Unbeknownst to most citizens, evil plant-like monsters called the Aragami threaten to bring humanity to the brink of destruction. An ancient myth tells of one Aragami (Orochi-No-Orochi) that came each year to eat one of eight daughters from a family that lived by the ocean. An outcast god came to rescue the last daughter, killing the Orochi-No-Orochi in the process. He married the daughter and she became the Princess Kushinada. As a result, their offspring's blood forever contains the power to destroy the Aragami--apparently the mixture of god and human blood packs quite a whollop.

The Aragami remained dormant for years until the birth of twins (Kaede and Momiji) in the Kushinada family. This, perhaps erroneously termed, "split" of the bloodline obviously arouses the Aragami back into an active state. The killer plants then develop a protective field in which to kill the Kushinada girls without destroying themselves (explanation: if blood of the Kushinada is spilt, the Aragami will be destroyed). Kaede disappears in a beam of light … (yes) … leaving Momiji the sole golden child for the human race. The chase now ensues: the Aragami, a group of special military forces (the TAC), and Kusanagi (a guardian forced to do the Aragami's bidding), all want to find Momiji for their own purposes. Momiji's fate remains uncertain at the end, for the Aragami reach her first.

With the all important back story out of the way, the second episode of "Blue Seed" can now kick plant monster butt. Picking up from the last episode's cliffhanger, Kusanagi and the TAC have to race against time to save Momiji from the Aragami. Action! Fighting! An unkissed virgin! Who would want more? At the end of the day, as the sun sets, Kusanagi and the TAC eventually end up saving Momiji and killing this Aragami monster with TI Plasmids...but don't worry, more Aragami are out there ready to capture Momiji, kill her and take over the world.

Gaping narrative holes and patchwork characters sink this sci-fi effort, but central to "Blue Seed's" shortcomings is an inability to generate interest in the story. The world's fate lies in the hands of one girl, but writer Masaharu Amiya makes Momiji too weak and dependent to make decisions and effect change.

Questions abound as the story opens and Kaede inexplicably decides to sacrifice herself to understand her destiny. Supposedly Kaede's sacrifice does not adversely affect the Aragami because she disappears in a beam of light, and therefore, her blood is not actually spilt. This sacrifice lends Kaede strength, for she takes matters into her own hands, but throughout the film, Amiya never clarifies why such a sacrifice would unveil her destiny. Unfortunately, taking one step forward in the universe of strong character development does not mean that there's any ground on which to step.

Momiji is admittedly naive, but naivete does not have to evince weakness. Amiya indelibly establishes Momiji as dependent by not giving her the knowledge of her importance to the world. Furthermore, when Momiji whines about dying an "unkissed virgin," she simply waxes pathetic. Momiji never takes pride in herself. Regardless of her status as a virgin, a refreshing stance would involve Momiji accepting herself as she is without making excuses.

Amiya's attempts to make up for Momiji's glaring weakness by introducing an assemblage of quirky supporting roles, such as Ms. Kome, a tough as nails military recruit. But these characters hardly develop beyond the stereotypes common to their roles. Ms. Kome is overly tough, enjoying guns and warfare to the point of ridicule. Granted she's the comic relief, but over the top and often accident-prone, she is unable to provide any real strength.

Better-developed personal stakes make Kusanagi's story inherently more compelling than Momiji's. A flashback reveals that Kusanagi was given seven souls from the Aragami family to make him an Aragami/human hybrid. So, given orders to protect the Kushinada girls, Kusanagi, who detests working for the Aragami, feels that he can only achieve freedom by killing the Kushinada girls, thus destroying the Aragami. Kusanagi suffers great personal conflict which, unfortunately, Amiya nullifies by failing to provide convincing motivation for the warrior's shift back to protecting Momiji but this time still defying Aragami enslavement … under which he is forced to live … oh, why bother.

"Blue Seed" tells an enjoyable science fiction story without stretching the imagination in any way...except when trying to figure out what TI Plasmids are, and why they will kill a monster.