Adult Animation Revolution: ‘Virgin Punk’ Is ‘Kite’ 2.0
by Tito W. James
Summary
Girls, Guns, Blood, Guts, and Soul. This is the Kite spiritual successor we’ve been waiting for.
Overall
9/10Umezu Yasuomi is the creator of the infamous X-rated OVAs Kite (1998) and Mezzo Forte (2000). Each depicts over-the-top sex and hyper-violence while also delivering compelling thrillers in a unique world. Now, Yasuomi is teaming up with Studio Shaft (Magical Girl Madoka) to create an original series: Virgin Punk: A Clockwork Girl.
Given the notoriety of the original Kite OVA was, I wondered if Virgin Punk was going to water down any graphic elements to appeal to a wider audience. To my delight, it didn’t pull any punches, and the theatrical screening left my jaw on the floor. The action on display is intense and only comparable to the final shootout in the anniversary screening of The Matrix. The superb sound design makes us feel the impact of every gunshot.
Just like her predecessor, Sawa, Ubu is also a tough-as-nails Lolita with a brutal signature weapon. She unsheathes what looks like a combat knife that rapidly expands into a Frisbee-buzzsaw device that’s used to reap the heads of her enemies. My description pales in comparison to seeing this weapon in action. Stellar animation combined with an evocative soundtrack results in pure cinematic gold!
Virgin Punk is an OVA, so the animation is not the length of a feature film — the rest of the screen time is taken up by a behind-the-scenes documentary about the animation process. There may be viewers who feel cheated by only seeing episode one of a larger story. For diehard fans of Kite, this was made for us! I left the theater knowing that I’d witnessed an anime masterpiece that is sure to inspire creative iconoclasts for generations to come.
