“Haji.” The name easily rolled off my lips as I nonchalantly entered my kitchen. Less than a week before, one of my friends suggested the title of the new Adult Swim anime series, Blood+. It was a spin-off anime series from the hit development, Blood: The Last Vampire. Although I knew nothing of the story’s premise, I did what any other advent anime fan would do: I went to Youtube.com to watch the anime in English subtitles.

What I found within twenty-four minutes of Blood+ sent me clicking for more episodes, hoping to catch more subtitled anime. Blood+, with the same plot as Blood: The Last Vampire, tells the story of a high school girl named Saya with the blood able to kill blood-seeking monsters known as Chiroptera. For ages, Saya has re-awakened after long periods of slumber to kill the man-hunting monstrosities. Unfortunately, this time around, Saya has no idea that she is the only hope for mankind against them until a Chiroptera attacks her at school. Luckily, Saya’s servant, Haji, comes to her rescue, and soon afterwards, Saya is thrust into a realm of blood, bonds, fights, guns, and secret agencies against the monsters.

As the world unknowingly becomes the playground for the Chiroptera, Saya and her group of determined friends become the only players against the monsters. Saya tries to remember and cope with her forgotten past. Though her foster family, Haji, and the secret agency called Red Shield support her unconditionally, Saya struggles with accepting her heavy duty while keeping her foster family intact.

Although the plot of the series peaked my interest, I continued watching Blood+ for two aspects: the animation and the possibility of romance developing between Haji and Saya. First, the animation kept me returning to Youtube’s sector on cyberspace. The fight scenes are nothing short of excellent. Each sparring scene is well-developed, capturing every swift movement in high-quality colors and different angles. Even in subtle, humble moments, such as Saya refusing Haji’s welcoming arms, the life-like animation does not falter.

Second, the romantic tension between Saya and Haji is captivating for any romanticist. Since Saya’s first days of slaying Chiroptera, Haji has been by her side. He supports her without reserve. He follows any wish she so desires, even wishes he is against. Whenever Saya is in trouble, Haji is there to protect her and anyone else she has a bond with. Unfortunately, it is hard to see a glimpse of any type of physical love that Haji would hold for Saya. Moreso, Haji behaves as a reserved babysitter for Saya.

Besides the mysterious relationship between the confused Saya and the quiet Haji, other relationships between the main characters emerge in meaningful scenarios. One relationship that is emphasized throughout the entire series is the surrogate family that Saya is a member of. The foster family—consisting of George Miyagusuku, a Vietnam veteran, thirteen-year-old Riku Miyagusuku, and former star baseball player, Kai Miyagusuku—all make an endearing effort to keep the family intact until their last moments. As the Miyagusuku family dwindles down in household size, the remaining members continue to live their lives as their deceased siblings desired, remembering their fallen brethren as they fight against the Chiroptera. The strength of the family keeps Saya from rampaging through human lives as she had done at the Vietnam War.

While Saya, her family, and the members of the Red Shield try to keep Chiroptera at bay, more deadly secrets and events unfold with underlying messages. The Red Shield, Saya, and Saya’s supporters sacrifice their lives in hopes of living in a Chiroptera-free peaceful world. On the other hand, their enemies counter Saya and her beliefs, challenging humanity’s cruel nature and humans’ faults. Of course, any type of series dealing with beings other than Homosapiens tend to use hidden messages as ways to turn clear-cut boundaries into blurred lines. In a sense, Blood+ uses the anime as a gateway into challenging our own humanity. We could all use a little lesson in humanity from a Japanese animation series, right?

As cliché as it sounds, I have watched many anime series with non-human characters, and I am still amazed to learn the creators’ approach to telling their stories. The underlying messages for Blood+ not only blurred lines. They also complicated the plots and subplots, and before I knew it, the series was far more interesting than its first thirteen episodes. The animation awed me, but the storylines kept me interested, and to my dismay, glued to Youtube. All in all, I believe that Blood+ was a worthwhile anime to watch, and by far, the most intriguing in capturing and displaying both relationship dynamics and humanity questioning.

If you are not going to take anything else from the anime but its climatic fighting scenes, a girl with a katana named Saya, or the monsters called Chiroptera, then I would suggest you at least learn Haji’s name. It is only said a million times in the series, and if you count me, probably a million and five times.

Ha-ji. 

Bottom Line: 8.5 out of 10. Watch it on Cartoon Network if you like English dubs. Watch it somewhere else—besides Youtube since they’re cracking down on “violators”—because you’ll get hooked.