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Copyright © 1998 AIC * Pioneer LDC, Inc * TV TOKYO
Released by Pioneer Entertainment
Volume 1
60 minutes
PIVA-1541S
$24.95 subtitled
PIVA-1541D
$19.95 English dubbed
Volume 2
60 minutes
PIVA-1542S
$24.95 subtitled
PIVA-1541D
$19.95 English dubbed





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by Charles McCarter
The Eye of God has been defeated. Jinnai's empire has been destroyed, and
peace settles upon the Magnificent World. EL HAZARD 2 picks up right where
the first OVA series left off. Now there are new villains, new problems,
and some old friends thrown in to make the ride more comfortable.
Miz and Fujisawa are going to be married, or so it seems. At the last
minute, Fujisawa runs away, saying that he needs to sort things out.
Everyone and their dog (or in this case, Ura) goes off in pursuit of him.
Along the way, they discover a secret temple and another Ifurita. Jinnai,
meanwhile, wandering the desert, comes across another temple wherein lies a
girl in suspended animation. Thinking that maybe this time it will actually
work, he sets her free. When she tells him she knows of a superweapon of
unimaginable power, Jinnai is overjoyed.
Of course, things are not always what they seem, and once Kalia gains access
to the weapon, she drops her pretense of being nice to the others or allies
with Jinnai. She is simply going to destroy everything because that is what
she is supposed to do.
There are several problems with this OVA. The first episode starts off
really slow, with virtually no plot development. In fact, at first it seems
that all that's going to happen is that Fatora is going to keep trying to
impersonate Makoto and attempt to hit on all the female cast members. It's
not funny, it doesn't go anywhere, and it gets really boring really quickly.
The second big problem is with the new villainess, Kalia. While she is
supposed to be sort of one-dimensional, she's just plain boring. You know
she's going to turn on everyone and try and destroy them, but worse than
that, the viewer feels indifferent about it. And when she finally reveals
her true nature as evil, the way she is drawn doesn't suggest evil so much
as cartoonish supervillainy. She doesn't look frightening or awe-inspiring,
she just looks goofy.
And then there's Makoto. All he does is run around shouting people's names
("Ifurita!" "Yuba-san!" "Kalia!" etc..) and standing in front of someone
when someone else is going to shoot him. Is that all he's good fora
human shield? Actually, Makoto does do more than this, but really not until
the end of the series.
However, once the story gets moving, it becomes the sort of action/adventure
one would expect from El Hazard. The priestesses get to use a lot of their
powers, although most of the time they seem ineffective against Kalia and
this new weapon the "Trigger for Destruction." Even Fujisawa gets to show
off his power since he winds up sober for the last two episodes.
Ifurita fans will enjoy this series. Even though she's not the "same"
Ifurita from the first series, she's still everyone's favorite demon
goddess. The fight between Kalia and Ifurita is worth the price of
admission alone, and of course Ifurita's help is what turns the tide of
battle in the end.
The animation is good quality. Since this is an OVA, the quality is better
than the television series THE WANDERERS. The music is pretty good too,
although sometimes the BGM sounds rather generic. Magical power displays
are animated quite beautifully and really shine in this video.
EL HAZARD fans will probably enjoy this release, as its mix of action and
humor remains faithful to the spirit of the original. All the old favorites
are back, and they are none the worse for wear. Those unfamiliar with EL
HAZARD should probably see the first OVA series before watching this one, as
all the characters are already established. Although plagued by a really
below-average, uninteresting first episode, EL HAZARD 2 manages to redeem
itself and come out better than
average.  |
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