Witch Hunter Robin

Director
Shuko Murase
Production
Bandai, Sunrise, TV Tokyo
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
26 episodes
Year
2002

Witch Hunter Robin DVD Vol. 2

By David Rasmussen
7th Jan 05

Company - BANDAI
Rated - Teen (13+)
English/Japanese Dialogue
Optional Extras? - See below
Time - 125 Minutes
Original Idea - Hajime Yatate & Shukou Murase
Chief Writer - Aya Yoshinaga
Character Design - Kumiko Takahashi
Music - Taku Iwasaki
Producers - Keiichi Matsumura & Tsutomu Sugita
Produced by SUNRISE & BANDAI Visual

Witch Hunter Robin
Volume 2 - Belief
Previously...
Location - Present day Japan
The Problem - As of late there's been a rise in the number of Witches that call the Earth home. Mind you, they seem to call EVERYTHING witches (including something that obviously was some sort of shaman, and another who was a mummy thing last DVD) but that's their thing. So, when some of these (ahem) "witches" with their supernatural powers go Sith on everyone and start running amok that's when it's time to call in the STN.

Oh, well, pity the STN (and its branch office in Japan called the STNJ) - the organization that handles run-amok "witches," is a shadowy organization. Given Yatate's series track record with "shadow organizations"? There's more to the STN and their backers than meets the eye, or so I think. Probably can trust them as far as you can throw Tokyo Tower. Anyway it's their job to combat the threat of "Witches" turned to the Dark Side with a blend of technology, forensic science (CSI meets Betterman) and super-powered team members.

But even so, the bad "witches" (once again, technically only the female crooks can be called witches, the guys can be warlocks, mages or undead mummy things, for example) seemingly outnumber the good guys and that got one of the STNJ killed six months ago - though after watching DVD Vol. 1 that seems to be not exactly the truth. The bad guys seem to come out Law & Order style - as in X amount of perps per crime per episode - so they're not exactly running amok from what I can see.

Speaking of the dead STNJ person? The replacement for that dead person just arrived from Europe.
This new member, named Robin, is a young girl who was raised in an Italian monastery (hopefully they were proficient in the art of butt-kick in that monastery) and has just been transferred to the STNJ as their newest Hunter - and that's where the story begins.

After showing up in a rather unexpected way, and getting turned away the first time, she tries to report to duty, she shows up while the team is confronting a "witch" and she's wielding the same magic ability ("Craft" skills, with an angle towards fire) as the perp. She comes in at the right time so the team can take this guy down, and capture him. But it seems she doesn't have fine control over her power. Why? Think by the time you get to here you have a good idea why her control isn't so fine.

Of course Robin has to get used to a few "things."
Things like the "no kill" policy (rule #1). Then there's the "Orbos," which help with protecting the agents from most attacks (though Robin finds the Orbos disgusting and refuses to use it). And her mid-level boss is a jerk, yet another thing to get "used" to.... Oh, heck, nobody should have to get used to that.
But she does make a new friend in team computer hacker, Michael, over donuts and coffee. Whee! New friend at work!! Oh, and Robin's problem with her powers? She needs - okay, I can tell you. Glasses.
Great. Now she'll get teased by the forces of darkness who'll call her...ah, never mind. I need glasses so I can relate to that. Okay. Now we're all caught up so let's move on.

Volume 2 - Belief
Episode 6 - Raindrops
What a difference a brand spankin' new pair of glasses make! Now that Robin got hooked up with glasses her skill with those fire powers are now near-perfect. Now all she needs is a new job to test her skill out on.
Looks like that case is about to fall right into her lap when she gets picked up by a woman while stranded on the road after her bike runs out of gas. When the woman who helped Robin ends up dead, she becomes obsessed with finding out the cause...and with a little help from the team they uncover a witch with a strange ability that comes from a multiple personality disorder - let's just say that you'll never look at those Barbie dolls the same way again after this one.

Oh, and the gang kinda doesn't seal this one nice and tight...one "minor" loose end is left behind.
Nothing too big but...oh, you'll have to see the episode for yourself.

Episode 7 - Simple Mind
One month ago a major robbery struck the city. Today the fallout from that has come.
It all starts with a mangled car pulled out of the water. It leads to an accomplice who has witch power - or does he? He has a nephew who he apparently ditches and tries to kill (car compactor) - so he's scum right? Yeah, he's scum - but what if he never had the power?

What if the one who had the power is the one who seems the least guilty?
Totally twisted with some wrong turns you'll never see coming until it's too late.

Episode 8 - Faith
Destiny. What if you were given the power over life and death? The ability to save one at the cost of another's life? That is exactly what happened to the doctor in this episode. In order to save the patients of another doctor (a good friend I suppose) he must kill another - but his choice of the ones to die are those the world will not miss. I mean gangster. He uses them to do his work.

Of course the STNJ must be brought in, but today is a bad day for Robin since she has a bit of a cold. Well, that's a good way for her to meet the doctor in question even if she doesn't know it yet.
As for the doctor? Right to the end he turns out to be a good person who made a few wrong choices but had good intentions. Then again, as the saying goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
A good strong ending to the episode. Maybe a bit of a downer but - well, it had to end that way. Good episode all the way around.

Episode 9 - Sign of the Craft
Somebody usually has to die for the STNJ to get involved. This episode is no different. This time out it's the son of a major corporate president. But who did it, and why? That's for the STNJ team to find out.
And it looks like the person doing it might have the same pyro power as Robin...relation, perhaps? Well, it doesn't have to be that way. I mean it's not like pyro (one of the four elements) is so darn rare. Yet there's always that possibility...but this time the perp is one step ahead of the team - which is bad news.

So it's going to be up to Michael to get some leads for the team. Leads to a confession of the murder of three men. Problem - she's only killed ONE so far, the other two are still quite alive. At least, they were when the investigation reached this point. Victim #2 dies right after Michael cracks her computer code and reads her confession, leaving Victim #3 and a race to see who gets to said victim first. Oh, yeah, the "victims" turn out to be bad men in their own right, and their comeuppance has finally come.

What goes around comes around, and what evil goes around will one day come home to roost...and burn. Time to place your bets, because it looks like this is going to be far more complex that originally thought, with an ending that pits firestarter vs. firestarter!
Real attention needy episode. Definitely not a time to "ignore" something or you'll miss a beat!

Episode 10 - Separate Lives
We'll leave it off here and let you discover this episode for yourself.
Okay. Now onto the extras and the breakdown!

Region 1 Optional Extras
STNJ Equipment Files - Last time it was a character file, this time it's the tools of the trade. Learn a bit about the cool gizmos and gadgets the team employs in their work.

Linear Notes (aka the "Maelifica Compendium") - Once again the old rules apply: Spin the disc once and watch all the episodes before you pursue the Linear Notes...just in case there's any spoilers in there that you shouldn't read before watching the DVD.

Reversible Cover - I never reverse the cover...so you all have to tell me what it looks like on the other side, Okay? Okay. Thanks. Okay, it's breakdown time so let's get to it.

Witch Hunter Robin Breakdown the 2nd
What's Hot? - Second verse, same as the first. I like what I've seen so far. The animation is crisp and good-looking, and it just feels so right. The music, however? Well I'm getting used to it, but it's not getting me into this show yet. It's there, but I guess I have to get used to it. The story continues and I continue to get more and more interested in it. It's something that I recommend to you to check out.

It's a nice solid series and it had "Hajime Yatate" contribute to it! I reviewed some of "Yatate's" work in the past and had lots to rave about for those, which hasn‘t changed with this series.

What's Not? - Nothing much this time. We're now in DVD Vol. 2 and I'm getting into how the series works, so I have nothing bad to say about the show. And it's supposed to be hitting the Region 2 road soon so you'll get to see this series soon enough yourselves! That's good be Hot, right?

Moments to Remember? - There's a bit to remember here and there. The gang at STNJ is memorable, and some of the action is quite memorable. It has its moments.

Overall? - We've rolled onwards into Volume 2 of Witch Hunter Robin and it's still good. You won't hear me complainin' about anything here, no siree! Not me!

The animation is really good to look at, nicely done. The music might still be trying to get to me, but that's just me (and each time I watch I get more into the music soundtrack for the show) and the story is interesting. Overall I have to say that Witch Hunter Robin is highly worthy of your attention in either rental or buying mode. Try this one out, because I'm sure you'll be glad that you did. Trust me.

-- David Rasmussen 7th Jan 05

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