In Review: Mouryou no Hako

In Fall 2008, I picked up this series called Mouryou no Hako. At first, I wasn't going to pick it up because the character designs are by CLAMP, whose extreme style I'm not too fond of. However, when I learned that it was going to be animated by Madhouse, I decided to give it a go anyway.

The series did not disappoint. As a matter of fact, I was pleasantly surprised by the first episode, not only because CLAMP who is known for its stick-thin figures and impossibly pretty bishounens, downplayed the shiny a little bit (although one character still managed to look amazingly like Fei from Tsubasa Chronicles), but also because the story turns out to be a rich fusion of detective-mystery and folk religion/occultism. The result is an unusual anime series that is as mind-boggling as it is revelatory, as absurd as it is procedural, and as sinister as it is dreamy.

TITLE: Mouryou no Hako (lit. "The Box of Goblins")
GENRE: detective-mystery, occult, crime, horror
DIRECTOR: Nakamura Ryosuke
ORIGINAL CREATOR: Kyogoku Natsuhiko
ANIMATION STUDIO: Madhouse
CHARACTER DESIGNS: CLAMP
ORIGINAL RUN: October 2008 - December 2008
NUMBER OF EPISODES: 13 + special

The series begins with Detective Kiba of the Tokyo Police called in to investigate a very strange case involving a girl hit by a train. In the course of his investigation, he finds an eerie box-shaped hospital in the middle of nowhere, meets the victim's beautiful and mysterious former actress sister and her besotted companion, the family lawyer who says that the victim was set to inherit a large fortune, and the brilliant but taciturn doctor hired to restore the victim's health. As Kiba becomes more and more involved in the case, police begin finding young girls' limbs strewn around the countryside just as a brand new religion gains an escalating number of followers. Shortly after this series of bizarre incidents, the victim in Kiba's case disappears and a ransom note is found, leading the police to fear the worst: that the victim has been taken by the serial murderer. But are the two cases related? What sinister things are the victim's family hiding? And does the leader of this new religion in fact have more to do with these preternatural occurrences than anybody is willing to consider?
Mouryou no Hako is a mixture of old-school detective work and the occult.

WATCH:

Mouryou no Hako OP Clip [YouTube]
Mouryou no Hako ED Clip [YouTube]
Mouryou no Hako PV [YouTube]

I mentioned earlier that I picked up Mouryou no Hako back when it first aired, but what I didn't say is that I actually put the series on-hold after only three episodes. The series was just so confusing that I decided to leave it for a while to allow myself to gain some clarity. It's now 2010 and I just finished watching the entire Mouryou no Hako anime series yesterday. As it turns out, clarity took me more than a year to acquire. :) In hindsight, I should have at least given Mouryou no Hako a seven-episode viewing because that is actually when things start to make sense.

That said, the series could be neatly divided into two segments: episodes 1-6 is the part where all the players and plot devices are introduced and episodes 7-13 is where you can make sense out of all the darkly sinister tangles created in the previous episodes. While the first part is a bizarre mixture of old-school detective work and a crash course in Japan's folkloric spiritualism, the second is purely revelatory and nearly dispenses of all the religious connotations heavily used in the former.

Mouryou no Hako opens with a shock: a girl's head in a box.

The most striking thing about Mouryou no Hako is its no-nonsense introduction. From the very beginning, the series dispels you of the notion that this anime is going to be anything BUT dark, macabre and absolutely strange.

The opening scene is that of a man carrying a box containing a girl's head. This is then followed by a completely mundane scene about two young girls who develop an unusually close friendship. Enter an entirely different set of characters -- a fantasy novelist who may be suffering from depression, a newspaper editor checking for anomalies in a new religion that is sweeping the countryside, a private eye hired to look for the missing heir of a rich tycoon, and a female private investigator working on a bizarre murder case involving young girls' severed limbs. What do these have to do with anything? Everything, as it turns out but you don't know that until the final episode. Just when you think you have a fairly good grasp of what's going on and of everybody's hidden motives, think again because you are most likely wrong. The anime keeps you guessing right to the very end. In that regard, it is absolutely successful as a mystery.

True that after the first six episodes, Mouryou no Hako pretty much dissolves into nothing more than expository dialogue, I feel that this was necessary. Otherwise, nothing would make sense and we'd all be left with half a brain, or none at all. So, despite this very obvious handicap, the series still manages to keep its audiences riveted by doing what all good mysteries do: save the best for last.

Compared to the other deviant relationship portrayed in the series, the yuri in Mouryou no Hako is mild.

BUY:

Mouryou no Hako DVDs @ Play-Asia.com
Mouryou no Hako DVDs @ Yesasia.com

As an anime that borrows even its title from Japan's folkloric past and occultism, Mouryou no Hako is strangely not about occults. I might even go on to say that the series is actually a straightforward detective-mystery with only splashes of spiritualism to make the story more flavorful. And yet, if you take out the religious aspect, the effect would be a lot like lobotomy. The series just won't be the same. That is how integral and intricately connected the spiritual part of Mouryou no Hako is to the overall story even as it really has nothing to do with anything.

"The difference between Terror and Horror is the difference between awful apprehension and sickening realization: between the smell of death and stumbling against a corpse." ~ Devendra Varma from The Gothic Flame

As a horror, Mouryou no Hako does not rely on a terrifying build-up. Sure, there is a lot of building up going on but that is more for the benefit of heightening the mystery rather than heightening your terror. What it does, and it does it very well, is to shock and disturb you with each new revelation. The horror does not end with the discovery of the head in the box or the images of severed limbs strewn across the countryside. The biggest horror of all is how the show portrays the extent of the characters' depravity. If you think it's bad, believe when I say that it's actually much worse than you previously suspect.

In the end, you can't help but feel relieved that Madhouse decided to end the series with a special episode, told from the perspective of a character who after her initial introduction virtually disappeared from the storyline, and who simultaneously recaps and concludes the story with a thought-provoking question, realization and new-found determination. This at least makes you feel like the anime ended in a lighter note, even as this note is by far darker than the conclusion of any other anime series out there.

Mouryou no Hako is replete with visual cues and symbols
Aside from its disturbing yet absorbing mystery, Mouryou no Hako also offers a lot on the aesthetics side. The visuals are astounding -- they're beautiful, colorful, gorgeous, animated, symbolic. Especially looking at the first few episodes, you can't help but be lured in by the mere visuals alone the way Yoriko was likewise seduced by the image of Kanako dancing under the moonlight. While the production values are not anywhere near perfect, you can feel that the message behind that beautiful splash of color on your screen is perfection hand in hand with insanity. And what could be more alluring than the image of beauty freed from the confines of reality?

Not only that, Mouryou no Hako is anime replete with visual cues and symbols. Just as the gorgeous visuals are deceptive, hiding as they are a sinister secret or some deep psychological illness, the symbols may fool you. Each episode begins with an excerpt from a novel written by one of two fictional novelists in the series. While they don't seem to have anything to do with the plot, these excerpts have more to do with the overall scheme of the story than you initially believe. In that, I have only one piece of advice: never miss an episode, watch each one closely. In short, blink and you'll miss it.

Technology during Japan's bubble economy adds further dimension into the mythology of Mouryou no Hako

Speaking about the visuals, I always thought that CLAMP is mostly responsible for the general look of Mouryou no Hako. This despite my knowing that CLAMP's only real credit is doing some of the character designs. After 2009's highly acclaimed Aoi Bungaku, I know now that much of the visual impact of this series definitely bears the handprint of one newbie director Nakamura Ryosuke.

Amazingly, Mouryou no Hako is Nakamura's directorial debut and yet he has such a deft hand at it that I found it hard to believe. Then, of course, I saw Run, Melos!, one of the masterpiece arcs from Aoi Bungaku, and I knew then that Nakamura has more to offer as a director. The latter is even set in the same period of Japan's history as Mouryou no Hako so that watching it, you almost expect to see the characters from one series interact with those from the other.

One of the more disturbing scenes from Mouryou no Hako consist of a battalion of Japanese soldiers getting run over by a military tank and falling to pieces

Nakamura must hold a certain fascination for Japan's Showa Era, a time which coincides with Japanese ultranationalism, World War II, American Occupation and the bubble economy. The pervading sentiment from that period is nostalgia. That was around the time when Japan opened its doors to other economies, experienced a boom in industrialization and technology, a time when everything is new and fresh and exciting. But the downside to all that technological progress is a sense of loss in terms of culture and tradition. In other words, we get so caught up with all these new gadgets that we lose sight of the world around us.

I think that's what Nakamura is concerned about and this he attempts to show in Mouryou no Hako and to some extent in Run, Melos! As one German playwright and novelist Max Frisch aptly puts it: "Technology is the knack of so arranging the world that we do not experience it," the doctor Mimasaka Koushirou in Mouryou no Hako failed to simply experience the unconditional love of his family by pursuing the impossible dream of creating a perfect human being. And it's not only Mimasaka Koushirou who suffers from this malady. Nearly everyone of the characters from Mouryou no Hako are going through some kind of existential malaise as though it were the effects of the virtual tug-of-war happening between progress and tradition, the present and the past. The anime refer to this feeling as "mouryou" -- a spirit that is said to devour corpses and dwell on the space between the shadow and the light, the in-between. In other words, "mouryou" is a representation of human weakness and that is as real as you or me.


IN SUM --

Mouryou no Hako is a ground-breaking anime that mystifies as well as de-mystifies, builds up as well as takes down, hides as well as reveals, seduces as well as repels, and overall entertains your heart out while at the same time blows your mind away with shock after shock and horror after horror only to end with a sense of hope that as dark as things are, you, as a person, have the choice whether to tread your path or go to the other side.

This show is recommended for those who like a taste of what anime can be when done right.

MORE INFO:

OFFICIAL (JPN)
Mouryou no Hako @ Wikipedia
Mouryou no Hako @ ANN

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Mouryou no Hako 02-03: As If Things Weren't Confusing Enough

Nothing was made clear. If anything, things are becoming even more confusing. That's either a sign of a good mystery or of illogical storytelling.
EPISODE 02: The Raccoon's Trick
Detective Kiba continues to investigate the train accident and is torn between treating it as just another suicide attempt or something more sinister. In the course of his investigation, he meets the victim's beautiful sister, who is a former actress, and the rest of Kanako's odd family. Meanwhile, three people on the trail of a seemingly unrelated case find themselves unexpectedly drawn to a box-shaped building closely guarded by uniformed police.





EPISODE 03: Incident of Euphoria
Detective Kiba makes his assessment of Kanako's extended family in between his visits to Kanako in the hospital. Meanwhile, Yoriko faces problems of her own as her mother becomes more and more convinced that their house is inhabited by evil spirits. When her mother brings an exorcist into their home, she finally runs away and goes to Detective Kiba to tell him something she remembers about the night of the accident: Kanako did not jump into the tracks; she was pushed.

COMMENTS:

I am not even going to pretend that I know even half of what's going on. There seems to be a lot of characters being introduced and all of them naturally play roles which will be revealed later on. So far, every single of one of them, with the possible exception of that other detective (he strikes me as very flat), seems to be more than what they appear to be.

Take Youko, for instance. She's supposed to be Kanako's elder sister and yet she does not seem to be in line for the inheritance that Kanako is supposed to get. That's already odd by itself. Add to that the fact that she is a former actress. That makes her character even more interesting. Kanako's guardian is another noticeable character: no one is fooled by his submissive, apologetic, wimpy attitude.

But who is the glasses guy? And that other random guy who seems to do nothing but randomly appear at the oddest places and make random mental expositions. Doesn't that girl driving with the glasses guy look like the head in the box? I change my earlier speculation: she's not Yoriko. And while on the topic of Yoriko, what's her role in all this? I understand she's Kanako's friend, but so? And what is up with her mother?

I wonder if there is a perfectly logical explanation for the odd things happening or if there really is a supernatural element to all this.

Things better start to make sense soon.

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First Impression: Mouryou no Hako

I was pleasantly surprised by how this series (or at least the first episode) turned out.
Episode 01: The Five Death Omens of An Angel
OP: Lost In Blue (Nightmare) [4shared]
ED: Naked Love (Nightmare) [4shared]
A man wearing glasses find himself riding on a train with a stranger who shows him a mysterious box. But what's more surprising (and horrifying) is that the box contains the head of a girl.

Meanwhile, in some rural town, Kusumoto Yoriko and Yuzuki Kanako are classmates who share a close bond. Kanako claims that they are reincarnations of each other and that once either of them dies, the other will replace the one who died. Kanako also tells Yoriko about the five omens that shows a goddess is close to death. The final omen is that all happiness will be gone.

Yoriko's mother disapproves of their friendship. But despite this, Yoriko continues to meet Kanako, who later asks her to go with her to a lake far away. On the night they are supposed to take the last train to that mysterious lake, Kanako gets into an accident involving a train. The people believe it is a suicide attempt. Coincidentally, on board that train is a detective, who is a former soldier. He questions Yoriko about her friend's suicide attempt.
since it's by CLAMP, you can expect to find a lot of bishie, random or not

Mouryou no Hako is set in the Showa Era -- a period I know to coincide with Japanese ultranationalism, World War II, American Occupation and the bubble economy. I don't know which period this series is supposed to be. But if that brief clip of a war scene hallucinated by the detective is any indication, this could be right after World War II and perhaps even during Japan's bubble economy boom.
lol, head
History aside, Mouryou no Hako is yet another horror series by Madhouse. Interestingly, the other Madhouse-produced show that I plan on blogging is Kurozuka, another mystery-horror number. I'm also thinking of including in the list the following series:

• Casshern Sins - even though it's mecha, the retro style is very appealing and I like the post-apocalyptic undertones
• Ga-Rei - Zero - I just saw the second episode and OHMYGOD! The idea of introducing new characters every episode is an interesting storytelling technique. Don't know if it works but it would be interesting to see how it goes
• Shikabane Hime - Aka - the second episode actually turned out good. I still have hope for this anime
  

As for the rest, I'm toying with the idea of either seeing them through until at least the third episode and then just outright abandoning them if nothing improves. Toradora actually isn't too bad. But there are far more interesting shows that I actually want to see this season. It's probably going to end up on my LIST OF THINGS TO WATCH WHEN I HAVE NOTHING BETTER TO DO.
gotta love these glasses guys
The character designs for Mouryou no Hako are by CLAMP so you can see their trademark style all over the show -- but amazingly enough, no stick-thin figures. At least, not in the first episode. The designs are more earthy in comparison to...say, Code Geass or XXXHolic where everything is extreme: hairdo, extreme rail-thin figures, impossibly long limbs, shoujo sweetness guaranteed to give you a toothache. In Mouryou no Hako, the characters don't necessarily scream CLAMP everytime they appear on screen. It's a relief.
oh my, is it...Sachiko and Yumi?
even Kanako's gesture is very Rosa Chinensislol where did the random flowers come from?
Oh and yes, there is some yuri involved. Not too blatant, though it's definitely there and not something you can just ignore, let alone miss. The admiration between Yoriko and Kanako reminds me just a wee bit of Sachiko and Yumi in Marimite, although Yoriko and Kanako's connection is a lot darker and perhaps more intense.
and some more gratuitous yuri
I mean, dude, they dance under the moonlight, saying nonsensical things about life and the meaningless of it all and how it's all good and I really have no idea what's the point but it's fun and it's yuri and there are lots of pretty colors to please the eyes.
because nothing says 'i love you' like a hand around your throat
And if that isn't enough, there is Kanako's general eeriness. She talks about reincarnation and death and killing Yoriko and taking her place....and Yoriko's all, oh yes, I believe you, kill me, kiss me, tie me up, tie me down, bondage. XD
random bloody handprints are the stuff of horror
What I'm saying, of course, is that the yuri is gratuitous at this point...although I don't mind it in the least bit. It's all very eery and I'm sure the two girls are going to be very significant characters later on. I wonder if the whole thing is just a flashback...because that head inside the box looks amazingly like Yoriko. Not to mention that ominous statement Yoriko's mother made when Yoriko fought with her about Kanako, saying that she doesn't want to become old and ugly. Her mother said that if she didn't grow old, she wouldn't be human, she would be an evil spirit. Is Kanako, therefore, an evil spirit? this is significant since it really appears like she's just manipulating Yoriko. And what does that make Yoriko's mother or Yoriko, for that matter?

Another interesting point is after Kanako explains to Yoriko the five death omens of a goddess, Yoriko wondered if her mother should have died the moment she was born. I don't know if she was merely considering the Five Death Omens as a metaphor but I guess she means that her father basically left her mother after Yoriko was born and that made her mother unhappy. Unhappiness spells death for a goddess, or some such.

The detective, of course, is another interesting character. He's obviously got issues....now he's involved in this ultra-strange case with Kanako and Yoriko.

I guess all will be revealed in the next episodes.

MORE INFO:

Madhouse OFFICIAL (JPN)
NTV OFFICIAL (JPN)
Series Info (Anime News Network)
WATCH Mouryou no Hako PV
WATCH Mouryou no Hako OP Clip

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Fall 2008 Anime Preview Part 2

Ah, so maybe I was too quick in making my LIST OF DOOM as there are actually quite interesting titles that I forgot to include. Actually, because Madhouse is one of my favorite studios, I got my eye on their releases. It's certainly a lot.
Click on Photo for Larger Size
Casshern Sins - Err, don't really like mecha so I don't know if I'm even going to pick this up. But we'll see. I am not unknown to pick up random anime late in the series and come to love it heaps (<--- talking about Macross Frontier). OFFICIAL (JPN) | Wikipedia | ANN

Mouryou no Hako - Call me weird but I don't like the character designs of CLAMP. But the dark story interests me, so I might pick this up. I don't know if I'm going to blog about it though. Madhouse OFFICIAL (JPN) | NTV OFFICIAL (JPN) | ANN | Wikipedia

Kurozuka - It has Romi Paku in it. Plus, the story is historical swordsman meets mysterious immortal lady. It's romance too with dark underpinnings. The perfect formula. ANN

Chaos;HEAD - Uhm, school boys and girls. But the setting is quite dark so it's probably interesting. OFFICIAL (JPN) | ANN

Pretty much that's all. One Outs is going to be left out because I never liked sports anime. In fact, I can't remember a single sports anime that I even watched. Hmm. Also, Ride Back is too political for me. Like, I don't need stuff like that right now. Tales of the Abyss actually caught my attention because of the action-adventure title and the pretty poster...but it's a game anime. Between that and Chaos;HEAD, I'd rather choose the latter.

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