Shin Hakkenden is based on a very old Japanese novel that took around 4 decades to complete, but Shin Hakkenden sets in the future, and has some changes.
Story:
The Story of Shin Hakenden start hundreds of year after the Planet Earth got destroyed by a large comet, dividing it into 8 planets. At that time the Leader of Earth (called Fuse) rescued some people from the impact via space ships and wondered the space for a new home. Fuse tried to create a new Earth, in doing so she break the balance of the galaxy and people hated her for that.
Years and Years after, 8 persons, with 8 different jewels with 8 different background and tragic stories. re-unite to fight injustice and return Earth, which revealed to be a tough task for many obstacles, super power factions and a psychopath villain.
Art:
Shin Hakkenden aired in 1999, for an anime produced in that period and comparing to other anime in the same time. Animation and Art are outdated, bland and sometimes silly. maybe the series was produced on a low-budget, but fortunately for those who don't concern much about animation, it won't hurt the experience of watching this anime and its great story.
Sound:
Here's the awful part, the music! as a point to strengthen the assumption of this produced under low-budget, the entire series run with limited music pieces, maybe even few. every episode has the same music playing again and again. the fight scenes could be more intense with better music.
Character:
What made this series interesting and worth the watch is its characters.
the characters are well-developed. each one had its own sub-story running in the series. each had their moments and tragic events.
The way The 8 jewels fighters fight their way, met each other, helped each other, traveled, struggled, sacrificed , with many supporting characters helping them in the bloody journey was well-done.
the characters are realistic too. they are not the common-type of protagonists. each act on their normal behavior. they argue, fight and leave each other sometimes. over the 26 episodes, i can say characters got pretty deep development which really interesting and great.
Enjoyment:
I can't say it will be enjoyable for any individual. As long you put in mind you are watching an old anime. And forgive its animations and sound/music.
I bet you'll enjoy the story and the characters.
Thank You for reading my review. and sorry for the crappy English :)
