In the city of Shinjuku, a battle between two armored warriors took place. Karas, the protector of the city was defeated by the villainous Lord Eko. Eko plans to rule the city with the assistance and absolute loyalty of metallic demons called Mikuru, who feed on humans. A new Karas is soon reborn to battle against Eko and his minions.-summary


Karas: The Prophecy is the first three episodes of a six episode OVA turned into two movies, 80 and 90 minutes respectively. From the very beginning, the most noteworthy feature of the movie is the breath taking visuals. The combining of 2D and 3D with traditional drawings is very impressive, at the moment I can't think of anything that looks better. The animation and artwork has a sleek futuristic look that compliments the outstanding character designs for the armored warriors.

The battles move at a break neck pace. One would believe this could be very hard to follow, but not at all. The battles move with such fluidity it is rather simple to see every move that is made. After watching this a number of times. I still haven't detected the slightest bit of jumpiness. I don't believe in perfection, but if anything is visually close it would probably be this. In combination with stylish visuals is the outstanding music score that gives the film an epic feel.

If Karas: The Prophecy was a meal, some would feel somewhat full, while others will still be very hungry. For the most part I was close to somewhat full. This may be another case of style over substance in a lot of peoples eyes, but not completely in mine. The story is slow paced but not impossible to understand. There's more than one plot taking place that appears to be working in the same direction. Of course, there's the basic action filled good vs. evil that we all know and love. However, there is a little more than that. One of the other plotlines takes place with a side character named Mr. Sakigawa.

There's a case going on with peoples remains being found completely drained of their fluids. The police don't have a clue as what to make of it. Sakigawa is convinced that it's demons, but he's shunned for his accusations by the public who have completely abandoned superstition. I find this segment of the story to be a welcomed addition plus interesting. Several action anime, Ninja Scroll most notably, carries its very paper thin plot by introducing one stale villain after another, combined with random sex scenes only to keep the die hard action junkie satisfied.

Karas: The Prophecy on the other hand, uses its character to paint a picture distinguishing the difference between those who still believe in old folklore, versus those who want to believe it could be anything else besides folklore, despite overwhelming evidence that whatever is causing these deaths can't be normal. Some look down on him and assume he must be crazy, but there happens to be a reason behind his drive. I found him to be interesting, and I wanted to know what was going on. I enjoy this part of the story simply because it gets old really fast when you only have to witness, "my master wants you dead, lets fight", over and over and over again.

While there is one character who caught my attention. I have to say the rest really didn't appeal to me much personality wise. They seem a bit too one dimensional. The characters aren't too developed at this point, but you can tell they serve a purpose other than as bodies to be slaughtered. Karas is very interesting concerning his abilities, he's an armored fighter wielding a sword, and he can morph into heavily armed vehicles. This adds a lot of variety to the battles. A girl named Yurine is his handler, as bland as this character may be, she delivers one of the most dramatic pre-battle openings I can think of. I'll leave this part open.

The biggest flaw to this film has to be the cliffhanger ending. I know fans who no longer consider this a flaw because the second volume has been out for a long time now. I'm not basing my rating on the series as a whole. I'm rating this particular opening film, and to me, it's a huge con and I'll explain. Someone who has never heard of Karas: The Prophecy can easily pick this up, see it, and feel burned by the ending. This is almost how I felt about it over four years ago, but my rating was still the same, because there was still enough going on in the story, to let you know it wasn't over. It wasn't like Blood: The Last Vampire. You knew that was a done deal.

I enjoy this film but I can't recommend it to the casual anime fan. Despite the film being incredibly spoon fed. There are some who feel there is no story or plot going on at all. The story and plot is only slow paced and that's it. This is something mainly for the die hard otakus.

Pros:
-Absolutely stunning animation and artwork
-Nice music score
-Great action

Cons:
-Very slow paced story and plot development
-Low character development
-Cliffhanger ending