Search - Tokko: The Complete Series, Vol. 1-3 on DVD

Monsters, blood and swords

E. A Solinas | MD USA | 11/19/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Monsters, blood, swords and the potential destruction of the world. Good stuff!

It's also most of what "Tokko" is made up with, along with a generous amount of totally gratuitous cleavage. It's fairly funny, very violent, pretty well-written and its solidly suspenseful storyline is only marred by an ending that... isn't. Almost is, but isn't.

Five years ago, a hole appeared in front of a Machida apartment complex. Savage demonic creatures emerged and slaughtered almost everyone in the building.

Ranmaru Shindo is on his first day's duty as a cop, when his team is attacked by zombies controlled by demon larvae. They're only saved by the intervention of sword-wielding cops from the mysterious division, TOKKO. One of them is a childhood friend of Ranmaru's, Sakura, who has been haunting his dreams recently.

He becomes convinced that the zombies and TOKKO are connected to the Machida massacre... and the strange tattoo that's appeared on his arm. Of course, he's right -- turns out demons are flooding into our world courtesy of a shattered alchemist's box. But thanks to demon symbiotes -- like the one on Ranmaru's arm -- TOKKO is able to fight and kill them.

So naturally Ranmaru is transferred into TOKKO, and he turns out to be stronger and more skilled than anyone suspected. But his investigations into the alchemist box and the Machida massacre become more dangerous when a sinister old man becomes involved -- and Ranmaru faces losing more than his soul.

The first half of "Tokko" is a sort of detective story wrapped in supernatural trappings, but the second half is when things really heat up. Basically, the whole world will be devoured by demons unless our heroes stop them... except they have demons in their own bodies. What a mess.

But it's a fun mess -- lots of creepy cliffhangers, spraying gore, dismembered bodies, zombies, monstrously carnivorous demons, swords, and (for the boys) utterly gratuitous boobery. And once Ranmaru settles into Tokko, things start getting even more violent than before. Basically that's the core of the series, along with the detective work.

But it has some solid atmosphere as well, especially in the second half -- Sakura fighting the "evil Ranmaru," the horrific climactic battle, and walls crawling with demons. And it has some funny dialogue, usually from Kunikida ("I was told you were hooked on a respirator in ICU, stoned out of your skull on a morphine drip, and ****ing the bed from your internal injuries!" "I have a really good doctor...?").

So what's the problem? Well, there's only half an ending. The immediate storyline is nicely wrapped up in the last episode, but there are still some flapping threads. And the last few seconds drag the plot right back out. It's pretty clear they intended to continue the anime, but sadly that didn't happen.

Ranmaru is a pretty typical action-anime hero -- he's sort of boyish and cute, but can be a brutal fighter when the story demands. Sakura is a bit too mysterious to be an engaging love interest, but Kureha, Ryoko and the kooky Saya all are interesting. And Kunikida is a pretty hilarious character -- a foul-mouthed, womanizing, tough-as-nails police chief who says everything in a dull roar.

"Tokko" is all blood, skin and swords, with lots of action and an interesting detective story. Just don't expect much closure at the finale."

Bleh...

Patrick Rosas | Austin, TX | 06/25/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Paranormal detectives, people running around with huge swords, demons threatening to destroy tokyo, does any of this sound familiar? To me this anime is just like any of the other 3 bajillion animes out there with the exact same format and Tokko is not much different. Although there is some good action scenes, a somewhat interesting storyline, and a fair amount of anime boobies, I just couldnt get over the feeling that ive seen this before. Not to mention the ending left me sayying "WTF!? Is that it??" If ur looking for your everyday generic hack and slash demon hunter anime then this is it. However, if your looking for something with alittle more depth, then I would advise you to look elsewhere."

Rock'em Sock'em Tokko

Tim Lasiuta | Red Deer, Alberta | 01/23/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"
From the imaginative mind of Tori Fujisawa comes Tokko to TV sets around the world.

Tokko takes viewers into the world of Shindou Ranmaru, a newly minted investigator from the Police Academy with a disturbing fantasy world. If it's not his prancing in her lingerie sister, the half naked dream girl, or the wave of mass murders that invades his dream life, he is one mal adjusted cop. As a young man, his family and an entire apartment complex was murdered in Machida, leaving one other witness. Haunting his dreams, the half-naked girl (Rokujo Sakura) turns up at head quarters as part of Tokko, the secret division of Tokki. Unlike regular cops, their weapons are swords with no mercy. Transferring his dream life to reality, he forges a friendship with her and begins to understand the forces that terminated thousands of people in Machida.

Tokko focuses on the appearance of mysterious bottomless holes that lead to murders and `possessions' that turn the victims into zombies that threated the whole city. That's where Tokko comes in. Their function is to battle the invaders from beneath, no matter what the cost.

I must say, Tokko is a fascinating look at the life of Shindou and the forces that pursue him during his life. `Awakening' is a first class episode that draws you into the next, and the next, and so on. Packed with adventure, interesting characters from the slacker rookies, the beautiful Rokujo Sakura, the explosive head of division one, Kurkida, his volupterous sister, and the Elite division, the Tokki. It is addicting, with 22 minute segments designed to run into one another as one continious production. Perhaps that is next.

Tokko is classy, from art to script. It has the mysterious, `buy me, watch me' factor that so many productions lack. Congratulations Manga.com, you have a winner.

Look for Tokko at your local video dealer, comic book store, or online at www.manga.com

Tim Lasiuta


"

Outstanding, but in dire need of MORE

trashcanman | Hanford, CA United States | 12/30/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Large sinkholes begin opening up in the streets of Tokyo. Out of them emerge horrifying monsters who begin slaughtering people for no apparent reason. Bullets don't harm them. Nothing does. That is, until the off-the-records special division of the police force known as Tokko arrives to hack the beasts -known as "phantoms"- to bits with their swords. Coolness ensues. "Tokko" is a first-rate action series that isn't given time to build the first-rate story that would have made it the classic it could have been. It's got killer action with more than a little blood and gore, some horror visuals, great characters, solid art and animation, and a very good story. It just needed more room to grow.

The hero of the story is Ranmaru Shindo, a young police officer who lives with his younger sister (incest jokes incoming!) who is also a cop. The two were orphaned in what is know as the Machida Massacre, a random (or was it?) attack by the phantoms that left a lot of children with no parents 5 years ago. Ranmaru meets the woman of his dreams (quite literally) when he encounters Tokko doing their thing during his duties one day. Every anime needs a hot girl named Sakura, and this one is no exception. The pink-haired supernatural warrior is accompanied by the sexually-outgoing blonde Kureha -who takes quite a liking to Ranmaru, the groups' stoic male, Takeru Inukai, and the bespectacled beauty heading the operation, Ryoko Ibuki. each character has their own backstory and each has more in common then we are led to believe. Turns out that what allows Tokko to battle the phantoms is their symbiotic physical partnership with rebel phantoms, who merge in them and grant them b!+chin' powers and sweet tats (not a misspelling; the Tokko girls' hotness is presumably natural) to boot. As the plot unfolds the past is explored, the other side gets to say their piece, the goals of the phantoms are revealed, and so are the eventual fates of our heroes. The price if they fail: Hell on Earth and the extinction of mankind. No pressure, though.

"Tokko" drips with style. The writing is great, the story is engrossing, and who doesn't love a girl who showers with her weapons so she can kick demonic tail in the nude if necessary? Hyper-kinetic fight scenes with lots of severed limbs never hurt, and sexual tension between multiple characters works well here. Ranmaru's perpetually-angry superior officer is a hoot as well. Everywhere you look in this show, there is something cool, be it a cool concept, a brutal and revealing flashback, a plot twist, or just a really ugly monster. A win all around.

It's a nice 13 episode package, but not much time to get through a pretty epic storyline. A second season is hinted at and Lord knows there is plenty of room left for more, but it has not materialized. That's a shame because considering what "Tokko" does in 13 episodes, 26 could have put it over the top into 5 star territory. The English dub is well above average, the gore and nudity put this out of the kid-friendly zone, and the action and outstanding characters make this something that any adult anime fan can enjoy. The ending is predictably rushed and vague, but other than that, there is very little to complain about. This boxed set is a hell of a bargain. Pick it up without fear."