Wolf's Rain

Publisher
Bandai
Director
Tensai Okamura
Production
Bandai, BONES, Fuji TV
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
30 episodes
Year
2003

Wolf's Rain Volume 3

By Joseph (Joe) Wood
21st Dec 05

Wolf’s Rain is certainly a beautiful anime, offering a world that is enchanting, technological and unnerving. Still despite this, the series has yet to impress enough to convince that this is a great title. Is the third volume the one to change this view?

After finding the flower maiden Cheza and our pack still have to escape the small mountain side town and the small military force hunting Cheza, along with Quent who has also turned up in the small town on his hunt for wolves. Meanwhile Cher wonders about wither or not the young men she saw with Cheza are in fact wolves and this leads her to question wither capturing Cheza is a good idea; she wonders the town and inadvertently runs into Darcia. The wolves hear of the “Forest of Death” and they decide to make their escape through it. However once inside the groups progress is hindered due to Cheza’s weakened state due to a lack of sunlight and a dead evil owl (literally). After emerging from the forest Cheza reveals what seems to be the path to paradise, yet before our wolves reach the end they are attacked by Darica who kidnaps Cheza leaving our wolves bruised and battered with the path vanished. Whilst licking their wounds the pack run into another wolf who they’ve meet before, the decide to join forces and head towards Darcia’s keep to rescue Cheza. Later Hubb also runs into Quent and the two decide to travel together. Whilst this is going on another noble by the name of Jagara begins to move in the shadows, attacking other nobles and putting out a reward for anyone who captures a living wolf.

When the wolves found Cheza in the previous volume the series looked like it was perhaps going to become a chase that would take up most of the series plot. With the wolves and Cheza searching for paradise with everyone else on their tails. Yet with the developments in the third volume, it doesn’t seem quite as clear as to were the series is heading. There’s a lot of foreshadowing for the future, what with the mysterious Jagara starting to manipulate the puppet strings as it were.

This volume raises a lot of questions to the viewer and answers none, but builds up the potential for something truly spectacular in future volumes. Yet it’s extremely difficult to say wither this volume is worth buying on the strength of everything so far. The strength of this series is really going to depend on the remaining episodes (and the OVAs). This could well be something special, yet there is still a lot of doubt as to wither or not the creators will manage to pull it off.

Volume three of Wolf’s Rain begins to set things in motion for what could be an amazing series if it meets the potential it’s shown in its first three volumes. Only time will tell if this is a beautiful wolf in sheep’s clothing or mutton dressed as lamb.

R2 DVD Notes

Features: English/French/Japanese Audio Tracks, English/French/Polish/Dutch Subtitles, Character Bios, Clean Opening and Closing animation, Trailers, Leaflet

Release information: Publisher: Beez Released: December 12th 2005 Classification: 15 Running Time: 100mins

Notes: Again there isn't really anything of value in terms of extras on this disc.

-- Joseph (Joe) Wood 21st Dec 05

Wolf's Rain Images