One of the more popular shows of the mid-’90s was the Sorcerer Hunter series, where it had fun blending different things into a fantasy world in a way that really clicked well for fans. It had a lot of fanservice, a decent story to carry through it all and a good sense of humor along the way that made for a very fun dub that took a few liberties in translation. That show was one that I enjoyed in a kind of basic watch it and not think about it too much afterward way, so when a spin-off OVA series was produced called Chivas 1-2-3, I didn’t think too much about it. The name had to be changed when it was brought over since there’s that whole alcohol thing and that gave us Sorcerer on the Rocks, which I still find to be a better name and one that works on a couple of different levels.
While I would somewhat tune out of Sorcerer Hunters at times as the TV format for that made for some repetition, this one had me laughing through a lot of it and genuinely interested in what was going on. After all, any show where the lead character is just a bastard to those on his team is one that will generally get some extra attention. It’s just rarely done and rarely done so well. The makeup of this team of sorcerer hunters is an interesting one. It’s lead by Shibas Scotch, a purplish-white haired hunter who has a heart of gold. Gold in that it’s the money he’s thinking about. He’s accompanied by Gin Fizz, a Sister in the order of the Gold Cross. She’s in an outfit that’s almost nurse-like in nature, but she’s the one that will play up the innocence factor. She’s traveling with Shibas to help cleanse his soul and make him good. Shibas insists she calls him master, however, which would seem appropriate since he has a chain on her. He also tends to call her a *beep*. Yes, a *beep*. Their banter is hilarious and Monica Rial really nailed this role perfectly in the dub.
The group is almost made up with Kiss the werewolf, a younger girl with green hair who, you guessed it, is a werewolf. She’s got the perky bouncy energy of youth and optimism to bring to the team and doesn’t seem to be controlled by Shibas. The last member of the team is Genmi. Genmi fills the role of the redheaded warrior whose madly in love with Shibas, making sure our yaoi factor is covered. Once we’re introduced to everyone, we also get an introduction to…
Million Dollar! This blue haired business lass is after Shibas for money that he owes her. To help, she’s found him a new job in a town nearby that’ll pay 70,000 gold. So with evil in his heart (get the money, kill the wench), the group heads off to the town to see what they can do. The town is quite interesting in that it’s filled with just nasty people. Bad people. The towns aura is so bad that Fizz’s stomach can’t handle it, which is part of being a Sister of the Gold Cross.
With Million Dollar making sure that they’re headed off to talk to the guy posting the reward, she heads off on other business. Shibas and crew end up in the mansion of Cuttlefish, a rather classic style sorcerer for this town. Shibas takes advantage of this and demands 10 times the payment to fight the monster that he wants to be killed. Eventually, Cuttlefish gives in and Shibas heads off with half up front.
Only to lose it all in the casinos. So plan B is to make some extra money for hotel rooms. Plan B? Why, that’s Fizz and Kiss doing table dancing! Oh yeah…
Revisiting this after so long, having not seen it since the original release really, reinforced to me just how much this show succeeds. I had nostalgic memories of it but nothing really came to mind in terms of visual or story, which isn’t a surprise with all that I watch. But the name conjured up good memories and the show simply fires on all cylinders for me in providing a really enjoyable time. Great story, great animation, lots of laughs, concise storytelling and characters with style. And I’ll even say that I really enjoyed the entire dub cast here. Performances on both sides are fantastic and made this show something really enjoyable to watch. It’s a short and quick show with only two episodes, but I really have to recommend it to those who like some humor and naughtiness in their adventure fantasy shows instead of the same old same old.
