Search - Domain of Murder on DVD

Good show worth watching

Josh Dollins | 05/31/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is a nice anime by a well known director this however is not a well known show but I assure you despite its obscurity it is worth watching while not excellent it is worth watching! It can be found at a reasonable price and though some may not like the 1 hour length I found it to be nice to fill a gap in my day without taking up to much time"

Phenomenal Anime, Forever Doomed To Obscurity

Elias L. Blondeau | The Big ATL (Atlanta) | 04/04/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In a world filled with cutting edge anime, with glossy animation and huge budgets, the world of 80's and 90's anime is often
forgotten by today's newer, more jaded otaku. Now, I'm pretty young myself, but I still appreciate the roots of whatever I'm
into. And so, for a long period of time, I went back and made quite a few purchases of old-school anime, mainly stuff published
by Central Park Media (R.I.P., guys). My copy of "The Anime Encyclopedia" at my side, I actively hunted down good, bad and ugly
old anime, so as to broaden my range of experience in the field.

One day, my searches brought me to the obscure OVA, "Domain of Murder". Seeing a copy for less than a dollar (LESS THAN A DOLLAR!),
I snatched it up and watched it upon arrival. After seeing it, my notion that all good anime were universally recognized was shattered.
I was now a changed otaku.

"Domain of Murder" is good. No, I mean, it's REALLY good. So good that the box art doesn't do it an ounce of justice. An intricately-woven
mystery involving murder and kidnapping, "DoM" is an off-shoot of the long-running, untranslated "Hello, Hedgehog" manga. Even though
viewers are not totally acquainted with the protagonists, it doesn't matter; they're such familiar types that you get to know them in
a few minutes. The real focus here is the plot, which I will not spoil, but rest assured, it keeps you on the edge of your seat and your
heart pounding for the runtime of the feature.

A truly remarkable thing here is the voice acting. No, not the English dub; it suffers from low production values and shoddy casting
choices. The Japanese voice acting here is among the best I've ever heard, rivaling even today's voice talent (sorry, Aya Hirano, but
You Inoue could've out V.A.'d you any day of the week.)

There is one caveat, which I won't dwell on too long, but it must be noted: the animation... is not good. I mean, it's not HORRID, nor is
it "The Humanoid" level of badness. But it's not great.

Still, the animation isn't what this show is about. It's about the plot, the characters, and the V.A.'s driving both of those things. "DoM"
is one of the finest OVAs I've ever seen, and it's no small feat to impress me. If you can find it in your budget (gosh, 1.00 is SO much
money, ain't it?) to get this DVD, then DO IT. You won't regret it, and you'll earn props as an anime fan who doesn't just blindly follow the
next flashy thing."

Well worth the money

Colonelpanic | 06/22/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I read a review of this movie on AnimeNewsNetwork and became interested in seeing it. I found out it wouldn't cost much to purchase a copy and thought to myself, "even if it's terrible, I won't be out much cash."

This show's strength is its story rather than its animation quality. I found it engaging, and the animation was not poor enough to hinder the experience. I would definitely recommend it to fans of old anime."