The main character of Gungrave is a being called Grave (his longer name is Beyond The Grave as given to him by the scientist that reanimated him but more on that later), a nearly indestructible "man" armed by the twin guns Ceruberus after the mythological character from Hades and a coffin full of even more destructive weapons. In Gungrave 1, the premise was established that a couple of street punks, Brandon Heat (AKA: Gungrave), and Harry MacDowel, were both taken into a Mafioso-type organization known as Millennion. Harry uses his brains and Brandon uses his brawn, after a series of misfortunes that gave them little choice considering their goals in life. In Gungrave 2, , the series continued their rise into Millennion as they handled assignments of varying natures, making a mark as valued employees worthy of inclusion at the top ranks. Then in Gungrave 3, the guys make it into the inner circle of the organization, each using a different method that hinged on luck as much as skill. While I never saw volume 4, the basic storyline included the death of Brandon (which shouldn't be a spoiler if you've watched the series) as well as Harry's rise to the very top of Millennion. In Gungrave 5: The Protector, Harry expanded the scope of Millennion by selling the services of his Orgmen, the supernaturally powerful beings seen in the very first episode while Brandon is revived to protect a very special young lady with ties to his past. All of this brings us to today's review of Gungrave 6: Erosion; a volume where Brandon makes his move to end the corrupt Millennion before his existence comes to an end. Here's what the rear box cover said about it:

"Grave's unstoppable assault shakes the Millennion organization to its corrupt core and Harry's iron grip on the Mafia organization begins to slip as its executives begin to plot and scheme. However, the Orgmen execute those who fail to conceal their activities which prevents an open rebellion and Grave has a critical weakness - Mika. Lee sets out to exploit that weakness by kidnapping Mika from Grave's allies while Bear chooses to protect his own daughter at any cost…"

Brandon's task at hand is the time tested story of revenge and as the story progressed, it became apparent that he was regaining some of his self awareness and consciousness that was initially portrayed as a form of mindless zombie (at least after his death). Millennion, a group formed to protect family members from being taken advantage of and/or hurt has now become solely interested in making more money at any cost thanks to Harry MacDowel's iron-fisted rule. He tolerates no dissent and routinely dismisses the old ways as sentimental foolishness, even as his most loyal proponents are used as pawns in his quest to maintain power by any means necessary.

The episodes this time were 21) Duty, 22) Remorse, and 23) Daughter, each of which furthered the story as Brandon cuts right to the heart of the matter in his quest. Now on a timeline to finish his task and meet his overdue rest, he boldly follows through on his plan with the added constraint of his duty to the old ways, and to his new charge. Harry, of course, has other ideas about how the universe will be shaped and assigns his best henchmen to stop the threat posed by Brandon, including specially augmented Orgmen known as "Specials". Bear, the leader of the remaining old guard of Millennion, eventually ends up in the unforgiving spot of Brandon's crosshairs, a situation not known for longevity given the methods Brandon has used to dispatch his opponents. Without spoiling the fun too much, suffice it to say that with one volume to go in the series, many of the smaller threads get tied up here, and set up the remaining battle as the professor, Mika, and Brandon face the full onslaught of Millennion's resources in broad daylight.

With more of the reasoning behind what took place prior to the last volume, things made more sense this time and that made it pleasurable to watch the various battles knowing why things happened as they did. While the DVD only had three episodes, meriting a rating of Recommended, it was in integral part of the series and was not to be missed by fans. When Geneon eventually releases this as a boxed set, I suspect a lot of people will be willing to pick it up based on watching a single volume such as this one but I strongly recommend that you view the DVDs in order rather than skip any of them as I was forced to. In a world gone wrong depending on one very deadly anti-hero for relief, the Gungrave series managed to catch, and keep, my attention in a rapidly crowding field of anime titles. Check it out if you have any interest in any of the genres listed above.

Picture: Gungrave 6: Erosion was presented in 16:9 Anamorphic widescreen color in the originally shot 1.78:1 aspect ratio. It looked crisp and clear with the kind of darker color scheme that suits the material. I saw no compression artifacts and the only grain seemed intentional as it signified a flashback of importance (helping me to keep track of the key plot elements). The animation style used was sometimes minimalist in how little movement took place or in how many frames per second were employed, but unlike the videogame, such moments often, if not always, conveyed more than the overly busy styles of other shows.

Sound: The sound was presented with several choices for the consumer, including an English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track, a Japanese 2.0 Dolby Digital track, and the superior 5.1 Japanese DTS track that really shined as I listened to it on a friends top of the line set up. There were the usual English subtitles available on the Japanese tracks and I honestly enjoyed the dub as much as the original (although enhanced) Japanese tracks. The show really made great use of the back channels and the special effects employed were good enough that a blind person would've been appreciative of the care that went into it. As far as the dub track went, the voice actors seemed talented in how they handled their roles too; something that many anime lovers find rare these days. Try both of the 5.1 tracks and you'll see why I liked them so much but I had no problems with either.

Extras: The only extras were some trailers, conceptual art, and a textless opening and closing.

Final Thoughts: Gungrave 6: Erosion was as much as exercise of Brandon coming to grips with his lost humanity and revisiting his choices in the past as it was about zombies and Mafioso types attempting to achieve their goals. While the series to date could've probably used a bit of editing to maintain more of a coherent (and focused) story, the overall impression I got from the show was quite favorable on many levels. Sure, it could be dismissed as a kids show (with a"16 Up" rating, it wasn't designed for younger children) or as a rehash of so many stereotypical endeavors of the past (anime or not) but it did seem to add in a lot of creativity that went beyond the super powered zombie aspects of the series. Give it a chance and you'll likely find it appeals to some aspect of your tastes, noting that this series is best viewed in order rather than randomly so get Gungrave 1 and proceed through as if reading a book for the most pleasure.

If you enjoy anime, take a look at some of the recommendations by DVDTalk's twisted cast of reviewers in their Best Of Anime 2003 and Best Of Anime 2004 article or regular column Anime Talk