Crow's Blood

Sakura is great in this. It really shows her acting ability, even though in-person, she seems timid. This was a fantastic introduction before seeing her in her musical career. This is a good show, and I will watch it again.

First couple of episodes were good, kinda went down hill from there

Okay... Let's get this out of the way. Crow's Blood is a fan service mini-series for the Japanese Idol group AKB48. The creator of Crow's Blood, Akimoto Yasushi, is the founder of AKB48 and all of the principle cast are members of AKB48. This is important if you really want to understand what you're watching...

Although some of the girls had some acting experience before this came out, the girls in AKB48 are primarily singers and dancers, not actresses. The acting isn't Hollywood quality but the girls act a hell of a lot better than the Beatles, KISS, or the Ramones ever did in their movies. Here's the thing though... The target audience did not care about that. I know, because I'm a fan of AKB48 and I was in the target audience.

Crow's Blood is actually a very well written series though. Akimoto hired top notch writers and directors for the project! It combines the concepts of zombies and vampirism in a truly unique way. The special effects are second to none. Even given that the acting is not going to be everyone's ideal, the special effects are actually where the series falls short. While they are excellent in every way, this is ultimately a drama/thriller. So as amazingly amazing as the special effects are, they are necessarily rare. As the story progresses fans of gore will want more, but because they are excellent they can be a little too much for the squeamish.

Crow's Blood actually quite extraordinary as a television horror series written for a bunch of teenaged singers and dancers!

I don't even know how to watch on this app someone help how to I watch I can't.

This six part series is mostly set in an all-girls Japanese high school. Students aren't too welcoming when Maki Togawa transfers in to their school. There is something rather strange about her from the start... and that is before black blood drips from her nose! Soon after her arrival very disturbing things start to happen. Aoi falls from the roof and crashes onto a concrete table in front of her friends; she is twisted and broken but still alive; within a couple of days she seems fully recovered. Student Kaoru Isozaki learns that Maki had been killed in an accident before her father, Doctor Akihito Seto, treated her with an experimental procedure. She contacts journalist who helps her find out more. As the series progresses it becomes clear that Maki is infecting other girls leaving them prone to violence and virtually immortal.

Usually gory, genuinely disturbing horror is restricted to films so it was nice to get a six part series that contains such material. It does of course mean it won't be for everybody as there are a lot of very gory moments from start to finish. The story is effective with a good reason given for Maki's condition and the way she spreads it. It develops at a good pace leading up to an impressive finale when the school girls are isolated in remote area during the annual field trip. The cast, mostly members of idol group AKB48, do a fine job even if they are clearly a bit old to be playing high schoolers. Most notable are Mayu Watanabe who is very likeable as Kaoru and Sakura Miyawaki (of HKT48) is delightfully scary as Maki. Tetsuya Bessho also impresses as Dr Seto; probably the series' most real main character. The series has a great look and style... in some ways it felt like a 'live-action anime' rather than a typical live action series. Overall I'd definitely recommend this to horror fans looking for something a little different.

This was the first Japanese series to be aired as part of UK Channel Four's 'Walter Presents' strand of foreign dramas... on the strength of this I hope it isn't the last.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.