officers try to confront the Akuma however it slaughters them quite quickly.

Allen explains how the Akuma are weapons programmed to kill and evolve and that they are living and hold a soul. The frustration of the soul that is locked inside is what creates the power for the Akuma. Allen can see that the soul of the Akuma is a woman's soul and he suspects that it was someone who was close to Mark. It seems that the ingredients for the akuma include soul, machine, and tragedy. Moore remembers that on the wedding day of Mark and her sister Crea, Crea had been worried about her joining the police force. Mark on the other hand encouraged it because he felt that Moore was not out for revenge for their parents, but for the protection of others. Still, even with Mark's belief in god, since he was a pastor, a chandelier of a cross fell and killed Crea, sending Mark into a deep sense of despair. This was the tragedy the Millennium Earl needed to create his Akuma. Now there is a whole scene where the Millennium Earl, a round creature in a top hat, with a talking umbrella, asks Mark if he wants Crea back and of course Mark agrees. This is when the Akuma is created.

It is Crea who took over Mark's body and is the Akuma in front of Allen and Moore. With his arm and cross glowing, Allen powers up to destroy the darkness. He uses his enlarged arm to rip through the Akuma's hard skin and rips away the chains that hold down the soul. After the battle is finished Allen tells Moore about the creator of the Akuma, the Millennium Earl. The Earl is trying to create a scenario with the demise of mankind and bringing that plan to an end is the job of exorcists. With his job done, Allen leaves town with Timcanpy in search of the Black Order's headquarters.

Reactions:

I love this Anime with all my heart. There is plenty of action and the animation really shows off each battle scene. This first episode was definitely a hook into the rest of the series. The whole plot is confusing at first but after around 6 episodes you start to understand the whole fight between the exorcists and the Earl and the whole role of Innocence. Also there is a whole host of crazy and outrageous characters that capture your heart and sometimes can annoy you to death. There is surely a little bit of some thing from everyone. Whether you enjoy action, or romance, or just plain insanity D. Grey-Man has something to appeal to you.

In this first episode it really opened my eyes to their world. You really realize how much trouble and suffering is within the life of an exorcist. I also found the whole premise of having the Innocence trapped within a body. Allen I found a little weak and naive for the world that he is now in. His attitude towards saving Akuma and that eye of his can either be seen as a curse or a blessing. I also liked that Allen can see the souls of Akuma but I just have to wonder if it will make him overpowered in the future.

The first starting is Innocent Sorrow by Abingdon Boys School, and the lead singer is Takanori Nishikawa, also known as T.M. Revolution. This song was totally different from any of his songs as T.M. Rev and that really interested me. It fit really well with the beginning and the opening sequence was something I would totally endorse. Not only was the song amazing but it really showed off the large range of characters, their different abilities, and a few of their back stories, even though it mostly focused on Allen since he is the main character. I can't wait to see what this Anime will bring in the future.

3 comments:

SeedFreedom said...

Wow, very detailed cover. LOL. Have fun and good luck covering the series.

Alexander Mackenzie said...

I shall. This anime is awsome and I want to show everyone how good it actually is.

Dancer said...

I shall too....It's my favorite anime!