3x3 Eyes - 6: The Key

Title:3x3 Eyes
Episode:6: The Key
Synopsis
Professional treasure hunter Jake McDonald "acquires" an artifact from a Tibetan temple, only to be confronted by a number of unsavory characters who want the item for themselves. Having decided to travel to Tibet with Yakumo, Pai is delighted to learn that Yakumo has located the monk who can lift the spell which suppresses her memory. They arrive at the same temple, only to find it to be in shambles, with blood splattered on the walls and strange claw marks in solid stone. A badly injured Jake staggers in, then collapses, dropping the artifact. Right behind him is Chokai, a strange, trenchcoat wearing man, his Chinese army uniformed men, and a bizarre red-haired creature. Chokai guesses correctly who Yakumo is, and demands the item. After a narrow escape, Pai awakens to find an old priest, Master Tinzin, who says what she needs is the "Spell of Release"--but the only person who knows it would be the one who put her under a spell in the first place. He recommends that she travel to Kunlun, the Sanjiyan Holy Land. Jake (who hopes to get rich quick by discovering the secret of eternal youth) offers to come along. While driving a beat-up jeep, Jake nearly runs over a red-haired girl. Since the girl seems lost, they take her along to the Master Tinzin's secret underground temple. While walking with the girl through the catacombs, Pai overhears Yakumo telling Tinzin about how he's afraid Pai's "true personality may emerge violently and I'll lose her again", and also how Yakumo intends to go through the temple's magical portal to Kunlun alone. About the events of four years ago, he says "I was helpless. I completely failed to protect the girl I love". Having heard Yakumo's plan, the red-haired girl suddenly undergoes a frightening transformation. She won't be the only one...
Comments
I had watched all previous episodes on what's probably a bootleg DVD, but has the Japanese dialogue and acceptably translated English subtitles which I prefer--except that for this particular episode, there were no subtitles at all, not even in Chinese! Fortunately (I thought) I had an Orion VCR tape of this particular episode as well, and started watching that--but the English dub was atrocious, worse even than the Carl Macek directed Streamline version. Luckily, I had yet another backup--a two VCR tape Pioneer edition of "Legend of the Divine Demon" (I had bought it because I thought the bootleg DVDs would only cover the first OVA). Though by no means on par with Megumi Hayashibara, this dub was much better than the Orion one. For example, there's a line in which Yakumo points out something about Chokai's men in Chinese army uniforms:

Orion Dub: "They're not exactly choir boys"

Pioneer Dub: "They're not all human"

In short, Orion Dub sucks, Pioneer Dub, okay. Another curiousity: on the DVDs the chief villain is "Kaiyanwan" in the first OVA, "Kwai Yan Wang" on the second, and "Kaiyan Wang" on one of the VCR tapes. Fortunately, I've checked and the subtitles are back in order for the final episode on the DVDs.

P.S., In case anybody cares, I think the vehicle that Jake was driving across Tibet was a Russian GAZ-67 jeep.

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