Iria: Zeiram The Animation
Iria: Zeiram The Animation or Iria: Zeiram The Bounty Hunter depending on media distributor, is a 1994 anime produced by Ashi Productions and directed by Tetsuro Amino. It was released as an English dub in 1996 and distributed to U.S. markets by the one and only U.S. Manga Corps. Iria is a six-part OVA serving as a prequel to the Zeiram cinematic series. At the time of writing, it is available for streaming on Amazon Prime under the title Iria: Zeiram The Bounty Hunter.
Iria: Zeiram The Animation follows the bounty hunter Iria, a bounty hunter apprentice, and is in training under her brother Gren (Glenn in the original) to obtain her full licensure on her next birthday. The headstrong Iria, referred to by Bob as a “sister who is as stubborn as her brother,” seeks to accompany Bob and Gren on a bounty assignment.
The assignment is to rescue the passengers and cargo of the hijacked spaceship, the Karma. Admonishing Iria to stay behind because of the mission’s uncertainty, Gren and Bob leave only for Iria to accompany them anyway. The trio arriving aboard the ship discovers that the cargo is missing and the hijackers are dead.
Zeiram, referred to as the immortal monster, has laid waste to the hijackers and is attempting to do the same with the survivors. Bob, a veteran hunter and the assignment manager of Ghomvak Security and Investigation, the agency the hunters work for, is critically wounded. Bob is jettisoned in an escape pod along with the vice-president, a man named Puttubayh. It is discovered that he is the one responsible for bringing the Zeiram aboard the ship. In a last-ditch effort, Gren would sacrifice himself by destroying the Karma and Zeiram. Iria safely escapes to the planet Taowajan.
Taowajan (Dawajon in the English Dub) is a caste/class-based planet. When Iria arrives, she is harassed by a band of children led by two boys Komimasa and Kei. Unbeknownst to Iria, Zeiram survived the explosion as well and has begun attacking the planet.
The trio manages to escape the monster, and Iria heads to the Administration building. While meeting with a representative, it is mentioned that Zeiram is being used indirectly to clean up the area that is known as the Shadow Zone. It is believed that once the Shadow Zone is destroyed, tourism would return to the site.
While returning to her homeworld of Myce, Iria hangs on, hoping that her brother Gren may have survived somehow. When she arrives home, she discovers her place has been ransacked, and any information about the Karma spaceship mission has vanished.
Bob’s death is under record by Ghomvak Security and Investigations as being accidental and unrelated to any assignments. An explosive device placed in her apartment forces her to jump out the window; she is aided in her escape is Fujikuro, another bounty hunter introduced early on in the OVA. He, too, works for Ghomvak but often received smaller jobs from Bob in comparison to Gren. He is money motivated and is hired by an unknown person to rescue Iria.
The assassination attempts on her life smell of coverup and leads her straight to Tidan Tippidai Offices to confront Puttubayh (vice-president), who confirms her suspicion. The passengers of the Karma have new identities, and the man known as Puttubayh is dead. In her attempt to escape Tidan Tippidai headquarters, Iria hears a voice that guides her to safety. Arriving at a computer terminal, she is greeted by Bob, whose consciousness has been downloaded into the computer.
Iria gets her shower, the two escape, and later we see her promoted to a complete bounty hunter. Shortly afterward, Bob and Iria fly off. Iria is given a new assignment that would reunite her with Kei, Komimas, and bring her closer to destroying Zeiram and avenging her death onii-san.
The animation for Iria: Zeiram The Animation is similar to other anime of the period. With time, it has lost some of its beauty compared to modern anime. However, the animation does not cause it to lose its appeal, and for older viewers, it may conjure a feeling of nostalgia.
The use of hues consisting of mostly earth tones is used to create a Wild West image between worlds. It is possible though not proven, that the creators were influenced by the Mad Max films directed by George Oliver. Iria wears what could easily be considered a law enforcement uniform or the uniform of a soldier.
Her uniform is blue with white armor pieces similar to Stormtroopers or Biker Scouts from Star Wars. It is never stated in the anime where she obtained the uniform from, but like Max of the Mad Max films, her uniform allows her to use and hide an assortment of weapons and gadgets. The worlds in which she travels have varying technology levels. Those close to the corporations have better technology and equipment with the ordinary citizens using resourcefulness to manipulate the technology.
Iria: Zeiram The Animation Intro
(Link Opens Video)
There is not a lot to say regarding the soundtrack except to say that I love it. The anime opens with a very jazzy and smooth introduction that lured me in from the very beginning. I’ve included a link to it below. Music is used sparingly throughout the anime either as a transition and is never overbearing. There are action scenes that are often music-less so that the viewer can focus their full attention.
At six episodes, I feel the anime is a bit short. It is a prequel to the Zeiram movies, and for someone who has never seen the film, I would have liked a bit more exposition on the backgrounds of the different characters. The creators do an excellent job of presenting characters that are believable and enjoyable. The anime does have the traditional tropes as friendships are formed in seconds, but they make sense. Later, we find out that Kei is a girl who is just as much a tomboy as Iria and just as headstrong.
A few minor hiccups exist, but they pertain to the subtitles used in the anime. There are times when the subtitles do not match the English dub and create some confusion at times. They do not detract from the enjoyment, and it is probably just me being picky. Nevertheless, this anime is a safe 7/10 with my sadness; a series did not come out of the OVA.
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Iria: Zeiram The Animation Official Trailer
