Petshop of Horrors
Reviewer: Gourry-san
English Release: 1999
Genre: Horror
Audience: PG-13

They say that rules are made to be broken. If you buy a pet from the Petshop of Horrors, don't ever assume that rules are indeed made to be broken, for you may find yourself paying the ultimate sacrifice for your disobedience. Petshop of Horrors comes across as just antoher fright-fest with some nice computer aided animation and beautiful character designs. The story itself is much deeper than you could have imagined at first. With the exceptional character designs, they tell a story that will intrigue you with it's mysticism and how all the stories have a psychological backdrop to them.

The character designs are extremely well done, and incredibly detailed. Everyone from Count D himself to each of his customers all have their own unique personalities which are obvious in not only their appearance but also in their mannerisms. Each of the pets that the Count sells also have their own unique flavor to them. They all have detailed bodies, and almost seem to show emotion at times. They are some of the best drawn characters I've come across in quite a while.

The story, seems to be one of the weaker points of the series at first, but when you finally are able to look beyond what you see, there is a whole other world that you never knew was there. Each episode deals with a idfferent character or set of characters and how they cope with some sort of loss. Count D helps them all by selling them a pet that suits their needs, but each of these pets comes with a set of 3 rules that must be obeyed without fail. If the terms of the agreement are broken, then the petshop assumes no responsibility for the outcome. With the recent string of events, an uppity police officer decides he's going to investigate Count D's shop and thus becoming a regular character.

Without a doubt this is one of the best OAV series that I've ever laid my hands on, and I must say that it's worth every cent that you pay to either buy or rent this series. With only 2 tapes, it is rather short, but the story has enough depth to it that you may not catch everything in one sitting, and thus it will be bringing you back to watch it again and again. A definite keeper in my eyes.