The Hellsing Manga (Published between 1997 and 2008 in Japan)

The hit manga by Kohta Hirano tells the story of the Holy Order of Protestant Knights (the Hellsing organization) which fights vampires in modern-day London. The chef's (Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing) secret weapon is the powerful vampire Alucard who loves to despise his opponents before killing them in a stylish yet very cruel way. The young police officer Seras Victoria supports him involuntarily since Alucard made her a vampire to prevent her death because he felt bad for her. When suddenly more and more vampires appear in England - who apparently seem to be artificially made and controlled by somebody - the Hellsing organization faces Alexander Anderson von Iskariot, a contract killer who works for the secret Vatican Section XIII. Alexander seems to be invulnerable and wants to kill all monsters and heathens in England. Additionally, Alucard and his new "apprentice" get to know about a nazi organization called "Millenium" which is responsible for the vampire attacks. Their leader (an insane SS officer) advances with an army of one thousand artificial vampires to declare war to England and Hellsing. Due to this content, the comic had to be censored prior to its release in Germany.


The Hellsing TV Series (produced from 2001 to 2002 in Japan)

Many people first got to know Hellsing in form of the TV series. Unfortunately, the first two episodes already went in a completely different direction than the manga. This was not only due to the explicit depiction of violence and the nazi symbols (which seemed a little inappropriate for being aired on TV), but also based on the fact that Hirano was only halfway through with his mangas when the Gonzo Studios started producing the TV series. Still, many people loved the TV series and thus bought the mangas. Those fans were surprised by all the epic (war-)stories the comics had to offer. In the TV series, the Iskariot organization as well as ultimate villain Alexander Anderson were rather a part of sidestories. Instead there was another villain who was called "Incognito". The story was completed with the defeat of him. The question of where the vampires - controlled by microchips - came from was simply put aside and then forgotten.


The Hellsing OVA / Hellsing Ultimate (2006 to 2012)

The studios Satelight (OVA 1 through 4), Madhouse (OVA 5 through 7), and GraphinicaxKelmadick (OVA 8 through 10) elaborately worked closely together with Kohta Hirano. As a result, they created the OVA (Original Video Animation) of Hellsing which in terms of the story stays very true to the original material. Each OVA is an almost one-to-one transfer of an entire volume of the manga. The animation is top-notch, just as the music. Thus, the OVAs, which include all the epic battles, are a very worthy transformation from Hirano's blood-soaked comics to the TV screen. In Japan, 9 OVAs were already released on DVD, while the tenth OVA is supposed to be released somewhen in 2012.
The OVAs from part 6 onwards were also released on Blu-Ray. In October 2010, a Japanese box-set was released which also includes the OVAs 1 through 5 in 1080p. What makes this box interesting are the completely revised "Recut" versions of part 1 through 4. They really worked hard and with a lot of sensitivity in order to make the quality of the animations of the first episodes just as good as the quality of the later ones. The color as well as the image brilliance was noticeably improved. Backgrounds, landscapes, eyes and glasses have much more detail, light, and reflection. Also, a few mistakes of the facial movements were undone (especially those of Alucard in OVA 1 and 3 but also those of Luke Valentine in OVA 2). All in all, the first four parts now have a completely different atmosphere to them and now look great in comparison to the more recent episodes.


This is the comparison between the original version (available in Japan on single DVDs and on the German, British and US DVD) and the recut version (in Japan only available with the other episodes on Blu-Ray).
The second OVA was not altered a lot in terms of colors, contrast or reflections in eyes, windows and glasses. The direct artistic changes are also a lot less drastic. The colors even seem more vivid in the original version than in the recut, there will only be a few example pictures for these differences. The comparison itself will only cover the direct alterations.


Examples for different colors and new animations:

Recut	Original

The pictures on the left side are from the recut version (Blu-ray), the ones on the right side from the original version (DVD)


min. 04:41 - 04:46
When Walter tells Seras that her bed was removed and she now has to sleep in a coffin, there are several paintings in the background during her rage attack. The original version only shows the writing next to Seras, the background is empty.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 07:46 - 07:49
The animation of the avenue is different when the Valentine brothers are approaching the main gate. On DVD, they have already passed it when they stop, wheras they just reached the end on Blu-ray sind die zwei erst am Ende angelangt.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 08:43 - 08:56
After Jan and Luke told the Ghouls to fire at the guards at the entrance, the shot of the destroyed gate was changed. The brothers still stand at the same position, but the view was altered.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 09:36 - 09:40
When the Valentine brothers and their ghouls go towards the building, the view of it is either blurred (DVD) or sharp (Blu-Ray).
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 10:36 - 10:40
One of the ghouls gets his head blown off. On DVD, he just continues without it. On Blu-ray, there is a rather large amount of blood spraying from his head.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 14:57 - 15:00
Alucard leaves Seras and Walter behind and adds that he will probably have a lot of fun this time.
His dissolution is different as well.
In the original, he dissolves into the thin air rather fast, whereas he first slowly turns into a shadow before completely disappearing in the recut.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 25:45 - 25:54
Luke's eyes are different when talking about Alucard.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 26:45 - 28:09
During the first half of the firefight, Alucard uses the Casull against Luke. However, a more powerful shot with a different animation then hints at him using the Jackal (note the heavier impact in the door). In the original, Alucard uses the Jackal all the time, which makes it seem strange that one of the shots is suddenly more powerful. When Alucard is impressed and whistles towards the end, he is holding the Jackal on Blu-ray.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 30:01 - 30:03
When Luke says that he is able to defeat Alucard, his face can be seen in a close-up. On DVD, he looks rather monstrous, wheras he is mad but more „normal“ on Blu-ray.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 31:43 - 31:47
Luke looks back at Alucard after his legs were shot off by him. In this shot, the animation of the basement corridor, the size of the steps and the view of Luke were changed.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 32:26 - 32:30
When Alucard stands still in front of Luke, they eye on his chest can be seen static in the original, whereas it is pulsating in the new version.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original

min. 37:45 - 38:02
Walter reads the damage report to Integra. The shot of the Hellsing building was altered for the recut.
No difference in running time

Recut	Original