And so here we are, the last in this marathon of Garo content review, We have seen a rather large spectrum during this series. From the highs of the original to the odd middles of Yami o Terasu mono. Our final segment returns us to the original era of Garo with a 6 episode mini series starring everyone's favorite secondary knight, Rei. And this couldn't have come at a better time considering Rei's lack of screen time in previous works, it was about time for the silver fanged knight for his time in the sun, or moon in this case."
Some time after the events Soukoku no Maryu. The Makai order has discovered that a horror has created a commune of horrors and humans living together in harmony. With the catch that once a month, one of the humans is sacrificed to create a dulce of blood to sate the horrors. To stop the sacrifices, the order sends Makai priest Cain and his trainee Yuna to slay the commune's leader Ring and free the humans that have fallen into this community...Oh and Rei is also their to because he discovered the plot while out patrolling one night. So he is here to help too.
Yeah that is not really me being funny. Despite being named here, Rei is primarily here as support. As far as any kind of character development goes he is not the main focus here. Instead it is focused on the makai priest trainee Yuna, who has the past with the main villain Ring and history. Also their Cain... he has an umbrella. Really both Rei and Cain's roles could've been filled by anyone in the past that is how little they matter here. Tsubasa could've been the knight here and the role would have changed so little. While Yuna does get the most of an arc, tell me if you haven't heard this one before. I'm a tough girl who lost family to the big bad and wish to be a makai knight but can't because I am a girl... Hey Rekka, and it is a shame because she does get to show off a lot in these 6 episodes that made me wish this ended with her getting an armor, but lore. If you are a fan of the character and her actor, then Toqger does give you more of the actress Riria.
Our hero Yuna, her lancer Rei and...umbrella Cain
Also watching this entire mini series gave me a ton of deja vu. I'll list off some plot points. A utopia society ruled by Horrors. A lost family member that turns out to be alive and being used by the villains. Music plays a role in the series. The people in the utopia act against the heroes. If your answer is that this is a lot like Yami o Terasu mono congratulation you have had the same revelation I did midway through.
Now it is not like it is one for one Yami, their are some differences that set the two works apart, its focus on a smaller society than the town gives us a better look at the utopia than at times that of vol city, and its villain does do well to differentiate himself from the wimpy snake that was Kaneshiro. Ring does set himself apart from previous horror antagonist by how he acts, wanting the best for both humans and horrors, it does raise the idea of horrors who want co-existance, he ends up still being a bad guy since you know, sacrificing people for utopia is not a good thing, but the idea's he brings to the table are what push him to be a good villain...in spite of the Garo final bosses must be Giant CGI Monstrosity.
Ringing some good bells, though it feels as if we are forgetting something
Yep, Giant CGI monstrosity, the status quo is still in tact
Of course one thing that Black blood has over Yami is the return of the suits in non-CGI form, which makes the more intensive and dramatic fights aging better than Yami's CGI extravaganza, this also really gave me more appreciation to the physical suits and what can be done and the improvements in camera quality does give the scenes more life.
But really character is the biggest issues, there is a lot that could have been done with Rei as the star, how he ticks what he is doing, we only get slight glimpses of that from his time in the bar and that can also extend to the humans living in Ring's utopia, humans joining a society where they have a chance of being eaten would be a concept worth exploring, but its your gallery of outcasts, people on the run for crimes, its all interesting things but its in 6 episodes, it just doesn't do anything.
CONCLUSION
There is a part of me that wants to like this more just because Rei is that good a character. But their is no getting around it, Zero black blood is disappointing. While their are some good things that it does like Yuna and the concepts around Ring and his Utopia. Rei himself feels like he is secondary in his own miniseries, and much of the rest of the characters don't leave much of an impact. Not helping matters is the many elements ripped wholesale from Yami o terasu mono leaves the mini series as a retread of ideas. There is merit still in watching it (Again, Rei is still an amazing character.) But you will be left wanting more.
FINAL GRADE: D
Well that it for Garo for the moment, their are still more series on the horizon and to catch up on, but for now, back to other toku pastures, like kamen rider (I promise Super sentai will have more time in the sun soon.)
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