Everyone's favorite un-vampire is back in Karin volume three.  This volume has the young girl who comes from a family of vampires worrying about her grades, having to go on a date with a vampire hunter, and wondering if the boy she likes, Kenta, is drifting away from her.  If that wasn't enough she also has to figure out a way to keep her brother from biting Kenta's mother.  That would certainly put a damper on their relationship.  This disc has four entertaining episodes that are sure to please fans of the show.

Series background:

Karin Maacka has some problems.  Her mother is overbearing, her younger sister is a bit weird, and 'that time of the month' started on a day that she has gym class.  As if that wasn't enough to worry about, she comes from a family of vampires, which can be a bit awkward, to say the least.  She's not a vampire herself though she's an un-vampire:  Instead of taking people's blood, she makes excess blood which manifests itself as a nose bleed.  This happens whenever she's around the new transfer student, Kenta Usui.  He's a tall, fairly attractive boy, and whenever he gets around Karin, her blood level increases.

The vampires in Karin's family all have an affinity for a certain type of blood.  Her mother enjoys the blood of liars and her brother only drinks the blood of people who are stressed.  Karin does have some vampire tendencies though, and she's attracted to people who are unhappy.  When the blood lust comes over her in a park, she bites the neck of a businessman.  (She doesn't kill him of course.)  Kenta sees her from behind and eventually figures out her secret.  Can these two keep Karin's secret and make sure that her family isn't discovered?

This volume: 

This disc has some entertaining shows that both advance the plot and contain a fair amount of humor.  After a rather average show featuring Karin's friend Anju, the series starts to pick up.  Karin is doing pretty badly in school.  After failing a test her teacher tells her that she'll have to schedule a parent-teacher conference if she doesn't pass a make-up exam.  This causes Mom and Dad to really freak out.  Being vampires they can't go out during the day, and having a conference will certainly let their secret out.  So Karin has Kenta tutor her.  Unfortunately Karin's dad thinks they're spending too much time together and starts letting his imagination run away.  Just what are those two high school students doing all night long???

After that Winner, the vampire hunter, asks Karin out on a date.  At first she's planning to turn him down, but then she gets a great idea; she'll go out with him and be so miserable and demanding that he won't want to see her again.  She tries it but the plan backfires horribly.  Everything that she does he finds endearing.

The disc ends with the first part in a mult-part story.  When Ren, Karin's brother, bumps into Kenta's mother one day he's drawn to her.  She's been fired from another job and really stressed out.  The blood of a stressed woman is like ambrosia to Ren, and he sets his sights on the poor, unsuspecting woman.  Karin is appalled.  It's not only because Ren wants to bite someone she's friendly with, but also because Ren always seduces his victims before he eats, and Karin just can't stand the thought of that.  She finally comes up with a plan to stop her brother:  she'll just bite Kenta's mom first!

This series has developed nicely.  It's mainly a comedy show, but there's also a nice amount of drama and continuity to keep viewers interested.  I like the way some of the characters have had their backgrounds fleshed out, especially Winner and Karin's father.  They are much more enjoyable now that they have developed a bit more.

The only problem with the series is that it's pretty average.  It never manages to rise above the level of most of the comedy anime that make it across the Pacific.  That isn't a bad thing, I actually enjoy most anime, it's just that this show isn't as captivating as it could be.

This DVD comes with four episodes and is housed in a clear keepcase with a reversible cover and an insert.

Audio:

This disc comes with the original Japanese soundtrack and an English dub, both in stereo.  I alternated tracks and found the Japanese track to be superior to the dub. Karin's voice is just a bit too whiney and high pitched for my tastes in the English version.  Both tracks were clean and clear however.  There was some use of the front soundstage, and the trrikikikik sound that was used for scene changes pans across from left to right in a satisfying manner.  Overall this was a solid sounding disc.

Video:

The 1.78:1 widescreen image looks pretty good.  The colors were solid and bright and the lines were tight.  The only problem with the transfer is the fact that aliasing is present and is a little more prevalent than the average anime show.  There is also a touch of edge enhancement in many scenes which can be distracting on larger displays.  Even with these defects the show looks fine and should please viewers.

Extras:

The only bonus item is a textless ending and a series of three trailers.

Final Thoughts:

This is turning into a pretty fun show.  The comedy works more often than it doesn't and the plot elements are interesting enough to keep a viewer's attention.  Sure, some of it is silly, but that's what comedy anime is all about.  For a couple hour's worth of light entertainment, you could do worse than this show.  Recommended.