Dance In The Vampire Bund – Review

Title: Dance in the Vampire Bund
Published by: Madman Entertainment (Australia / New Zealand), Funimation Entertainment (North America)
Based on: Manga Series of the same name by Nozomu Tamaki
Genre: Supernatural, Action
Audio: English and Japanese Dubs
Subtitles: English
Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen 16:9
Runtime: 300 minutes
Cost: $59.95
Classification: This title has been classified MA15+ for Strong supernatural violence and nudity.
Blurb: Adding to the number of supernatural being series that shall be reviewed over the next few weeks and months, Dance in the Vampire Bund features violence elements that are over the top and all by the hands of a girl who does not look older then ten years old and has fanservice scenes that put Strike Witches to shame – and of course not limited to this one girl. The series follows Akira Kaburagi who finds his true calling in life after meeting with the Queen of the Vampires Mina Tepes and their story as a new Vampire hub is built in Japan. The storyline starts off good but drags on at the end. The design quality is what I would expect from a SHAFT anime title, and overall works well.
Special Thanks: Madman Entertainment PR Team for providing me with a review sample of this title.

So we have another series that focuses on a Vampire and a Werewolf, but these are true Vampires who willingly suck blood, fear the sun and have been in hiding since Humans have existed. Do note that this series isn’t one for the children or even the normal fan of Twilight, with a high degree of fanservice regardless of character ages and surprisingly has not been censored or edited for English release. This a tale where Vampires reveal themselves to the world and try to integrate with society (However isolated they are), and whilst trying to live peacefully, resistance from all sides leads to a bloody rebellion. Interested in hearing more? Read on for my review of Dance in the Vampire Bund.

The Sovereign State for Vampires has been Declared!
After millennia in hiding, Mina Tepes, Queen of the Vampires suddenly appears in Japan to announce the existence of vampires and establish a colony for her blood-sucking brethren. After this landmark’s announcement Akira Kaburagi’s world will never be the same. As a bot, Akira vowed to serve the rule of the night, and now he must fulfill his destiny by protecting Mina from those who would dethrone her!

Instead of focusing on what some would consider the “loli” elements of the series, I am instead going to focus primarily on the storyline first up. The storyline differs from the source manga slightly at the start from what I have read of it – and consists of three arcs. The first of these arcs consists of more then half the season and covers the initial reaction of the public following the violent revealing of Vampires and Akira and Mina meeting each other for the first time in many years, with Akira having lost his memories. With Mina “transferring” into his school, Akira has to handle both the reaction of his classmates to this news (and the fact he is known to be her servant) and with students disappearing and turning into Vampires. The second arc sorts of fills the gaps between the two, following some of the earlier transformed students who could not be given the Vampireism vaccine and become rogue, attacking others. The final and in my opinion pointless arc follows Mina and Akira facing off against the heads of the three vampire clans and their assassins and also reveals the reasons why Akira lost his memories – but still ends up a rather bland conclusion. The storyline itself doesn’t leave itself concluded, therefore indicates it is quite possible to be seeing a sequel somewhere down the line – considering that the manga series is ongoing and SHAFT do like their sequels.

I have only read the first volume of the manga series, which I reviewed back in this sites infancy, however you will notice the storyline differs in a rather unique way. Instead of the existence of Vampires being revealed in a more civilized manner at the Bund itself, the first episode dedicates itself to a show called The Scales of Astraea which is debating the existence of vampires as fact or fiction, with Nozomu Tamaki who is the creator of the series having a guest role in the series. It is a creative means in which to introduce the series other then stating outright that they are fact. Most of the main characters from the series appear sometime during this episode however all their roles are different to what they usually are, from the Queen serving as a crowd member to a servant serving as the Queen. The story differs also in the fact that Akira does not know Mina exists at all, in comparison to the manga where he is able to identify her from a poser. These small alterations to the story keep it fresh and doesn’t make it seem like a complete re-release of the manga in animated form. However as I stated above, the final arc really left me disappointed and despite being the source of brutal action that the cover promises, could have been put to better use then Akira aimlessly running around the Bund – even if some development is given for the characters.

Now to a topic I am sure you will no doubt be curious about… the frequent nudity of not only Mina Tepes but many other characters who are left in fanservice related scenes. I recently have done some reviews of R18+ Visual Novels such as Deus Machina Demonbane and my opinion on this is the same as I have towards them. If you have a strong story, then no matter how much nudity or fanservice is included, it should not be a major factor in determining if a series is good or not (Age Appropriateness is another story entirely of course). However, if you are curious as to how much nudity is involved…. every episode begins with a film reel counting down with semi-nude/nude pictures of Mina, a Purity Ritual and just several other sequences are included. I am not going to judge you if you like them or hate them, but you do actually adapt to them when you get engrossed in the storyline. However it is wise not to watch this series in an area others can see what is on your screen. Other characters have what I would consider occasional moments of fanservice to some degree. Storyline related, whilst not taking much precedence includes a relationship between a vampire student and a young boy, if that creeps you out as well (But does not include anything visually inappropriate).

The character development is satisfactory, with both Mina and Akira, as well as two other characters getting sufficient character development, especially in the later episodes, but the storyline was more-so dedicated to introducing the series concept of Vampires and the history behind them, quite often debunking vampiric myths and introducing a few of their own – such as a Vampire having its own transformation based on their inner personae. The romance element is a strained one between each Mina, Akira and a human girl Yuki and works well to set it apart about who Akira should choose – the girl who likes him or the girl who he serves. The action aspect of this series is of more a heavy focus, and works well, if not a bit bloody for some peoples taste. Overall, I think it is a satisfactory storyline that could have used something more in the final episodes.

In terms of design, it is of a quality I would have expected from a SHAFT studio title. From memory the original Japanese release had some quality issues which have been improved upon since it has been released to the English market. If you look at the images above, you should see how both character designs and environment designs are well detailed boasting a strong degree of detail in environments with a unique character design style that makes the characters stand out in both appearance and style wise. My only slight qualm with the design is the number of times they will move the view to get a needless view of fanservice, but in turn are rewarded with strong animation during action sequences regardless. Do note that this review is based off the DVD version of the series, so I am not commenting on Blu-ray enhancements or the like.

Opening Sequence
Friends by Aiko Nakano

The visuals in this opening sequence are of a high standard, even if I do not get the point why half of it is dedicated to Mina dancing semi-naked for no apparent reason at all (Althrough once again, visually impressive). The sequence also makes use of a number of digitally altered image of real flower which go well with the song. In terms of the opening theme itself, I thought it was enjoyable and went well with the animation and was a fast-paced tune but I cannot think of the actual genre of the song.

Ending Sequence
Tsumeato by hibiku

It is quite possible you will remember this sequence for the image of Mina wearing lingere. Unfortunately you are made to sit through a minute and twenty-seven seconds of this to enjoy the song Tsumeato, which proved to be an enjoyable listen and surpassed the quality of Friends, the opening theme.

In terms of the music quality, the track list is nothing memorable, however does the job of setting the mood well. On the topic of voice acting however, a number of the voice actors and actresses included in the English dub were very impressive. I have previously had musings that Monica Rial seems to be one of the only female VA’s that provide voices for female children in anime and that whilst she is a talented voice actresses, was limited by being one of the few who can fulfill the role. However, she does a brilliant job at Mina, offering both the cute and innocent voice, but also the one that shows she is hundreds of years old. Alpha Lagrange seems to be new to the dubbing scene with this being recorded as his only work, but also does a strong performance as Akira – alongside the more familiar voice work of Alexis Tipton as Yuki. Some of the voice cast I am unfamiliar with, but overall was impressed by the work they provided.

In terms of packaging, whilst there is nothing to make it stand out I still think it is very well designed. The cover image is of Mina and sets the “violence” tone of the series, with blood being the centerpiece of the image with gothic font reading Dance In the Vampire Bund Collection, even if is perhaps a little difficult to read over everything else. The back cover continues the back theme with the gothic font and text describing the series – with a couple of screenshots and a piece of artwork involving Mina. The inside cover is artwork of Mina spread over both sides of it. Both of the DVD discs are well designed, one with Mina in a sailor outfit and the other with her wearing a vampire cape. Overall, there is a nice set of extra content within the discs which include:

• Original Japanese Commercials (5 In Total)
• Intermission 1-12 (Manga Designed)
• Japanese Promotional Videos
• Textless Opening and Closing Sequences
• Trailers for High School of the Dead (Review coming out early this week), To, Hellsing Collection, Ga-Rei-Zero Collection and Vampire Knight

To conclude, whilst there were a few elements with the story that I felt were lacking in quality, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this series and do hope they will consider continuing the storyline in a second season. Provided you are able to handle a few inappropriate sequences, I think this is a title you should pick up when you get the chance.

Final Score

Storyline/Character Development: B
Design: A-
OP/ED Sequences: A-
Music/Voice Acting: B
Packaging/Extras: B+
Personal Opinion: A-
Overall Score: A-