Speed Grapher

Full Title: Speed Grapher
Genres: Drama, Mystery, Psychological, Romance, Supernatural
Episodes: 24
Uploaded By: Mavrik
My Age Rating: MA (Strong Language, Graphic Violence, Adult Situations, Sexual Themes, Brief Nudity)

Ten years after the Bubble War, Japan has gone to hell. While the poor have no hope of ever climbing out of their debts, the rich have become bored with their life of ease and splendor. To compensate for this, the elite can join a secret club where the worst of their fetishes and sexual desires are fulfilled, all the while pulling strings so that they will always remain in power. Into this world of corruption and greed steps Tatsumi Saiga, a world renowned war photographer with no care for money or fame, however, he is caught up in the worst of the corruption. While working for an honest tabloid, he discovers the club and infiltrates it to learn more. Unfortunately for him, he learns too much and is caught while snapping a picture of the club's prized possession, a fifteen year old girl with the power to turn people's deepest desires into reality. He is immediately sentenced to death, but before his execution, the girl kisses him and he is granted the ability to detonate anything he takes a picture of. He uses this power to escape but not before killing many aristocratic members and taking the girl with him.

Despite the reviews I read elsewhere, this series is not bad at all. Yes, there is an overload of sexual innuendos and adult situations, and yeah, the "everything photographed blows up" trick sounds, um, idiotic, but there really is a pretty good reason why that's the power he got. (You'll have to watch it to see.) The story itself is rightfully superhero-ish at first (a guy with a super power taking out villains with different super powers), but it doesn't stay that way. In the end, this show is a direct shot at the corruption, greed, and lack of humanity many people in power gain over the years by simply being in power too long, and the story is really quite fun and interesting (if overly pervish at times.)

The production for this show will never win any awards, but it's not a complete failure either. The art style is blatantly overused (most of the characters look like clones of people from more successful series). The animation is not always smooth, but it's not terrible. The music is a real let down during some parts, while in other parts it is the best thing to happen to the series. The opening theme part is average at best, and the ending sequence is kinda boring. Likewise, the voice acting is pretty much give and take but also never gets too bad, and for as corny as the story is, the dialog is actually pretty good. The major complaint I have with this series is the amateurish storytelling. It's lacking a certain timing and flow that would boost this series way ahead of where it stands now. Though when it comes down to it, I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys action anime, superhero series, or anything with lots of drama. Overall, it held my attention, and that is saying something. This anime is just good plain unadulterated fun.

My Rating: 6.7/10 (Good)