There is always a standard mainstream in the whole movie/anime/books stories: good people - involving great looking men with great looking ladies as side kick (at the most) - working to do some good.

Well, I am happy to announce that this anime series break all the above mentioned standard!

Black Lagoon is the name of the boat owned by the group of outlaws called the Lagoon Company. The company has its base in the city of Roanapur. The group is hired for pretty  much anything: smuggling, delivering goods, translating for major criminals, etc. In doing their job, the members of the Lagoon Company is often face to face with hand to hand combat, battles - at sea and on land, racing, and other deadly situations.

The story begins when the Lagoon Company met (or accidentally taken hostage of ) Rock - a Japanese businessman. Instead of killing him, the company offered him a place since he turns out to be a great negotiator and translator.

Rock - unlike any hero in other stories - does not shoot a gun ( he won't even hold one), cannot punch, drive a boat, let alone do a hand to hand combat. So what does he do ? Well, like mentioned earlier, Rock becomes the group's negotiator and translator. He handles the accounting and save them if gunshooting turns futile.

Ok.. good for Rock... So what does the other do? Well, Dutch - a big dark skinned guy - is the owner of the company and he drives the boat. Benny is the mechanic and engineer.

Still.. ok.. so who does the hand to hand combat? Some bigger guy???

Well..... NO... the skillful gunman is a woman. And unlike in other stories where the gun holding woman is depicted boyish but with still possess a woman's natural beauty, Revy (the name of our gunman) does not. She wears shorts, T shirts, and pig tail. She likes to shoot. She enjoys the blood. She enjoys her work. She holds no value for human life. She killed her first victim when she was young. And she is never depcited graceful or having great natural womanly beatuy. She is simply deadly and great at what she does. She is nicknamed "Two Hand" since she is able to use her weapons on both hands simultaneously.

 

The Lagoon company is in close ties with the Hotel Moscow - a group of army turned fugitive led by a dangerous woman named Balalaika. Her subordinates calles her Kapitan since she used to be their captain when they were still in the army. She is the brain of the group.  She is also a great sniper. Half of her face is burnt in the war. She is well respected by her followers, relations, and enemies. She will destroy anything that disturbs her goal or her follower.

Eda, is a "nun" in the church of violence. She is a great gunman, quite a match for Revy. She sometime serves as Revy's partner and sometime crosses path with her.

One of the greatest guest character is Roberta. She is the servant of a boy who got accidentally end up with the Lagoon Company. Upon releasing him, she was involved in hand to hand combat with Revy. The scene when she and Revy was in combat is the best action scene in any movies I've watched. It is just so great watching two women battling each other using guns and fists (and being extremely great at it) instead of pulling out each other hair as usually depicted in women fighting scenes.

 

In addition to the characters, I also like the story. The full anime series is divided into several different stories. The Lagoon Company and its allies deal with different issues. Each is filled with fast paced action. And in most cases, there is no good guy nor bad guy. There are just different sides, taking oppsite actions.

The best that I like aside from the ones involving Roberta is the series where members of the Hotel Moscow were being slain by a pair of twin children. The twins were mentally sick children. In their world, killing is justified and they do it as a hobby. However, in the series it was obvious that they were the victims. When the girl finally opened up to Rock and almost get away, she was eventually killed by one of Balalaika's contacts. So, there is no happy ending. Well, not in this anime, anyway.