Amatsuki Re-Revisited

You might wonder, with good reason, why Orphan is releasing a new version of Amatsuki, six years after our first release. That release is quite watchable. Why are we bothering? First, the previous release used another group's DVD encode; it was at the wrong frame rate (29.97 fps instead of 23.976 fps). Second, the previous release retained Ureshii's original styling: colored subtitles, fake italics. Third, the manga is now completely scanlated, so it's possible to understand how the TV series fits in the overall plot. Fourth, I love this show, and I was itching for an excuse to take another pass at it. So there: we have Reasons.

Amatsuki is set in a parallel Bakumatsu-era world where gods and spirits are real. The hero, Rikugou Tokidoki, stumbles into this world, called Amatsuki ("a rainy night's moon"), when he crosses a bridge inside a virtual reality historical exhibit. There he is attacked by a demon known as the Nue and saved by a fierce swordswoman named Kuchiha. He loses the sight in his left eye but gains the ability to see demons in return.

How Toki (and his high-school acquaintance, Kon) end up in another world is never explained; it's simply assumed. Toki starts out as a "get along, go along" type of anonymous teenager, but he slowly finds the skills not only to cope with his new environment but to influence events and indeed the fate of the parallel world. He is the Blank Page, the only creature in all of Amatsuki whose fate is not inscribed in heaven's net. He can alter the course of destiny.

Toki is surrounded by a cast of colorful characters. Some seek to help him, others to use him. Toki's rescuer Kuchiha is actually an inugami-tsukai, a person possessed by a dog spirit. He is also helped by Shamon, a hard-drinking monk who fights demons, and Heihachi, a local townsman with more curiosity than is good for him. The potential exploiters include Bonten, a tengu who is one of the high dieties of Amatsuki; Ginshu, an asexual priestess who leads the demon-fighters; and Sasaki Tadajirou, a sinister blind agent of the Shogunate, and his equally sinister subordinate, Kurotobi. And then there is Yakou, the enigmatic being (god? ayakashi?) whose needling questions and subtle mockery drive men and demons alike mad.

The TV series covers the first four volumes of the manga. There is no resolution to the plot, and no explanation for events. The manga does eventually come up with an explanation, but it's very convoluted and, like most explanations of magic, rather disappointing. [Spoilers ahead.] The Amatsuki world is a sinister VR experiment gone wrong, with real people being used as adjuncts to a massive supercomputer, a la The Matrix. Toki is special because he has a personal relationship with both Amatsuki's creator and its current overseer. Personally, I would have preferred it if the manga had adopted the same course as The Worm Ouroboros: the fantasy world is self-contained, and once events shift there, our dreary everyday world is forgotten.

Because this third revision required relatively little in the way of editing and typesetting, I've been able to take a more dispassionate look at Amatsuki and see more of its flaws. First, it relies too heavily on infodumps. Admittedly, the premise is complicated, and the series only had 13 episodes to work with. However, the long-winded explanations, sometimes with diagrams, frequently bring the show to a dead stop. The unraveling of the fox spirit's story in the penultimate episode is like a parody of a bad golden-age mystery, with multiple narrators retelling events. Second, the visuals are less than stellar. The show seems slightly out of focus throughout. This isn't a stylistic choice to convey the unreality of the Amatsuki world; even the"real world" looks blurry. And third, the climax is poorly weighted. The fox spirit's story is given four or five episodes and amounts to very little; one of the characters says, "The mountain labored and brought forth a fox." Ginshu's galvanic confrontation with the controlling god of Amatsuki is disposed of in seven minutes.

On the other hand, I now have a better appreciation of the backstory episode, "Silk Flower Sleeps." In my original blog post, I criticized the episode for diverting the plot for a precious episode. Now, though, I regard it as the philosophical linchpin of the story. Shamon's meeting with the child Kuchiha (and her ferocious inugami) alters his black-and-white view of humans and demons, and his new-found humility and humanity in turn influences others, including Toki when he arrives from the "other shore." I've come to like this episode more than the "action-packed" fox-spirit story that surrounds it.

Anyway, the voice cast is amazing:

• Fukuyama Jun (Toki) needs no introduction. He has starred in numerous shows, playing Lelouch in the Code Geass franchise, Koro-sensei in the Assassination Classroom properties, Kimihiro in the the xxxHoLiC franchise, Keita in the Inukami series, Lawrence in the Spice and Wolf series, Tarou in MM!, Souta in the Working! franchise, Yuko in the Ao no Exorcist franchise, and Ichimatsu in the Osomatsu-san series. He also starred as Panda in Shirokuma Cafe and Ayase in Okane ga nai!, both Orphan releases.
• Yusa Kouji (Kon) played Lau in Kuroshitsuji, Renzo in the Ao no Exorcist franchise, Vincent Law in Ergo Proxy, Sanosuke in the Hakuoki franchise, Hakutaku in Hoozuki no Reitetsu, Heki in Kingdom, Reiji in Mayonaka no Occult Koumuin, Kyousuke in Zettai Karen Children, Hyouga in the Uta no Prince-sama franchise, and Akira in Yowamushi Pedal.
• Paku Romi (Kuchiha) starred as Nana the singer in Nana and Edward Elric in both versions of Fullmetal Alchemist. She played Reiji in Dragon Drive, Maki in Air Master, Katsushihiro in Samurai 7, Hitsugaya Toushirou in the Bleach franchise, Alita Fortland in Murder Princess, 044 in Ultraviolet: Code 44, Popo in Kaiba, Irabu in Kuuchuu Buranko,Taiga in the Major franchise, the title role in Higepiyo, Noboru in Rainbow, Omasa in Onihei, Zoe in Shingeki no Kyoujin, and Alma in Radiant.
• Kitamuri Eri (Yakou) played Saya in Blood+, Alleyne in Queen's Blade, Hinata in Kanamemo, Rin in Kodomo no Jikan, Mahiro in Haiyoru! Nyaruani, Izumo in the Ao no Exorcist franchise, Megumi in High Score Girl, Mikagi in Arve Rezzle, Yachiyo in the Working! franchise, Araragi Karen in the *monogatari franchise, Okou in Hoozuki no Reitetsu, and Homura in Senran Kagura.
• Suwabe Junichi (Bonten) played Jae-ha in Akatsuki no Yona, Fuuma in the later X properties, Archer in the Fate Stay/Night franchise, Ren in the Uta no Prince-sama franchise, the titles roles in Cuticle Detective Inaba and Space Dandy, Yaichirou in Uchouten Kazoku, Worick in Gangsta, and Hayama in the Shokugeki no Souma franchise. 
• Nakata Jouji (Shamon) is best known as Alucard in Hellsing and Hellsing Ultimate and as the Count of Monte Christo in Gankuutsuou. He also played Ashen Eye in The Ancient Magus Bride, Bandou in Elfen Lied, Hijikata in Golden Kamuy, Vladimir Putin (!) in Mudazumo Naki Kaikaku, Jin Kunugi in Rahxephon, Otou in Working!, and Diethard Ried in Code Geass. He played Nelson the Bomb, Hyatt's criminal bomber, in AWOL Compression Remix, an Orphan release.
• Suzumura Kenichi (Ginshu) played Lavi in D.grayman, Kyouchi in Boys Be..., Kamui in the later X properties, Haru in Usagichan de Cue!, Nenji in Nanaka 6/17, Hideo in Hand Maid Mai OVA, Eiji in Gravion, Junpei in Ichigo 100%, Kazuto in UFO Princess Valkyrie, Toki in Code: Breaker, Hajime in Danna ga Nani..., Shingo in Prison School, Masato in the Uta no Prince-sama franchise, Iyami in the Osomatsu-san franchise, and Hinawa in Enen no Shoubitai.
• Morikubo Shoutarou (Tsuyukusa, Bonten's human-looking sidekick) played the title role in Majutsushi Orphen, Ichiro in Nerima Daikon Brothers, Tajima in 11 Eyes, Kazama in Freedom, adult Goro in Major and Major 2nd, Shikamaru Nara in Naruto, Bartolomeo in One Piece, Yuusuke in Yowamushi Pedal, Souji in Hakuoki, and Reiji in the Uta no Prince-sama franchise.
• Kosugi Juurouta (Utsubushi, Bonten's bird-like sidekick) played Touji in Ninku and de Morcerf in Gankuutsuou. He also played Eyesman in Bavi Stock, Oguma in Fire Emblem, Dr. Bayfarm in Joker: Marginal City, and Gisuke in Kage, all Orphan releases. 
• Ookawa Tooru (Sasaki Tadajirou, the Shogunate's demon hunter) played Hoya Hyougo in Hidamari no Ki, an Orphan release, Roy Mustang in Fullmetal Alchemist, Saito in the GITS SAC franchise, Noda Tatsuo (Nodame's father) in Nodame Cantabile, Gedächtnis in the Fireball series, and Jason in Ai no Kusabi (2012).
• Tanaka Atsuko (the dog-spirit inside Kuchiha) starred as Kusunagi Motoko in the Ghost in the Shell franchise. Her deep and instantly recognizable voice has been heard in numerous roles, including Konan in the Naruto franchise, Caster in the Fate/Stay franchise, and Jaguara in Wolf's Rain.
  
• Kirii Daisuke (Kurotobi) has appeared in Utawarerumono, Ouran High School Host Club, Bakuman, and Giant Killing, among many other featured roles.
  

The only quibble I have about the voice cast is that Suwabi Junichi (Bonten), Ookawa Tooru (Tadajirou), and Kirii Daisuke (Kurotobi) are all tonally similar when they're trying to convey suave menace and thereby frighten Toki. That's quite effective separately, but the effect is odd when two of them appear in the same scene.

The director, Furuhashi Kazuhiro, has numerous series to his credit, including Rurouni Kenshin, the first Hunter x Hunter, Getbackers, Zipang, Le Chevalier d'Eon, RD Sennou Chousashitsu, and last year's wonderful Dororo. The music is by Fukuhari Mari; Amatsuki is her only anime credit.

For this version, I've excised most of Ureshii's on-screen notes. Although they are cleverly animated, they're distracting and, for the most part, unnecessary. For the curious, I'm including the notes here.

Episode 1.

• (2:45) The Bakumatsu (1853-1867) refers to the final years of the Tokugawa Shogunate, when Japan's 250 years of isolation ended.
• (15:47) In this period, a Tokugawa ruled Japan as shogun, or military dictator. The Emperor was a religious figurehead.

Episode 2.

• (9:27) An inugami-tsuki is a person possessed by a dog spirit.
• (13:45) Japanese folklore interprets the markings on the moon as a rabbit making rice cakes. 
• (15:08) A kemono-tsuki is a person possessed by a beast.

Episode 3. The first three notes are about Yakou's speech to Toki.

• (5:37) In Buddhist legend, demons ride in a flaming chariot, looking for sinners.
• (5:42) Momotarou is a legendary demon slayer.
• (5:55) Shuten Douji is an ogre, 20 feet tall with flaming red hair. 
• (8:42) Aizu is just north of Edo (Tokyo). 
• (9:37) Sakamoto Ryouma was an anti-Shogunate nationalist and played an important role in modernizing Japan.

Episode 4.

• (9:10) Tengu (天狗, "heavenly dogs") are spirits that have both human and avian characteristics. 
• (20:03) The hakutaku (白澤 or 白沢) is a mythical, spiritual beast said to advise only virtuous rulers.

Episode 5.

• (4:44) Onmyoudo is a traditional Japanese esoteric cosmology. 

Episode 6.

• (6:59) Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) was a major philosopher and writer of the Enlightenment. The quote is from Emile. 
• (7:54) Kuchiha is spelling Rousseau phonetically with the kanji 流僧, meaning flowing priest.

Episode 7.

• (1:33) A song from "Ise Monogatari," a Japanese poetry anthology of the tenth century.

Episode 8.

• (1:31) A song from Oita Prefecture, in Kyushu.
• (5:49) Sannou is a god in the Chiyoda area of Tokyo, and the dog is his familiar.
• (7:26) The opening lines of the Heart Sutra, a Buddhist scripture renowned for its brevity and depth.
• (14:42) A metaphor for the ability to distinguish good and evil.

Episode 9.

• (5:39) Dentsuin Temple in Koishikawa is the burial place of Tokugawa Ieyasu's mother.
• (5:56) Two officials in the Shogunate.
• (6:03) Mito Tengu-ren was a nationalist group, Shieikan a famous dojo.
• (9:22) In modern Japan, Suharaya is a bookstore chain, and Mitsui is a bank.

Episode 10.

• (4:33) A pun on Toki's nickname, which means ibis in Japanese.

Episode 12.

• (2:05) In Japanese flower language, the konotegashiwa (or arborvitae) symbolizes eternal friendship.

Episode 13.

• (13:13) An inari is a small shrine for a good harvest, usually with a guardian fox. 

If you like them on-screen, our previous release has them all.

I've simplified the credits, removing the Ureshii contributors except for translation and translation checking: Lanithro and Phenie for the first half; laalg and Sylf for the second half. The Orphan credits include several contributors who are no longer with the team: archdeco, Saji, and of course, our departed friend CP. For this release, Nemesis and Iri filled in a few missing lines, ninjacloud redid the timing, I redid the editing and typesetting, and Topper3000 and Rezo QCed. The encode, from the R2J DVDs, is by guest encoder Iznjie Biznjie. He asked if he could make the encodes a little bigger, and when I agreed, he slipped in FLAC audio. So it goes.

So here's my third (after Ureshii and Ureshii-Orphan) and, I promise you, final take on Amatsuki. You can get it from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net. Unlike Orphan's usual practice, I'm not taking down the previous version. It's half the size, perfectly watchable, and features those moving on-screen notes. Ya pays your money (or not), and ya takes yer choice.