Copyright © Nagai Go / Dynamic Planning, Inc. / Nippon Columbia Co. Ltd
Released in North America by A.D.V. Films
VHSBL/001S
50 minutes
Subtitled
$24.95

"The performance of duty requires sacrifice." Substitute the word death for sacrifice and the entire plot of BLACK LION is nicely summarized. Burned to death, cut in half, crushed, head ripped off, eyes plucked out—you name a messy way to die and this title probably has it. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Shishimaru is a young talented ninja whose girlfriend, Oyu, is killed by the fearless Ginnai Doma. Ginnai is the henchmen of Nobunaga Saboru Oda, a ruthless tyrant dedicated to the destruction of nearly all life and the conquering of Japan. Nobunaga has tanks, lasers, and robots. Our heroes have, well, swords. See the drama?
Actually, that's the limit to the suspense. The OVA degenerates from establishing scenes to a series of chases where the good guys try increasingly outlandish methods of trying to kill Ginnai in an attempt to stop the total annihilation of the ninja clans. I had VIOLENCE JACK and TERMINATOR flashbacks all through the last half hour. How do you kill someone who is basically immortal? Make a speech, swing your sword, and hope for the best!
Even the animation seems below average, seeming rough even for a television show. While the movements and camera direction are passable, the drawings and character designs leave a bit to be desired, even for fans of retro-styles. It seems to have been thrown together simply to sell itself to the graphic violence market. Having seen FIST OF THE NORTH STAR, I appreciate how a production staff labors to invent new and uniquely disturbing means of death. Here BLACK LION fails as well, lacking the in-your-face panache the more successful shows possess.
And this is interesting, because the creator of BLACK LION is none other than Nagai Go, creator of DEVILMAN. But then again, perhaps this difference in quality is why more people know DEVILMAN and not BLACK LION.
The anime would have been interesting if more time had been spent developing the plot. Who gave Nobunaga his power? What interest do aliens have in Japan? And while we're at it, why does it take someone with all this advanced hardware 34 years to conquer Japan? (Perhaps he took a few breaks between massacring whole armies). I was also curious about the old man with all the high technology. If he is so concerned about the future being altered, why does he bother to hide his high-tech equipment? It's not as if killing half of Japan with napalm hasn't already toughened the natives up to a little bit of gadget use.
I wish I had something positive to say about this show. Sadly, it led me all the way to the credits without ever hinting it could be something more than it was. Disparaging someone else's creative work is always inherently unfair, but I doubt if Mr. Nagai would enjoy having the memory of this show being dredged from the grave.