Hellsing

Summary: >

For ages mankind has fought against dark beings. Those who are simply undead, and those who drink the blood of humans: Vampires. Most people think that these creatures of the night are merely legends or stories. The truth is that mankind is in a constant struggle to destroy these creatures and protect the people. In England that piece has been specifically maintained by the Hellsing organization; who's sole purpose is to eradicate vampires and their like. In a strange twist, the most powerful weapon in the Hellsing arsenal is in fact a vampire himself: Alucard.

The basis of the relationship between Integral Hellsing and Alucard is sort of sketchy, but it is obvious that Alucard is bound to her by some sort of contract. Which is good, because Alucard is probably one of the most powerful vampires that ever lived (if he were alive). But things are starting to stir in the world of the living. A sort of bio chip has been found to turn people into a sort of sudo-vampire. And as these sudo-vampires crop up more and more frequently, the hellsing organization is starting to have problems keeping up. Although to Alucard it's all a game as these sudo-vampires are nothing more than insects as far as he's concerned. But whoever is in the background is possibly just as powerful as he is, but if this monster also has a master - then who is behind it all?

Thoughts: >

Well lets see here. The character designs sort of interested me which is why I got into watching Hellsing. Initial impressions started with the animation - lower budget. Even with lack luster animation, an anime can salvage itself with good character designs, which it almost did - but not enough to draw your attention away from the fact that this is an action based anime that has a problem rendering the action. In any event, the story also sort of falls flat. I was very unimpressed with the first episode, but after that it looked like Victoria (who became a vampire in the first episode) would add the needed depth to the anime.

Unfortunately that didn't really pan out as expected either. In a nutshell this anime reads like an (American) comic. If you need an anime that inspires or intrigues you in its originality, then this probably isn't the show for you. All in all I would say this show is mildly interesting, but nothing more and nothing less. There are certainly worse titles you could see, but in the end the one thing that this anime did well is by not portraying Alucard as a good guy. He kills vampires, but you never make the mistake that he in any way has a soft spot or seeks redemption or any of that crap. Alucard just wants to kick ass, and lowly vampires hardly even offer him amusement. If you think THAT is the sort of anime you might be into, then this title still might be something you might try.

Screen Caps: >