“Do you know what it means to fall?”
Germany is under attack by the dead. In Blassreiter, corpses are returning to life and merging with machines, becoming horrific monsters that leave a wave of carnage in their path. The XAT (Xenogenesis Assault Team) is a special police force created to handle this outbreak of beings, dubbed Amalgams, or most frequently Demoniacs. Things began to become more intense as it becomes a plague; and even living people begin to become Demoniacs; machine like creatures that might even threaten the future of humanity itself… The series deals not only in high-octane fight sequences between stylishly rendered 3D creatures and humans, but their consequences on the people involved; the pain of suffering and hurting others, loss and the concept of justice in a cruel, possibly indifferent world are just some of the themes present in Blassreiter.
Highlights
The series begins by introducing you to Hermann, a member of the XAT and his friend Gerd Frentzen, a motorcyclist who was crippled during a Demoniac incident during one of his races. He is filled with despair over no longer being able to race, and even his former co-workers seem to dislike him; fired by his manager and lost, he is approached by a strange woman who offers him another possibility in the form of an experimental pill. However, it comes with many strange side effects. Chaos erupts as the Demoniac presence increases; especially in the form of “Blue” a Demoniac that may be hunting other Demoniacs. Not to mention that Gerd himself may be turning into one.. but what could be causing it, and what could be causing the spread of the infection in victims of Demoniac attacks? The series has many twists, turns and subplots, including that of Amanda, another XAT member’s younger brother who suffers from bullying at school. At times it’s hard to tell how it will all tie together, but the way the varying plot threads are weaved in and out is done with maturity and intelligence. The battles, including a few motorcycle races, are exciting and fast-paced. They often are between two leaping and diving Demoniacs and they’re all in 3D so at times the action feels like it’s flying at you. In the second part of the DVD set, the story shifts from individual problems and attacks to an even grander scope; it all seems to be part of some shadowy conspiracy involving a mysterious woman that drives these individual forces harder and harder until the set ends on a high, explosive note, revealing yet showcasing many future mysteries. Who or what is the Blassreiter? It’s somehow related to what the strange woman Dr. Grese refers to as “The evolution of humanity”.
Overall
The series mixes horror action (cyber zombies anyone?) with shadowy conspiracies, introspective character studies and some seriously intense soundtrack work. It’s a solid package all around and a smart anime often worthy of being called art; albeit frequently violent art. I don’t want to spoil the details, but the question of what makes a hero comes up: Is it just one who delivers punishment to the deserving, and in the end, who decides what is deserved? Joseph, or “Blue”, a man with a mysterious past is forced to ask these questions as he is hounded by the XAT, other Demoniacs and some other sinister force that may lurk in unexpected places.. Blassreiter is both an ensemble piece, featuring a number of lead characters, and a story of a solo “hero” trying to conquer his inner demons; it’s this merging of inner and outer demons that makes the series so compelling, if the action wasn’t enough. At times, a case could be made that the abundance of 3D animation can be distracting in the scenes where only a few objects are rendered that way, but usually it’s well worth the effort because the action comes alive in explosive, gory fashion. The sound quality is very high on the set, and some of the pieces, particularly the ending theme are especially haunting. Its quiet, peaceful sound actually evokes a sad, inevitable tragedy. One battle near the end of the series has really cool music; it almost sounds like a chanting choir. One fight is interposed with snippets of a actual church choir singing, and another is filled with eerily peaceful music. This artful use of music enhances the mood enormously throughout the anime. The dub voice acting, while at first seeming rather average (the two ambulance drivers at the start are quite possibly the worst voice actors I have ever heard) improves through the set as a number of characters find their place, particularly the younger characters, Malek (Micah Solusod) and Johann (Shelton Windham). I also want to make note of Christopher Sabat’s cool take on Gerd, having enjoyed his work in Dragonball Z in the past. I recommend Blassreiter to anyone who wants a smart, action horror series with brains to match its adrenaline; that knows when to slow down as well as speed up, and quite frankly, is filled with so many quotable lines I had to show off a couple.
“Is that justice for the wicked? All I see is a man suffering the depths of pain.”
ComicsOnline gives Blassreiter, The Complete Series: Part 1 5 out of 5 cyborg zombies.
