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What the hell was that? That was what I asked myself when I saw Petshop of Horrors for the first time. This anime is freaky, and that's about the only word I know that can describe it.
Set in a small pet shop, in Chinatown, New York City, this show offers a little
more of the Tales from the Darkside variety in that each episode is a self-contained anthology piece dealing with the purchase of an animal bought at the pet shop. How can they have a series of shows about animals bought at a pet shop? Well, they can, and they do it in the most interesting of ways.
This pet shop sells unique animals, the kind you can't get going to Petland Discount. Your wife died? Well, why don't you buy this rare mermaid that looks exactly like your wife in your eyes? You lost your daughter? Well, why not purchase this rabbit that looks exactly like her? Huh!?
I will tell you about the first story so that you catch on to what I am talking about. A couple has lost their daughter to a drug overdose. They go to see the pet shop owner who brings them to a rabbit. One minute, the rabbit looks like what it is, and the next, it looks like their dead daughter. Even the cop assigned to bust this pet shop, which is conveniently tied to various deaths, believes the couple just walked out with their child, and not a rabbit at all. He soon learns different.
The parents are sworn to follow three rules. 1. They can't show their pet to anyone. 2. They have to burn incense all the time and they have to keep it burning at all costs. 3. They can not feed their pet anything, but vegetables and water, no matter how many times their pet pleads for anything else. If you break the contract, you are in serious trouble. It becomes a matter of life and death; a lesson the couple soon learns when they break rule number three.
Yes, this story is like a twisted version of Gremlins, and it is rather creepy in nature, but it is also highly entertaining. Besides some excellent animation and a staff that are individually responsible for such hits as Vampire Hunter D (see review of the NEW D MOVIE in this month's issue), Final Fantasy, Bio Hunter, Ninja Scroll and Wicked City, this anime packs a wallop when it comes to story and character development. Petshop of Horrors is an anthology that brings you back to the good old days when that old syndicated hit, Monsters, and the best told stories this side of Twilight Zone.
In a place where the terms of the sale are non-negotiable, and a breach of contract can be deadly, you, the anime watching public get to benefit from watching other people's misfortune. If you are a fan or foe of this series? Then drop me a line. Send all comments about this article to Badseed@ybfree.com.