Read Or Die

Read or Die is a fun little OVA. It gets off to a rough start as an electric-bolt wielding samurai blows up the White House before asking the President of the United States “Is this the library?” There are many, many things wrong with this scene, but I’ll leave my complaints to this – it would require less than five minutes of research for anyone to be able to tell the difference between the Library of Congress and the White House. This research would not have to very strenuous; simple asking someone on the street in broad daylight the day before would have saved a lot of trouble, but perhaps not have made for as interesting an action scene.

At any rate, our villainous electronic samurai does eventually find his way to the library, where he steals hundreds and hundreds of rare books. The LOC is none too pleased, and asks the British Library for help. They decide that this is the perfect task for Yomiko (aka “The Paper”), Drake, and “Miss Deep.” Yomiko, besides having an apartment that is literally filled wall to wall with books, also has the ability to turn ordinary paper into weapons, tools, or bonds. Miss Deep has the ability to pass through solid matter. Drake’s special ability is never explicitly revealed, but I’d have to guess that he has a higher than average tolerance for pain.

The Paper just happens to have recently acquired a rare manuscript, the second half of a two-volume work, the other half of which just happens to be included in the ones stolen from the LOC.

It is quickly revealed that the Library Agents are up against clones of some unusual historical figures whose DNA has been stolen. The clones also have superpowers related to whatever they happened to do in life. Their motives are unknown, but they want Yomiko’s book. Overall, an enjoyable take on action anime.