It behooves one, when sitting down to watch anime, to hope that one will be seeing it in the original Japanese (preferably, with subtitles), as dubbing is often disappointing (not in terms of the language, of course, but in terms of execution: the nuances of inflection that often help "sell" the more fantastic elements of anime are often missing, and detract from one's enjoyment). I "lucked out" in this regard just the other day when a buddy loaned me DEVIL MAN- undubbed, and lacking subtitles. The story was easy enough to follow (I was already familiar with the manga, the anime, and the live-action version), but it was the fantastic FEEL of the first episode that blew me away. The ominous music strikes all the right chords throughout, the animation itself is top of the line (part of the story takes place in an abandoned house that is ten times scarier than anything you're ever likely to see in a live-action movie, with shots through boarded-up windows from the outside that lend the unfolding tale a palpable sense of impending menace) and the voicework is excellent: lines are delivered with just the right weight and manage to evoke dread and despair the likes of which simply aren't to be found in the dubbed versions. The opening sequence, which shows a flock of happy-go-lucky fairies being attacked and decimated by monsters who spring from the earth itself, is vintage Nagai and an excellent introduction to HIS world(s). One can't help but wonder why DEVIL MAN isn't more readily available to the paying public: it's certainly one of the better anime and one that audiences in general would embrace.
