Mermaid Forest Vol-1: Quest for Death (2003)
Animation Production: Shogakukan Productions Co., Ltd.
Released by: Geneon Entertainment
Running Time: 75 Minutes
By Jeffrey Couto

Introduction

If you visit our site with any frequency you know that I’m personally a huge Rumiko Takahashi fan, not so much for her latest works, but rather for the characters and worlds that she’s created over the many past years such as Ranma, Maison Ikkoku and Urusei Yatsura. Like Go Nagai it would seem her mind is populated by an infinite number of rather colorful and unique universes/characters.

Back in the 1991, an OVA series based on her lesser known Mermaid Forest manga was released in Japan and soon imported to the U.S., where it failed to make any real headway with local anime fans. Based on Japanese folklore and legends of mermaids the story had a tone that was decisively darker than Takahashi’s more recognized works at the time. Unfortunately the OVA suffered from being short and not doing the original narrative justice. It wasn’t until 2003 that the story would get a facelift and a more proper treatment (technically and story-wise) via a new TV series that is now being released in the U.S. by Geneon and which is the subject of today’s review.

Story

"Yuta has lived for almost 500 years after inadvertently eating a mermaid's flesh, which he has discovered is the ticket to immortality. He wanders the world, depressed and lonely, unable to connect to other people because they grow old and die while he remains. Seeking out another mermaid, hoping that she will know a way to restore his humanity, he encounters Mana, who has also gained the questionable advantage of immortality from consuming a mermaid. With a moody and tragic tone, MERMAID FOREST is a violent fantasy series that, despite its two strong protagonists, often focuses its stories on the villains and enemies that Yuta and Mana encounter on their quest. " -- Geneon's Vol-1 Description

Review

The first volume in Geneon’s release of Mermaid Forest contains episodes one through three in the series, which include:

Episode 1: Mermaid Does Not Smile
A young man by the name of Yuta is looking for a small village in a remote area that no one seems to be able to get to. Something important seems to be there waiting for him to find it, but what secrets could this village hold and what possible connections could it have to mermaids? Are the legends of these creatures’ existence true? If so, do they really grant immortality to those who feast on their meat…?

Episode 2: Village of the Fighting Fish (Part-I)
Yuta is an immortal human, having successfully eaten Mermaid meat 500 years ago and surviving its Russian roulette-like nature. As he traverses the sea with his new friend, he drifts away to a time long ago in his past life, a time when he though he would be able to lead a normal life again, with a woman he loved.

Episode 3: Encroachment Village of the Fighting Fish (Part-II)
Yuta has unwillingly helped the pirates find a mermaid! Will he be able to stop them from attaining immortality? What about the life he he found here and his new friends? Will he stay and try to enjoy a more normal lifestyle instead of being an eternal drifter lost in a world that seems to move endlessly, while he remains unchanged, not being able to die and eternally young?

Mermaid Forest is such an interesting piece of anime when you consider that it's based on Rumiko Takahashi’s original manga stories. The concept itself and the manner in which the story is told is quite dark and times even macabre, a far cry from her more innocent and colorful romantic comedies. Whereas mermaids are normally regarded in our culture as either symbols of female sexuality or innocent fairy tale characters whose worlds are filled with friendly fish and heroic deeds, the mermaids of this story are more closely associated to Japanese takes on the concept and thus are not exactly what we’re accustomed to seeing on-screen.

In addition, the story that revolves around them and the character interactions between mermaids and humans are for the most part a far cry for the happy-go-lucky ones we typically think of when it comes to mermaids. Humans want to make contact with Mermaids because they want to kill them and eat their meat so that they may attain eternal life, not because they want to befriend them. Likewise mermaids have their own secret agenda for humans and those they come into contact with. All in all a very different approach to a classic theme.

Story-wise the series begins on an interesting note as we follow Yuta into a long forgotten village in the mountains where a small band of woman (all of whom look exactly the same) live. He suspects that they may know something about mermaids and where he may find one to speak to, as he firmly believes that these mystical creatures hold the key to ending his present immortal state. This leads to him uncovering a secret plot by the mermaids to attain an eternally young life by eating a human being who herself is immortal.

From this rather curious opening and the interesting revelations that follow we then move onward to learn about Yuta’s past and his reasons for wanting to become a regular person again. As we come to learn, living beyond the normal lifespan of a human being has some rather emotionally draining side-effects that no one person should have to go through. It’s this struggle that is at the heart of these first 3 episodes of Mermaid Forest and what we spend much of our time exploring.

Supporting the story is a diverse set of characters that provide a powerful layer of emotion and movement. Yuta is a man who has removed himself from society, but yet is driven to travel and find the answers he seeks while willingly putting aside his own quest at times to help others in need of him. Mana, a girl he rescues from the remote village he visits in episode one and who like him has eaten Mermaid flesh is a newcomer to the immortal curse so she is not as jaded as Yuta, which helps balance the two characters out. In addition, we also meet other characters who have had a big influence in the lives of both Yuta and Mana, such as the daugher of a fishing village's chief, who Yuta fell in love with many years ago in his past.

On the technical side of things Mermaid Forest is leaps and bound beyond the original OVA releases and really benefits from some beautiful artwork and character designs that are based on Takahashi’s originals. The animation is fluid, colorful and sharp looking, with CGI enhanced visual effects sprinkled throughout for good measure. The background art is quite beautiful as well.

The music soundtrack is suitable for what the show’s premise is and features some beautifu/atmospheric instrumental pieces, but there is a noticeable lack of any one memorable piece or defining theme however. The voice acting was good on both the Japanese and North American tracks. Overall the casts put in a solid performance.

The DVD package is well put together in typical Geneon fashion. The exterior of the DVD case ports a nice portrait of Yuta and Mana as a mermaid's tail makes an appearance behind them. Inside the box there’s a small insert with the dates of all the other volumes in this release on one side and a mini poster on the other that features the same artwork as the box cover. DVD extras are limited to an art gallery and previews for other Geneon products. The video and audio transfers here are crisp and easy on the eyes/ears. The video portion is particularly sharp and colorful.

Final Thoughts

A dark tale that is worth every minute of the trip. If you enjoy Takahashi’s other works you owe it to yourself to see what else she’s done on the side and her Mermaid Forest story is definitely up there in that list. With beautiful animation, a solid story and interesting characters there’s a lot to enjoy about this release.

Highly recommended for all anime fans.

Jeffrey Couto