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Speed Grapher is the story of former war photographer Tatsumi Saiga and his foray into the seedy underbelly of Japan’s upper class.  Saiga stumbles onto a hidden sex club filled with the nation’s rulers, and the girl they imprison to worship as a goddess: Kagura Tennouzu.  Saiga unwittingly takes part in the club’s ritual which grants him his innermost desire, which so happens to be the ability to destroy anything he takes a picture of.  Using his newfound power Saiga helps Kagura escape the club and the two go on the run, trying to escape the club’s owner Chouji Suitengu, who needs Kagura to enact his grand schemes. 

Overall, Speed Grapher is a good show.  It brings some interesting ideas about consumerism and high society to the table, even if it comes across as a bit heavy handed at times.  The main characters are very interesting, primarily the strange triangle formed between Saiga, Kagura, and Saiga’s crazy ex-girlfriend Ginza.  Also keep an eye on Suitengu’s henchmen, as they have the funniest lines in the entire show. 

The only thing that keeps Speed Grapher from rising into the upper levels a quality is that it can’t decide what kind of show it wants to be.  There is an interesting message about modern society and the effects of hedonism on the upper class, but the message is bogged down in what becomes a creature-of-the-week show.  Because those with powers are all members of Suitengu’s sex club, all of their powers take the form of their secret fetish.  Saiga enjoyed capturing the last moments of someone’s life on film, now his camera can kill people.  Okay, I can handle that.  A dancer secretly wishes he could become more and more flexible, now he can turn into rubber.  Still on board.  A woman loves to consume diamonds, now she can turn her flesh into her beloved mineral.  A bit of a stretch, but alright.  A dentist’s greatest pleasure is causing pain to those on his table, now he can transform into a spider-monster with dentist tools for legs. Now you’re just making shit up. 

The writers felt the need to create these different monsters in order to give Saiga and Kagura a new foe every week, but the fights are pretty weak overall. Saiga grabs his camera, presses the button, and something blows up.  Occasionally he has trouble getting his target in focus, or his subjects like to move around a bit, but all this makes for a fairly hum-drum action scene.  The best part of the series is the characters, with their excellent development, and the overall story, which is twisted enough that it actually left me guessing.  While we are fortunate that the quality aspects of the show outweigh the time spent watching dull fights, the damage is still done.

Negativity aside, a lot of work went into this release.  Each of the six DVD contained within this box set include all of the special features they enjoyed during the first release of the show, such as voice actor auditions, outtakes, character bios, and even a three part documentary about Kagura’s original Japanese voice actress.  The box set also contains six booklets featuring the original character design artwork, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Speed Grapher comes recommended, even if the show has its low moments.  If you missed this release the first time around, much like I did, check out the complete series box set.  Be forewarned however; keep this one well out of reach of children. 

Fun Fact: The original OP for Speed Grapher was “Girls on Film” by none other than Duran Duran.  While Gonzo was unable to license the song for the shows worldwide release, any show that in some way involves Duran Duran is worth of a second look. 

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