Review of Black Lagoon #1

M

Martin

Death Scythe
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/2008-02-28black-lagoon-1-cover.jpg">

<b>Review of Black Lagoon #1 by Martin</b>

Amidst all the furore surrounding Geneon's uncertain future there were several new titles that I feared would never make it to UK shelves; one of those was Black Lagoon. It's fair to say BL's reputation preceded it: I'd heard a lot about this action-packed tale of kidnappings, gun-fights and double crosses on the high seas so it was a pleasant surprise to see the show in my review pile. Fortunately I wasn't disappointed by what I saw either.<br>
I'll admit that there are plenty of bounty hunter-style shows around with similar setups involving a Joe Average thrown in amongst an assorted bunch of hard-up criminals who do cool things to eke out a living, but Black Lagoon somehow manages to make one hell of an impression. For one thing it has Studio Madhouse in charge of the production (a reason for me to love it right there); secondly it has Attitude. The capitalisation was wholly intentional, by the way. Black Lagoon has a whole boatload of Attitude and then some.<br>
The fish-out-of-water Joe Average in this case is a hapless fellow named Rokuro Okajima. His life in the humdrum white-collar rat race ends when he is kidnapped by a bunch of mercenaries who are given the task of seizing a data disc that Rokuro had the misfortune to be carrying while on an overseas business trip. The mercenaries may have a well-armed boat and a taste for rum but that's where the resemblance to old-fashioned pirates ends: left high and dry by his unscrupulous employers while captured at gunpoint and held for ransom, Rokuro's captors become new-found &lsquo;friends&rsquo; as they find themselves up to their necks in industrial espionage, Russian mafia types and all manner of other low-lifes.<br>
When the action scenes are exhilarating to the point of the outrageous (the finale to a boat chase in particular wouldn't look out of place in a John Woo or Die Hard movie), it takes a colourful cast to make it more than just a forgettable adrenaline rush. They're an interesting bunch actually, having the token shady pasts and devil-may-care attitudes but offering plenty of entertainment value with the way their personalities bounce off one another. Dutch is your laconic muscle-bound team leader who negotiates jobs and keeps the others in check; Benny is a technical whiz with a penchant for loud shirts; and Revy is an especially bad-ass take on the feisty gun-toting female (imagine Cowboy Bebop's Faye Valentine crossed with Full Metal Panic!'s Melissa Mao after spending a few months hanging out with the A team).

Throwing poor old Rokuro (who soon gets nicknamed Rock by Revy and co) into this mismatched group of hardened bounty-hunters is a predictably amusing culture shock, as he gradually grows used to their seat-of-your-pants lifestyle: I'm looking forward to seeing him gradually toughen up as he comes to terms with the fact that his yuppie days are over. Perhaps understandably he finds the danger of his position terrifying and unfair, but he soon makes at least some effort to adjust and make the best of things, which is a bonus.

What I think what makes the crew so interesting inside their tough-as-nails archetypes is that they have a camaraderie going on but conversely don't thing twice about taking enemies' lives while shooting first and asking questions afterwards. The bottom line is that Revy, Dutch and Benny are essentially cold-blooded killers; a point hammered home repeatedly by frequent and quite brutal bloodshed that is quite &lsquo;grown up&rsquo; and not very cartoonish by anime standards. Nevertheless, moments of friendship and humanity shine through every now and then to keep the viewer on their side and looking forward to another gun-toting confrontation.<br>
As you'd expect from Madhouse, Black Lagoon certainly delivers as an actioner: the firearms and other equipment for instance are drawn with impressive authenticity so look solid and convincing. The frequent bursts of gunfire and explosions are accompanied by a hard-edged rock soundtrack that keeps the pace and accentuates the show's aforementioned Attitude - the metal-tinged op theme should prepare the unwary for the grittiness that follows. This attention to detail is impressive, which ought to make this show appealing to viewers who appreciate more than just fan service and comedy - not something we see very often, which makes this all the more recommendable. With a shipload of neo-nazis as their adversaries next up on the horizon, I can't wait!<br>
<strong>In Summary</strong><br>
You only have to look to the likes of Cowboy Bebop and the series it inspired to see how effective and well-used the likeable outlaws idea is but Black Lagoon brings a slick delivery and a vicious edge to keep things interesting and exciting. It isn't original, deep or meaningful, nor does it intend to be; this is no-nonsense, in-your-face action with a memorable cast and impressive presentation. At this stage in the game there emphasis is on introducing the characters and grabbing your attention rather than telling a complex story; in that sense Black Lagoon succeeds admirably, and in great style too.<br>
<b>Final score: 8 out of 10</b>

<b>Additional screencaps</b>

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Yeah, I can only agree. When I first came across Black Lagoon, I was immediately struck by its no-nonsense, all guns blazing Attitude. Comparisons with the likes of John Woo and Bruce Willis are spot-on, it's very much a "hard boiled" action series with the subtly of a sledge-hammer; the influences are so prominent that one character (Mr. Chang) is based on Chow Yun Fat's many bad-ass roles in John Woo movies and Dutch references The Terminator (not to mention that "Dutch" is Schwarzenegger's name in Predator!).
 
In my eyes, Black Lagoon is the 00's answer to cowboy bebop. Even though i already have the first volume on region one, i'm buying it again in R2 to enjoy it on the big screen.

The only thing i didn't really like as much was the soundtrack. In the context of the show it fits in well and adds ambience to the scene. But as a single soundtrack that you can go and buy, it is lacking.
 
One ofmy fave series, I even have a copyon my PSP so I can watch it when I am away. The characters are really diverse and well thought out and I love the way Levi and Rock's relationship is shown to us
 
Hmm, well, Brik Haus didn't seem to like Black Lagoon all that much, and he's a huge fan of Cowboy Bebop (I think he regards it as the best anime series ever, actually) and he mentions that Black Lagoon is probably only popular because Levi is hot :/ So, clearly
 
CitizenGeek said:
Hmm, well, Brik Haus didn't seem to like Black Lagoon all that much, and he's a huge fan of Cowboy Bebop (I think he regards it as the best anime series ever, actually) and he mentions that Black Lagoon is probably only popular because Levi is hot :/ So, clearly
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He is setting himself up for a argument, But seriously - The series itself doesn't really kick into high gear until The Second Barrage, Then it begins to come into a league of its own. The series itself is basically a series of mini-arcs, 3 episodes each and it I suppose it works in the same fashion as Bebop and because its about "Pirates".. So, I suppose that's the reason they are compared and is sort of episodic.

Revy is fan service by looks, But she also has a lot of substance. Very similar to Faye Valentine actually.
 
CitizenGeek said:
Hmm, well, Brik Haus didn't seem to like Black Lagoon all that much, and he's a huge fan of Cowboy Bebop (I think he regards it as the best anime series ever, actually) and he mentions that Black Lagoon is probably only popular because Levi is hot :/ So, clearly
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It's good to see the world authority on anime, Brik Haus, has his own opinions. But who cares? so, clearly.

And dont be so idiotic, black lagoon is certainly not popular because one character is "hot".
 
Nyu said:
It's good to see the world authority on anime, Brik Haus, has his own opinions. But who cares? so, clearly.

And dont be so idiotic, black lagoon is certainly not popular because one character is "hot".
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Whoa, what's with the overreaction? I never said Brik Haus was the "world authority" on anime, neither did Brik Haus himself :s

And I'm certainly not an idiot, but a lot of anime fans -- clearly -- are, and it's this fact that makes it easy to believe that a series would be popular because of the size of a characters' breasts :/
 
Black Lagoon is up there with my favourites. I think part of what made it for me was the characters themselves. Sure you have enough action to keep you going throughout, but the characters themselves are all interesting, each have a decent amount of depth to them, Rock most especially. I liked how he developed through both series and how he comes to adapt to this new way of life, and amazingly never having to weild a gun.
 
Black Lagoon started out great, the first 5 or 6 episodes being excellent, then quickly turned into an average action anime. Uninteresting, consisting mostly of the main characters (often Revy) owning everything with ease, it's a watchable show at best, with no main plot holding it together.

Revy being one of the hottest looking and sounding (her JP voice actress speaking Engrish = <3) anime characters in existence saved a show lacking any depth or intelligence. She was the only reason I bothered to watch both seasons through to the end.

Edit: Oh, and I love Cowboy Bebop - I own both The Buzz box sets and the movie.
 
CitizenGeek said:
Nyu said:
It's good to see the world authority on anime, Brik Haus, has his own opinions. But who cares? so, clearly.

And dont be so idiotic, black lagoon is certainly not popular because one character is "hot".
Click to expand...

Whoa, what's the overreaction? I never said Brik Haus was the "world authority" on anime, neither did Brik Haus himself :s

And I'm certainly not an idiot, but a lot of anime -- clearly -- are, and it's this fact that makes it easy to believe that a series would be popular because of the size of a characters' breasts :/
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It's the way you worded it, maybe my reply was a bit too snappy, maybe. My point being, just because someone says "fanservice is the reason why X is popular" doesnt make it so. The way it was quoted, Brik Haus says it was popular because of boobs, does not make it true.

Also, no one, or more specifically me, is not comparing black lagoon to bebop. Black lagoon is more or less the modern day equivilant.
 
Fair enough, there are more volumes ( which I have to wait on the R2 release of ), so it might change, but I own the special editions of the first three R1 disks, and I have to say, even though it was quite enjoyable to watch, the series certainly isn't worth the hype, it's just a mix of random stories with no overall plot. :?

Is it bad? Hell no, but it isn't the messiah of anime that some people seem to think it is.
 
Brilliant series, definitely a favourite. As for the whole 'it's all fanservice/mindless action' argument; I found that the Second Barrage became a lot deeper, considering interesting ideas of morality and the direction we take our lives in (the Tokyo episodes being the best example of this).

I can see why some people don't like it given the setting and immoral context, but for me it was simply perfect. The only issue I have being that I want to see more.
 
I see a fair few people comparing Bebop and Lagoon. *shakes head*

Cowboy Bebop was an episodic series, having only 5 episodes dealing with the main plot; episodes dealing with Spike, Vicious and Julia. It appeared to have very little depth until towards the end of the series when Spike's true character became clear; a man who had been living a dream for the past few years of his life, not believing what he was seeing and waiting for the grim reaper to come knocking on his door. This information made Spike's attitude and his reasoning for throwing himself at deaths door clear, adding a tremendous amount of depth to a show that had been lacking it.

It wasn't just Spike's character that made the show great, though - People wouldn't have been able to survive until the end if that was the case. The crew of the Bebop were an interesting bunch; different characters who worked together, their relationship feeling natural and not forced like in similar shows. We had grumpy Jet, moody Faye, annoying Ed and, of course, the loveable dog Ein. Fans grew to love these characters as the series progressed.

The short stories that made up the series weren't bad, either. Unlike Black Lagoon, which had few to no memorable stories, Cowboy Bebop had many that easily come to the front of my mind. The short 1-2 episode stories were limited by their length but were enjoyable to watch and stick in the memory. And, once again unlike Black Lagoon, the action was at least a little realistic; not involving Revy sliding across the floor with her dual hand guns and managing to kill the 10 people surrounding her while not moving.

Now, take in the above and compare.

1: Did Revy make for a better main character than Spike?
No, she had no depth. I thought the plot would quickly focus on her past after the first few episodes, where she had some conversations with the forgettable (I had to search my memory for his name) Rock, but it simply didn't follow up and reveal her past.

Her clothing also made her lose a great deal of respect. Sure, she locked hot (for an anime character) and her appeal made many anime fans keep watching the show for her alone, but she also became cheap in the mind of the viewers.

There's also the stupidly unrealistic actions of her character. I'm aware anime doesn't have to be realistic, but I'm also aware the action has to have some believability for the viewer to get into it. She stands still on one spot, slaughtering people around her without taking a hit, kills without looking in the direction of those she's shooting at, slides across the floor in the middle of 10 people and kills them all without taking a scratch... It's all much too silly.

2: Does the Lagoon Company compare to the Bebop crew?

As I've said already, the cast of the Bebop were all interesting and colourful. I can't say the same of the Lagoon Company.

Revy was the only memorable crew member. The others were a wimpy Japanese guy who needed a woman to fight for him (Rock), a big black guy and a nerdy guy. The big black guy and nerdy guy became less important in the 2nd season, the focus instead being on the relationship between Revy and Rock. In a nutshell, the cast of characters were uninteresting and bland.

3: How do the story arcs of Bebop and Lagoon compare?

First of all, it's important to point that Cowboy Bebop is complete and Black Lagoon isn't. While Bebop tied up the main Spike/Vicious plot in 26 episodes, Lagoon doesn't have a main plot of any sort.

The only part of Lagoon that sticks in my memory is the first two episodes; the opening story. That was interesting, with a Japanese business man getting pulled into a unfamiliar world. Apart from that, all I remember are vague things, like a maid version of the terminator (I recall the episode(s) being a direct reference to the film) chasing after Lagoon Company. Most of the stories were not memorable.

Bebop, on the other hand, had many memorable stories. The Roco Bonnaro episode (ep 8 ), which showed Spike's kind side, is probably my favourite Bebop episode. There's also the Pierrot le Fou episode, the episodes relating to the past of Faye and the episodes relating to the Spike/Vicious story. In short, most of Bebop was memorable.

....I'm going on a bit here, aren't I? What I'm trying to point out is that Bebop is vastly superior to Lagoon, only the episodic nature of both shows linking them.
 
Aion said:
....I'm going on a bit here, aren't I? What I'm trying to point out is that Bebop is vastly superior to Lagoon, only the episodic nature of both shows linking them.
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How about just not comparing them? I won't deny the similarities or possible influence, but frankly I consider Black Lagoon a decent show it's own right regardless of whether it's better or worse than CB (I personally prefer it).
 
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