Anime: Honoo no Mirage: Minagiwa no Hangyakusha

Animation:

Wow, the graphic/animation is much better than the TV series in 2002. Talking about OVA quality.

In contrast to the TV series, the battle scenes are great and they have become one of the strengths of the anime instead of flaw.

The flaw in the animation is over-the-top blood and overflowing tears which are common in animes anyway. ^_~

Sound:

Opening song title is "A Vision of Flames". Sounds better than Blaze 2002. The ending song is "Tears of Indigo". Nice piano tunes, but the English and the way it is sung hurts. Both OP/ED are sung in English, and both have Japanese accents...

The BGM is similar to the TV series, but they are not the same. They really fit the mood of the anime when they're played, especially the battle scenes.

Story/main plot:

Takaya was sent to Kyoto to investigate the re-awakening of Ikko sect and Araki Murashige, a member of the Ikko sect who deserted the clan.With the help of his vassal Haruie, Takaya finally trace Araki who hunts down a 400-years-old mandala (Buddhist artifact for meditating)that was made of the hair of the deceased Araki clansmen. Unfortunately, Haruie is confident that Araki was her former lover by the time they meet. Takaya orders her to eliminate Araki, who is a threat, but will she be able to do it? Is Murashige really Haruie's past lover? Furthermore Takaya finally meets Naoe, will sparks fly between them?

Characters:

Character designs pretty much remains the same, except for Takaya. His face changes a bit. He looks more mature now, and he now has a pair of tiger eyes as one of his powers.

The personalities of the characters remain pretty much the same. You know their personalities if you watch the TV series. Naoe shows his sensitivities at all the wrong times.

Value:

I paid AU$ 95 each for a 31 mins DVD + bonus interview with the seiyuus (Toshihiko Seki on the 1st, Show Hayami on the 2nd and the 3 main seiyuus on the 3rd DVD) and textless OP and ED. Although Japanese DVDs are pricey,it's worth the money (for fans like myself). Furthermore there's bonus pin-styled cover artwork and poster if you buy the first-pressed DVDs.^_^

Enjoyment:

I really enjoy watching it. I found myself re-watching a couple of times.

Finally, I really hope that there'll be another season of TV series in the future as the TV series + these 3 OVAs only cover up to 9th volume of the novels out of the entire 40 volumes.