| During the 1980s,
Japan enjoyed unprecedented prosperity while its
capital, Tokyo, underwent endless transformation.
Deep in the shadows of this ever-growing
megalopolis, dark passions squirmed. This
changing Tokyo is the protagonist of CLAMP's
Tokyo Babylon, based on the popular girls, or
shoujo manga of the same title, serialized in
Shinshokan's Monthly South comic magazine. Tokyo
Babylon begins with a series of mysterious, fatal
accidents occurring at the construction site of a
high-tech Tokyo waterfront tower. A request to
perform an exorcism on the building goes out to
Subaru Sumeragi.
Tokyo Babylon's animation was produced by
Madhouse, known for their work on 1987's Monster
City. The script was entirely rewritten for the
animated version. Character design is by Koichi
Chiaki, with art supervision by Yuji Ikeda and
musical composition by Toshiyuki Honda.
The consistently dense animation and the
high-tension direction are well-suited to Honda's
contemporary music, showcasing the animation's
charms without distorting the feel of the
original manga. A music video set to the title
song by Hideaki Matsuoka, produced separately
from the main story of Tokyo Babylon, is included
on both the VHS and LD releases. The combination
of CLAMP's wonderful color coordination and
Matsuoka's music well conveys the sentiments of
today's changing Tokyo.
Voices for the OAV:
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