"…the war was fought by humanity against a series of fantastical monsters and the driving point of the show is that we lost, not won. Thus the show sets the stage for a world full of people lulled into a sense of false security that has arisen from the ashes of a nearly wiped out Earth where life continues on as though nothing happened (for the most part). As the show's four episodes progressed, we see that kids still go to school, parents go to work, and the grand scheme of things isn't much different than contemporary life except that the monsters make semi-regular appearances to obtain a sacrifice of a student to feed upon. The sacrifices appear at first to be random but a sort of mulligan is tossed in that if a student doesn't pass a test, he or she is more likely to be the one at the mercy of the monster (parents go so far as to bribe the officials in charge of the test to allow their kids to pass). No one is safe however if one of the monsters is in town and takes a liking to a particular kid. Since the appearance of the monsters is somehow regulated and infrequent, most people have chalked it up as an uneasy peace far cheaper than ending all life as we know it (as opposed to realizing they are essentially livestock for their masters).

There's a wind of change though, one that threatens the peace between the two races, and it comes in the form of a group called the Warriors of Melos. They fight on, tentatively fighting a guerilla war unsupported by the masses (at least openly) using supernatural powers somehow bestowed upon them that allows them to see the true form of the monsters and ride souped up motorcycles as they use their gifts to combat the monsters one at a time. The monsters don't appear to be organized (from the first four episodes) so as one falls, an area is temporarily safe of their influence.

The lead character of the series is a youngster known as Bocca. He possesses an average intellect, a keen eye, and a drive to see things change for the better so it becomes immediately apparent that he'll be the next guy gifted to fight the monsters. He runs into a strange gal known as Sayoko and immediately doesn't like her, signaling that she'll be his partner to those of use who've seen such shows before. Rather than have the lead protagonists get along famously, the creators of such shows think the storylines will develop more interestingly if they fight and bicker so that foreshadowed the couple's importance to the show. Sayoko is also gifted with some powers but not to fight the monsters so much as to guide the warriors in their quest and Bocca ends up with her assistance after he helps a powerful warrior, Kurofune, defeat the local monster."

I thought the idea of a fallen Earth was interesting on the face of it. The near future aspect also worked pretty well for me but the mix of magic and technology were so poorly explained that I wondered if it was a translation problem or simply some cultural relic missing from my collective vision that kept me on the cross side of the show. This time, the episodes were 13) Kurofune, 14) Entrance Named An Exit, 15) Fortune Canal and 16) Sayoko. The thrust of the earlier episodes was that the protagonist, Bocca, was in a maze (a labyrinth for those of you into fancy words) looking for Kurofune, another fighter of monsters. He comes across a boy named Solo and soon becomes quite protective of the helpless lad. This leads Bocca into a dangerous fight with Horu, one of the demons lording over the land, and a realization that the labyrinth is far more encompassing than it seems.

Between a showdown between Bocca and Kurofune, a fight to the death by Bocca and Horu, and the understanding that the bending of space/time will keep him captive for eternity; Bocca must figure out the secrets that even his mentor has yet to fully grasp. This was followed by the episodes where one of the demons is out of control, even by the standards of his fellow demons. This draws attention as he seeks redemption by destroying the warriors that cross his path. Rather than eat human children to survive as his peers do, he is consuming mass quantities at a rate that can't be sustained and drawing attention to himself. Bocca and Sayoko find themselves in the unenviable position of taking him on, yet by the end of the volume, his history becomes apparent; in a surprising twist regarding the two freedom fighters.

If you wrote down the actions of the four episodes and distilled them into a synopsis, the volume would actually sound better than I describe it yet I remain true to my standards. Sure, it'd be easier to shill my soul out and say how good the show is (you can find other websites where that's common) but the manner in which the characters are written, the combination of animation styles, and the low budget look of the show in general were hampered even more by some lame settings and weak voice acting. The dub wasn't much better, perhaps because the director seemed to recognize what he was working with, but I didn't feel it was worth more than a rating of Skip It. If you've watched the show up until now, by all means continue watching but this would be a bad place to start in on it and a fourth volume this bad generally signifies an even weaker ending coming up.

Picture: The Melody of Oblivion: Solo was presented in the original 1.33:1 ratio full frame color as originally aired in Japan. I liked how the show could be very dark and eerie or light and colorful as needed rather than sticking with one viewpoint as so many others do. This added to the visual complexity as much as the ongoing storyline and aside from some grain, it looked pretty good. The anime style itself will immediately be familiar to fans of the genre (although I prefer seeing more complex backgrounds and elements to the picture, it is a lot cheaper to do it this way) and relies on a lower budget than some of the smash hits from Japan in recent years.

Sound: The audio presented the standard two choices for the consumer; a 2.0 Dolby Digital stereo with either the original Japanese vocals or an English language dub, each with the choice of a couple of subtitle streams (one for dialogue and the other for the major signs only). To be fair, the vocals from the original language sounded more natural but the dub seemed to be a solid effort on the part of Geneon with better body to the music if nothing else. There wasn't a lot of directionality with the show though and aside from a couple of battle sequences, it could've been in monaural and stood up just fine.

Extras: The only extras were a disappointing production art gallery, some trailers, and a paper insert with the double sided DVD cover. None of them really added any value for me and this was a shame.

Final Thoughts: The Melody of Oblivion: Solo was the kind of fighting series that looks good on paper but ultimately has too many flaws to work out in reality. I've discussed the show with some supporters (of the show that is) and even they weren't able to articulate exactly why they liked it (in a lukewarm fashion at that) so you can imagine how tough it is for a guy who has watched far better shows on a regular basis to review it. In short, if you're easily impressed by Saturday morning cartoons or have yet to see a "bad" anime series, give this one a look but don't say I didn't warn you.

If you enjoy anime, take a look at some of the recommendations by DVD Talk's twisted cast of reviewers in their Best Of Anime 2003, Best Of Anime 2004, and Best of Anime 2005 articles or their regular column Anime Talk.