Review - Mermaid Forest Vol. 2 - Bitter Flesh
Reviewed by Richard Brownell on 2.7.2008.
Score: 8/10
The first volume of Mermaid Forest does a great job of setting up the Japanese mermaid legends, but it doesn't do a lot to suck viewers into the story beyond that. Yuta gets a starring role in all three episodes, but his new female companion, Mana, is barely present. Thankfully, volume 2 goes a long way to alleviate these issues and puts Mermaid Forest on a path similar to those who've watched other Rumiko Takahashi anime.
This volume starts off with two episodes named after the show itself. Taking place in modern day unlike episodes 2 and 3, Mana gets struck by a car and is whisked away to a hospital before Yuta can intercede. After being pronounced dead, the doctor steals the body and brings it to a house deep in Mermaid Forest, named for the mermaid body that is supposedly buried there. Yuta must find out what has become of Mana, why this strange doctor is stealing what he presumes is a dead body, and of course what all this talk of a dead mermaid is about.
In the last episode on the disc, Yuta and Mana both fall off and cliff and a huge man beast all covered in bandages takes Mana before Yuta is revived. If you're noticing a theme here, yes, Mermaid Forest is definitely a show sticking with the damsel in distress theme. Yuta meets up with a local old man who tells him the story of the brute who stole Mana and the two of them decide to hunt it down and save her. But the monster has compassion and doesn't mean any harm to Mana. So what is his secret?
Both of the stories in the second volume have the same theme. They both involve people who are only partially affected by exposure to mermaid flesh and blood. One involves a person who is only a little bit like a deformed one, another much closer. Things aren't as clear cut as death, deformed, or immortal as the first volume would lead you to believe. Depending on your luck and how much mermaid you were exposed to, any number of fates could befall you. But the overwhelming message is still that greed is a bad thing. Trying to become immortal by eating mermaid flesh can only lead to torment, whether it's through death or deformation, or by living a painful lonely life as an immortal.
While the first volume could have led to anything, it turns out that Mermaid Forest follows the very familiar pattern of a journey anime. The two main characters, Yuta and Mana, are on a journey, to nowhere in particular, and each episode or two tells a unique story about their adventures. It's not an innovative storytelling technique, but it the subject matter lends itself to it, as it allows for lots of different stories surrounding the mermaid legend.
Yet again, one of the key problems with Mermaid Forest is its lack of visual quality. The colors are strong, the character designs by Masaki Sato are to the usual Rumiko Takahashi level, but it just doesn't flow smoothly. Were it to be done in the 80s or early 90s, it would feel normal, but as a 2003 show it's a bit dated.
The dark stories of Mermaid Forest are a nice change of pace from most anime, which are usually attempting some kind of school hilarity or are deep philosophical mech-filled sci-fi. We don't often get relatively simple storytelling with subject matter not touched by any other anime. Volume 2 of Mermaid Forest brings the story into its own and sets the pace for the rest of the show.
Special Features
DVD Features
· English Dolby Digital 2.0
· Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0
· English Subtitles
· Running Time Approx. 75 Min.
· 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen
DVD Extra
· Production Art Gallery
· Geneon Previews
