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Spice and Wolf is based on the light novel series by Isuna Hasekura. The anime series was produced by Imagin and originally aired in Japan starting January 2008. FUNimation announced their license of Spice and Wolf at Anime Boston in May of this year, and were able to release the entire 13-episode season by December.
The story of Spice and Wolf takes place in a medieval European setting (perhaps Germany from some of the writing and names) and centers around the traveling merchant Kraft Lawrence. Though already sporting grey hair, Kraft is a young merchant who has solid business sense, but a bit naive at times outside the world of merchants. His dream is to earn enough money during his travels to open his own shop, an admirable goal, but one that becomes secondary once he meets Holo. Lawrence arrives in the village of Pasroe at the time of their wheat harvest festival, devoted to Holo, a pagan goddess of fertile crops and the harvest. It is said that she resides in the last bushel of wheat to be harvested each year, but because Kraft’s nearby cart has wheat on-board, she is able to jump to his cart to escape. When Holo appears in Kraft’s cart, she has the appearance of a nude, young woman with wolf ears and tail, but she quickly proves her lupine heritage to Kraft, scaring him half to death. She reveals herself to be the Holo, the legendary “Wise Wolf of Yoitsu,” and convinces Kraft to let her accompany him on his journey in hopes that she can someday return to where she grew up. Kraft promises Holo that he will help her search for information on her home during their travels, and in return, she will use her improved wolf senses to assist him in his dealings. But their journey is not always an easy one; along the way, their skills as merchants and their trust in each other are tested by conniving merchants, kidnappers, and the need to keep Holo a secret from the Church.
Though Spice and Wolf is centered around the world of economics, it manages to be far more entertaining than just watching a market recap. Intermixed with the travels and business dealings are moments of action as Holo and Lawrence must defend themselves from attackers, both human and animal. In some cases, they are able to escape trouble with ingenuity alone, but others require Holo’s ability to transform to keep them safe. But even when they are not in danger, between the humor and trying to read between the lines, the dialogue keeps things interesting. Holo’s tsundere tendencies liven up most of her interactions with Kraft as she teases him and riles him up for her own amusement, and her insatiable appetite makes for good comic relief. While the story has a wolf-eared girl as a main character, the level of fantasy doesn’t extend much further. The series is very much a slice-of-life drama; so, those looking for tons of explosive battles will have to keep looking elsewhere. However, if you want a well-written drama with great characters, Spice and Wolf fits the bill nicely.
The two-disc DVD release offers both English and Japanese voice options with English subtitles. The English language is available in Dolby 5.1 surround sound while the Japanese is in stereo. There are a couple of spots during opening and ending that the song subtitles overlay the credits, making it a little harder to read, but during the show proper, the subtitles, while plain, are accurate and easily readable. Unfortunately for those who like to learn the Japanese lyrics for title songs, they do not offer the Japanese subtitles during the opening and ending credits. Both the Japanese and English audio is of good quality; so, whether you prefer subtitles or dubs, you’ll get a quality audio experience. Seiyuu Ami Koshimizu (School Rumble, Saki, KimiKiss) and Jun Fukuyama (XXXHolic, Vampire Knight, Saki), as Holo and Kraft Lawrence respectively, lead a great list of Japanese voice talent. Jun Fukuyama does a great job of balancing Kraft’s business sense with occasional naivety, and Ami Koshimizu does a great job using oiran speech without completely overdoing it, a pretty hard job. That style of speech was used primarily by courtesans from the Edo period, and carries some connotations similar to Medieval English. FUNimation, tasked with translating such tricky dialogue, brought in some solid talent for the dubbing, as well. While I wasn’t sure about J. Michael Tatum (Ouran High School Host Club, Sgt. Frog) being cast as the English voice for Kraft, he grew on me as the series progressed. Brina Palencia (Bamboo Blade, XXXHolic) turned out the be a great casting choice for Holo. She was able to capture the mixture of playful youthfulness and experience that is inherent to Holo’s character. She was given the difficult job of speaking Holo’s lines (somewhat formal and lacking contractions) without creating an air of aloofness or extreme pretentiousness, and she delivered them with aplomb. The only real oddity in the English audio was during the first episode. There was a scene where people were gathered around and they all begin to laugh. It sounded like a canned laugh track from a 90′s sitcom, and it broke the illusion for a second, but other than that, no complaints.
As with the voice acting, the musical score and ambient noise do a great job of setting the mood. It never overpowers or contradicts the setting and dialogue, and flows quite beautifully. The opening song, “Tabi no Tochuu” is sung quite well by Kiyoura Natsumi. Her voice, the music and lyrics combine to create a tinge of the wistfulness that Holo feels on her journey to find her homeland again. The ending song is entitled “Ringo Biyori,” but those are the only Japanese words associated with the piece. The band Rocky Chack plays the ending music, and all of the lyrics are in English. The version of the song used in the credits is playful and catchy and avoids the part of the song where the vocalist stretches her range a bit too far.
While the story, music and voice acting for the series are very well done, the visuals are pretty average. There is nothing terrible about them, but they are certainly not the most intricate graphics in the history of anime. There are minor animation flaws, but nothing that is blatant or detracts from the average viewing experience. The only complaint I have about the art is that the environments, while nice and simple, seem somewhat flat at times. It would be better if the detail provided more depth of field, but since the series is far more concerned with character interaction than the places themselves, the lack of detail doesn’t ruin the experience. On that note, the character designs are well done, and the expressions, while demonstrative, are not visually over the top. In fact, the animators do a good job of using Holo’s ears to supplement her speech. When she’s upset, her ears droop and they perk up when she’s excited. Also, the designers did a good job making the clothing fit the setting. The common clothing is mostly earth tones with a few colorful highlights, as is expected of medieval Europe, befitting the age when the story takes place.
All in all, Spice and Wolf is a great series for fans of dramas and slice-of-life stories and is well-written enough for those who aren’t already fans of the genre. FUNimation did a great job handling what could have been a very difficult translation, and hopefully they will soon license season two as well. This series most definitely makes the Final Cut.
Spice and Wolf can be purchased at RightStuf.com or Amazon.com
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Keep It or Trade It?: Z.H.P. | G.A.M.E.S. on 21 Oct 2010 at 7:27 pm #
[...] then I was dead. Other notable titles that have characters make an appearance include Spice and Wolf and [...]