スカルマン SKULL MAN

SKULL MAN

ANIME

STATUS
COMPLETE
EPISODES
13
RELEASE
July 22, 2007
LENGTH
23 min

DESCRIPTION

Otomo City: where freedom and justice have atrophied to the bone; where conspiracy rules the day and death stalks the night... Death in the form of the Skull Man, a literal Grim Reaper whose skeletal grin presages grisly mayhem and murder, even to the monstrous mutants that haunt the city's underworlds!

To investigate a bizarre slaying, journalist Minagami Hayato and photographer Kiriko Mamiya must stalk this ultimate predator, through a festering cadaver of a city where the corruption flows in rivers as deep and foul as the sins of the reigning elite, and unearth a secret so shocking that an entire city has been turned into a tomb to contain! In a nightmarish necropolis where nothing is as it seems, vengeance comes in the form of a living Death's-Head!

(Source: Sentai Filmworks)

CAST

SkullMan
Hiroshi Tsuchida
Kiriko Mamiya
Ayako Kawasumi
Hayato Mikogami
Makoto Yasumura
Yoshio Kanzaki
Masayuki Katou
Reina Shingyouji
Michiko Neya
Kyouichirou Tachigi
Katsunosuke Hori
Tsuyoshi Shinjou
Tomokazu Seki
Tetsurou Shingyouji
Hideki Tasaka
Maya Kuroshio
Fumiko Orikasa
Nami Kisaragi
Kikuko Inoue
Usami Akira
Hiroyuki Yoshino

EPISODES

Dubbed

| | |

Not available on crunchyroll

RELATED TO SKULL MAN

MANGA ActionSkullman

ONE SHOT ActionThe Skull Man

REVIEWS

biogundam
31/100
for the love of god, lets hope the original is better
Warming this review may contain spoilers.

First impressions, so my first thoughts where that is was one of those anime remakes of a classic manga and it's sounds some what interesting based of its primise. So I thought this would be one of those anti hero story's which I am a big fan of.

Story, 3/10

Are story begins with main character hayato who has come back to his home town of otomo city,Which have become home for a mysterious cult and other dodgey dealings.
in order to investigate the mysterious the story's of monsters in the streets and a
Mysterious person known as the skull man who leaves a trail of body's in his wake.

So from what you can tell its one of those anti hero story's,
Which I am quite a big fan off.

The story in nut shell is main character is going around town looking for information about this skull man ,
Gets involved in shit that way over his head that involved some secret evil plan etc.
That pretty much the plot there really nothing much to it other than that,
I mean I could go into detail but I don't think it worth the my time and yours if I am being honest here.

Because this is probably one of the most boring, done to death anti hero story I have ever seen in my life,
It's just so predictable and soulless.

there really isn't much I can actually comment on about it,
There no themes, no message it's trying to tell us.
It just mindless action, a pointless mystery that I don't care about, and boring drama that you couldn't pay me to care about in the slightest.

It's almost like when writing this they couldn't come up with any interesting or good ideas so they like hay good writing why do we need this,
So they probably decided to look up some sort of check list for how to make the most bland anti hero story ever,
Ok we got evil cults, mutants, political corruption, a generic moral protagonist, and last and not an bad guy who is a bad guy just because.
Let's tick that of the list.

And I know this is one of those re telling of a classic manga series or somethings along Those lines.
And maybe that's why it kind of dated or bland,
But that's not an excuse for having a bad plot.

Like one example of a retelling of a classic Franchise done right,
Is Cassin sins which even if you didn't watch the original,
It still good even on its own and they actually used good and interesting ideas to mostly there full effect.

So bottom line that the main problem that no one gave a fuck about the story and everything else included as a whole,
So why should I waste my time or care about it.

Character, 3/10

Main character hayato is probably one of the most bland main characters I have ever seen.
His personality traits Are this,
He is just a good guy and that is literally his entire character.
There is Nothing interesting about him.
He pretty much the done to death mah morels type of character.

Side characters,
They all have the personality of dry toast.

Just like the main character there are bland as all fuck,
Nothing interesting or different about them.

It's just the one trait they have that makes up there there personality is there entire character.
So there not even characters there just cardboard cutouts.

So very bad characterization for the for the win I guess.

Also the skull man character himself Is also the most boring anti hero I have ever seen in my life.

Art, 5/10

Probably one of better things of this show.

The animation looks fine very passable,
Back grounds are kind of average.

Very boring fights that aren't animated well or have good fight choreography.

The style of the show which I would think try's capture this retro feel,
But Fails in that regard.
I don't really now what it is,
But it just has this feeling of very stiff felling to it.

Character designs are shit,
And most of the characters look the fucking same,
Half the time I didn't even know who who half the time.

But I kind of liked the design for the skull man outfit,
Because it kind of cool to me.

Sound, 5/10

The like the opening song,
Th ending for me is kind of boreing.

The ost is kind of boreing as well,
Like there really much I can actually comment on.

Voice acting for the sub is fine.
There is no dub.

Enjoyment, 3/10

I enjoyed the op and that about it,
Like a enjoyed a few of the fights.

But other that those things there really isn't much I could comment in the enjoyment sense of things.

It's just a very ber bones anime which doesn't have much going for it.

Overall, 3/10

If your new to anime and you have nothing else to watch,
Then don't watch this because it's not worth it.
You can find it what this show dose better else where.
If you like the skull man Franchise then maybe you would like it,
But I wouldn't hold my breath.
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Reldio
83/100
A well-rounded & great supernatural mystery that pays off well, but lacks anything truly exceptional.
Skull Man is a fairly unique show as far as anime goes, setting up a well-rounded supernatural mystery story with various characters, organisations and conspiracies that all have a clear role in the story with everything coming together very well for the last stretch of episodes. Whilst Skull Man itself originates as an old manga (partially serving as the base for Kamen Rider even) this adaptation is largely original and doesn't have much in common with either of the Skull Man manga stories. The anime instead acts as a dark & moody yet earnest and engaging character-driven story filled with tributes to Shoutarou Ishinomori, a very important figure in manga history most well known for creating the Cyborg 009 franchise. These tributes are some of the most well-executed tributes I've personally seen in any media, as they aren't simple 'Hey look at this! You recognise this!' references, instead taking cues from many of his works to create new characters and storylines, and even to hint at connections between Skull Man & other works, especially Cyborg 009. Recognising a single one of these connections is completely superfluous to enjoying Skull Man but they are a welcome addition for those in the know.

Taking place solely in a separatist city within Japan, this secluded and singular setting is almost claustrophobic as the story develops and demonstrates how impossible it is to escape the tendrils of conspiracy. The story follows a journalist returning to the city to investigate the titular Skull Man, an enigmatic figure rumoured to be responsible for many killings. A photographer, policeman & private detective round out the cast and the show wastes no time, moving quickly from incident to investigation with barely a wasted scene, all leading into a glorious final stretch of episodes in which everything comes together.

Visually the show is solid and at times exceptional, with some very nice shots and rare but well-animated action scenes primarily between the show's supernatural entities. The story is mostly concerned with pushing forward so I wouldn't recommend it if you are only interested in the action, but it isn't afraid of the odd fight scene and pretty much all of them are solid and engaging. The character designs are great too, especially Skull Man himself who has a scene-stealing design that would be right at home in a tokusatsu show.

The sound & music is even better, with Shirou Sagisu (Evangelion, SSSS.GRIDMAN, Kimagure Orange Road) providing a very fitting moody soundtrack full of emotional beats and scene-enhancing dramatic ques. An instrumental OP tells you of the dark atmosphere ahead with the ED having a more cliché slow reflective feel to it.

I find it hard to really fault Skull Man. It nails the moody supernatural mystery it's going for and ties up loose ends very nicely in a way not many anime mystery stories do, and as a tribute to Shoutarou Ishinomori I appreciate it, but the show lacks an element that's truly exceptional that would make me rate it even higher. It's a well-rounded product I'd highly recommend to anyone interested in this kind of material, but does not manage to be anything more than that.
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