Zombies & Anime!

A perfect combo in my opinion and this series pulls it off very well. Based on the Manga series of the same name (2007-2011) H.O.T.D. should definitely hit the spot for any fans of either genre. The story follows a group of high school students who initially have to fight their way out of their school as a zombie plague ravages the city and their fellow high school students. It's a fairly classic beginning with citywide confusion as news reports poor in about crazed citizens attacking bystanders. The initial response of the main characters is to survive and find a way to defend themselves. After a series of close calls and zombie splatterings the group makes a plan to seek out their families. The story gets fairly intense as they fight through zombs and at times even worse survivors who've simply lost their humanity. There's plenty of the gratuitous violence as one would expect as zombies get blown away or sliced and diced by the Saeko (Pyscho) who is a close combat fighter using bokken, samurai swords and the occasional well placed kick to take down zombies. Saeko is icy cool and as you'll find out in the series a stone cold killer with not just a talent but a taste for violence. Kohta is my favorite character. An overweight kid with glasses who never gets the girl, but in the end turns out to be the go to man for guns. His love of weaponry makes him an expert marksman and a fount of knowledge on every gun ever made and he quickly becomes more then the nerdy kid. Hopefully he'll get the girl at some point. The other characters are as well crafted and distinct and I'll let you discover them for yourself. There's plenty of drama and emotion in the group as they work through their feeling, their teenagers so of course there's loads of youthful angst and heartache. Since it's anime there is also a good amount of the obligatory nudity and school girl giggling. The only difference in this area is that I felt it was almost satirical at times, because it is so over the top in it's exploitation of the girls. All in all the series is a good ride and hits the Zombie spot. Luckily it has been picked up for a second season even though it did not do well in Japan. Hopefully it's success in the States will keep the series alive.