Usually spinoffs from video games are pretty crappy(Uwe Boll movies) but Devil May Cry seems to be distancing itself from this trend. Gamers know DMC is one of those action heavy anime inspired fighting games with a couple of puzzles thrown in so it doesn't seem too one-dimensional. The problem with fighting games is this one-dimensionality and it is even a bigger problem when writers try to breathe depth into the storyline of movies/animations. Look how badly the street fighter and mario movies turned out.

But I'm happy to say that Capcom seems to have learned its lesson and the DMC series is at least equal if not better than other contemporary animes. The plotline is linear and predictable, someone hires Dante to kill a demon and then at the end of the episode some poor demon gets whupped. But who cares?

For one, the action scenes are pretty good(what do you expect). The style and flair of the hero, Dante, is kept intact by the superb sword/gunfights and the occasional droll humorous scenes. Yet without being too video game-ish, the episodes seems more focused on the relationships between humans and demons(akuma).

A recurring motif is nature of humanity and how each of us has a dark side. To simplify matters, usually the really evil guy in an episode turns out to be a demon in disguise but more often than not DMC shows people at their worst: untrusting, greedy and violent. It's cliched but each episode has hints of redemption...without spoiling the story too much, one of the episodes even suggests that demons can define their lives.

Overall a great series.

contact info: chrash@easy.com