Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom

Title: Phantom Requiem Genre: Action, Drama Rating: 7.5/10

Summary: A spate of mafia assasinations occurs in America, the work of the mysterious organization named Inferno. "Phantom" is their most strongest and capable assassin, however a lone tourist witnesses Phantom's latest act of murder. He unwittingly exposes the top assassin's true identity, a young girl named Ein. Witnesses are usually killed, but the man is captured and taken to be brainwashed into "Zwei", Inferno's newest assassin, with no memory of who he is. From this point on, Zwei is drawn into a world of conspiracy, deceit and violence.

Review: Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom is one of the coolest shoot ‘em up animes that I have seen. If you are a fan of girls with guns then this is an anime you should pick up. The way the anime showed the hardships of an assassin was rather unique, and I enjoyed seeing the mental stability it takes to pull the trigger. The drama tied into Phantom Requiem wasn’t a bad idea either, although I don’t think that drama should play a large role in an action anime. Relationships between characters come and go, just another day in the life of an assassin. The characters each had their own back story and reasons for going into their profession. It was fun to watch the combat because of the betrayals and selfish actions each character makes. The art style created a beautiful visual to the fast action gun shots and slow blood splatter scenes. The lighting effects helped create a dark atmosphere that really pulls you into the life of a killer. The soundtrack is also another highlight of this anime. The opening and ending have an artistic feel to them, mixed with a little trance-type music. The soundtrack didn’t really fit the action packed anime but it was a nice change. One thing that might turn people away from this anime is the slow pace conversations. The conversations really did play a vital role in the storyline but can be a bit of a bore after watching three guys get shot in a split second. The biggest hit against this anime was the second season. Like most anime I have seen recently, second seasons always seem to kill it cough Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya cough. The second seasons pushed way too far into drama, and like I said before I don’t like drama hitting hard in an action anime. Even the story and change in characters was very irritating. I also found a few flaws in the storyline, specifically the aging of the characters. It was as though some paused their bodies in time while others accelerated theirs. Not only that but the mental changes seemed to occur way too quickly and completely unrealistically. Someone who flips a complete 180 with a sketchy reasoning always calls for a poorly done story. However, one good thing was the bad guy. From beginning to end, viewers will absolutely hate him for his sly attitude and tricky manipulation. He is the definition of mad scientist.

Final statements: Due to slow paced conversations and a dodgy second season I gave this anime a rather low score. Drama had taken over the anime like a plague. I was happy overall and don’t regret watching the anime, but I don’t expect people to like the ending too much. Preferred watch.