Hellsing

WARNING: This review contains an opinion that may differ from your own. I ask that you please read it with an open mind. If you're a fan of this manga/anime, hey I'm completely okay with that. I respect your opinion. Just how you should respect mine.I know I'll get some hate for this, but whatever, this must be said. When you create a manga, there are three things that you can judge it on. First is the characterization, then the story and lastly the art. Hellsing fails when it comes to story and characterization. Before I go any further, I'll tell you right now there will be some very minor spoilers but there's nothing that will ruin the series for you and I'll warn you ahead of time. The story takes place in the United Kingdom where the British government employs a special group named the Hellsing organization. They defend the country from things that go bump in the night. It' run by Sir Integra; (SPOILER UP AHEAD) it was originally started by her great grandfather, the notorious vampire hunter, Abraham Van Helsing. They incorporate a powerful vampire named Alucard. So yeah, you can kind of see where this is going, the Hellsing manga is like one of those "what if" stories. In this case, it's with Bram Stroker's “Dracula” Novel where instead of killing the count, Abraham Van Helsing keeps him alive and uses him to fight off demonic entities, vampires and ghouls(SPOILERS ARE OVER). I won't go any further, because I don't want to ruin what's left of the story (which isn't that much anyways). Hellsing's narrative is really lacking, there isn't much depth and it doesn't engage you. Not to mention, it's way too simple (especially for a seinen manga), and isn't that multi-layered or complex aside from a plot twist that occurs towards the end of the series. I wouldn't have had a problem with it if the manga was shorter, but at 92 chapters, I was expecting more story. Obviously, Kouta Hirano knew this, so he needed a way to entertain the reader; which was to throw in a whole bunch of action and graphic bloody violence to the point where it became borderline exploitation. I remember reading Hellsing up to the halfway point and kept asking myself when will the story take off? It never did. Even though the story isn't that well written, I'll admit it's very well paced and there's always a smooth transition from one scene to the next. Now on to the character's, okay let me start off by saying that Alucard has to be one of my all time favorite characters in all of manga and anime. He is the definition of badass and is a great example of the anti-hero. It's always fun to see him destroy his enemies mentally and physically. Not only that, but his whole persona and appearance is memorable. With his red duster and hat, to his large pistols and circular framed glasses. Of all the characters in the manga he had the most depth and was the most fleshed out. But still, he could have gotten a little more development. You couldn't imagine how frustrated I got when finally, we were given some back ground info on him but it turns out that it was only about 5 or 6 pages worth of material. Then it went back to nonstop action and violence. :( Furthermore, as for the others, they got little to no characterization whatsoever. For example, Seras Victoria, she barely got any development. Aside from trying to adapt as a newly turned vampire, there wasn't much else to her. About midway through, I began thinking that Kouta Hirano just put her in there because she had big tits. Don’t get me wrong, Seras is put to good use in the series but she just lacks depth. Like Alucard, we only get a small amount of info on her past later on in the manga. The same thing applies to the other characters as well. Sure, some of them had personalities that might make one stand out from another, but they were all one sided and flat. As I read further on, it became apparent that Hirano was too caught up with making them look cool and badass when they're fighting. And so, he completely forgot to develop them. Finally the art, the best part about the Hellsing manga; the manga author may not be able to write, but he sure can draw. The character designs are distinctive and fit perfectly for this horror themed manga. Implementing thick lines into the designs was an interesting idea. Backgrounds were very detailed and crisp as well. Although, Hellsing’s art doesn't start out that great in the first 8-10 chapters (especially the design for Alucard). But by volume 3, it changes for the better. All in all, Hellsing is a mediocre Seinen manga in my opinion. If you're looking for great storytelling and Characterization, look someplace else (Berserk, Vinland Saga and Monster). But if you want action and graphic violence then you’ll probably enjoy this. My suggestion to you is go watch Hellsing Ultimate instead, it’s a very faithful OVA adaptation of this manga. It’s a little more enjoyable than its counterpart because there is an OST, animation and of course, Crispin Freeman’s AMAZING dub performance. This all distracts you from the fact that the story and characterization isn't so great. So I think you’ll definitely have a more enjoyable experience with that.

Hellsing throws you into a dark world where monsters and humans coexist and do battle. Think of Bram Stroker's "Dracula" meeting the James Bond series, with a modest touch of fantasy. If your a person who enjoys being succinctly entertained with fast paced action and dialogue, then this is the manga for you. From an American's outlook, I could see where the Japanese lines blended with western comic ideals. Many characters are presented from different, competing groups, trying to hold dominion over the others for various iconographic reasons(God, Country, Money, Power, Abilities). It just seemed much more up front than some mangas I've readwhere things usually are more subtle at first. Not Hellsing though, from the moment you start reading you are thrown into the midst of essentially, a fast bloody short story with rising action, climax and the falling action. Not to say that the manga didn't try to delve deeper into the obsession over war, pursuit of perfection, and the preciousness of life. These are only a few of the themes that were blended with the fast paced plot for a thought provoking, but albeit entertaining story. The story isn't very grand in terms of details, but it allows the reader to focus on a few integral characters at a time, which becomes more exciting as they all join together right before the climax.With the exception of the abrupt ending, most of the plot revolves around the main character and his anti hero actions towards evil. I enjoyed seeing all of the situations pitted against Alucard, and how his seemingly never ending powers dealt with them. I was bugged at first that it was just fight after fight, but towards the middle a greater battle is taken up and the fights more or less become the story. It made for good and mildly original entertainment. The art in Hellsing matched the story perfectly. To say it was just "cool" or "dark" is an understatement. Every character has their own feel to them through their drawings. Integra is always collected and in charge with her cigarette smoke. Walter is respectful but yet mysterious with his eye piece shining, and Allucard oozes dark, fearful power. Its too long to go into, but every character almost seems evil do to the nature of the story and how it fits so well with the art. No one is perfect and the art reflects that idea well. Due to its fast paced, skirmish then break skirmish then break story structure, I originally thought that character development was lacking in Hellsing. But Hirano uses the battle structure as a way of showing you what type of character the person is. There are many many speeches in these battles that explain their ideals, motives, etc. It isn't really done as subtley as some similiarly natured manga, but still gets the job done. Most of the characters pass away fast, and so only a few get gradually built up. These brief characters are actually quite interesting and original, which makes it easier to appreciate them as much as the built up characters before they die abruptly. The majority of the characters in the series have interesting abilities and larger than life motives for pursuiting battle. If I had to say what the series major weakness was, its most likely the fact that the brief characters aren't given more page time and lack development, which can't be made up just because most of them are interesting and original. I recommend that you read this series as it is meant to be read, periodically. Read one volume, and then wait a couple days or even a week to read the next. There are many cliffhangers and plot developments that serve to enhance the enjoyment level greatly. I did this and was excited and involved until the end. The action is the bread and butter of this series, and the characters were all very cool, with only a few being "very developed". If you are wanting a break from your deeply thought provoking, hipster manga, than pick up a copy of Hellsing and your adrenaline will thank you. "Let us drive away those who have forgotten us, let us pull awake those who have fallen in their sleep. Let us pull them up by their hair and pry their eyes open and make them remember. Let us remind them of the taste of fear. Let us remind them of the sound of our military shoes pounding. Let us remind them that there are things between the earth and the sky which they would not even dream to be possible. We will burn the world down. Here we go, gentlemen." - The Major

It's a pretty meh manga all things considered. I don't consider Hellsing as a horror (if it was intended as one it failed in that department) and is more just a straight up action and it's.. okay I guess. Feels visceral enough but because the characters are vampires and ghouls they have an annoying ability to keep coming back to life no matter how much punishment they take. There's not really much a storyline which is a shame because the whole Vampire Van Hellsing thing has a lot of potential but it doesn't really live up to much. If you just want a manga withsome vampires and mindless action Hellsing might be okay for you but if you're looking for something more it won't scratch that itch.

After buying and reading Hellsing in the hardcover edition, I felt that this series is very average. I have two major issues with this manga. Hellsing is an action manga, there is really not a lot of plot, the majority of the manga are action sequences. A good action manga usually needs some kind of character development. However, this manga does not have a lot. The main character Alucard is the most powerful character from the very beginning of the manga, he never met any real challenges throughout the manga. Thus, there is a lack of excitement when he wins. The only character whohas some development is Seras because she is a new vampire. Furthermore, I had some issues with the panel layout. Some of the action sequences are very confusing to me. There are times when a battle finishes, I don't really know how the battle is won. Going back to reading it again still doesn't help. I had to guess what really happened. The power of the characters was very abstract, there is not a lot of explanation, and I had to use my imagination most times. In the end, I felt this is a mediocre manga. People who read this as a kid might feel differently.