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Vol 2 Issue 6
[ANIME REVIEWS]

Devil Hunter Yohko
— by Peter Cahill

Unless you're already a big fan of the DEVIL HUNTER series, this tape isn't worth your time, let alone the money. (Especially since none of this is new!) But if you are a fan and you haven't had a chance to buy these tapes separately, then this is a pretty good deal for you.
   Don't get me wrong, I got a big kick out of the original DEVIL HUNTER YOHKO, but the two stories and set of music videos in this tape hardly seem worthy of the first installment. Episode 2 has cute potential, with Yohko's self-appointed "business manager," Chigako, planning an ad campaign to increase "sales." Then little Azusa shows up, announcing that Yohko's grandmother has instructed her to learn the art of Devil Hunting from Yohko. Grandma is noticeably absent from both 2 and 3, and she is missed. Most of the stuff that made the first show so good is missing here. And so the story plods along with a simplistic and trite "sidekick-becomes-hostage" plotline straight out of a SUPERFRIENDS episode, complete with preachy ending.
   Episode 3 is worse, making it better! At least it doesn't even try to take itself seriously. The romantic and tragic storyline here is solidly geared for teen girls, while the visuals are shooting mostly for the boys. It's hardly original or exciting, but Yohko's bombastic soliloquies are so over the top they're worth the effort! It's light comedy, which doesn't get much lighter than this.
   The music videos of 4-EVER! present an interesting twist. The two episodes before it are dubbed, but the videos are subtitled--dubbing the music would be pointless. But most of the appeal for the music is the singing by the voice actors, who have been dubbed over in the episodes! Granted, most of the videos are montages of art from the show or trailer-style strings of scenes, but the two live-action videos showcasing Hisakawa Aya (Yohko) and Yoshida Konami (Azusa) seem almost absurdly disconnected from everything else!
   Again, unless you're already a fan of the show, this is a renter at best. Aside from DHY 2, the rest isn't so bad, but it's not exactly stellar. Thankfully, volumes 5 and up get better...

  DEVIL HUNTER YOHKO 2, 3 & 4-EVER!
©1992, 1993 Toho / Madhouse
English dubbed and subtitled, VHSY/023D $19.98
Released in U.S.A. by A.D.Vision, Inc.
Approx. 90 minutes
Now Available


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