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After the surprising intelligent drama action that volume 1 delivered, volume 2 of Gungrave raises the bar higher to produce a compelling crime anime that has the potential to become one of the best. The four episodes contained on volume 2 focuses on the two main characters - Brandon and Harry - careers in the mafia and their eventual rising to the top and inclusion into the 'family'. At the beginning of the volume the pair are separated for the first time in the series, and the viewer is only shown this from Brandon's point of view as he is drafted into a bottom of the pile debt collecting job. Brandon spends most of his time thinking of his love - Maria - and how to find her. When Brandon is reunited with Harry we find Harry much higher up the ladder then Brandon. How Harry got higher then Brandon is never quite explained but once they are back together they get to the top together. As I mentioned before, volume 2 of Gungrave raises the bar higher then volume 1 and it does this through increasingly strong characters that are the main asset to this cracking crime drama. Brandon and Harry make great leads throughout this second instalment as, even though they both want different lives, they clearly need each other to survive. Harry is suave, confident and selfish where as Brandon is calm, gentle and only kills to protect those which he loves. Volume 2 builds on their personalities and ambitions significantly in it's four episodes in such a way that the viewer is not entirely sure what either character's motives are - Brandon goes from a disillusioned youth to the most feared man alive and Harry goes from small-time gang leader to one of the most trusted mafia members. Although both remain loyal to each other their changing personalities can be disturbing to watch in places and leaves the viewer with a dark sense of foreboding for Volume 3.... So, after a slow start with Volume 1, Volume 2 of Gungrave turns the series around into a compelling crime drama that is quite different to most other anime of the genre. Volume 2 shows that this series has great potential and, from what I've seen, it can only get better. Extras: Volume 2 of Gungrave is unfortunately sparse on the extras has it only contains a small amount of production art, the original Japanese promo of the PS2 game Gungrave Overdose (released in the UK on 30/09/05) and trailers for equally excellent MVM releases Haibane Renmei and Chobits. The PS2 promo is the highlight of the bunch as it contains impressive clips of the game that are not just of the cut-scenes, but also some impressive in-game shots which to feature a playable character that attacks with a guitar! It may only be small extra but it will give you a decent enough taster of the PS2 actioner. The production art features twenty pieces that are a mixture
of cels and line-art that showcase Nightow's drawing style well, although I
would have preferred to have seen them on a white background rather then grey
menu background which does not contrast well with the black line art. |
