Kyo Kara Maoh! Volume 1

Kyo Kara Maoh! Volume 1

Hawkeye

From hilarious homosexual high jinx to the terrors and dangers of war, Kyo Kara Maoh is an anime that will delight those yaoi fans out there. The story all begins when unsuspecting Yuri Shibuya, your average high school student, gets flushed down a toilette. He’s dumped face first into a strange world where there’s demons tribes, and he’s the long awaited demon king! Follow poor Yuri through his adventures with his handsome lieges in his quest to stop the war between humans and demons, and his struggle to maintain an average life.

In episode one, Flushed Into An Alternate World, we meet Yuri Shibuya and right off the bat he’s sucked into the demon world through a toilette. Here we learn that the former Queen has retired and Yuri is the long awaited new demon king. While the queens four sons (all by different fathers) are suppose to help the new king, Wolfram and Gwendal show nothing but distain for this new reluctant king.

Duel! Hot Boy Vs. Baseball Boy, episode two, things only heat up more for Yuri, as the lands strange customs end him with not only a male fiancé but in a duel. Things really begin to heat up in the duel when Yuri’s opponent proves to have power over the element of fire. Will Yuri defeat his foe and show Wolfram and Gwendal that he truly deserves the throne?

In episode three, Yuri Shibuya! I AM The Dragon King! Yuri sneaks off with Wolfram and his group of elite soldiers to deal with a conflict in a far off village between humans and demons. By doing so he begins to understand the cruelty and damage of war on the people and the land. His resolve hardens and he finally agrees to become the demon king, but at the end of his carination he’s sucked through a waterfall and thrown back into the human word.

In episode four, What’s Next? The Ultimate Weapon!? Now home, Yuri has resumed his normal life, except that he’s decided to get back into his favorite hobby, base ball. In this episode we learn all about Yuris parents and how exactly he was born into being the demon king. While his mother is reminiscing, Yuri ends up back in the demon world and seeks the advice of Gwendal on how to prevent a war. Gwendal explains that to prevent the war Yuri needs to disinterest the humans, thus the search for the Ultimate weapon begins.

In episode five, Sailors And A Spoiled Brat, Yuri, Conrad and Wolfram all set out together to find the demon sword. But what they thought was going to be just another luxury ship ride turns into quite an adventure when male pirates wearing tattered school girl uniforms attack the ship.

The animation is surprisingly good. There weren’t any corners cut and all the scenes had vivid coloring, fluid motion, and a unique flair to it. I’ve yet to see an anime that could hold its own against Kyo Kara Maohs portrayal of elemental magic. I was completely blown away by the detail in the magic scenes. From water dragons to lions created from flame the viewer will not be disappointed by the beauty of these scenes.

The sound was about average, as in there was nothing bad but nothing particularly good about it. When the music needed to be dramatic, it was dramatic. When it needed to be quiet and peaceful, it was quiet and peaceful. Often in animes that are simply silly and fun there’s always at least one character voice that grates on your nerves, however I’m happy to say that, that isn’t the case in this series. All the voices were fitting and done well.

From eccentric characters to a unique plot, Kyo Kara Maoh does not disappoint as far as originality goes. How ever the blatant homosexual jokes leaned towards the corny side and the story line seemed a bit random and rushed. This isn’t for everyone. You have to be completely comfortable with the idea of men loving men to enjoy it. This is an anime that doesn’t take itself seriously and because of this the viewer can’t take it seriously. If you’re looking for a something fun and silly to watch then Kyo Kara Maoh is for you.

Entertainment: 8
It’s not the best anime, but its certainly not the worst, and anything that makes me go “Hahahaha that’s so wrong but so great” is defiantly worth a look.

Technical: 5
I could of gone for more goodies, the only really good feature on the disc was the Character Data, that and the neat little collector film card that was a special bonus.

Overall: 7

DVD Features: Episodes 1-5, English Language, Japanese Language, English Subtitles, 16X9 Anamorphic Widescreen, Scene Access, Character Data, Text less Opening, Geneon Preview