Blacker than a Cat

When I hear the name "Gonzo", I think of the super-artistic animation styles found in shows like Samurai 7 and Afro Samurai. When borrowing the first Black Cat DVD from a friend, I was surprised to find the smiling bishi on the front cover from this studio. Further was my surprise when the opening showed off a cartoony style akin to Soul Eater. The shocks didn't stop there, however - as in the typical shonen style, the super-fast superhuman protagonist rips through the pilot at a break-neck speed. However, this grinning sweetie I'd seen on the case was nothing like the near-silent emo boy that broke into the series as a stone-cold killer. Furthermore, there was almost zero exposition on who the boy was, leading the spotlight to an unlikely down-on-his-luck bounty hunter with a do-everything briefcase.
Black Cat was clearly a force to be reckoned with from square one.

This FUNimation show fell into a friend's hands with the excellent bargains from the closing-down Borders. Hanging out last Saturday, we doodled our yaoi OC's and chatted about her finds. She offered to let my take Black Cat home with me without ever touching the disc inside, so I agreed without thinking.
The show begins with our not-really-a-hero hero, Sven Volfield, looking for his would-be gangster target, Tyrant, who's just been elected governor. Sneaking into the guy's ritzy election/engagement party, it's revealed that the eye Sven covers with a patch has the ability to see five minutes into the future. He realizes that Tyrant is about to be assassinated, but epic fails to save him as a mysterious boy with XIII tattooed on his chest shoots the governor through the heart. From his information guy, it's revealed that this boy is KuroNeko, or Black Cat who works for the Chronos company. The intriguing Black Cat's name is revealed to be Train Heartnet who isn't done getting in Sven's way just yet.

The more you watch, the more twists this show has. Supposedly a girl in distress turns out to be thief. Her "baby sister" isn't a hostage at all, but the world's most advanced bio-weapon that Sven as a "gentleman" takes upon himself to teach about the world. Train has friends in high places, but what exactly are his ties to Chronos? And then there's our hero's eye - his so-called vision eye. What powers does it have exactly?

The style of Black Cat is close to indescribable. What appeared to be a "cartoony" anime is constantly throwing dramatic background effects behind its characters with odd, slashed layers of color. The story itself has a realistic way of keeping you in the dark but the anime flavor of giving you just enough a taste of what's to come to keep you interested.

The dub isn't the best I've heard, but it's far above average. Brandon Potter is a name I'm unfamiliar with, but he brings Sven to life. Jason Liebrecht is an actor I usually see in secondary roles, but his sultry Train shows off his talent when compared to characters like adorable Finny from Black Butler or Principal Ench from Shin Chan. Brina Palencia, however, will always steal the stage. She whips out an itty-bitty voice for the cutesy bio-weapon Eve that speaks in a monotone, but still manages to scream with horrific pain during fight scenes.

This show is definitely a mold-breaker for both Gonzo and a stereotypical Shonen Jump series. Only five episodes have left me wanting more. I'll definitely be trying to get a hold of more of this show, and I hope you'll find a [legal] way to enjoy Black Cat as much as I already have.

-Much luvz, Hideki.