Haunted Junction

Original Title: Haunted じゃんくしょん
Romanized: Haunted Jankushon
Literal:

Plot Synopsis

And you thought the poor fools at Tomobiki High had it bad; their schoolmates might not be from this planet, but at least they're of this world. "School Spirit" indeed: The happy campus of Saito High features seven spiritual wonders, among them a girl in a mirror, an animated anatomical dummy, and the giant in the gym. Heck, even the principal has a tenuous grip on corporeality, and his hobby is collecting occult related memorabilia. But fear not! The members of the Holy Student Council, chosen by prophecy, are there to keep everyone in line!

Well, actually, they pretty much have their hands full keeping themselves in line. Haruto Houjo, the president and son of a Christian minister, wishes he'd never even heard of the school, and he's got to deal with Kazumi Ryudo, son of a Buddhist monk, specialist in possession (getting possessed, that is), and a fan of the sexy "Hanako-san" toilet ghosts of the world, and Mutsuki Asahina, daughter of a Shinto priest, master of exorcism... and the female version of a Lolita complex.

Quick Review

Rating: 3 / 5
Reviewer: Marc
Review Date: 2005-11-25

Haunted Junction is a classically-styled wacky comedy series. It's more off-the-wall than most, and features a few character quirks that toe the line between extreme and offensive, but while the simple, stupid, and just a bit dirty sense of humor may not appeal to everybody, I certainly ended up laughing a lot. The cast is mostly capable, the artwork old-school but decent, and the background music memorable for its wide variety of styles, but the series seems to end just as it's getting into its groove, and the last couple of episodes are something of a downer, trying and, unfortunately, succeeding at getting more serious.

Even with the disappointing end, Haunted Junction is very weird, very silly, and if hard-core bizarrity and constant funnymaking is your cup of tea, very worth a look.

US DVD Review

The DVD set, one of Bandai's earliest, was very good, particularly considering the source material. To start with, the video is a good, sharp transfer, and shows no signs of compression or color bleed despite the rather rough-looking art style. The audio (Japanese only) is also very clean, in three-channel Dolby sound. The subtitles are, as mentioned above, well done, and (despite the lack of an English soundtrack) aren't hard coded--turn 'em off if you want. The menus are also nice, with some fun background music from the series, plus some art galleries as a bonus. Best of all, the whole series came on one reasonably priced two disc set, packaged in a fat clamshell case, a style that set the stage for affordable TV box sets that have since become more common.

Content Guide

There are some gross jokes, a few sexy ghosts, and occasional mature humor (some people will definitely find the whole near-pedophilia thing offensive), so it is definitely deserving of the 13-up rating Bandai gave it, possibly more for sensitive parents.

Violence: 1 - A lot of fighting, but it's very cartoony.

Nudity: 2 - Some very skimpy outfits, and occasional flashes of skin.

Sex/Mature Themes: 2 - Some gross and/or mature-themed jokes.

Language: 1 - Not bad.

Notes and Trivia

Based on a fairly long-running (1996 - 2001) manga series by Nemu Mukudori. It's not available in English as of this writing.

Yukie Nakama, the voice behind Mutsuki, is unusual as a voice actress; although Haunted Junction was her first significant project (and the theme songs her third single), it was the only time she did anime (unless you count singing the theme song to Megaman X4). After this project, she established herself in the multi-talent pretty girl mold with a variety of non-nude photobooks, singles, and a number of live action roles in both film and Japanese TV dramas. Her best-known role outside Japan would probably be early in her acting career starring as Sadako in Ring 0.

I'll mention here that Bandai's translation is quite well done; the songs include both English and sing-along Japanese subtitles, and the subtitles during the production have a fan-friendly air to them, with bits of Japanese scattered around and a properly literal translation, even when it is awkward. They even added some of the original Japanese words in parentheses to explain some of the more obscure puns, which I was very impressed with.

Here's one thing that didn't get explained: The "simple" riddle that Yamiko couldn't answer ("What drink does a turtle always carry with him?"). The answer is "cola," because the Japanese word for a turtle's shell is "koura," and the soft drink is the very similar sounding "koora."

Final bonus: For a subtle (and rather randy) little visual joke, take a good look at the "victims" of Red Mantle when he first appears, after they've collapsed on the floor. It's easy to miss, but I'm rather surprised that one made it to Japanese TV.

Availability

Was available on a 2-disc subtitled DVD set from Bandai, now out of print. Was also available on six subtitled VHS volumes, also out of print.

Looking to buy? Try these stores: RightStuf (search) | AnimeNation | Akemi's a(nime)Store