Youma

The relationship between the main character and villain is what makes this anime good. Surprisingly, only one point of view is given, and the two main characters hardly ever interact. The protagonist displays emotion rarely, leaving the viewer free to imagine what he may be thinking. However, some subtle clues are given, and it seems as if he is asking the same questions as the audience. What makes a man evil? Is there still good left inside of him? Is there any hope for redemption?

Its almost inevitable that any piece that falls into the historical ninja action realm is going to be compared to that watermark film, Ninja Scroll. While the two do seem to have a lot in common at first, the pacing, mood, and delivery are quite different. Blood Reign happens to be four years older (1989) and lacks a lot of the flash and slick animation that its more famous peer has. Yet it maintains a healthy of dose of a ninja hero slicing and dicing minions of the dark, which is probably what you're looking for if you're looking at this.

Putting aside the opulence of ... hack 'n slash action, there is more to Blood Reign than just being Ninja Scroll's dress rehearsal. Its noticeably darker and moodier, as for the entire time the show is going its surrounded, almost smothered, by a sense of impending dread. The story being told isn't a particularly happy one, and those who end up befriending the main hero often meet with most unfortunate ends (particularly the end of the first episode, which is actually pretty clever on the show's part). The characterization (or lack thereof) does hold back some of the impact that this could have had, but you can only do so much with two forty-five minute episodes.

While visually not as impressive as Ninja Scroll (to keep harping on an obvious comparison), there is something about it that grabs the eye. While the character designs, animation, and production style are all notably dated, that might not be such a bad thing. The use of heavy shadows, dark hues (reds, blues, purples), and the simple yet effective backgrounds only help convey that eerie feeling that the show has in spades. The characters themselves aren't that memorable in terms of looks, but I will say the monsters are freaky even now. Especially those spiders. Yikes.

Finding an audience for Blood Reign might be a little difficult considering both its content and age, with one or the other likely to turn most away. Yet those who can admire the works of old will find a good deal to like here, as this is definitely not the second-rate Ninja Scroll rip-off its sometimes touted to be. In most respects its a different creature entirely, with enough crazy ninja action to sate those who seek it, but with a little something extra for those who can appreciate it. For those unaware, this OVA was also based on a short, mid-80s manga Kusunoki Kei, but as of this writing I have been unable to locate it.

This is one anime that SHOCKED me to death, made me feel like an scaredy cat and freaked me out back in 1999, 1:45 at night, but besides that it really shows the art of drawing and scaryness compared to todays anime in the same genre, THIS had an potential in further serie's /ova's i can only dream about!!!!@! The storyline really nicely mix in with the chara and at some parts when a bit bit of history( don't count the demons with it) have those untouched in-scene sketches,HANDDRAWN! can be grainy and mufly at time's but plz DON'T RE-MASTER, HD OR BLUERAY THIS ... STUFF!. the music is ofc welldone, that nostalgic '89 animemusic , wich i look to the older audience, main chara are no pussylike boys like much of today's anime to be clear, one with a very vigorous and demonic background. and i'm not even start about the women here. DON'T watch it at night, or with teenagers! unless u survived harsher anime

This is a fairly obscure anime which is a shame because it's quite good.

Story: The plot is a little confusing at times, with flashbacks and such but overall a good story about friendship and betrayal with some pretty strong emotional scenes. It also has some pretty great japanese folklore in there with ghosts, monsters and other very creepy stuff.

Art: It has some really lovely traditional animation and a style to the characters that I really like. The backgrounds are gorgeous and the action scenes are pretty great. I mean it has /ninjas/.

Sound: You should definitely watch this in japanese with the english subs. ... The english dubbing is not very good at all. Did I mention the haunting music? One song in particular, you will know it when you hear it. The rest of the tracks are okay but fairly typical 80s stuff.

Character: Characters motives are not always a hundred percent clear. For example, in some anime you have characters shouting out how they feel or what their plans are, or their thoughts and plans are revealed in a voice-overlay of their internal monologue. Blood Reign does not have this which I personally like because it allows for the audience to figure it out on their own. I can see how some people might not like this.

Enjoyment: This is a film that will leave an impression on you. There's sadness, great action scenes but also a few puzzling/weird/creepy moments that will leave you thinking.

Overall: If you like monsters, horror and/or ninjas I say check it out. If I had to compare it to anything else to give you a better sense of what
it's like I would say the mood is abit like Berserk and the plotting is similar to Ninja Scroll.

Blood Reign: Curse of the Youma is a good example of your archetypal late-80s OVA, complete with ultraviolence, passionately detailed art, and unapologetic, at times even corny, badassery. Beginning with the story, we are presented with a brief revenge tale, colored by the supernatural and undergirded by an unyielding perseverance in the face of great horrors. It's a fun, action-packed story, and justifies various high-octane fight scenes throughout. My only qualms are with its pacing and occasional inconsistency. Everything feels a tad rushed, and the big, dramatic scenes feel a little unearned at times as a result. Then, though this ... is a lesser issue, its internal lore and worldbuilding, while a very cool version of a gritty feudal Japan, seems to lose the thread at times, failing to explain how certain things work or how different plot points link together. Of course, I don't expect anything like a hard magic system from an OVA of this kind from this era, but internal consistency does go a long way and this anime could have used a little more grounding in that respect.

The art is this show's strongest aspect, lying out a dark fantasy bloodbath complete with gorgeous backgrounds, excruciatingly anatomical gore, and some genuinely impressive fight choreography. My favorite part has to be the design of the various Youma, which are uniquely otherworldly and creatively horrific.

The sound is good, meeting all standards of quality for the time, but some line deliveries and music choices make the whole production feel a little rough around the edges.

The characters are only about as good as they have to be to operate in this story, meaning that they aren't necessarily very deep. I'm not complaining here, as shallow characterization is what's standard for this particular type of anime, and doesn't really detract from the experience at all. My favorites here are Hikage and the second Aya, given that Hikage is the main badass that holds the whole show together, and Aya's interactions with Hikage highlight her more believable emotionality and even help to humanize Hikage a little bit. Overall, Blood Reign: Curse of the Youma is a fun romp of an OVA that is archetypal of anime in the late 80s. Give it a shot, especially if you like the subgenre of old gorefest OVAs.