Ninja Resurrection

Ninja Resurrection
魔界転生 (Demonic Resurrection: Portrait of Hell)
Genre	Chanbara, Supernatural
Original video animation
Directed by	Yasunori Urata
Studio	Phoenix Entertainment
Released	February 27, 1997 – March 27, 1998
Runtime	30 minutes
Episodes	2
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Ninja Resurrection, known in Japan as Makai Tenshō: Jigoku-hen (魔界転生^?, trans. Demonic Resurrection: Portrait of Hell) is a two-part original video animation directed by Yasunori Urata.

The OVA series is based on Futaro Yamada's novel Makai Tenshō. Although based on the same source material and of a similar style, Ninja Resurrection is not a sequel to the anime film Ninja Scroll.

Plot

Ninja Resurrection takes place in the Tokugawa era, at a time when Christians in Japan were being persecuted. The leader of the Shimabara Rebellion, Amakusa Shirō, hoped to resist the government forces attacking Christians like him but is assassinated.

Soon after, Amakusa's restless spirit returns to avenge his fallen comrades and is up to Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi to put a stop to the demonic onslaught.

Reception

Ninja Resurrection was deceptively marketed in North America to appear as if it were a sequel to the popular 1993 and well-received anime Ninja Scroll, although the two titles were made by different studios. It was given a similar English title and logo and took advantage of the fact that the lead character in both amimes was named Jūbei. Largely because of the confusion this deception brought,[1] Ninja Resurrection carries the one of the worst reputations in American anime fandom. According to IMDb rankings Anime News Network ratings, and consistent negative reviews of many, Ninja Resurrection is in the handful of titles truly scorned, critically. However, its stylistic similarity to Ninja Scroll and widespread distribution have brought it financial success in the United States.

In Japan, the Ninja Resurrection series was intended to be 4 episodes long, but due to high cost production, low sales, its controversial graphic nature and a murder case that mimicked one of the killings featured in the series, it was cancelled indefinitely.

External links

• Ninja Resurrection (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Ninja Resurrection at the Internet Movie Database