I've spent the whole day watching all 26 episodes (approx 12+ hours) of
Gungrave, and I feel compelled to express just how much i enjoyed it. The character development is second to none and i'm not ashamed to admit that there were many times where i was emotionally affected by the series.
I can see how this series may not be to everyones liking but for me personally it was done very beautifully. I love the criminal politics / organisational theme but what really drew my interest were the characters and their development throughout the storyline. I wasn't overly impressed by the orcmen/superiors angle but it was not enough to cause any issues with me.
And without giving anything away, I am always drawn to protagonists where the romantic interest play out as they did in this case with brandon (or e.g. Judeau in Berserk, etc). It's odd but even in my dream induced fantasies I usually end up as these protagonists and finish in the same manner as judeau and brandon did.
I am definately going to pestor foo to change my avatar to brandon for the time being (in homage!). Very tired now and not sure what i'm typing... sleep beckons yet freedom eludes =p