Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		2.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		2.5

Golgo 13: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie Review

An unlucky release.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 31, 2013

In the multimedia maelstrom that is the incestuous relationship between manga and anime, it’s perhaps at least a little surprising that Golgo 13 is apparently the oldest manga still in publication, having debuted in 1969 and lasting now for well over 45 years. This may strike some as especially remarkable in that many younger anime and manga fans may not have even heard of the franchise, though it was ported over to American shores as early as the mid-eighties. Golgo 13 was one of the first manga to really stretch its multimedia wings, with two live action films released in the seventies and a couple of animated offerings appearing in the eighties. The longer form animated series is actually a product of the first decade of the 2000s, but in its own way it’s resolutely old school, with a minimalist design aesthetic, a taciturn hero who’s not apt to do much more than kill people (well, after all, he is a professional assassin), and storylines that posit perhaps appropriately cartoonish villains who are pretty badly in need of some major comeuppance. Golgo 13 is one of many aliases that badass mercenary Duke Togo goes by, though this one is especially redolent of Togo’s usually malevolent intent. Golgo is short for Golgotha, not exactly the friendliest place in Christian history, and of course 13 will resonate with triskaidekaphobes everywhere. Golgo 13 never really indulges in overly convoluted plot points or even a wealth of character information about Duke. Instead the series exists as a streamlined action adventure outing that simply posits Duke in a new mission, with a variety of fairly colorful supporting “villains of the week” in attendance. Therefore, the series may not appeal to those who prefer longer story arcs and some kind of character development. However, those who want their animated offerings straight up, shaken not stirred, and fairly straightforward, might at least get a bit of a retro kick out of some of what Golgo 13 has to offer.

It’s at least a little surprising that the first episode of Golgo 13 involves a skyjacking, replete with a villain who manages to take out an Air Marshal and who then invades the cockpit, threatening to blow up the plane with a bunch of C4 explosives he’s squirreled aboard the craft. This episode is from 2008, well after 9/11 and seemingly an era well ensconced with the safety measures imposed after that tragedy, including security checks by the TSA and bolted cockpit doors. But as unrealistic as this plot device is, it’s an immediate clue that Golgo 13 is not a series fundamentally tied to anything approaching reality. This is a pure and simple saga of a hired hitman, with a series of arch-villains lined up only so that Duke can take them out.

Subsequent episodes see Duke being hired by a rather wide variety of people, including everyone from a Mafioso wife to a Mafioso to various governmental or quasi-governmental agencies. There’s really no through line established here. Duke exists as a character out of time and place. Some nefarious activity either happens or is referenced in each episode, Duke shows up to take care of business, and that’s pretty much it. Occasionally there are some nice little touches, including the episode with the aforementioned mob spouse, where Duke becomes the object of her affections, a situation our “hero” definitely does not reciprocate. And occasionally episodes take some unexpected turns, as is one where Duke is actually imprisoned for a while, which ultimately simply provides fodder for him to wreak havoc in a different setting.

With the general outlines of virtually every episode of Golgo 13 seemingly set in stone, it’s the details that provide most of the interest here. In fact in a way Golgo 13 shines the most when it exploits an almost procedural perspective, though in this case it’s not the more familiar trope of police trying to figure out how a crime was committed, but instead Duke trying to figure out how to commit the crime. There are some patently convoluted setups in this regard, as Duke is confronted with his own version of Mission: Impossible and has to figure out some way through the labyrinth in order to complete his hit and collect his sizable payday. The series does very well in teasing the audience with a bit of information while leaving the ultimate solution unrevealed until the actual killing takes place.

The series starts out rather briskly and moves through its opening dozen or so episodes with just enough variety to prevent boredom, but by far the bulk of episodes after the opening few become distressingly repetitive, with fewer and fewer distractions to recommend them. Golgo 13 in a way therefore becomes the anime equivalent of comfort food. It may not be especially nutritious or daring, but it provides the reassurance of the familiar. As the series wends its way toward its conclusion, it does start taking occasional chances, including a couple of completely weird episodes (including a kind of quasi-mecha outing), but by that point even rabid fans may have ceased to care very much.

Golgo 13 would seem to be a property that is more than ripe for a reboot. This property came along in a day and age when through lines and longer story arcs weren’t the norm, and so it’s perhaps unfair to expect them here. But probably the single greatest handicap this series has is the fact that it only consists of self-contained stories, and that virtually all of them are more or less the same, dressed up with slightly different characters and locations, but ultimately becoming a blur of similarity. In stylish new hands, Golgo 13 might experience an exciting new life as a gritty, adult oriented anime for a new generation. And of course Duke’s new life could only spell death for just about everyone else involved.

Golgo 13: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Golgo 13 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Sentai Filmworks with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer in 1.77:1. Sentai Filmworks has had its fair share of criticism over perceived flaws in some of its recent releases, but in this case while there are significant compression issues, the label may have also been handed source master that is badly dated. This seems odd given the series' relatively recent vintage, but high definition has made leaps and bounds over merely the last couple of years, and the series dates from 2008. The animation style here is pretty bare bones, but this high definition transfer doesn't do it many favors. A number of prevalent issues recur throughout this presentation, including a lot of stair stepping, general softness, combing artifacts and most disturbingly, very bad compression artifacts which resemble a cross between heavy grain and mosquito noise (look at the lower left side of screenshots 6 and 7 for good examples). These artifacts spread over the image like webbing in virtually every episode, usually limited to darker scenes and almost always confined to the borders of the frame, but to say that they're very ugly and very distracting is a bit of an understatement. Unfortunately, while Sentai may not be completely to blame for the look of this release, the end result is the same: it's not very good.

Golgo 13: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Golgo 13 features the original Japanese language track and a rather good English dub both delivered via DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. The mixes here are identical save for the obvious language differences. It's kind of fun to sample both of these tracks, and they both have quite a bit to recommend them. Dialogue is cleanly presented in both, and in both Duke has a gravelly and ultra deep voice (as frankly do a lot of the men). There's some quasi-rock music in several of the episodes that sounds fine. Fidelity is excellent and dynamic range is quite wide.

Golgo 13: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Clean Opening Animations (1080i; 3:05)


• Clean Closing Animations (1080i; 4:40)

Golgo 13: Complete Collection Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Golgo 13, despite its impressive pedigree, is kind of a middling entry in the anime universe. It digs itself a rut from which it seldom if ever escapes, which is not to say that individual episodes aren't enjoyable in and of themselves. Perhaps the secret here is to simply watch one or two episodes at a time, rather than the rather daunting 50 that this set includes. The thing that kept occurring to me as I waded through these episodes is how incredibly cool this series could be in a newer, hipper iteration. Duke is an incredibly fascinating character, but in this version he's basically an automaton who simply shows up, figures out how to complete his mission, and then, yes, completes that mission. A little more examination into the character's background and motivations and perhaps even a little real danger headed his way could make for a rather interesting new anime. In the meantime, though, my hunch is fans of this particular series may be sorely disappointed by the problematic video this release has to offer, as well as the dearth of supplementary material.