In this first volume of the new series from Studio Bones (the geniuses who brought us Cowboy Bebop: the Movie, Ouran High School Host Club, and Wolf’s Rain) we seem to be following The Black Reaper as he goes about his business as a mercenary. The authorities, however, are hot on his trail, or rather, on the alert as they watch Star BK201 for activity. To do so requires heavy dependence on the necessarily new field of astronomics, which is used to target, track, and monitor the stars in the new sky in an attempt to keep tabs on all active Contractors (and perhaps other metaphysical anomalies).
So far, I love this series. Each Contractor we encounter seems to have a completely different power or talent, and the anime is never exactly explicit about what that power actually IS, so it’s a bit of a riddle to suss out exactly what each Contractor is able to do, aside from the visual evidence. There’s a flip side to being a Contractor, however. No longer regarded as human, due to their strange powers and their dependence on the contract to keep them alive, each Contractor has a “Price” to pay after using their powers. For some, the Price is relatively normal, like re-tying your shoes, or eating a lot of food. For others, the Price is somewhat more abnormal, and prevents them from blending into normal society, as their Price reminds one of the unheard and invisible rules followed by persons with OCD.
The art is fantastic, as well, though I would expect no less from Bones, and the story is gripping and fast-paced. Of the five episodes on this disc, each smaller story arc seems split between two episodes, so that gives me another reason to collect the DVDs, rather than wait for this fantastic show to be aired on television. Unfortunately, 5 divided by 2 leaves me with one episode left over, so I am itching for the next disc!
Any fan of Bebop or even Witch Hunter Robin will absolutely enjoy this show, but I think it’s intense action and approachable storyline (Hey, we’ve ALL been dropped into this new reality with no prologue, so there’s nothing to ‘catch up’ on.) will appeal to all anime fans. Be wary though, some of the talents are a bit gruesome, so perhaps the younger kids should refrain from watching until you’re positive you can convince them that the likelihood of a Contractor coming for their life is pretty slim.