Video games and anime do go hand-in-hand if done right. There is a time and place for everything and NIS America has found that time, now, and place for the anime Persona: Trinity Soul. Based on the niche/mainstream gaming franchise the anime takes all the addictive pieces from the game and translates them to DVD for a true viewing treat. What makes Persona so great as an anime and why should gamers and anime fans care, let’s take a look …
The Story – Brothers Shin and Jun Kanzato move to their childhood home back north to be with their older brother Ryo whom they’ve not seen in ten years. In place of a warm reception the brothers meet with a detached and cold Ryo who is more interested in seeing them relocate than stay with him. The reasons seem to center around a series of student disappearances, cases where bodies are turned inside out. Quickly Shin and Jun are wrapped up in these events along with schoolmates. Shin learns he controls an inner power, a Persona, a power at the center of these strange events and attacks. How is Ryo tied to these cases as the chief of police and what does the new trend of Shadow Extraction among kids mean?
The Story – Brothers Shin and Jun Kanzato move to their childhood home back north to be with their older brother Ryo whom they’ve not seen in ten years. In place of a warm reception the brothers meet with a detached and cold Ryo who is more interested in seeing them relocate than stay with him. The reasons seem to center around a series of student disappearances, cases where bodies are turned inside out. Quickly Shin and Jun are wrapped up in these events along with schoolmates. Shin learns he controls an inner power, a Persona, a power at the center of these strange events and attacks. How is Ryo tied to these cases as the chief of police and what does the new trend of Shadow Extraction among kids mean?
Like all Persona based games the anime is covered in mystery. What are Persona’s and how do they tie to the mysterious group trying to gather them and what does Ryo know? What happened to Jun in the past, why does he seem a bit … off? What viewers do know if they have mysterious powers a shadowy and dangerous organization trying to gather them, an edgy and cold police chief, brothers and their fellow students all wrapped up in the middle and mysterious feathers. Classic mystery story wrapped around stylish students and badass Personas.
The Design & Animation – Beautiful design on every level. The scenery and settings are beautifully created and stand out more than other anime. The environments are alive. The characters are Persona, they are the stylish look and feel that fans of the games know and love. The Persona themselves are unique to each character and each breaks it’s own mold, no two the same. The included art book in the premium edition is hot and just enhances the viewing experience.
The animation is rock solid with plenty of action but a real human feel to each character, their emotions and struggles. What attracted this gamer to the Persona titles was the design. What kept me was the gameplay and story. The same is now true of Trinity Soul with the same addictive design, amazing action and animation in place of the gameplay experience and plenty of mystery to go around.
Why Gamers Should Care – Let’s keep it very simple. Gamers who loved, even liked, the Persona video games with their stylish design and mysterious stories will love Trinity Soul. Published by NIS America, these are folks who get the J-RPG genre, niche games that become mainstream and what they’ve done with this collection is offer up not just a rock solid anime but a package and book that fans will LOVE! Persona fans stop reading and go buy.
Why Anime Fans Should Care – First you gotta love NIS getting into the anime game with Viz, FUNimation and Bandai. There are others, yes, but getting Persona is a treat. Please note it’s only in Japanese so fans looking to listen need to read. Think of the bright side. In place of voice over cost viewers get the sweet art book and casing, it really is beautiful. A great collection and one worth the purchase for the story and animation alone.
Overall, Persona: Trinity Soul volume 1 offers up 307 minutes of excellent anime based on a niche/mainstream RPG universe that will delight fans. The style is outstanding, story and pacing well delivered and overall package a prize to be had by collectors. The only knock will be the Japanese only audio but listen to the passion in the voices and enjoy, it’s not really a knock but a treat.
