region 2 DVD: pub: Revelation Films. FUN72601. 1 DVD 125 minutes 5 episodes plus extras. Price: £15.99 (UK).

check out websites: www.revfilms.com and www.funimation.com/hellgirl

'Hell Girl' is perhaps best described as an anime version of the Faust legend, but with a uniquely Japanese twist...

There is a website, Hell Link, which is only accessible at midnight. If the seeker can find it, they are confronted with a chillingly simple screen containing three things: a distinctly unsettling welcome message, 'We will take revenge on your behalf', a box in which to type the name of the person against whom the seeker wishes revenge and a submit button. (Someone has very thoughtfully set up an identical site http://roffel.at/jigoku/ . I wouldn't suggest trying to use it though. Just in case...)

Once the request is submitted, the screen fades and the site is gone, but shortly afterwards the seeker is contacted and transported to a tranquil and very beautiful open space by a lake at sunset, where they meet Enma Ai, Hell Girl, and her three assistants. There the seeker is given a straw doll with a scarlet ribbon around its neck, untying the ribbon means he or she has accepted the covenant and revenge will follow almost instantaneously.



It sounds like everyone's ideal revenge fantasy but there is a price. Anyone accepting Ai's covenant is condemned to hell after their own death. As she herself warns, 'Curses come home to roost'.

Each episode follows much the same format. The seeker is usually a victim in some form who has been let down by earthly authorities and cannot escape or seek redress in any other way. There are three formulaic scenes in each episode which narrowly avoid becoming repetitive by focussing on the characters involved and their notion of hell. At the same time, we gradually learn more and more about Ai and her environment, tantalising little glimpses that hint at something hidden.

The episodes themselves deal with the sort of situations all too often faced in real life and there is a certain satisfaction in seeking the end result, even though the instigators are fully aware of their own fates. Sometimes, though, life just becomes too much to bear.

The graphics are striking. Yes, we have the usual anime shoujo faces with the overly large eyes, but they are very expressive here and fortunately lack the all-too-common and occasionally irritating sparkle. The characters are believable, even Ai herself despite her oddly doll-like and expressionless appearance. But the background artwork is truly exquisite, note the eerie effect of the patterns on Ai's kimono, and the soundtrack near-perfect.

The subject of each story evokes an emotional response. Episode 1, 'From Beyond The Twilight', deals with bullying, its awful results and it's hard not to really feel sympathy for Mayumi and loathing for her tormentor. Episode 2, 'The Possessed Girl', is about stalking and is quite simply frightening. Episode 3, 'The Tarnished Mound', has to do with loyalty and self-sacrifice. The callous cruelty of episode 4, 'Silent Cries', brought a lump to my throat while episode 5, 'The Woman In The Tall Tower', concerns arrogance and the abuse of power.

All in all this is a gem of an anime. While the idea is relatively simple, the execution is not. Despite the formulaic nature of the stories, this first volume does not become monotonous in the least and if the series continues in this vein it will be something to treasure.

Joules Taylor