Red Garden...
I came across a trailer for Red Garden in April 2007 and it looked pretty good. But, I guess that's what trailers are supposed to do...
Red Garden has a distinctive, somewhat western appearance in its character design – the characters tend to be tall and thin and quite a few of them have rather ordinary stringy hair. In addition, the characters are missing the over-sized eyes that are typical in many anime. In general, the characters do not seem to move around in a realistic way – they seem overly stiff and rigid. Also, the color palette in Red Garden seems rather subdued – even blood appears either very dark, almost black, at times.
In Red Garden, the four main characters are established fairly early in the series, but, they spend most of the first half of the series whining and complaining about the unusual situation they find themselves in and how it is totally ruining their personal lives. Red Garden plods along for quite a while without anything really interesting happening and then about halfway through the series, events start to get interesting...
One of the more unusual aspects of the series, aside from its appearance and the slow pace, is that it is apparently a musical. At points, throughout the series, all of the characters will spontaneously and unexpectedly burst into song. Red Garden is distinctive for being one of the few dramatic horror anime series in which this odd musical behavior occurs. To be honest, it’s not like a typical princess musical, where there is a song about every fifteen minutes, but, Red Garden is certainly outside of the norm for exhibiting the occasional musical number.
Although, it's been a struggle to get my hands on the various episodes, I don't feel a sense of accomplishment at this point in time. Much of the series was not as entertaining as I would have liked, but, the latter half of the series, is a bit more entertaining than the first half of the series. And, the last few episodes tied up a lot of the loose ends quite nicely, but, in general, I wasn't really pleased with Red Garden.
There is some red ink in the series including some biting and head smashing, but, Red Garden isn't really gory. And, more often than not, the blood that is evident seems to be a few shades darker than the traditional red. There is some action in the series, but, fights are few and far between. There are, of course, no naughty bits in the series. Overall, Red Garden was, in my humble opinion, disappointing and I gave it a 1 out of 5.
The plot for Red Garden reminds me of Gantz. I liked the Gantz concept and red ink is usually a good thing. My major concern with Gantz was the packaging. But, with the Gantz-packaging issue, well and truly dead, I thought that I would take a chance on Red Garden. I picked up the first couple of volumes and, more recently added volumes 3,4 and 5 of Red Garden.Volume 1
Live to Kill
An odd string of suicides surrounds a private institution on Roosevelt Island. On the night a classmate dies, Kate, Rachel, Rose and Claire wake with no memories of the evenings' events. The next night, the four girls are drawn together by mysterious red butterflies only they can see. Converging at Central Park, the girls are approached by a strange woman who tells them they are dead. Now, the four girls must work together to learn the secrets of their death - and the means to return to their previous life.
Volume 2
Breaking the Girls
Under orders from the mysterious Lula, four young high school girls struggle with the fact that they are, indeed, dead. Now, living on "borrowed lives," they are forced to fight glowing-eyed, drooling monsters long after school is over. But when the battles become too terrifying one of the four tries to run away leading to terrible repercussions.
Yet darker, murkier secrets are hidden in this underworld battle. Coded corporations, a family curse, and horrific experiments deepen the mystery, shaking the already fragile strength of the girls.
Volume 3
The Body Snatchers
Just as the girls grow accustomed to killing, they are confronted with the soul-shaking consequences of their new, murderous "life." It seems their ravenous, monstrous prey are victims just like themselves - innocent pawns of an evil game being played in the streets of New York. Worse, it seems the players are not limiting the match to the moonlight hours anymore.
Seasoned gamers, they begin encroaching in the daylight, slipping into each other's camps to discover strategy and secrets, drawing even the most innocent of girls into the most wicked of traps: love.
Volume 4
Blood and Thorns
Now that they know their fate, the girls begin embracing their battles - and discover remarkable powers within themselves. So while their daylight lives fall apart, their nocturnal battles become more violent, more bloody.
Yet as one of their members continues to be their weakest link, they begin to plan - they may need to leave her behind to die. And their shadowy enemy? They are making their own advances, sacrificing an innocent child to a disgusting curse, and trapping a beautiful girl in their horrible experiment.
Volume 5
Love Lies Bleeding
Desperate times call for desperate measures and everyone feels the urgency growing. For Kate, she has been told a terrifying secret by her sworn enemy. And now she must decide whether to keep it to herself or confide in her friends, cutting the last thread of hope that keeps them all fighting for their lives.
But, death comes closer to them all, as curiosity builds in those that surround the girls -- and evil enemies take violent measures to keep the truth from being revealed. Bloody, brutal, and beautiful, Red Garden is a thriller that will shock you at every turn!
Volume 6
To Die Forever
It is Christmas Eve, and each of the girls spend the night in company of their loved ones. As the sun rises in the morning, all four bid their last farewells and gather at the school to prepare for the upcoming battle. The bridges connecting Roosevelt Island are destroyed by a set of explosions to cut all access to the mainland. War erupts...
October 6, 2008
Update
In an unfortunate turn of events, Anime News Network reports...Funimation has issued new retailer solicitation lists, and thus confirmed that it will ship the anime series Red Garden and Welcome to the NHK in December in two DVD box sets each, instead of single DVDs. Both titles were formerly released by ADV Films before their rights holder Arm Corporation transferred its licenses to Funimation. ADV Films had shipped five of its six planned DVDs for Red Garden before canceling its release earlier this year. However, the only way to get the final episodes on a North American DVD is to get Funimation's Red Garden Complete Collection Part 2 box for a suggested retail price of US$49.98.Well, I'm already committed, so, it looks like I'll have to repurchase some of the series just to have a complete set. Also, it looks like I'll have to wait until December to finish off the series.
October 9, 2008
Update
Anime News Network also reported...The North American anime distributor Funimation has announced that it will release the final DVDs for Red Garden, Pumpkin Scissors, and Welcome to the NHK — all former ADV Films titles that were one or two volumes away from completion when Funimation acquired them — as standalone single DVDs. The online retailer Right Stuf will carry Red Garden volumes 4 and 5, Pumpkin Scissors volume 5, and Welcome to the NHK volume 5 in December, although the exact street dates are still being scheduled. The 6th DVD volumes of each of these series will also be released at a later date through Right Stuf. The originally planned box sets will still be offered.That makes me feel a bit better...
June 6, 2009
Update
I've finally taken the opportunity to watch Red Garden in one sitting...Red Garden has a distinctive, somewhat western appearance in its character design – the characters tend to be tall and thin and quite a few of them have rather ordinary stringy hair. In addition, the characters are missing the over-sized eyes that are typical in many anime. In general, the characters do not seem to move around in a realistic way – they seem overly stiff and rigid. Also, the color palette in Red Garden seems rather subdued – even blood appears either very dark, almost black, at times.
In Red Garden, the four main characters are established fairly early in the series, but, they spend most of the first half of the series whining and complaining about the unusual situation they find themselves in and how it is totally ruining their personal lives. Red Garden plods along for quite a while without anything really interesting happening and then about halfway through the series, events start to get interesting...
One of the more unusual aspects of the series, aside from its appearance and the slow pace, is that it is apparently a musical. At points, throughout the series, all of the characters will spontaneously and unexpectedly burst into song. Red Garden is distinctive for being one of the few dramatic horror anime series in which this odd musical behavior occurs. To be honest, it’s not like a typical princess musical, where there is a song about every fifteen minutes, but, Red Garden is certainly outside of the norm for exhibiting the occasional musical number.
Although, it's been a struggle to get my hands on the various episodes, I don't feel a sense of accomplishment at this point in time. Much of the series was not as entertaining as I would have liked, but, the latter half of the series, is a bit more entertaining than the first half of the series. And, the last few episodes tied up a lot of the loose ends quite nicely, but, in general, I wasn't really pleased with Red Garden.
There is some red ink in the series including some biting and head smashing, but, Red Garden isn't really gory. And, more often than not, the blood that is evident seems to be a few shades darker than the traditional red. There is some action in the series, but, fights are few and far between. There are, of course, no naughty bits in the series. Overall, Red Garden was, in my humble opinion, disappointing and I gave it a 1 out of 5.
