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Hakkenden, The: Legend of the Dog Warriors
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Animation - 7.3 |
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Sound - 8.0 |
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Story - 8.4 |
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Character - 8.1 |
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Value - 7.7 |
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Enjoyment - 8.1 |
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Average - 7.9 |
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Yakikorosu |
(2004-07-17 04:33:32) 2004-07-04 00:36:52 |
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| Average |
7.3 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| A pretty straightforward samurai-era action show with an interesting story and some REALLY good animation.
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| Average |
9.8 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Very good, well worth seeking this out.
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| Average |
8.8 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Condensing an 180 chapter story that took 28 years to write into a 13 episode anime is quite a feat in itself. but to makle the story work and characters true to the orginal is purely amazing. the fight scenes are brilalint and the mystery and japanese folk law elements are briallint as well, the story is truly a master piece ! although during one episode the animation is truly awful and i couldnt tell which character was who, this doesnt take anythign away form an amazing anime.
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beast |
(2004-03-15 17:45:28) 2004-03-09 17:16:41 |
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| Average |
8.7 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Basically an anime version of the epitome of japanese classic samuai novels, namely "Nansou Satomi Hakkenden".
The saga was written by Kyokutei Bakin (1767-1848) and took 28 years to write, resulting in 106 wooden volumes.
SEE BELOW for more information on it.
106 volumes.
13 episodes, 25 minutes each?
Taken that into consideration, the creators of the anime did not only an acceptable, but a good job in trying to get the young and modern generation into an old epic saga.
If you ask me*, Hakkenden is simply one of the most amazing anime out there if you can overlook its animation and, at times, the lack of coherence.
* If you haven't noticed by now, ya, this review is biased for only a few will enjoy this anime as much as I did.
Those who love the epic nature of chinese sagas such as
-Journey to the west aka Si You Ji (chin.) aka Saiyuki (jap.)
-Outlaws of the marsh aka Shuihu Zhuan (chin.) aka Suikoden (jap.)
-Romance of the three kingdoms aka San Guo Yan Yi (chin.) aka San Goku Shi (jap.)
are most likely to enjoy this story as well. :-)
more information about this saga:
http://www.mars.dti.ne.jp/~opaku/
The Story of Hakkenden (Nanso Satomi Hakkenden)
It took Bakin Takizawa (Kyokutei) (1767-1848) almost thirty years (1814-41) to finish his Satomi Hakkenden, one of the longest novels ever written in the history of Japanese literature. He wanted to create a Japanese version of the Chinese Chung I Shui Hu Ch'uan (Riverside Traditions of Loyalists), but he reduced the one hundred eight heroes of the Chinese novel to eight, hence the title "The Eight Retainers of the Satomi Family". The unusual length of the novel is not the only reason why it took him so long to finish it; Bakin had gradually lost his eyesight in the process and, totally blind in the end, he had to dictate the final portions to his daughter-in-law.
The story is an extraordinary one with fantastic, supernatural heroes and one searches in vain for historical truth and accuracy. The only note of reality one may find in the book is a description of the conditions in fifteenth century Japan when, because of the shoguns of the Ashikaga family and lost power, the feudal lords (daimyo) fought among themselves until 1567, when a powerful enough lord was able to pacify and reunite the nation. Some accurate historical background may also be discovered in the history of the Yuki family
whose 1332 uprising after emperor Godaigo (1288-1339) was banished to the island of Oki (Taihei Ki) was the first revolt against the Kamakura regime. Often called gekokujo - vassals rebelling against their lords - this was a treacherous time when the Confucian morality emphasizing such virtues as loyalty, filial piety, and altruism had ceased to be a universally accepted guideline of warrior behavior. Bakin placed his heroes into such disruptive and unreliable times not only to demonstrate that heaven helps the righteous ones, but that good in the end always prevails over evil. These were times when warriors could prevail only on the basis of extraordinary self-effacing resolve and supernatural assistance. Supernatural forces therefore seem to pull the strings to force its heroes to plant the seeds of righteousness in a corrupt and disorderly state. Death was of little concern for these heroes who set out to make the world a better place. Bakin meant this novel to be an edifying one, teaching people the virtues of good and the doom of evil, selfish action.
We have to understand that the plot is the product not only of a very imaginative author, but also of a time when heroes were believed to possess supernatural powers, and the complicated web of human relations which entangled them was a common device to entertain the Japanese. The energetic merchants or townspeople during the period of semi-seclusion (1639-1854) were especially fascinated with these tales. We can observe such complicated and fantastic plots in contemporary theater and in most other works of literature. In these dramas, a hero is only a hero when he or she self-effacingly follows heaven's will. Thus all seems to be preordained by heaven which interferes here and there in the plot to disentangle the heroes from impossible situations and the curses of evil devils and witches.
The story begins in the Kanto (the area around present-day Tokyo and adjacent prefectures), the old heartland of the warrior class. Ujitomo Yuki, lord of Shimosa province, rises in arms against the shogun but is defeated. One of Yuki's retainers, Suemoto Satomi dies in the battle but not before he helped his son Yoshizane and two of his retainers to escape. Yoshizane left for Awa province where he joined a righteous army sent against the treacherous Sadakane. Yoshizane settled in Awa, married and had a daughter called Fuse. The girl used to cry all night long and, when her father went to pray for his daughter, he was given a rosary with eight beads, one of the eight Confucian virtues being written on each of them. A war broke out between the Satomi and Anzai families. Desperate for victory, Yoshizane pledged that he would give his daughter in marriage to anyone who would bring his enemy's head. His dog disappears and after a while brings the severed head Yoshizane had demanded. Because her father was reluctant to marry his daughter to a dog, Princess Fuse took it onto herself to fulfill her father's pledge and went to live with her dog in a cave. When she became pregnant she killed herself to save her father from embarrassment. Out of her wound eight beads emerge foretelling the appearance of eight heroes each incorporating a Confucian virtue.
Thus, after each fantastic and coincidental encounter and adventure - ambushes, kidnapping, narrow escapes, etc. - the eight heroes get together. United in the end, they set out to defeat the Satomi enemy Sadamasa Ogigayatsu and restore the family as one of the most powerful families of the Kanto. Each of the eight heroes is given a castle in recognition of their selfless actions.
Herbert Plutschow, Ph.D.
Professor UCLA, Department of East Asian Languages & Culture
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| Average |
8.2 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I enjoyed this anime a lot, mostly because of the engaging plot-line that dragged me along into a dazzling tale of eight very different characters who are destined to face down a quite evil and powerful opponent. The mood and atmosphere created is great, depressive most of the time, yet highly enjoyable in my humble opinion. :)
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De Baer |
(2005-02-02 14:04:46) 2003-09-20 13:28:16 |
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| Average |
4.3 |
| Animation |
3 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
5 |
| Character |
5 |
| Value |
1 |
| Enjoyment |
3 |
| Ein Anime mit einer sehr undruchsichtigen Story und Charakteren. Ich konnte mir nicht helfen aber mir schien das hier viel Potenzial in den Sand gesetzt wurde. Die Geschichte klingt interessant, versagt aber in der Ausführung. Um alles richtig zu verstehen müsste man sich diese Serie mehrmals anschauen doch ich muss ganz klar sagen das ich nicht die geringste Lust dazu hatte nachdem ich mich die ganze Serie über so gut wie nur gelangweilt habe. Hervorzuheben ist nur die gelungen musikalische Untermalung dieses Animes, schöne altklassische Japanomusik ertönt die besser kaum passen könnte. Animationstechnisch ist Hakkenden teilweise sehr arm und grottenhässlich. Mich würde mal interessieren wieviele Personen an diesem OVA bei den Animationen und Zeichnungen mitgewirkt haben. Die Charaktere zum Beispiel haben vom einen auf den anderen Moment auf einmal ein völlig anderes Design und die Animationen werden teils so billig das man gar nicht mehr hinschauen mag. Wie auch immer, dieser Anime ist arm und ich kann jedem nur empfehlen keine Zeit mit diesem Machwerk zu vergeuden!
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| Average |
8.3 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| This anime may be confusing if you have not read the book 'nanso satomi hakkenden' for which it was based. Regardless i never read the book, and was able to follow the story somewhat, the animation quality is good except for 1 episode that is done in another style of art on purpose. The music is exceptional with traditional japanese flutes and other traditional instruments. All 13 episodes for 40-50$ is a great value, i hope you enjoy!
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| Average |
7.0 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| The breakdown:
This is probably one of the first Anime's i have seen. It is definately confusing, unless you know Japanese literature or history. Well, you will have to watch it maybe twice to understand it. It has action, drama, mystery, etc...well i don't want to be a spoiler for some. So just watch it...it may not be worth your time
Dislikes:
The story is difficult to follow since i don't know much about Jap literature or history i guess.
They lost me a few times (i got bored in some episodes)
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Omega |
2002-12-06 05:45:36 |
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| Average |
7.5 |
| Animation |
6 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| This anime is hard to review, because to fully understand and appreciate it you need to know Japan's history and their folk tales. If you don't know then you'll most likely be confused, or(like what I did) watch it a second time to understand it better. The animation was actually good for something mad back in the early 90's, except one episode everyone look odd and badly drawn. I think their's a reason why it was made like that or maybe they wanted to save some money? I don't know, but either way this is a good anime to know some of Japan's mythology and history.
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| Average |
9.2 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| I had been wanting to watch this series for a long time now, and I was not disappointed.
Taken from a Meiji Era novel and rich with Japanese mythology, the Hakkenden did not really disappoint me. It is a historical anime for the most part and that might turn some people off immediately. But the mythology and mysticism was really expected from a story centuries old.
I am sure that 13 episodes was barely enough to go into great detail about the original story, but all the same it was a must see for anyone who enjoys historical anime with a good bit of action.
I loved the animation and the traditional music in particular, but my only complaint is that some of the characters should have been developed a little more. Some characters only merited an episode in their honor....
oh well. Not for children and not for the weak of mind...^_^
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| Average |
8.0 |
| Animation |
5 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| this anime is not for kiddies...so if you like the fun fun light hearted shows i wouldnt recommend this...the hakkenden is an older anime taken from japanese folklore...the shining point of this anime is its intense, almost convoluted story telling which drives the animation, characters and pretty much everything else...
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