Descendants of Darkness DVD Collection

Descendants of Darkness is an anime series with shounen-ai (boys' love) elements that is very enjoyable to watch. It is absorbing and beautifully animated. Japanese animation is known for its meticulous, artistic details and this one is no exception, from the fiery Suzaku to the mists of Kyoto. The characters are strong and believable: Tatsumi, Watari, Tsuzuki, Hisoka, Muraki, each distinctly different, all beautifully drawn. Even the villain Muraki is so elegant that it's not possible to completely hate him.This anime is for mature adult, with plenty of blood and an underlying sexual theme. Yet the sexual content is what charges the show; without which it would be just a regular detective story with a rather mediocre fare (vampire, possessed violin, tarot cards, serial murders, nothing new here). The supernatural angle is impressive, but this, also, is not unique. What makes us glued to the show is what happens between Tsuzuki and Muraki: the tension between the hero and the villain is not one of antagonism but sexual attraction. Muraki's obsession with Tsuzuki is overpowering, and one wonders if Tsuzuki is truly repulsed by it. When Muraki won a night with Tsuzuki in a poker game, Tsuzuki could have left, he didn't have to keep his promise to a villain. But Tsuzuki was submissive. Is he a man who always keeps his end of the bargain, or did he in fact want it? He seems to always make himself close enough for Muraki to grab and embrace him.Even so, there is no sexually explicit scene involving Muraki and Tsuzuki. Near kisses, the suggestive caressing of a wine glass, light necking, none which can be considered offensive. Muraki's advances are not vulgar, in spite of his sinister nature, he is a romantic. It's a credit to the animators that the shounen-ai is presented in scenes that do not turn people off, yet brimming with passion and sensuality. It's hard not to be moved by the scene where Muraki held Hisoka in his arms while a romantic song played in the background (end of episode 2). Or the kiss in episode 12.The relationship between Tsuzuki and Hisoka is less complex, but just as intense. Personally, I don't think the affection they share is more than love between older and younger brothers. But it is true love, the kind that thinks of the other before oneself. In the first story, Tsuzuki jumped in the line of a dragon blast in order to protect Hisoka, and in the last, which realistically depicts how one falls into depression, Tsuzuki was saved only because Hisoka was willing to risk everything to save him.Perhaps the reason the show is so appealing is because it focuses on human emotions; a reflection of our own fears and desires (including fear of the after life). It draws us in, causing us to ignore the oddities (like the count and the gushoshins) and the plot holes. Still, the stories move well, and the morbid premise is balanced with a lot of humor -- although I fail to see the need to turn Tsuzuki into a dog for comic relief. Going back and forth between such a silly childish caricature to an exquisite man with the power to summon the shikigami is simply ridiculous.The dubbing is for the most part quite good, Dan Green did a wonderful job as Tsuzuki. The same can't be said of Eric Stuart, his dreadful (British?) accent gives Watari a stereotypically gay voice, a far cry from the delightful Kansai dialect by Seki Toshihiko. I also like Muraki's voice better in the original Japanese. There's a certain elegance and detachment in it that is missing in the English version. But gushoshin is infinitely more tolerable in English with a male voice. Music is okay, some great BGM like the devil's trill but in some places it's too loud and cacophonous. And the closing song is truly awful.The only real disappointment, however, is that the series only consists of 13 episodes. Many questions remain unanswered -- I would love to know more of Muraki's past (like the story with his right eye and how he acquired his power) and of Tsuzuki's. I'd also like to see more of Tatsumi, the serious sweet secretary of the ministry who likes to wipe out those he doesn't like. Even Muraki seems afraid of him. But Muraki is still alive and the manga continues, I'm sure more anime episodes will be made in the future.

descendants of darkness is one of my favorites i really liked it (WATCH IT IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES) the colours are waaaaaaaaaaaaw its not an action movie nether a love story its kind of using powers and spells to call monsters or Gods (i loved it its unique) its a story of a guardians of death guiding the lost souls that wander the mortal world ( dead detective tsuzuki, his partner (or lover? not sure)hisoka and other detectives against Dr.muraki and his plans . tsuzuki and hisoka are dead not alive and the reason of their death is mysteriuos to make long story short, i will sammuries the anime volumes volume 1 its a story of a vampire singer that was used by muraki, tsuzuki and his partner will be introduced to each other and handeling the first mission or taskvolume 2 there was a guy that had retina transplantation , and that retina belonges to another guy who had acontract with a devil but he died, and the contract was written in his eye retina, tsuzuki and hisoka will help this guyvolume 3 its a bit different than the others, tsuzuki and hisoka will be travelling in a ship and muraki will be on that ship with his patient who has a sever heart disease, and murders will take place on that ship and there will be no clues or evidences enough to solve the murdersin volume 4 which is the final volume ( i hope more volumes of this anime will be released soon), the true story of tsuzuki and Dr. muraki ,Dr. muraki's intentions and true identity , and most of the mysterious things in the privious volumes will be clear and there will be a nice endingi tried my best and thanks for reading it

Descendants of Darkness (Yami no Matsuei) is one of those rare Animes you can't help but fall in love with after the first episode. I watched four of the episodes in Japanese on the internet, and then decided to buy it from amazon.The plot is divided into four parts: Vampire's Lure, Devil's Song, Tarot Curse and Demons Reckon. The different plots for each part are clever, and there's always some sort of twist. To accompany the plot is the character development with Tsuzuki Asato and Hisoka Kurosaki, making Descendants of Darkness well-balanced.The animation is consistently brilliant, and the Japanese voice actors suit the character very well. Tsuzuki's voice actor, Dan Green, does a great job, and I find Hisoka's voice actor more amusing then anything else, what with his constant monotoned voice. I do like Muraki's voice as well, and I believe the dubbers did an all-around good job, unlike most dubs.I feel that this show is a mixture of slash and minor shounen-ai. I do not believe the main love relationship is between Tsuzuki and Muraki. That relationship is more one-sided, and Muraki's form of love for Tsuzuki is a bit twisted. Personally, I prefer the love between Tsuzuki and Hisoka, but that relationship can also be taken as a strong bond of friendship. All I really know is that I get extremely happy over the Tsuzuki and Hisoka scenes in the last two episodes, muahaha.The ending to the show was one of the kinds that could be continued, but it leaves the viewers satisfied nevertheless. This is definitely one of my favourite Animes of all time, and I strongly recommend others to watch it, because I don't really see flaws in it.Well, I suppose the only disappointment I suffered from was the fact it ended so soon. But, I still love it.

I had read up quite a bit on Yami no Matsuei (Descendants of Darkness) before I saw this series. I was pretty psyched about it when I started watching it and I instantly fell in love with Tsuzuki. However, this series ultimately proved too dark and violent for my liking so I stopped watching it mid-series. If you're into constant bloodshed and really odd plot twists (as in "Wow, I didn't see that coming" and also, "?!... That was weird...") then I would suggest giving this a try. Certainly not for the faint of heart.

So this is a late review just have to say it was fast and I got it 2 days before it was said I would get it. The box was a little damage but the DVDs had no scratches at all! :D

Descendants of Darkness is one of those anime's that all anime fans should own, its beautifully drawn, heart racing and the characters have the ability to capture your hearts in the mere 13 episodes of the series. The english dub is okay, and one or two voices have been done for a funny effect, but overall its pretty good! (And that's coming from someone who doesn't usually like dubbed voices!) The opening and closing themes "Eden and Love Me" are really catchy and fit the series.The series is about Tsuzuki a cheerful, cake eating detective also known as a Guardian of Death in the Ministry of Hades (A group of people who guide the undead to peace) .The series starts off with Tsuzuki being partnered with the serious aloof sixteen year old Hisoka Kurosaki,to solve the case of a string of attacks, believed to be the work of a vampire.The series although does have a shonen-ai theme as the main antagonist has an deep infatuation with Tsuzuki, (So people who find two men together offensive perhaps shouldn't buy this). However, the storyline is so beautifully done, it should appeal to everyone.The only bad thing about this series is that it ended at 13 episodes, and beacause of this will draw you into buying the manga also.. XD

A little slow to start, give it three of four episodes and the true spirit of the story flops out - oh this is a bad review sorry :)The bad guy rocks and its full of almost guy on guy scenes (Gotta love that)Don't read the manga its confusing (well for my lil'brain) Buy the anime