Assassins come from both genders, usually with distinct styles for men and women. The ladies are more often the seductress, subterfuge style assassins while men typically use more brute force. This week we'll see how two young kids handle the same job as one of the biggest, baddest men of anime in:
Background:
Released By: Anime Works
Length: 85 minutes
Year of Production: 2004
Language: Sub and dub, dub reviewed
Available on Netflix: Nope, but they have the 2009 remake
Confession time. When I was preparing for this month's theme I forgot to check the dates on these next 2 titles and they are a bit more recent then the shows I typically share. Oh well, rules were made to be broken. As for Phantom, This OVA was based on a PC game that was apparently very popular. A DVD version of this game was available in one of the Region 1 releases. The game seemed infuriatingly slow to me. Also, with the lack of save points (the game uses codes instead) it made it difficult to pursue the multiple endings. Don't play the game.
The Man and His Job
One man exemplifies the bad-ass assassin more than other in the history of manga. Golgo 13, aka Duke Togo has been thrilling Japanese audiences with his killing skills since 1968 and has had a few forays into animation, including one movie, an OVA, and a TV series. Golgo 13 has a few simple rules; never stand behind him, pay him in cash, and get the hell out of his way.
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| You'll die when he wants you to die |
In Phantom, the two assassins we follow are Ein and Zwei. These two work for the organization Inferno and specialize in taking out mafia bosses. Their loyalty to Inferno is the result of brainwashing and memory wiping with Zwei being the most recent edition to the squad. Brainwashed kids can't hold a candle to Golgo 13, but let's see how their story plays out.
Story:
The OVA opens with a young woman in dark clothes, night-vision goggles. and body armor covering only half of her chest. She proceeds to break up a drug deal by shooting everyone dead.
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| She has to protect the left one, it's her favorite. |
After that cheery prologue we meet a young Japanese man who just got into college, no simple feat in their educational system. To celebrate he decides to take a trip to Los Angeles. His parents ask him to stay safe while his sister demands souvenirs and his brother wants blond babe. Upon arriving at LAX the unnamed Asian youth hails a cab and asks to be taken to the "safe" part of town. The cab driver drops him off in a ghetto in the middle of the night.
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| Excuse me black sir, but does this city have a "no mugging" section? |
The boy hightails it away from the disenfranchised youth and stumbles upon the sniping of a Mafia Don and his bodyguards. The boy is able to immediately pinpoint the location of the sniper, the same woman who killed the drug dealers earlier. She relays this info to her handler and is instructed to hunt the boy down. This is relatively easy as the boy is in an unfamiliar city and she is a trained killer. When the assassin finds him she attacks him with a knife and some swift martial arts. Before she can land the killing blow her handler, a sharp nosed, Germanic fellow, appears and asks her to spare him for the sake of an experiment.
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| "I smell potential in this one!" |
The assassin drugs the boy and he has a trippy dream in which the heads of his family and friends all explode. The boy wakes up in an abandoned industrial building, greeted by the scientist and assassin who introduce themselves as Scythe and Ein, respectively. Scythe tells the boy he was allowed to live because he had the natural potential to become an assassin. The boy is given the name Zwei, and is given to Ein for training in the deadly arts. Zwei would like to simply leave but his memory has been wiped and he has no idea who he is or where he came from so the training is his only option.
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| TRAINING!!!!!!! |
Scythe addresses his superiors at the crime organization Inferno about his latest assassin acquisition. They are intrigued at the idea of having two "Phantoms," the title they give the highest ranked killer, currently Ein. A very disturbing woman comes to give Ein and Zwei their first team assignment, which will act as a graduation exam for Zwei. They will kill yet another mafia boss on his private yacht during a party.
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| The messenger is probably the most butch woman in anime |
The two assassins sneak aboard the boat dressed as servants, and Zwei waits for Ein to explain their plan. Unfortunately for him, Ein's idea of a plan is to shoot the mafia boss point blank in the face with the entire party watching and then leave Zwei to fend for himself. She goes on a fairly awesome maid-themed killing spree while he cowers behind a table. Eventually when pushed to his limits Zwei's training takes over an he slaughters the few men Ein hasn't shot. She gives him one last chance to choose his own death over a life as a killer and Zwei chooses life. They make their escape and Episode 1 is over.
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| She'll blow your brains out and mop up the floor afterwards |
Part 2 opens with a flashback to Ein's past. It appears she was a member of a nomadic, Mongolian family with a penchant for pendants. A group of heavily armed men attacked their unarmed encampment. As baby Ein gets separated from her fleeing mother, teenage Ein wakes up in a cold sweat. The assassin pair stages their next hit at an opera. Zwei dons a Phantom of the Opera outfit and strolls down the center of the stage while the actors try to ignore him. He pulls out his gun and shoots a man in a box seat and makes his escape while Ein provides covering fire.
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| The Phantom of the Opera is DEADLY |
Scythe is at another meeting with the criminal corporate club, explaining the differences between his two assassins. Ein was completely brainwashed while Zwei only had a memory wipe. The two in question return to their hideout, a studio apartment with nothing but a TV, telephone, and a couple of beds as furnishing. Ein starts to strip out of her sweaty killer garb much to Zwei horror and arousal. He asks her to go to another room, after all without the brainwashing he has the normal teenage urges. Ein looks confused, but complies with his request.
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| "Ein, when I asked if you'd clean my gun this wasn't what I meant" |
Later that night Ein has more night terrors about her past and almost shoots Zwei when he tries to wake her up. The tension is diffused when they receive a call from Scythe informing them of their next mission. The mission is to kill another mafia boss as he shops for his granddaughter's birthday present. Our favorite killers perform reconnaissance at the mall but Ein gets tailed by one of the many, many bodyguards stationed everywhere. To throw him off her trail she meets up with Zwei and pretends to be his slightly pissed off, obnoxious girlfriend. They act out their date for a while until the bodyguard loses interest, but Zwei is completely aroused by Ein's act.
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| "And that's how you kill a man with a spoon, go for the eyes!" |
They receive another call from Scythe telling them the target is delayed. Ein wants sit still, nursing a small soda for the next couple hours but Zwei convinces her to continue their sham date. You know, in order to not look suspicious. Ein finds a pendant similar the one in her flashback and Zwei insists on buying it for her. The two then get into an argument about whether or not they should try to get their memories back. Zwei wants them but Ein sees it as pointless since their hands are stained with blood. The target shows up and Ein leaps from a window, in disguise, onto a parked car, killing all the mafia men dead. Zwei provides cover fire.
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| I hope they have comprehensive car insurance |
Our two killers run into the mall and perform a quick costume change to fool their pursuers. They would have gotten away cleanly but one of the guards spots Ein's gun under her jacket. This starts up a new shootout in which Ein gets shot while trying to protect the pendant Zwei bought for her. He manages to finish the shootout solo and drags her back to the apartment where he patches her wound. Ein says she wants to change her clothes and insists Zwei leave the room. In case you weren't paying attention this is a complete 180 from her previous nudity policy. The two engage in some very awkward intimacy after Ein gets out of the shower and into some fresh clothes.
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| "Are....are we doing this right? Maybe if we....no, this is good" |
Ein tries to cook Zwei a delicious meal but they are woefully under-spiced. Zwei goes off to fetch some seasoning as Ein gazes lovingly at the pendant he bought for her. Zwei returns to an apartment full of armed gunmen lead by the butch, black woman seen earlier in the series. Ein is nowhere to be seen but her necklace is abandoned on the floor. The last scene of Part 2 shows Scythe driving an unconscious Ein away from the apartment.
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| Awwww, the little killing machine is all tuckered out |
Part 3 opens with Zwei being interrogated by two of the women of Inferno, including that very butch one. The only thing they want to know is the location of Zwei and and Scythe. He is apparently conspiring with one of Inferno's rivals. Since Scythe is a scientist he doesn't care who he works for as long as his research is fully funded. Once they are satisfied that he knows nothing useful, they ask him to assassinate Ein. None of their men have been able to get anywhere close to her. If Zwei is willing to help them they will reward him with a disc containing the personal information he has forgotten.
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| "A mini disc? Don't you people have jump drive technology?" |
Scythe meanwhile is injecting Ein with drugs in order to reinforce her brainwashing. While he is manipulating her fragile mind he fondly recalls when they first met. She was working in a brothel, her spirit completely crushed, her eyes lifeless. A client started to choke her and Ein reached for a pair of chopsticks which she lodged in his neck, killing him quickly. Scythe, apparently there for standard whorehouse activities, gathered with the other onlookers and determined she had the potential to be a professional killer.
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| Reminiscing about brothels while using controlled substances |
Inferno gets some information revealing Scythe is hiding out in an abandoned factory. Several platoons invade and many report getting attacked by Ein simultaneously. Some report multiple Eins at the same location. It is difficult to see what is going on in the dark, smoke-filled corridors. Zwei gets lead away from his team to a warehouse where the real Ein awaits. Scythe arranged this reunion to broadcast the skill of his trained killers to potential investors. As he watches them fight he concludes that Zwei was a failure and proceeds to detonate the factory. As Scythe goes leave the butch woman is waiting in his escape elevator to shoot the defecting scientist. Ein and Zwei continue fighting.
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| Typical American teenagers, think the world revolves around them |
Zwei tries to get a shot off at Scythe himself but Ein blocks the bullet. As she attacks him with a knife, Zwei's shirt is sliced open, revealing the pendant he bought for Ein. This distracts her long enough for him to shoot her. As Ein stands there looking sad, the ceiling collapses on her. The fire was so intense that Inferno is having a lot of difficulty identifying the bodies. Zwei is made the new Phantom if Inferno. After the credits roll we see a pony-tailed man getting his brains blown out. Then Scythe's voice is heard saying, "Good job, Ein." The End
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| Or is it? |
Why watch?
1. The emotional assassins - The awkward emotional displays of the two killers in episode two are surprisingly touching. They feel surprisingly genuine, a feeling I don't get from a lot of anime. The idea of two emotionally stunted and/or brainwashed people is an intriguing concept in general. It really is too bad they don't work this angle a bit more.
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| Trying to act natural |
2. Lots of death - If you enjoy seeing people shot en masse you'll have a lot to enjoy here. There isn't a lot of plot to explain all of the killing, but a job's a job right?
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| Blood is plentiful in America! |
Why not to watch?
1. Ein-vasion - Where did the army of Eins come from at the end of this OVA? Did Scythe takeover a local strip club and give all the dancers a crash course in assassination? Inquiring minds want to know and OVA producers don't want to answer. Maybe they explain this in the video game at some point.
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| Or maybe she reproduces asexually. |
Should you be watching?
This one is worth a watch, just do not play the game. It offers a decent look at the world of businesses that specialize in killing mafia bosses. The employees of Inferno are interesting enough to keep you watching, although I do wish there were a couple more episodes in this OVA to flesh out the rising action of the story arc. I haven't seen the Phantom TV series, which apparently goes into a lot more depth and probably does a much better job addressing my few complaints with the OVA. If you don't want to sit through 26 episodes of killers and the politics of organized crime, this condensed version is certainly a viable alternative.
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