Ikki Tousen: The Complete Series

Ikki Tousen is another of those older Geneon series that was license rescued by Funimation and is now being re-released on their budget SAVE edition at a very good price. Is it worth it? You'd better believe it!

Now before I go any further; I should point out that Ikki Tousen is not high art. It's not another Rahxephon or even a Rurouni Kenshin; rather it's a knock em down, drag em out shonen fighting anime that's all about panty shots and shredded uniforms and lots and lots of girl on girl action that's not always limited to just kicks if you know what I mean? There's plenty of good reasons why this anime is rated 17+. wink wink, nudge nudge!

The plot for whatever it matters involves various and sundry teenagers from various high schools who carry within them the spirits of ancient warriors and every generation or two they come together to refight ancient battles. And among them is Hakufu, a blonde bimbo who gives a whole other meaning to the word airhead and who may very well carry the spirit of the most powerful warrior of them all! That's basically it.

Now why they keep refighting ancient battles is never really explained. (Maybe the later sequels explain it.) Or at least I never could figure it out. But it doesn't really matter as it's all about the fan service and that there is a plenty. It's all about boosomy girls, upskirt shots and lots and lots of fighting. Thirteen episodes of it. It never gets too serious and at least in this first series, really doesn't have any definite ending.

So if you want a fighting anime heavy on the fan service or you thought Agent Aika was too tame, look no further. This series should be right down your alley!

Re-issued on two discs with English and Japanese stereo in a single sized collection. Four stars if you're into fan service, three if you're not!

J. A.

Ikki Tousen is one of those Japanese animes that would never see a T.V. broadcast in the West. Based on the Manga of the same name (sometimes called Battle Vixens, it follows college (at least in the West) student Hakafu Sonsaku s she gets involved in the fighting culture and the battles between the different academies. The story and characters are loosely (VERY loosely) based on the characters and situations of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a fictionalized account of the same historical period in 2nd-3rd century China. Most of the characters, however, are now busty teenage girls who throw modesty out the window during fights. Clothing gets torn, their skirts rise up to show their panties and, on occasion, they end up almost naked. Nudity in Japan is not such a big deal, but it gives this DVD a TV-MA rating. But it's not all boobs and violence. The story shows how some of the characters, aware of their historical counterpart and the fate that awaits them, actively try to avoid it. Hakufu seems mostly unaware of her destiny, but her mother and cousin (Koukin) try to portect her from it.

Ikii Tousen is an entertaining series consisting of 13 episodes with the usual Japanese fan service of panty shots, wardrobe malfunctions and BOTH a hot springs and a pool episode. It doeen't follow the manga closely, but it is still a good show. If you liked Love Hina but wished there were more martial arts battles and boob shots, you'll like Ikki Tousen.

it is good. when i first started watching it, i thought it was just fan service. but slowly over each ep i started to really get into the story. i can't wait til i buy ikkitousen dragons destiny