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Yu-Yu Hakusho; Ghost Files

Genre:

Date Submitted:July 19, 2003

Reviewed by: Pranadevil

Plot Summary:The story revolves around a teenaged boy named Yusuke Yurimeshi, who's really just your average punk kid who gets bad grades and enjoys fighting. Walking home from school one day, he sorta.. well, dies. He got hit by a car while trying to save a little kids from being run over. After this an adventure ensues where he must regain his body, but I don't want to give any of that away. When he comes back to life, the powers that be (they helped him while he was dead) decide they want to make Yusuke a spirit detective; that is, bad-ass demon hunter. He learns a powerful attack, the Spirit Gun (Rei <ray> gun in Japanese, har har) which is basically his only defense against the first few demons he'll be facing. As the story goes on, Yusuke gets a few team-mates and a powerful psychic trains him, so he's not a one-shot wonder anymore. As you may have guessed by now, the show is basically saga-driven like the DragonBall series, meaning that you won't have episodes where everybody's problems appear and are solved before the commercial break. Unlike the DragonBall series, however, Yu-Yu Hakusho tends to have an aggressive plot, with few filler episodes and generally short (but really good) fights.

What to Expect:If you liked DragonBall or DragonBall Z you'll probably want to see this. Both shows are similar as far as their basic content (great fights and powerful ki attacks) and basic plot (bad guy, kill). The artwork takes a bit of getting used to, as it looks rather unpolished, a little like the old Voltron anime, except with more fluidity, if that makes any sense. You'll know what I mean when you see it. The music isn't really that great, but it fits the scenes well. Funimation actually did a pretty good job for voice acting and translation too.

Main Characters:Well, you've got Yusuke, the real main character whose whole shpiel I've already explained; Kuwabara Kuzama who is one of Yusuke's rivals at school; Hiei and Kurama who are both powerful demons that Yusuke must fight with; Botan, a young woman who is apparently also the incarnation of the grim reaper; Koenma, son of King Yamma and heir apparent to Spirit World, King Yamma decided to let Koenma do his job for some reason; and last but not least there's Genkai, a very powerful psychic who trains Yusuke. There's also the requisite nasty bunch of bad guys, and annoying bunch of side characters, but I don't really feel like talking about every single one o.o;;

Final Grading:The plot is fairly original, and each episode has either a great story to tug on your heart strings or a great fight to watch and wish you could do half of what you were seeing. The animation is a little different, but it's not so bad once you get used to it. Voice acting and sound/music in general both go well with the setting and characters, and for the English version the translation was superb which is an added bonus. This is definitely an anime that should be looked at by anyone who likes good action stuff and/or demons getting their faces pounded into the concrete. My score: 8/10