I know that this has been explored in previous reviews of anime that we have conducted here at NeuFutur, but I really love the fact that intrepid companies like Funimation are closing the gap between when the anime shows they release in the United States come out and when they originally were shown in Japan. This time, the break in time between the original and United States release is only a little over two years. Kaze NO stigma is an anime about Kazuma and eir cousin, Ayano.
Throughout the episodes here, there is a chiaroscuro present that puts a chillness to Kazuma that corresponds to a fire in Ayano.
This is due to the fact that Kazuma is unable to use the fire magic that Ayano and the rest of the individuals in eir family can; after losing out to Ayano in a duel, Kazuma is forced out of the city. The story jumps ahead a few years and notices Kazuma entering the city, a champion of wind magic. Where a number of high-ranking members of the different family practicioners began to fall to wind magic, it seems only to make sense that Kazuma is the one that is guilty. Set too clear eir name, Kazuma’s adventures to find the guilty party give viewers 288 minutes of compelling story, fleshed-out characters and smart banter.
Kaze No Stigma’s art style is a blend of contemporary and classic anime styles, ensuring that only the best of both worlds are present. Furthermore, the subtitles seem well matched to the original Japanese language; there does not seem to be any break between the translated discussion and the motivations or desires of the lead characters.
The amount of additional features here further push the time that viewers will spend on this DVD up to the five hour mark. If you would like to see an anime that is really at the cutting edge, give Kaze No Stigma a try.
Rating: 8.8/10
Kaze No Stigma Volume 1 – Wind / 2009 Funimation / 288 Minutes / http://www.funimation.com / http://www.funimation.com/kazenostigma