Master of Mosquiton

cutepiku★ 8

Master of Mosquiton is a short OAV, that inspired the Master of Mosqution '99 TV series. This OAV is not very well known, but is definitly well-worth a watch. Story The story of Master of Mosquiton is a young girl named Inaho, uses her blood to awaken a vampire that her grandmother had told her about, so she can obtain the O-part. The O-part is said to give eternal life, and Inaho dreams of being young and beautiful forever - for Mosquiton, apparently. She's starts this mission at the age of 17, and as the years go by, she gets increasingly more desperate. Animation The animation is top-notch. OAV'sare usually pretty good for this, and the characters all have good designs, as well as movement. The colouring is perfect for the dark settings, not to bright, but not muddy. It's very well done. Sound The opening music fits perfectly. This anime takes place in the early 1900's, so it has an old-style music feel, which helps set the mood. The actual in music is very well done, and fits every scene almost perfectly. As much as I adore the ending theme, it's a tad out of place, and prevents this from being a 10. However, it's a beautiful song, with pretty lyrics. Characters Inaho, our main character is quite simply, an annoying, vain little girl, who wants to be young and beautiful forever. Mosquiton himself, if what makes the show. He is a bumbling vampire, who is quite silly, and has a hilarious English voice. However, when he takes blood from Inaho, he becomes a full vampire again, and is a killing-maniac. After he kills enemies, he usually turns on Inaho, who has to stake him through the heart, revert him back into dust, and then start the whole process all over again, of a drop of blood on the ashes. Mosquiton also has two cliche spirit guardians. But cliche is only in appearance. Yuki is (as the name states) the ice guardian. However, she appears as a little girl, and cannot use her full powers until she transforms into a grown woman. Hono (also as the name states) is the fire guardian, who like Yuki, needs to transform to use his full powers. Finally, there is Camille, Mosquitons over sexed ex-fiancee. Camille alone manages to bring up the rating to this show, so just wait for her, she's a fun, almost-always-naked character. Enjoyment This series has serious replay value. The first viewing might leave you a little confused, so it makes you watch it again. About the second time around (unless you are VERY observant, or watching with someone who has already seen it all) makes it all very clear, and I can practically guarentee you'll fall in love with the series as well. Overall / My Comments / My Feelings When I first watched this OAV, I had rented the first VHS (of 3). It was the only one available, and I watched it a LOT. This series was so hilarious, and I just couldn't get enough of it. As I got older, one year for Christmas, I was given the first VHS as a present. Not to long after, I finally found the second VHS for sale, at my local manga store. Camille was... a life-scarring character, but I honestly grew to appreciate her, and how she twists the plot. I couldn't find the third VHS, until I searched on Ebay, and found it for 1 CENT, brand new, SEALED IN IT'S PACKAGE. Wow. So I bought it, and fell in love. My sister than bought me the TV series for my birthday, which I only watched once, but those OAV's I've watched over, and over. About grade 9, I joined an manga club at my local library, and I met a friend. She was drawing on the giant paper at the front of the room, and I commented that it looked familiar... kind of like, maybe Mosquiton? I was right, and we've been friends ever since. She'd only seen the first VHS (she rented it from the same place as me. That explains why I couldn't always find it), so I lent her the other two. She also fell more in love with it. In conclusion, this is an amazing series, that deserves more attention. It's not like it's something you'll be collecting forever, because my friends said that the OAV has been released on 1 DVD now. So go buy it. Right now. This series is definitly worth the few bucks you'll pay.

SgtSalamander★ 6

Master of Mosquiton is a quirky, funny, and unapologetically 90s OVA which has a lot of potential, but falls short in a few vital ways. I'd say the major issue here is that it starts off strong, but rapidly deteriorates over the course of its brief run. By the end of episode 1 I was even prepared to give it an 8, but there's not enough staying power, resulting in an unremarkable finished product. Beginning with the story, it charts the course of this show's overall quality rather nicely. It astounds right off the bat with a world that feelsalive with magic, and a compelling goal for our characters to pursue. There are mysterious, threatening villains, and ominous forces beyond regular human conception which drag the main cast into the path of fate. There are references to real historical figures throughout, and clever references to 20th century horror. It's hard to pin down, but by around episode 3 or 4 it begins to get confused. It breaks its own rules for how the world works, it randomly adds in extra plots and subplots, it peppers in high-stakes scenarios which feel random and unearned, and ends up losing all the character and magic which gave it such a strong start. The viewer is ferried to a lackluster conclusion on the back of a plot which loses its sense of identity halfway through. The same thing happens to the art, which I regardless feel is still the strongest aspect of this show. It begins with all the glories of late 90s anime, with everything from the painstakingly detailed and colorful world to the masterful character design and facial expressiveness, absolutely dripping with passion. You can tell the animators poured their heart and soul into this piece. Unfortunately, it falls off about the same time the story does, taking cheap shortcuts and making decisions which are ultimately lazy, diminishing the work. This is the worst part, as the art really is a spectacle, until they inexplicably stop putting nearly as much effort in. One wonders if they ran out of time in order for something like this to happen. The sound is a thoroughly mixed bag, unlike the first two. Beginning with the good, the OST is wonderful and immersive, and at times jazzy, which you wouldn't think would work as well as it does here, lending emotion and atmosphere to all the right moments. The bad, however, I suspect in part to be a result of garbage audio mixing. The sounds of life, things like footsteps or breaking glass, either get lost behind the music or overpower the dialogue. As for the voice work, I had a uniquely difficult time choosing between the sub and the dub. The sub is more accurate to the original Japanese, as well as fitting the tone of certain scenes better, but the Japanese voice work is almost inaudible. Meanwhile, the dub is much funnier, speaking to the intrinsic spirit of this show as more of a comedy than anything else, and enjoys superior audio mixing, but the body of drastic changes it makes to the original dialogue is a sin. It is a shame to see such unnecessary, gratuitous rewriting. So, while the dub is somehow higher quality, making for a superior viewing experience, I cannot in good conscience recommend it, and ended up going with the sub myself. The characters are the only aspect of this show which inhabit the middle ground of quality. They all fulfill their roles within the story, and are easy to get invested in while also being broadly unremarkable. Still, my favorites from among the cast are our two main characters, Mosquiton and Inaho. Overall, Master of Mosquiton is an anime with so much potential, which it ultimately squanders, leaving no cushion for its fall from grace. I will choose to remember it for its first half rather than its second, and can only recommend it to those of you who are truly passionate about vampire stories or 90s anime.