Blog From The Bench

Shadow Skill v.1
ADV Films
Release date: Nov. 15, 2005
Amazon

In the mythical kingdom of Kurada, no one is more famous than the Sevalle, the most powerful martial artist in all the land. In various towns and villages, rumors spread that the current Sevalle has died, and a new one has been chosen. Meanwhile, Elle Ragu and her brother Gau ride into town, looking for work. Elle is a fantastic fighter herself, especially when various supernatural monsters or nefarious thieves show up. It turns out the that unsuspecting Elle is in fact the new Sevalle, but that high and mighty stature isn’t helping her pay off her debts.

Shadow Skill mixes genres left and right, and yet it seems very little is new here. The big draw is the hand-to-hand combat, featuring the exaggerated action anime is famous for. There’s also the fantasy element, involving raging monsters and characters casting flashy spells. That makes comedy the third element to the series. Elle, the most famous person in this world, spends money the second she gets it, with little thought to the enormous debts she has compiled.

This disc, featuring the series’ first four episodes, is entertaining enough, but there’s not much new here. Characters ride into town, start some mischief, get into an epic battle, and then move on. It’s well-animated and the voice acting is appropriately enthusiastic, but most anime viewers are likely to shrug it off as the same type of thing they’ve seen before. Perhaps, as the series progresses, it will reveal more about this world, and what it means to be a Sevalle. There is mention of invading forces from another kingdom, so it’s possible there is an overall arc to the series. But it doesn’t get started here. Picture and sound on the disc are great, in its original full frame aspect ratio, and 2.0 tracks in English and Japanese, with English subtitles.

If you like your fantasy adventure tales with a light touch, such as the kind found in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, then give Shadow Skill a rental. But if you’ve spent months pouring over every little detail of the last few episodes of Neon Genesis Evangelion trying to find some sort of meaning to it all, this might not be for you.

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