Hellsing

Genre: Action

Format: 13 Episodes

Allegiance: Pioneer/GONZO

Director: Iida Umanosuke, Urata Yasunori

Vintage: 2001-2002

Intelligence Agency Report by: Munky

Based in London, England, the Hellsing Organization protects the country from the undead. Sir Integral Wingates Hellsing took over the Hellsing Organization after her father died, and she also became the master of the undefeatable vampire, Alucard. He's one crazy vampire, and he won't hesitate to blow you to dust with his awesome gun, the Jackal.

Field Agent Report by: Munky

Plot
Characters
Impact
Visual
Audio

8.00
8.00
8.00
7.75
8.50

Overall

8.00

(not an average)

Hellsing is the kind of anime that you don't see very often. It is a good horror anime that is based off of all the good ol' vampire stories. This series takes on a more serious tone than its manga counterpart did. It also comes off a bit short to some. The series itself wasn't too popular in Japan but seems to be a bit more of a hit in America with fans cheering on for a second season. Hellsing offers tons of great ghoul-killing vampire action, and will make you want more, until you see the ending. Overall, I must say that this series is great, but the ending is horrid. If you're a fan of the manga but haven't seen the anime yet, don't expect all the laughs that the manga had. Also, another thing not to expect is all the cool characters. The Hellsing series lacks a lot of important and great characters that the manga had, such as The Millenium Group and Rip Van Winkle.

The story is indeed a good one. It takes you through the history of the Hellsing Organization and how it ended up with the vampire Alucard. The characters also make you want to keep watching. It has the arch-enemy of Alucard, Alexander Anderson. As well as the crazed Valentine brothers, Jan and Luke. The animation style of Hellsing is also a nice mix and pleasing to the eye. The full coloring and dripping blood is just "mmm mmm good." No more "Ok, I'm going to bite your neck now." vampire stories. These vampires fight with some amazing guns and one character, Walter, uses dental floss.

Hellsing's OSTs are amazing. The music is beautifully done with dark, classical pieces, and also some great Halloween style music, and also a type of grungy jazz. The crunchy guitar sounds and the Mr. Big closing theme make me smile from ear to ear with vampiric joy and a thirst for more blood.

If you're considering picking up this series, I don't want to discourage you, but I would rather warn you. If endings make all the difference in a series to you, stay away. The rest of the series is great, and would be worth your while at checking out.

Field Agent Report by: Djudge

Plot
Characters
Impact
Visual
Audio

7.50
8.50
7.00
8.75
9.25

Overall

8.25

(not an average)

Hellsing was one of those titles that managed to drip with gothic charm from beginning to end. The series’ production values were kept very high over the course of the series and Gonzo managed to capitalize on that fact by delivering very sleek animation (a hallmark of the up and coming studio) and a catchy soundtrack to boot. Yet despite the fact that Hellsing is definitely one of anime’s most stylish entries, a certain lack of substance manages to rise up to the surface and deface what otherwise could have been a better piece than what was finally put out.

First off, I really can not give enough applause for Gonzo with the visual work that they pulled off for this title. The character designs, while not exactly gritty, certainly have a special quality. Be it the vampiric anti-hero Alucard or any of his supernatural adversaries, each personality benefited from great conceptual art and became a separate, identifiable entity. Animation during Hellsing’s thirteen episode run, be it in some obscure corner of the Hellsing mansion or in a gunfight at the London tower, never let up and remained strong. To complement the high visual standards a number of incredibly catchy songs were implemented to serve in the various backdrops of the dark locales of this action title. In fact, the OST for this title almost stands strong enough to become recommended separate from the anime itself (although you would be missing out on some impressive scenes if you do so). It is rare for a soundtrack to match up so impeccably with its visual counterpart and Hellsing is a perfect case in point of such an occurrence.

Yet even the admirable technical achievements of Hellsing are marred by a couple of under-the-surface flaws that irk plot-wary viewers. For starters, many of the main cast members are thrown into the series and suffer from a mixture of underdevelopment and a lack of a back story. While the absence of such features does not seriously harm the plot presented in the title, many viewers are left wondering just where each of the characters came from and how exactly they arrived at the moment of their respective on-screen debuts. One other related, and more serious, set of flaws in Hellsing is the considerable plot holes left at the less-than-desirable ending of this title. As soon as the closing credits begin scrolling after the finale episode so many questions could potentially be swimming in the viewer’s head. Leaving a viewer in such a state of bewilderment and anxiety is probably one of the worst ways to end a title. Had this error been corrected, in one way or another, this series would have been that much easier to recommend to other viewers.

Be Hellsing’s vices as they may, the overall quality of the show remains high enough to at least warrant a recommendation for fans of other vampire/action anime such as the entries into the Vampire Hunter D franchise. Hellsing, although not exactly Gonzo’s best work to date, stands a good anime in its own right. With a supernatural ability to absorb viewers with its swank look and hip feel, Hellsing just may be the ticket to those sleepless nights that fans of dark action are looking for.