Hell Girl Volume 2

LABEL: Revelation Films
RUNNING TIME: 125 mins approx.
RATING: 12
VIDEO FORMAT: 16:9 Anamorphic
AUDIO FORMAT: English 5.1, Japanese 2.0
SUBTITLES: English
DVD REGION: 2
AVAILABLE: 19th May 2008


Synopsis
Ai Enma, the Hell Girl, returns for five more tales of woe and vengeance. In this latest volume, a young mother is tormented by an adulteress desperate to keep her affair a secret; a child prodigy loses face when her adoptive mother chooses another actress to star in her play; a young woman seeks the truth behind the accident that put her best friend in a coma; two sisters are brought to ruin by a family friend; and the ignorance of childhood has sinister consequences when a lonely student craves revenge on the girl who rejected her. Threading through these stories is the investigation of a curious journalist with a desire to find the truth behind the Hell Correspondence website, and whose daughter has a mysterious connection to Ai herself...

Review
When I first clapped my eyes on HELL GIRL earlier this year, I found myself wondering whether – impressive though that first volume was – whether the series may be something of a one-trick pony. After five episodes sporting similar codas and, if we're honest, nigh-identical dialogue for Hell Girl herself, it's easy to believe that the show was doomed to repeat itself time after time. Perhaps if this were an American animated series it might have, but luckily for us – and the greater anime-buying public* -- Studio Deen know what they're doing.

With volume two, HELL GIRL begins to shake up the formula a little. All-but gone is the standard progression of “person is wronged, person contacts Hell Correspondence, person gets threaded doll, person pulls thread, vengeance is served”; instead, we are presented with scenarios involving two people calling the Hell Girl upon one another, a vengeance doll being stolen, someone changing their mind after a misunderstanding, and how these little bouts of supernatural revenge appear to person outside of the arrangement. This volume also marks the arrival of the series' first semi-regulars. Episode eight introduces gossip journalist Shibata Hajime, a man who has heard of the Hell Correspondence website and has become determined to expose the truth behind it. Taking the centre stage in some episodes and moving behind the scenes in others, Hajime becomes a single thread shining out of an ever-changing story, and his investigation promises to fill in some of the back story behind Ai and her three irrepressible cohorts.

This second quarter of 2008 promises to be a fantastic period for anime, with childhood classics like VOLTRON mingling with modern hits like DEATH NOTE and BLEACH. With all of this flash and bang on offer it would be easy to let something more low-key like HELL GIRL get lost in the shuffle, but don't let it drop off of your shopping list. With an intriguing cast of characters and a central premise that betters anything currently on offer from Hollywood horror, this series provides some of the most consuming, emotive drama that you'll ever see. Take a chance and you'll be rewarded.


*Yeah, the five of you know who you are...

Picture
It really takes a lot of effort to produce a bad picture for DVD anime these days, so it should come as no surprise that HELL GIRL acquits itself admirably. The dark colours translate fairly well, with the only artefacts visible on the absolute blacks.

Audio
The upmix from the original Japanese 2.0 track into English 5.1 is unnecessary but executed with skill, and welcome for it. The surround mix is not essential, however, making the choice between languages purely one of personal preference.

Special Features
Textless opening and closing, trailers and a Montage episode summarising the plots of the first ten episodes.




Matt Dillon


Hell Girl Volume 2: Puddle is available on May 19th from Amazon, Play.com and all good retailers.