Anime Impressions: "Mnemosyne"

Well here's my first review post, but it's actually less of a "Review" and more of a "General Impressions" I suppose. Mnemosyne is a 6 episode OAV coming out in Japan and as of this posting, the first three episodes have been fansubbed into English. Each episode runs about 45 minutes including the opening and ending credits. Without giving too much away, the series follows Asougi Rin and her partner Mimi as they work as private investigators, but the two of them are immortal. They can be killed, but they possess extraordinary healing capabilites such that they always get back up eventually, although how long that takes seems to depend on their injuries.

For the most part the show plays out like a supernatural detective story and each episode is mostly a self contained mystery. A good portion of each episode follows the main characters as they sleuth around the city looking for clues using a combination of old fashioned footwork and techniques out of a spy movie. But beyond the individual stories is the larger mystery of why the girls are immortal and what enemies they have working in the background. This where most of the supernatural aspects of the show come in and so far each episode has built on the one before it and added a little bit more to the larger picture.

Mnemosyne is definitely a mature show and it takes itself seriously, so don't expect to see any super-deformed shenanigans or people getting punched through walls for comedic effect. The way the show uses violence and sexuality reminds me of an American R-rated drama. The violence is relatively realistic (by anime standards) in terms of what is physically possible and how much blood the human body contains and is used effectively to convey what is at stake for the characters and to heighten the tension. There is one scene that shows the aftermath of a torture session in the first episode that made me cringe just a bit, but it's nothing especially gory or explicit. The sexuality is similarly used, but geared a bit more to engaging the male interest as it takes the form of some shots of various bare nipples and the whole series has a noticeable "yuri" vibe, but I don't think it necessarily detracts anything from the series, with one exception that left me scratching my head as to what reason plot wise it was included at all.

Overall, I highly recommend watching this series if you're a fan of supernatural mysteries with a mature flavor. It's clearly building toward something, but I'll have to wait and see whether the payoff lives up to what it's potential. Agree? Disagree? Got suggestions for improved writing? Leave a comment.