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Darkside Blues
 Home/Change Series
Adapted from a manga/comic written by horror novelist Hideyuki Kikuchi ("Demon City Shinjuku", "Vampire Hunter D", "Wicked City", etc.), “Darkside Blues” is an 83-minute movie from 1994.
In the near future, men will no longer be in control of their own lives, they will no longer work for their own betterment, for their own needs and desires. Instead, the world will be “owned” by one giant company, the Persona Century Corporation. Summed up by a character in the film; “As long as the world is under the influence of a correct social order, it will not fall into ruin. However, when the social order requires a lack of knowledge and mindless minions to survive, the devastation appears as a world of its own.” There are a few places in the world Persona doesn’t own, one is a small rundown section of Tokyo, now known as “Dark Side”.
The world is in need of change, and the only thing that can put this in motion is a nameless being from the 4th Dimension, called to our plain of existence by an eerie, mysterious homeless child, Katari. This being, who adopts the name Darkside, will bring about a change in the mindset of two women: a punk gang leader, Mai, plagued with feelings of helplessness from when she was raped as a small child; and a one time nurse, Selia, who came home one day to find that her entire family had been eliminated by Persona. Like the rest of mankind, these two have become disassociated from their own lives. Instead of striving for something better, they live a morose wastrel existence, accepting their fates as useless beings under the oppressive thumb of Persona.
Through the power of languid staring, and convoluted speeches, Darkside will “Renew” Mai and Selia, starting a change that will eventually free mankind from the corrupt, monolithic corporate system that the world has become.
“Darkside Blues” is “…something dark… something desolate,” and something very moody. The cartoon is interesting, because, although it talks of bringing about change, no one really does any substantial damage to Persona. Instead, it is just assumed that with the passage of time, change will come about, because of the nature of our existence (very Existential, very Tao). And the show has that really cool “Madhouse” look, except that it’s not from Madhouse Studios, it’s from Toho Studios!
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8.65/10 
9.12/10
8.70/10 
65 votes