Review of Tokko: Volume 1

Introduction

Today anime in the West has a diversity that reflects the richness of the medium in its native Japan. Look hard enough and you can find an anime about practically anything. It wasn`t always thus, and with anime`s first invasion back in the early nineties, it seemed all about sex, violence and profanity. There were basically two genres, sci-fi and horror, and that meant either rampant tentacles or marauding mechanisms. If you could combine the two - robotic tentacles, then all the better. It was the bread and butter of many a teenaged boy, and fuel for a thousand scare stories published in the rags, a new wave of video-nasties. At the forefront of this 18 rated corruption of our nation`s youth, was Manga Entertainment with titles like Devilman, Wicked City, Ninja Scroll and of course Urotsukidoji: Legend Of The Overfiend.

Those days are long gone, and with Manga Entertainment releasing titles like Ghost In The Shell, Heat Guy J, Naruto, Millennium Actress and She, The Ultimate Weapon, their portfolio is diverse as any other in the anime industry. Then along comes their new release, Tokko, and it`s like being back in the grip of nostalgia. It`s a horror title, with just a hint of sex, lots of blood and guts, and plenty of needless profanity. Well, it`s almost nostalgic, as we have a very different BBFC these days. They only deigned to give it a 15 rating. No self respecting tabloid hack will be interested in that!

Five years ago, the Machida apartment complex was at the heart of a very strange occurrence. The ground opened up and spewed forth an evil that left most of the 400 or so residents dead. Two of the few survivors were brother and sister Ranmaru and Saya Shindo. Since that day, Ranmaru has been haunted by nightmares of the day their parents were murdered, which usually end up with him seeing a strange naked girl. He has vowed to do something about the deaths, and to that end has joined the same police force where his sister works in the traffic department. His ambitions are higher though, to be part of the Special Mobile Investigation Force from where he can pursue his quest. But the supernatural occurrences that lead to mass murder haven`t ceased, and there is a special secret unit called Tokko within the police tasked to fight the undead menace.

This first volume of three contains 5 episodes, repeated across two discs with Manga`s usual collection of soundtracks.

1. Dawn
Ranmaru is poised to graduate from the Academy to become part of the Special Mobile Investigation Force, that part of the police that investigates what the regular police are ill equipped for. But his dreams of mass murder are matched by a killing spree in the real world. Following earthquakes, deep holes open up in the city. This is the signal for brutal mass slayings where victims are literally torn apart. When Ranmaru finally faces what is responsible for the crime, he and his fellow officers are at a loss when it comes to dealing with it. Bullets don`t work and the creatures don`t seem to die. Then salvation comes from his dreams. The girl he has been dreaming about for the last five years shows up and defeats the menace.

2. Dream
The girl, Sakura is part of Tokko, an elite unit hidden within the police that are charged with dealing with the supernatural menace. To that end, they are armed with lethal swords, not ineffective guns. She tells him that they first met at the Machida apartments, and that all the survivors of that incident are specifically being hunted. To understand more about this, Ranmaru decides to pay a visit to the ruins of his former home, but they are still under guard.

3. Bond
Ranmaru notices an oddly shaped tattoo that has suddenly appeared on his arm. Saya sees it and forces him to see a doctor. After all an eligible bachelor doesn`t need a blemish to hold him back. What the doctors find alarms them, but they have no chance to discuss it with the siblings, as Ranmaru is off exploring a deserted wing of the hospital, where he runs into Sakura.

4. Omen
Saya sets her brother up on a blind date, but he`s unwilling of course. That`s until he finds out that his date will be Yukino Shiraishi, a forensics scientist. She works at the lab at which all the evidence of the supernatural slaughters is being hidden. Her father, the head of the lab is being remarkably cagey about his work, but Yukino`s own work into ancient texts yields some chilling and familiar imagery. Ranmaru learns that while guns are useless against the creatures, he doesn`t need a sword to defend himself.

5. Demon
After the previous night`s battle, Ranmaru is recuperating in hospital, but he finds that along with the strange tattoos darkening on his arms, he is developing rapid powers of healing. He wants to know what is going on, but Sakura keeps telling him not to get involved. The answers may lie in the crime lab, and when his Captain can`t get a search warrant, Ranmaru decides to pay Yukino and her father another visit.

Video

Tokko gets the usual standard transfer for an anime series. There are hints of the NTSC-PAL conversion, but the 1.78:1 anamorphic image is largely clear, sharp and colourful. It`s a little too colourful for my liking, as the profusion of bright and shiny scenes is often at odds with the dark demonic storyline. I also felt that the character designs were a little simplistic compared to the overall design of the animation, and they didn`t quite seem to fit in to the backgrounds. Still, as suits an action heavy anime, there are moments of dynamic animation when required.

Audio

Tokko gets two discs and the usual splurge of soundtracks from Manga. Disc 1 has DD 5.1 and DD 2.0 English and Japanese, while Disc 2 repeats the DD 2.0 English track, and adds DTS tracks in English and Japanese. Tokko makes atmospheric use of the surrounds, it has a thumping soundtrack, and there is good representation of the action, as well as subtler moments. There is a terrible layer change though, if that affects you. The English dub is a natural and free flowing one, although it does feel a little loose with the translation. This is a very American Tokyo. As my usual preference I went with the Japanese language track.

The problem is that we get dubtitles! That is subtitles that are identical to the English dub and not a near transliteration of the Japanese dialogue. It differs from title to title, but it all depends on how closely the English dub is translated from the Japanese. Tokko`s translation is not all that close. It gets the story across of course, but there is a greater emphasis on getting the dialogue to flow. There are plenty of American colloquialisms, and the dub has been laced with profanity to suit the subject matter. I noticed a couple of spelling mistakes as well. The irony is that in the US where Manga Entertainment also releases it, Tokko gets a translated subtitle track.

Features

There are the inevitable animated menus, and it`s nice to see a Play All option.

Disc 1 gets trailers for other Manga products.
Disc 2 gets a 1½-minute gallery slideshow.

Ah look, here`s room left over for a rant. Last year Manga Entertainment was the company that could do no wrong, with a schedule of outstanding and varied releases, without major hiccup or flaw. Well there was Heat Guy J, but that was sort of rectified.

This year it seems that Manga are falling back into old bad habits. In the US, Manga Entertainment released Tokko with a Spanish dub (which is why the episode credits have Spanish actors listed), as well as textless credit sequences, DVD-Rom content, and a featurette. We get none of that here.

Tokko joins Volume 4 of Otogi Zoshi in losing the extra features, while it also joins it, Noein and the recent release of Golgo 13 in bringing back the loathed dubtitles. The conspiracy theorist in me winds up wondering if we are being driven to import. Rant over.

Conclusion

Well, there`s a new genre to make note of, cops and zombies. Tokko on the face of it seems to be a return to the Manga Entertainment of old. It`s the sort of horror title that typified the company`s output once upon a time. There are plenty of blood and guts, some juicy profanity courtesy of the English dub, and some nice female eye candy to look at when the action slows down a little. However, Tokko doesn`t quite approach that Daily Mail zone of iniquity that typifies a good old anime video nasty. The violence just isn`t exploitative enough, although there are plenty of dismemberments to appreciate. I guess society has become somewhat inured to violent imagery of late. It doesn`t shatter any taboos, although Ranmaru`s relationship with his sister is always cause for some off colour jokes from his friends, and some awkward moments, mainly designed to show off Saya in her underwear. And the big BBFC no-no, that of mixing sex and violence remains off limits in this volume. That probably explains the fifteen rating.

It`s convenient then, as Tokko is typical teen fodder. It`s mix of horror, comedy, action and fan service really doesn`t mesh together that well, and the unevenness in tone can be a little off putting. The Tokyo police are given a supernatural mystery to solve, and find themselves in over their heads. Earthquakes unleash odd beasties that possess people to do their bidding. The resulting zombies can`t be killed by conventional weapons and are relentless in tearing their way through whoever stands in their path. Fortunately, there is a secret organisation within the police who can deal with them. Tokko wield cool blades, wear leather and shades and go all Matrix on the undead.

That`s your setup, but we also have a mystery to make things interesting. Police Sergeant Ranmaru Shindo has a history with the creatures, he and his sister were one of the few survivors of an early supernatural slaughter, and he vows to avenge his parents. That means using the resources of the police to investigate his past. Coincidentally Sakura, one of the members of Tokko also survived the same attack, so there is that added poignancy when they eventually meet again and it becomes apparent that their destinies will intertwine. As Ranmaru investigates, the layers of secrecy begin to lift, and we learn more of what is going on. The show is cleverly written in a way that makes you want to stick with it, to find out how the pieces fit together.

It`s early days yet, with just the first third of the series. We`re still getting to know the main characters, and Ranmaru is the typical hero with a past to reconcile. The friendships in the police are more like school friends, and their stereotypically foul-mouthed Captain Kunikida comes across more as a schoolmaster, setting latrine duty as a common punishment to unruly sergeants. Saya is intent on finding a suitable match for her brother, and keeps trying to set him up. It`s odd given the spooky menace, that the relationships here are played for laughs, with wisecracks at the ready, and jokiness the order of the day. It`s only the members of Tokko who have the serious outlook to match their wardrobe.

I quite enjoyed Tokko, it has a sort of X-Files vibe to the mystery that is appealing, but doesn`t take itself seriously. The light, bright, shiny colour palette doesn`t go with the darkness of the storyline though, despite the added comic value. It really is two shows in that respect, with the horror and action appearing carefully delineated from the comedy and relationship silliness, and that loose fit may not appeal to all. On the strength of these five episodes, Tokko is nothing special, but if you are in the mood for some old school Manga Entertainment fare, with a more sophisticated outlook, then Tokko is well worth a watch. Slapped wrists for the depressing dubtitles and for leaving the extras back in America.