Soul Hunter, Vol. 2: All the Queen's Men (1999)
Review by Dindrane
Film:
DVD:

Original Story by Ryu Fujisaki
Directed by Junji Nishimura
Character Designs by Masashi Kojima
Music by Ryo Sakai
Japanese Voices by Ikihiro Hanawa, Yoichi Masukawa, Yumi Kakazu, Tamio Ohki, Kentaro Ito, and Akira Ishida
English Voices by Jim Canning, J. Shanon Weaver, Steve Fanagin, Craig Saper, Claire Hamilton, and Stephanie Swenson

Features:

• Clean closing
• Relationship tree with character descriptions
• Voice actor profiles
• Glossary of terms
• Translator's notes
• US trailer

Dindrane's Anime Warnings:

• Cute bat boys who throw lightning
• Bad hairdo jokes
• Bad supersized fries jokes
• Imperiled children
• Chemically-induced adultery
• Wicked rulers and twisted politics

Released by: ADV
Region: 1
Rating: 12+
Anamorphic: N/A; appears in its original 1.33:1 format.

My Advice: Get it if you love anime.

This second disc of Soul Hunter begins where the first one left off. Ki Shou is running for his life from the minions of Dakki, but his long-lost 100th son, Raishinshi, appears just in time. Raishinshi has been "training" at Kunlun, and his appearance has changed drastically. He now has Paopei (spirit weapons) of his own. Meanwhile, Bunchu, Kou Hiko, and Taikoubou variously attempt to put a stop to Dakki's plans as best they can, which now involve destroying the rightful heirs to the thrones. Taikoubou adds more fighters to his party...though they might wind up being more dangerous to him than Dakki's minions. And what will befall Empress Kyouhi and her sons?

The show is, as stated before, a strange but interesting combination of fantasy, comedy, war, history, and action, with even a touch of science-fiction when it comes to the Immortals and the Paopei, which as often as not look like cybernetic enhancements. The combination would be unwieldy in many shows, but here it works. Why not explain history's "magic" with advanced experimental science?

The characters are getting more fully-developed as we go along. Some of them, like Taikoubou and Raishinshi, are even quite likable in their own ways. It's a bit difficult to keep track of who's who at this point, but the relationship tree provided helps with this. Zhou is still as unlikable as ever, and Dakki, while always evil and manipulative, is actually showing her menace; her cute appearance belies her truly diabolical and truly malevolent spirit. Bunshu and Kou Hiko become more developed, and we get to see more of their powers and abilities.

The features list is packed as before. The relationship tree is back on this disc, along with more voice actor profiles, a glossary of terms, and more fascinating translator notes. The glossary of terms will come in very handy as you watch the show. The "problem" with these fine features is that only a few names are highlighted and developed on the tree for each volume. The tree is still there, but the text is a bit hard to read and follow if the names are highlighted. An interesting feature of the relationship tree is that each text entry is read by the corresponding voice actor. The voice actor profiles include a photo of each voice actor, their character's name, their birth-date, and a bit of background, such as hobbies, previous work, and their birth-place.

The audio and video quality of the disc is excellent. The colors are bright and beautiful, free from distortions or other problems. The translation is good as well, though be aware that the English voices skip any profanity, though the subtitles will include them. Luckily, profanity is hardly necessary for understanding, or even always for emphasis or emotion. The echo/computerized effect on Nataku's voice is wonderful, and one of the highlights of this disc is the introduction of Craig Saper as the English voice of Reishinshi.

Soul Hunter is much easier to enjoy if you don't worry that time seems to pass variously and suddenly. Characters who were babies in one episode are often young men in the next. The large cast of characters and multiple political alliances and groups can get confusing still, so if you are a viewer easily frustrated by such, you might want to pay careful attention to the notes before viewing. On the other hand, if you like the complexity of most war-tales, then you will appreciate how many balls these writers can keep in the air without ceasing to be entertaining.