Mystery of the Necronomicon

Original Title: 黒の断章
Romanized: Kuro no Dansho
Literal: Black Fragment of a Chapter

Plot Synopsis

Note: This series is an adults-only production; while this review doesn't discuss anything explicit, if you're under 18 you should probably spend your time in another area of the site.

The story begins in a mountain resort condo that (surprise, surprise) is thrown into turmoil by a brutal murder. Most of the folks clear out, leaving only people desperate for a vacation and the killer to prey on them. This of course includes our hero (a hardened P.I. with a blank spot in his memory that's so desperate for a vacation he stays) and his adopted sidekick to try and figure out whodunit... before the group, trapped by a storm, is finished off by the killer among them.

Quick Review

Rating: 1.5 / 5
Reviewer: Marc
Review Date: 2002-01-01

Mystery of the Necronomicon is hentai anime (porn, for the jargon-impaired), but it's different enough from the norm that it caught my attention. It's very close to a reasonable quality B-movie, and while the plot is rather silly and riddled with holes, it strikes a decent balance as a sort of supernatural crime drama halfway between an old-school whodunit and a horror movie. The issue is that every episode includes a couple of gratuitous and very graphic sex scenes. In a way it's sad, because with a little more restraint, most of the naughty stuff could have been passably erotic instead of outright smut. Or, with about three minutes cut out of each episode, you'd have a mildly interesting horror series on your hands. As is, if you look past the extreme cheese and cheesecake, it's surprising how well the mystery/horror mix works, and there are a couple of fun really weird sidesteps. The acting is largely good as well (look for Yumi Takada, better known as Ayeka, as an appealing traumatized tutor), and it's not bad looking, although the character designs are seriously inconsistent and it has that awkward look from the cel-to-computer transition period.

Mystery of the Necronomicon is basically one of three things: A hentai flick with way too much plot, a decent but sleazy B-movie with way too much sex, or a good B-movie gone horribly wrong. Which one is your call, but if you look at it in the right light, it's at least surprisingly not bad.

US DVD Review

The DVD includes the entire series, as well as a few production goodies. The video transfer is clean, and both audio tracks sound good. On the down side there isn't a full cast list, but since the original credits are intact there are some fill-in translations of the Japanese actors on this page.

Content Guide

Porn, and violent porn at that--anyone but adults with a very high hentai tolerance should stay far away.

Violence: 4 - Graphic violence and a lot of it.

Nudity: 5 - Everything, and in explicit detail.

Sex/Mature Themes: 5 - Don't even ask.

Language: 2 - Some swearing in the subtitles.

Notes and Trivia

The Necronomicon is frequently referenced in fiction, but was originally a creation of H.P. Lovecraft as part of the Cthulhu mythos. The original title of this series, Kuro no Dansho, doesn't directly translate--it means something like "Black Fragments of Literature," and in fact the 1995 PC-9800 game on which it is based had a subtitle in English "The Literary Fragments." The adults-only game was later ported to the Sega Saturn.

Availability

Available in the US from Anime 18 on bilingual DVD. Previously also available on two subtitled or dubbed VHS volumes.

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