Review of Latest Animation Series

One of the most bizarre, yet compelling anime series I have ever watched. The series follows the notion of Van Hellsing; from Dracula, starting an organization to protect England from supernatural threats. The series begins with the police being called to deal with a violent outbreak of what soon are revealed as zombies. All but a single police officer are killed. The lone police girl runs to a church only to be attacked by a vampire. A new vampire appears and fights the first, saving the police girl.

This vampire is Alucard. As the series progresses, more is revealed about the Hellsing organization, the vampires and Alucard himself. The series ends with one of the strangest battles I have ever seen in Anime. Akira is weirder, but not by too much.

The main theme of the series is the struggle with identity. Alucard being under the command of humans, and other such crisis. The series is not for the squeamish. It contains very graphic combat, and murder scenes comparable to even the worst slasher flicks. The fact that it's animated doesn't help much, since they used that to let them get even more realistic and grotesque.

Some fun aspects of the series are Alucard's boredom, and the glee with which he goes into battle. His relationship with the current head of Hellsing is both amusing and at times odd. Sometimes fatherly, sometimes pet and owner. The fact that you are never 100% sure who the owner is, makes it even more fun to watch.

If you don't like shows that are more action oriented you probably wont care for Hellsing much. The action is the focal point of the series. Don't get me wrong, the story is good and keeps you guessing. It is somewhat like a combination of horror movie, action movie and a 'who done it'. They tell a good story, but they keep the action going through most of it. If you like Vampire movies, and have never seen Hellsing, you should.