Soul Hunter, Vol. 4: Game of Kings (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
English Voices by Jim Canning, J. Shanon Weaver, Steve Fanagin, Craig Saper, Claire Hamilton

Features:

• Translator's notes
• Relationship tree
• Voice actor profiles
• Character descriptions
• Glossary of terms

Dindrane's Anime Warnings:

• Minor violence
• Self-referential awareness
• Political machinations

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

My Advice: Worth getting immediately.

The latest volume of Soul Hunter begins with the heroes in Taikoubou's merry band sniping a bit among themselves. Meanwhile, Lord Ki Shou feels forced into raising an army and attacking the forces of Dakki and the Yin Dynasty head-on, with the aim of becoming king himself, a burden the Lord would not have sought. Taikoubou has agreed to become Lord Ki Shou's war minister, and this alarms some of the powers in Heaven, while it pleases others. Taikoubou's mission to recapture evil demons seems to have fallen a bit by the wayside; is the spirit world playing a much bigger game than the mortals knew? In addition, Bunchu still believes that the Yin Dynasty can be redeemed; to this end, he sends four Shisei, with the powers of water, explosives, light, and earth, against Taikoubou and Ki Shou's allies.

The characters keep getting more and more interesting, Taikoubou included. His allies become deeper and rounder while even his enemies and new adversaries have personalities and interesting details. The each have their own new paopei, such as the Kongenju, the globe Keyuken uses to control all the oceans of the world.

The audio and video quality are both quite good again, as with the earlier discs in the series. This is one of the few titles where the English cast is not only as good as the Japanese actors, but perhaps even better. Every voice is geared to express something of the character's personality, from the enigmatic Shinkohyo to the stoic Nataku. Even the young, brash punk Raishinshi has a good voice actor, though my favorite is still the good-ol'-boy, Tenka. Luckily the show looks every bit as good as it sounds.

The full-motion menus on this disc (though this goes for all the previous discs as well) deserve a special mention; on this disc, they are presented as if Dakki were playing a video game. The look is very cool and attractive.

The extras include a case insert that has translations for the names of the various peopai in the episode, as well as new terms like "Shisei." There is also a group of new voice actor profiles and a new batch of character descriptions. These last will provide a bit of help to anyone who is still confused by who's who. The relationship tree gets another group of entries--a very impressive and useful feature that more anime titles should mimic. The tree's navigation is a bit awkward, but who would complain in the face of such good information? There is also a glossary of terms that should help viewers feel at home in this quasi-historical world. Finally, the excellent translator's notes will satisfy anyone interested in the words behind the show, especially those viewers who are sometimes suspicious of dubs, but shouldn't be with this title.

This has become more than a mere adventure story; the show also deals with such issues as the press of history upon individuals, the dangers of overthrowing a regime "for the sake of good," and trying to determine who to trust. The combination of fantasy and science fiction is also interesting; are the peopai magic or are they science? There's even a hint of self-referential and self-aware comedy. If you enjoy good adventure, fun characters, and a combination of history and legend, then you'll enjoy Soul Hunter. This is one title that has quickly become a "must-see."