Domain of Murder is one of those titles that almost no one will see. The cover art is plain and uninteresting, the logo is even more plain, and by the looks of the production values, no one at U.S. Manga Corps seemed to have any hope for the title to do very well at all. They also only released a subtitled version, effectively killing off 75% of the market that prefers dubs.

That's a real shame, because although it's not a perfect title, it's certainly a heck of a lot better than a lot of other shows out there.

There are lots of plot twists along the way, and while none of them are really that surprising, the suspense in the story is quite real. Masaaki Kawanami's character designs are realistic, and while they aren't all that pleasing to the eye, they are original, and seem to be faithful to Kenji Hirogane's manga.

The only real disappointment in Domain of Murder is the animation and art as a whole. There is little detail or shading in anything, and the mouth movements are so off in some places that it's pretty much impossible to tell who's talking. The entire piece looks like it was produced on a shoestring budget, with production values on the same level as "The Ultimate Teacher".

Domain of Murder is certainly original, and projects a story and feeling not usually seen in anime. While most animators are busy constructing the next slapstick comedy, these guys are doing something a bit beyond that. For this, they should most certainly be supported.