TLDR: No nuance, but fun characterization with humor. For Ryo, it’s his dry nature and sarcasm that carries the moedy. Akira’s desire to escape situations, disbelief, and awkwardness that lead to the comedy in his actions and reactions.
Akira is still weak and Ryo is still an asshole, but each has a bit of humor attached to them. The characters of Devilman are iconic, and while Tenjou-hen misses some of the nuances that might have been there in another adaptation, it still nails these fun characters on the surface. It didn’t distract me from the show, but it definitely added to the experience, even if in a minor way. There were moments that I would hear soft creepy music playing in the OVA (there is a lot of that type of music) and would think, that’s nice. It fit the show well, but it didn’t hold any particular impact for me. There were few times when I actually noticed the sound/music in the OVA, but that wasn’t a bad thing. But again the weird stare downs were a problem for me. TLDR: Nice art for the time, landscape was run of the mill, but the characters motions and facial expressions shined through. When flashing between two characters faces with no change in expression, it is hard to get new information. What I think took away some of the points that the art earned was again the weird stare downs. The monsters were creative and interesting. Even Akira’s facial expressions were very good in more comedic moments. His movements and facial expressions mimicked how his character was weird and mocking. One of the notable, yet unimportant, characters of the show was the goofy gangster. While I’m sure that people will say that the lines are bad, and therefore so are the visuals, it is important to remember: regardless of what you thought of the lines the art did a good job representing it. There are some very quirky lines in Tanjou-hen and the visuals accompany it. I think where the art shines through is when the characters faces are drawn. The landscapes at the beginning are nice, albeit run of the mill. That being said, I will try my best to put bias aside and give a fair review. It’s always hard for an old anime to age well, and especially looking in the retrospective it is easy to be critical of art. TLDR: Not much to speak of on the story, the premise of Devilman is what you get and no further. The story does not gain praise nor scorn. Of course, the story that it does include is well done and enjoyable. There came a point where it became uncomfortable as a viewer as it seemed that the stare passed the ten second mark, which is an awful long time to stare. Not an intense mid battle stare, just standing there. Speaking of the pacing, there are some real weird moments of Akira and Ryo just standing and staring at each other. The pacing of the OVA suffers because of this fact, too long when there is no action and right when the OVA gets to a part with high intensity it ends. Of course, it is important to note that Tanjou-hen has a sequel, but rating it on it’s own values shows that the plot is shallow.įurthermore, the entire OVA, save for the last fifteen minutes, serves as buildup for the OVA, but never managing to go further than the premise.
In Crybaby, there was plenty of time to go beyond the basic premise and tell the story, Tanjou-hen on the other hand seems to act more of a prequel. We all know this basic plot, it’s the premise of Devilman Crybaby, but it’s the summary of Devilman: Tanjou-hen. Tells him about the existence of devils, turns him into devilman. Akira, young weak boy meets up with his good friend Ryo. The story of Devilman: Tanjou-hen (also known as Devilman: The Birth) is much the same of the devilman you already know. After it being brought to your attention, you might wonder is Devilman: Tanjou-hen worth watching? At this point, you’ve probably seen a couple “Devilman dub is gold” or “Devilman dub is a treasure.” The sheer quirkiness of some of the dialogue has made these videos become incredibly popular. For any fan of the recent Anime Devilman Crybaby and wondered if you should give this OVA a try, this review is for you.