~Entering the Unknown~

Basilisk:

OKTO is showing Basilisk at 11pm wef tonight, every Wednesday. Though I've already watched it online, I won't mind rewatching it again as it's one of my favourite ninja animes I've watched so far. The slight flaw is probably it's a little bit too bloody.

This is by far the most bloodiest anime I've ever watched after Neon Evangelion movie, Peacemakers and Weiss Kreuz OVA.

The story started when the royal ministers attempted to divert the backstabbing conflicts between the heirs into the surviving competition between 2 ninja clans to prevent unnecessary attention to the royal successors to the throne. Iga clan succeeded having a good headstart and murdered 5 Kouga ninjas before Kouga clan caught up. To get better chance of eliminating other clan as well as to seek for reasons from the royal ministers, Gennosuke-the leader of Kouga clan challenged the Iga clan to look for them on the way to Sunpu. Looks like out of the 20 ninjas of Kouga and Iga clans, Saemon of Kouga clan and Tenzen of Iga clan were the most effective ninjas to slain most of their opponents as compared to their fellow members.

All characters are in sequence of being slained:

KOUGA CLAN

01) Kouga Danjo: Slain by Ogen. Credit: killed 1 Iga ninja-Ogen
02) Jimushi Jubei: Slain by Tenzen. Credit: None
03) Kazamachi Shogen: Slayed by Hotarubi. Credit: None
04) Udono Jousuke: Killed by Jingoro. Credit: None
05) Okoi: Killed by Nenki's hair technique. Credit: Killed 1 Iga ninja-Rousai
06) Kasumi Gyoubu: Slain by Tenzen. Credit: Killed 2 Iga ninjas-Yashamaru and Jingoro
07) Muroga Hyouma: Slain by Koshiro. Credit: Killed 1 Iga ninja-Nenki
08) Kisaragi Saemon: Killed by Tenzen. Credit: Killed 1 Iga Ninja-Hotorubi and assisted in killing 2 Iga ninjas-Akeginu and Koshirou
09) Kagerou: Killed when her poison was backfired by Oboro's eye technique. Credit: Direct slaying of 2 Iga ninjas-Koshirou and Akeginu
10) Kouga Gennosuke: Commited suicide. Credit: Killed 1 Iga ninja-Tenzen

IGA CLAN

01) Ogen: Slain by Danjo. Credit: Killed 1 Kouga ninja-Danjou
02) Azuki Rousai: Slain by Okoi. Credit: None
03) Yashamaru: Killed by Gyoubu. Credit: None
04) Mino Nenki: Killed by Hyouma. Credit: Killed 1 Kouga ninja-Okoi
05) Hotarubi: Slain by Saemon. Credit: Killed 1 Kouga ninja-Shogen
06) Amayo Jingoro: Killed by Gyobu. Credit: Killed 1 Kouga ninja-Jousuke
07) Chikuma Koshirou: Tricked by Saemon and killed by Kagerou. Credit: Killed 1 Kouga ninja-Hyoma
08) Akeginu: Trapped by Saemon and slained by Kagerou. Credit: None
09) Yakushiji Tenzen: Decapitalised by Gennosuke and prevented from regenerating by Oboro's eyes technique. Credit: Killed 3 Kouga ninjas-Gyobu, Saemon and Jubei
10) Oboro: Committed suicide. Credit: Indirectly killed 1 Kouga ninja-Kagerou

There are a lot of brutel killings and plots in the bid to eliminate each other's clan members. Each character has been developed very well. Instead of just plain killing 'machines', they have emotions and dreams to live with their beloved. There was a number of times when I was almost moved to tears when there was a flashback and the building up of atmosphere before each of the ninja's death. It's sad that the lively Okoi of Kouga clan died shortly within her appearance in the anime. Kagerou of Kouga clan and Tenzen of Iga clan had more unusual way to die as compared to their other members. Gennosuke and Oboro's deaths were more expected.

Opinion of Kouga and Iga ninjas:

I have poorer opinion of the Iga ninjas than Kouga ones due to characters like Hotorubi, Tenzen, Jingoro and Rousai who enjoyed torturing their victims in a painful way before killing them. What's more, Tenzen attempted to rape Kagerou,same for Jingorou to Okoi during their assassination process. Rousai threatened to cut Okoi bit by bit to force her to reveal other ninjas' secrets. Hotorubi stabbed Shogen as though he was made of rubber. Only Akeginu protraded a better image as a caring member to Oboro. Iga ninja-Koshirou also showed himself as a more straight-forward and loyal friend.

Most of the Kouga ninjas were dead in the initial stage and only Saemon & Hyouma gave me more impression than the rest being wiser and better thinkers than the rest who only knew revenge. Gennosuke, though included Oboro as one of the Iga ninjas to be assassinated, did not attempt to hurt her even till the very end, which differed from his grandfather-Danjou's act to Ogen in the first episode.