In the beginning, there was Go Nagai, the evil genius behind such classics as Cutey Honey and Getter Robo. He was also responsible for Kekko Kamen, and about that we won't say any more.

Anyway, he created a TV show called Dororon Enma-kun, all the way back in 1973. It starred the nephew of Enma Daiou, the Japanese king of the dead. The nephew is also named Enma, and he was sent to Earth to find and capture escaped demons which were causing trouble here, assisted (apparently) by a human boy named Tsutomu.

The art was about what you'd expect from that era, and the girl with the blue hair is completely flat. They don't explicitly say so but I'd guess it was intended as a children's show.

Last winter it got remade. The new art is a lot better. And Yukiko is a lot cuter, not to mention seriously shapely.

Our first view of her in the OP, she's nude. And our first view of her in the show proper, she's also nude, taking a shower.

There's also a human involved, only this time it's a girl. When Enma first meets her, the first thing he does is look under her skirt.

"Oh! Humans really do wear panties! Yukiko doesn't, you know." At which point Yukiko beats the crap out of him. Harumi doesn't quite know what to make of this all.

And then we get an eyecatch:

This is a show with very broad comedy. There isn't anything subtle about it. In the second half of the first episode the group fights against a demon which is haunting the Youkai Grade School, that being where Harumi goes to school. The weapon it wields against Enma is... well... I'm a bit surprised it made it onto Japanese TV, especially considering what eventually happened to it. That's all I'll say. (Actually, I'll say one more thing: "No cape!")

There's a lot of wild energy here, and the voice talent is excellent. It really is an all-star cast. Enma's voice is better known to us all as the male voice of Ranma. Yukiko is Noto Mamiko, who has been in damned near everything. (She is Angol Mois in Keroro Gunsou, and Ana Coppola in Ichigo Mashimaro, just for starts.) The kappa is Koyasu, using a voice somewhat like that of Kururu, only even stranger. Harumi, meanwhile, is Kawasumi Ayako, voice of legend.

The animation is amazing, and it looks high budget.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste in General Anime at 05:47 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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