Shikebane Hime: Kuro

Shikebane Hime: Kuro is the sequel to Shikebane Hime: Aka which I talked about a while ago. I enjoyed Kuro a little more than Aka because the sequel explains much more about Ouri's history, the Kougon Sect, and the origin of the Shikebane Hime. There is actually a reason why the Shikabane Hime are all teenage girls. The Kougon Sect is not without its dark secrets either.

The nature of the connection between a Contracted Priest and the Shikabane Hime was a big surprise. The fact that no one, including the bad guys, understood the how the connection actually worked, is the only thing that saved the day in the end. It was also ironic that for centuries everything the Kougon had assumed about their power, was utterly wrong.

Although Kagami Ouri has received some training since he became Hoshimura Makina's Contracted Priest at the end of the first series, he is nowhere near ready to face the Shichisei. Makina also has a problem because she hasn't severed her connection to Tagami Keisei, her original Contract Priest. But Ouri and Makina find a way to make it work to their advantage, and ultimately are the only pair who can take on Hokuto, the nastiest Shikabane you never, ever want to meet.

Shikebane Hime: Aka

I finally finished Shikabane Hime: Aka, an excellent 13 episode anime that started in October 2008. It took this long because it got licensed, so the mainstream web sites like AnimeSuki stopped listing the torrents. The fansubbers continue their work of course, but it gets a little more difficult to find since you don't know who is doing it. The licensee actually put the anime on YouTube (and other places) but the quality wasn't that great compared to what I can get from fansub sources. Just another example of not giving the fans what they want.

In the the story the dead who still have a strong attachment to this world, become "living" corpses (shikabane). The shikabane still think they are human but are completely insane. They hate all other people whom they always attack without hesitation. To counter this threat, the Kougon Sect recruits certain corpses as Shikabane Hime (Corpse Princess) who are able fight toe-to-toe with the regular shikabane. In order to regenerate wounds and maintain a coherent mental state, the Shikabane Hime draw upon the life force of a Contracted Priest, a member of the Kougon sect. Obviously, the Shikabane Hime are all female and damned attractive one's at that. If there is a reason for this, apart from the purile ones ;-), the story doesn't offer any.

What is more interesting, is how the Shikabane Hime are treated by the living. The main character, Kagami Ouri, basically treats them with respect and dignity as if they are human. Many in the Kougon sect treat the Shikabane Hime less than decently, sometimes describing them as "filthy." Granted, the the Shikabane Hime are dead but that does seem a little harsh. On the other hand there are societies today that treat certain classes of living people as filth, so why should the dead rate any greater empathy?

The series has a sad ending but it is a good setup for the sequel, Shikabane Hime: Kuro, which has already been fansubbed. I'll be watching that series without a doubt.