Anime REVIEW: Garo: The Animation

It still seems strange to say that for the last year and a half there's always been a GARO series on television. What was once a great little adult-orientated tokusatsu series is now a full-blown franchise, with always at least one project seemingly on the go. But between last year's Makai no Hana and the forthcoming The One Who Shines in the Darkness sequel Gold Storm the franchise went off in a different direction, spawning it's very first full-length anime series. Simply named Garo: The Animation but also known as Honō no Kokuin (The Carved Seal of Flames), the show takes GARO back into what looks to be the past, making it a nice contrast to the modern day and near-future setting of it's two live-action brothers. It's also notable for being the first GARO series to get proper exposure in the West, having been simulcast via the Funimation website.

First Impressions: Garo: The Animation

Not content with keeping its ever growing onscreen presence to the realm of live-action tokusatsu, the GARO franchise has made it's first foray into the world of animation with Garo -Honō no Kokuin- (which translates as The Carved Seal of Flames). What's even more surprising is the show has even received licensing in the West, with Funimation picking it for simulcast as part of their subscription service. Simply dubbed Garo: The Animation here, the show will be completely unrelated to previous franchises entries and is written by Yasuko Kobayashi - a tokusatsu regular whose anime works also include the likes of Attack on Titan, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure and Casshern Sins.