conspiracy – Page 5 – Blog@Jhiday.net

Shingu : Secret of the Stellar Wars (Gakuen Senki Muryo)

(26 episodes, 2001)

My previous exposure

It’s another of the many series from Spring 2001 I checked out in this previous post. The first episode was so bizarre I knew I had to view it in full eventually.

What’s it about ?

The year 2070. It turns out that a little Japanese town has been a hub of alien activity for thousands of years, with numerous “diplomats” (read : spies) lounging around conspicuously. The reason for this is Shingu, a huge mecha-like weapon of tremendous power hidden there, that obviously everyone and their mother would like to get their hands on (or at least not to fall into anyone else’s hands). The biggest faction around is the Galactic Alliance, who have made sure to keep Earth as a “primitive reserve” with no public alien presence for so long, although obviously that status quo won’t stand for much longer (especially after the big showy alien incursion defeated by Shingu in the first episode).

Our point of view character is Hajime, a middle-schooler whose family has been living in the small town for a few years (so he isn’t initially aware of the ancient conspiracy). Other major characters include the members of the Absurdly Powerful Student Council, who are not-so-coincidentally this generation’s Shingu controllers (the previous generation got wiped out 11 years ago in an incident nobody likes to talk about), and especially Nayuta, the tsundere vice-president who does the actual controlling.

Oh, and there’s this Muryo dude, who comes from another village with its own ancient alien conspiracy, is better than everyone at anything, seems to know a lot more than he should, and still remains annoyingly affable about it. I can’t fault people like Nayuta finding him unbearably frustrating. And his sister is even more annoying (I’ve never seen super-speed used more effectively to needle people on playfully).

There are basically two major parallel story threads interwoven together : the kids having a (nearly) normal school life and occasionally fighting stuff (also : angst ! but only for a few of them…), and the adults discussing stuff diplomatically and providing the required exposition about the context needed to understand the actual plot. They’re mostly disjointed from each other, mostly because the complex diplomacy stuff is way over the kids’ heads.

What did I think of it ?

This is a very bizarre series. Objectively we’ve got a complex and convoluted plot with tons of factions that don’t trust each other one bit, some very violent (and well-staged) fight scenes, some very high stakes indeed… but most of the screen time is shared between (1) inoffensive school hijinks and (2) people politely discussing the plot over a cup of tea. Indeed, most of the action sequences are preludes to bringing one or more parties to sit down and calmly discuss matters. (The exceptions are usually morons making a hasty attack and getting crushed for it.) As a result, the overall mood is very sedate indeed.

For once, I (mostly) approve of the complete name change by the US localization. This show is definitely completely about Shingu, while Muryo mostly stays on the edges of the story and barely ever contributes anything to the plot (the story may even work without him being there at all). And that’s a deliberate choice on his part in-story, too. This series is full of very powerful (and backstory-important) characters who prefer staying in the background so as to not wreck the carefully-established equilibrium, only stepping in when needed. It could be infuriating, but the show mostly pulls it off.

There’s definitely a charm to it, as one easily gets involved into the growing Hajime/Nayuta relationship (or even Kyoichi/Harumi – I’m a sucker for awkward characters voiced by Tomokazu Sugita). On the other hand, it’s hard to really get into the complex diplomatic talks, because so much of it happens off-screen and makes it impossible to guess exactly what’s happening (one particular very belligerant faction gets no explanation whatsoever – everyone’s puzzled as to who they might be, and they get obliterated too early in the climax to get relevant). Most of the characters play their hand very close to the vest, hiding whatever they’re up and whoever they’re really affiliated to under layers of deception. (The king of this being Ziltosh, the loud and affable Hawaian-shirt-wearing alien who seems to be working for everyone at once.) I sometimes felt like the show wasn’t really playing fair with this, as a lot of it consists of red herrings hiding the actual climax brewing.

So, does it work ? Not entirely. It certainly gets points for attempting something completely different with the “mecha fights off alien invasion” genre. The characterization work is impressive : most characters (including the aliens) feel very human indeed, with one glaring exception (Muryo, who stays an enigma throughout). But there are definite pacing problems, from awkward “did I miss an episode ? Ah, no, here’s a flashback to fill me on this pointless in media res opening scene” moments, to a not-so-successful handling of rising tension (which sometimes deflates far too quickly). And while a lot of it is quite funny, there are a good number of jokes that feel entirely alien. And I’m not convinced the ending really works.

There’s a lot to like here, but the show doesn’t manage to strike the perfect balance. Nice try, though.

via [LTTP/WIW] Various anime from the 00s and beyond – Page 5.

Crying Freeman

(6 52-minute OVA, 1988 to 1994)

My previous exposure :
I stumbled on the first three episodes while channel-surfing on late-night TV as a young’un (despite being somewhat under the advised age). It left quite an impression, to the point that I’m now revisiting it properly despite it being quite outside my advertised preferred time period. Oh, well.

What’s it about ?

The assassin codenamed Crying Freeman used to be an ordinary Japanese potter until he stumbled onto proof of the Chinese Mafia’s bad deeds, and was foolish enough to take them on. The organization (called “the 108 dragons”) in retaliation brainwashes him into the ultimate assassin, leaving him the only freedom of crying in despair after he kills someone. (The “Freeman” part is obviously ironic.) Years later, history repeats itself as a young woman called Emu stumbles onto one of his assassinations, and as a crucial witness becomes a hostage between the ambitions of the police, the 108 Dragons and the Japanese mafia. When Freeman goes and tries to assassinate her, she just has one wish : she doesn’t want to die a virgin…

At least, that’s the initial plot of the first OVA. You’d normally expect some standard “having sex breaks Freeman’s conditioning and he rebels against the 108 Dragons” plot… but that’s not what happens next at all. The 108 dragons are a surprisingly accepting bunch, see no problem in sparing Emu, and even promote the two of them to being the new leaders of the group at the beginning of Episode #2. To say that it’s a jarring change of gears is a grand understatement ; and it’s not for the better, as much of the ambiguity and tragedy of the original premise goes right out of the window as Freeman basically becomes a generic 90s antihero.

… Who likes to fight in the buff. Not only is it a very bloody series with tons of graphic violence, but there’s also a lot of nudity and it often veers into softcore porn. Not exactly the kind of stuff young!me was supposed to be watching at that age…

What did I think of it ?

There’s no two ways about it : it’s a trainwreck. But at least it’s an (unintentionally) hilarious one, so I didn’t mind spending a few hours revisiting it.

As stated above, it has the germs of an interesting (if somewhat well-troden) premise, but it then chooses to completely disregard it in favour of something much more bizarre. Shifting Freeman into a position of leadership is just a baffling move (especially since he’s a Japanese outsider in a Chinese organization), and it’s thus no surprise that one of the major leaders balks and betrays the 108 Dragons immediately. (Of course, the dude then allies with the Camora, who immediately backstabs him, but that’s the kind of things that happen.) Even more surprising is the introduction of Bayasan, the obese adult womanchild and black sheep of the 108 Dragons who tries to wrestle the organization’s control. She fails, obviously, but there’s something endearing about her incompetent enthusiasm. And she sticks around as comic relief, which contributes to make some of the latter episodes less boring (if not actually funny – this series can’t really do humour).

The most bizarre episode is probably the third, because of its weird pacing : at its heart, it tries to transition Emu into less of a damsel in distress, by giving her some training and having her pick up a magic evil sword… but then in the middle we get 35 minutes of Freeman fighting a random African crime syndicate (who tries to hijack a plane he just happened to be on), and in the process sleeping with two other women (one of whom permanently joins his harem). And it’s not even the most sexist episode (it’s a toss-up between rape-tastic #4 and evil!self-made-woman-who-spends-all-her-screentime-masturbating-at-Freeman #5).

Another weird thing about the series is that the 108 Dragons are suddenly whitewashed into being a somewhat honourable group, despite all the assassinating going around in the first episode (and the leader of the Japanese Mafia pointing out that they don’t deal drugs, unlike that Chinese scum !). From then on, it’s just a series of rival groups trying to take them over. Episode #6 is the only other one where the 108 are depicted like an actual criminal group (although that’s mostly slander by the bad guys of the day). Mostly, they’ve become passive and reactive, with an incredibly high internal body count for an organisation that was supposed to be so frightening in the first episode. This isn’t a ringing endorsement for Freeman’s leadership… (Although, conveniently, most of the old guard dies quite early on, so who’ll complain ?)

This series is a mess on so many levels it’s laughable. The plot makes no sense (and is inconsistent from one instalment to the other) ; Freeman as a character is stripped of all drama very early on, leaving the “Crying” gimmick as an artefact of a forgotten plotline. The artwork is very much a product of its time, stiff and emotionless. The fight scenes are okay, but hardly worth watching (and they progressively lose in creativity as the series goes on). The sex scenes aren’t as gratuitous as they could be, but they’re not of much interest either (and the sexism of the whole thing makes them all the less palatable).

If you’re ever planning to watch this for a laugh, stick with the first three episodes. The last three are distinctively more boring, as the writers were clearly struggling to find new plots.

via [LTTP/WIW] Various anime from the 00s and beyond – Page 3.

No. 6

(11 episodes)

What’s it about ?

In the future, after a near-apocalypse, most humanity has settled in a few super-awesome cities where they live carefree existences in a hi-tech environment… Well, at least that’s the official story ; considering there’s a Ministry of Peace around, I really doubt it’s as utopian as it claims.

Characters

Shion, our point-of-view character. A very mellow and easy-going high school kid who feels a bit constrained by society’s straightjacket. The utopian setting means he’s on the fast track to elite university and possesses very good first aid skills. He lives with his mother in the kind of house that clearly establishes him as very high in the food chain. (Or maybe everyone’s got one of these in the utopia, but I really doubt it.)

Safu, Shion’s classmate, who’s clearly interested in him, but gets politely relegated to the friend zone, to her despair. We also get to see her grandmother, who’s clearly bored out of her mind considering the dozens of hand-knit sweatshirts in her closet. (Utopia, my ass !)

Nezumi, an escaped convict who takes refuge in Shion’s house (who had left the window open). To his surprise, Shion doesn’t report him to the authorities, and actually hides him and nurses him back to health. Now, Nezumi clearly ain’t has bad as the newsflashes make him out to be, but Shion’s reaction is hard to explain unless you just accept it as part of his personality… And, well, I’m told the original novels played up the gay subtext a lot more, which I have no trouble believing.

Production Values

It’s Studio Bones : of course it looks good. The direction’s not particularly subtle, though (witness the numerous close-ups on the kids’ RFID tags !).

Overall Impression

This is obviously an ambitious project, earnestly trying to be meaningful and deep… but I’m not convinced it works. It’s way too unsubtle in its depiction of the udystopia, and I get the nagging feeling we’re heading for “Shion and Nezumi grow close together while running away from the authorities”, which isn’t a story I have the least bit of interest in.

I’ll give it another episode to try and convince me there’s more to it, but I’m not hopeful.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2011 – Page 6.

Mawaru Penguindrum

(24 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Two brothers are forced into a bizarre magical contract to save their deathly-ill sister. Also, penguins.

Characters

Shouma, the blue-haired younger brother, is our point of view character for most of the first episode. He’s the more subdued and introverted of the pair, although he does get quite emotional when his sister seems to die halfway through. If I’ve understood the plot well, the brothers take turns going to school and doing the chores (and taking care of Sis). It’s all but stated that their parents are dead.

(We get to see a couple of his classmates, such as the obligatory lecherous best friend and a girl that screams “potential love interest”, but they’re not important yet.)

Kanba, the red-haired elder brother, seems to be much more of a Casanova (much to Shouma’s dismay)… but then we see him kissing his sister while she’s asleep at the very end of the episode. Hum…

Himari, their sister, is afflicted with one of those undefined fatal anime diseases. The doctors have no clue why she’s even still alive, and give her a few months at best. Which was optimistic, considering she drops dead in the middle of a trip to the zoo (the brothers were obviously trying to make her last few days as pleasant as possible). But never fear ! The (very ugly) penguin-shaped hat they bought her at the gift-shop takes control of her, and gives her some life back, provided the brothers enter a mysterious magical contract.

Shouma was starting to think it was all a dream, but then he starts getting stalked by a very helpful penguin… which turns out to be part of a trio which was sent to the siblings by parties unknown. Oh, and Himari gets controlled by the penguin hat again, providing some more exposition. Which barely explains anything, of course.

Production Values

It’s animated by Brains Base, one of the best studios currently around (even their C-show Kamisama Dolls looks better than average), so of course it looks good. But what is really striking are the multiple directorial touches that provide exposition in a fun way (the subway signs for location changes, or the ticker text for the hospital flashbacks) or just contribute to the playful atmosphere (the faceless masses reduced to bathroom symbols).

Which is only to be expected, considering this is the new project of capital-D Director Kunihiko Ikuhara (Revolutionary Girl Utena), who hasn’t done any substantial work for more than a decade. It’s actually surprisingly devoid of what I’d identified as his signature stylistic tics (there’s barely a rose in sight, and no pastel freeze-frames), but then I can only assume he’s moved on and is trying to make the best of modern animation techniques.

The ED heavily suggests that the brothers are going to take girl forms as part of their contract. Oh, Ikuhara, never change.

Overall Impression

I obviously has high expectations about this show, considering the director and studio behind it ; the complete lack of any promotional info regarding the actual premise only exacerbated my curiosity. I’m glad to say that this is well worth the hype, mystifying in all the right ways, possessing a superb sense of slapstick (the penguins are hilarious) and jokes that are genuinely funny, and grounded by the intriguing relationship between the three leads (and this, despite how irritating I usually find Himari’s character type).

This is head and shoulders above anything else this season : imaginative, funny, great looking, and gifted with a gripping emotional core. Sure, there’s still about 9 new shows I’ve yet to sample, but I really doubt any of them is going to be as good as this one. If you’re only going to watch one anime series this summer, make it this one.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2011 – Page 4.

Kamisama Dolls

What’s it about ?

A young man tried walking away from his village full of conspiracies and deadly man-controlled robots… but it all comes back to bite him in the ass.

Characters

Kyouhei, our protagonist. He used to be a controller for one of those big mind-controlled robots they call “Gods”… but after a traumatic event, he decided to quit it all and become an ordinary salaryman in the big city. Yeah, like that ever works. The elders let him go, but it’s made very clear they’re still in charge of his life, whatever he thinks.

Hibino, the woman’s Kyouhei’s had a crush for a long time. I’m sure that he going to the same high school and joining the same company is totally coincidental. Not like he ever works up the nerve to ask her out, though (despite numerous opportunities in this first episode). She’s from his village too, although she wasn’t aware of the whole conspiracy/robots thing. He goes to live with her and her father after his flat gets destroyed halfway through the episode (at their invitation), which is totally not awkward at all.

Utao, Kyouhei’s little sister, has taken over his former role as robot controller. She comes in out of the blue, presumably to protect Kyouhei from…

Aki, another member of the village with a God robot in tow, and a complete psychopath (if that flashback with a dozen corpses is anything to go by). He was kept under heavy lock until someone made the mistake of mentioning Kyouhei had skipped town, at which point he escaped and started stalking him (with the “randomly and gruesomely kill someone in an elevator minutes before Kyouhei steps in it” kind of stalking). He’s not actually belligerent against Kyouhei, ranting about how the village elders are the real monsters, and Utao probably overreacted when she bombed Kyouhei’s flat (and Aki inside) to kingdom come. (Not that I believed for a second that Aki’s bodybag handled the village’s MIB was any proof of his death…)

Oh, and there’s a cryptic prologue with a couple of kids fighting off… something… that I can’t make head or tails of. Presumably they’ll explain it properly at some point.

Production Values

Pretty good animation, and the abrupt mood change from “drunken office party” to “oh my god is that a corpse in the elevator” is well handled. I also like the way how the hovering robots sing whenever they move ; it’s a nice way of making them otherworldly.

Is this the first show this season with a decent OP in graphics as well as song ?

Overall Impression

Well, this first episode does a good job of raising my interest in a premise I didn’t quite care for initially. Mission accomplished, I guess. The plot has potential, but it doesn’t grab me as viscerally as, say, Deadman Wonderland did last season. We’ll see how it goes.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2011 – Page 3.

Sacred Seven

What’s it about ?

Fuck if I know. Super-powered teens and mechas fighting against Greek mythology figures in a contemporary high school setting ?

Characters

Alma, our high school student protagonist. He goes berserk with his uncontrollable superpowers when under too much stress, which gives him a terrible reputation (the time one of his outburst put 18 classmates in the hospital a few years ago doesn’t help).

Ruri, a very rich girl who seems to know what the frack is going on and his deploying all her resources (including an army of maids and a mechatank-riding butler) into fighting off the baddies. She somehow helps Alma with getting his powers under control, although it does take some time for him to even agree to hear her out. She does flamboyant stuff like buy the whole high-school and instituting herself chairman just to keep an eye on him.

Wakana, Alma’s too-dumb-to-live classmate who can’t quite understand why all her friends are avoiding the glowering brooding guy. Presumably she’s being set up as his love interest.

Our macguffins here are GEMS, which coincidentally enough is exactly what Wakana’s club is studying (and of course Ruri and her butler join it as soon as Alma makes a move towards it). Our Monster Of The Week is a big walking statue with Medusa powers, and it seems to be after those gems. Given that this looks nothing like a team story, I presume the “Sacred Seven” are the rainbow-coloured gems (Alma has Red somehow embedded into him, Ruri possesses Purple, and Yellow is in the museum targeted this episode).

Oh, and Ruri carries around a sentient mask-statue-thing who spends his time making sarcastic comments. It’s that kind of show.

Production Values

Decent, I guess ? You can’t really go wrong with Sunrise animating mechas, but I’m not too fond of the character designs, which feel generic as heck.

The OP has got some pretty good visuals marred by a terrible song. No ED yet.

Overall Impression

Well, this is certainly a thing. You can’t fault this show for lacking enthusiasm, as it tries throwing everything and the kitchen sink at the viewer in an effort to catch attention. There’s something of a tone clash between Alma’s angst and, er, nearly everything else (from Ruri’s maid army to the slapstick between Wakana and her friends), but I think that’s part of the point.

I’m intrigued. It looks very stupid indeed, but it’s got enough energy and charm to look like it could pull it off. I’m cautiously optimistic about this one.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2011.

Deadman Wonderland

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

In the near future, over the ruins of a cataclysm-destroyed Tokyo lies Deadman Wonderland, the first private prison/attraction park combo. Come with your whole family to see the inmates getting humiliated in deadly attractions ! Oh, and they’d better play along, as their locked collars are programmed to kill them if they don’t eat candy for three days.

Characters

Ganta, our poor middle-schooler protagonist. His class got massacred by “the Red Man”, who left him as the lone survivor. Of course, he was immediately designated as a scapegoat, got the death sentence, and got sent to Deadman Wonderland in the meanwhile. The (presumably fake) footage of him incriminating himself while talking to his public counsel probably didn’t help. For some reason, the Red Man injected a glowing red stone into his chest, which gives Ganta superpowers in a pinch. He’s gonna need them.

Tamaki, Ganta’s public counsel AND the warden of Deadman Wonderland. Now there’s an obvious conflict of interest that suggests he’s got enough clout to get away with it. This smiling snake makes for a lovely villain to hate. He makes arrangements for Ganta to have an “accident” as soon as possible, which seems like overkill given the poor kid’s death sentence and his complete lack of popularity among the other inmates. This is because he seems to actually know quite a lot about the Red Man, and is quite curious about Ganta’s survival.

Makina, the hardass, sadistic security officer at Deadman Wonderland. She made me wince a bit by loudly claiming a G cup.

Shiro, the weird albino girl who makes a beeline for Ganta. I’m not even sure she’s actually an inmate, what with her wearing a different collar from anyone else (though to be fair, we don’t really see any other female inmates yet). Getting around in a supposedly max security facility seems to hold no problems for her, and she’s quite the martial artist (although a shovel to the back of the head still puts her down). She’s voiced by Kana Hanazawa in her cheerful mode, which is actually an inspired choice for a character who’s obviously completely bonkers.

At the end of the episode we get flashes of various other inmates that’s probably be important later on.

Production Values

Quite good. The opening massacre scene is marred by some censoring that makes portions of it completely impenetrable, but after that it’s golden. In particular, the action sequences are quite impressive.

Overall Impression

Hey, this is pretty good ! The premise is obviously completely insane and outrageous, but this first episode makes a good job of selling it as an interesting starting point our protagonist must fight against. It’s very well-paced indeed, speeding through the trial to make it seem even more of a joke, and presenting lots of exposition without it feeling too clunky.

Now, I of course have some reservations about a 12-episode adaptation of a still-ongoing manga, especially given how plot-driven this story seems. Is it going to find a satisfying endpoint, or are they gonna strand us with a cliffhanger for a second season ? Time will tell. But so far, so good.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 12.

[C] The Money of Soul and Possibility Control

(11 episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

A loser boy’s adventures into the world of EXTREME trading-card gaming, with fight scenes in a fancy holographic parallel world and an ethereal guide to advise him.

Characters

Yoga, our college protagonist with realistic (if messy) hair. He works two part-time jobs to make ends meet, although that doesn’t amount to much given the current economic crisis. At least he’s sensible about his expenses.

Hanabi, Yoga’s not-girlfriend who still supports him quite a bit. (But when he works up the courage to ask her out for dinner, she points towards her boyfriend, who’s waiting for her. Harsh.)

Masakaki, the supremely irritating dude who makes Yoga an Offer He Can’t Refuse and. Just. Won’t. Go. Away. The offer involves unlimited funding, with the provision it has to be spent in the Financial District… which does not look like a real place but some rather like sort of parallel digital world. Yoga eventually relents.

We spend most of the first half of the episode with the former owner of Yoga’s membership into the Financial District… and considering how he ends up jumping in front of a train, we can see the Deal does not always end well.

We also see various people in the Financial District, including a quirky cab driver, a couple of elf-like girls, and the badass dude who creams out Mr (Rail-)Roadkill in a duel.

Production Values

Impressive. The Financial District has obvious CG everywhere, but it works, as it makes it all the more otherworldly. I also like the snazzy effect when subtitles and the like are incrusted on screen.

Also, there’s some very cool Taku Iwasaki music.

Overall Impression

Umm. On the one hand, it’s certainly got some very good production values, and I like the grim description of our protagonist’s life. It’s a very atmospheric series indeed.

On the other hand… Well, the centerpiece of this episode has two characters in a glorified Yu-Gi-Oh-style duel, summoning virtual critters and launching spells to hack at each other’s ~~life points~~ bank accounts.

I’m not sold yet, really.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 10.

Shingu: Secret of the Stellar Wars (Gakuen Senki Muryo)

(26 episodes)

What’s it about ?

2070, a future that’s basically the same as now, except we’ve got neat folding laptops. A giant alien floating thing shows up above Tokyo and wreaks havoc on anything electronic, but nobody really panics because it’s quickly dispatched by another giant alien floating thing that looks a lot more friendly (and has the good taste to disappear once it’s done its job). Meanwhile, one of the few characters who seems to have a clue about the whole thing moves to a backwater town and enrols in the local middle school. Cue the usual clichés : making friends despite being a bit weird, slice-of-life scenes with the supporting cast, rooftop ki fights with the local bully… Wait, what ?

Characters

Hajime, our narrator, who seems to be a normal middle school boy apart from his habit of droning pointlessly about everything that happens on screen. He’d be quite annoying if not for two points : (1) his general reaction to the alien attack’s TV coverage is “Yeah, right…”, and (2) there’s a point where he turns to the camera while continuing to narrate, and even his little sister comments on how weird his behaviour is. So presumably this is going somewhere.

Subaru, the weird transfer student. He coincidentally had a perfect vantage point with his grandfather when the alien thing showed up, and they both talked as though they knew what was happening. He seems completely clueless about ordinary school life, to the point of showing up in a school uniform despite them being out of fashion for decades.

Moriyamata, the student council vice-president, who immediately pegs Subaru as somehow related to the alien attack, and summons him to a ki fight on the school rooftop. (How they got there is strange in itself, considering the acrobatics Hajime had to perform to join them.) He gets completely (although gently) schooled by Subaru, who offers to teach him to use his ki powers properly.

Production Values

This feels very retro-looking, especially the character designs. But overall this looks quite pretty and well-animated. The opening sequence with the alien attack is impressive, with a nice level of detail for the consequences of the electronic failures slowly propagating through the city.

Overall Impression

This is definitely intriguing. The Evangelion parallels are undeniable, but this has no angst whatsoever and everyone seems very relaxed about the whole thing. In lesser hands this absence of dramatic tension would be a turn-off, but here it feels like it’s a deliberate part of the plot that’ll be explored in due time.

I want to watch more. Mission accomplished.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2001 – Page 8.

Zone of the Enders – Dolores, I

(26 episodes)

What’s it about ?

A space trucker finds out that the dodgy shipment he’s carrying back to Earth is a hotly sought-after experimental mecha.

Characters

James, our protagonist. A war veteran (or so he claims) stuck into a dead-end space-trucker job, he’s at least well into his forties and got a not-so-loving family waiting for him back on Earth (at the very least, his teenage daughter wants nothing to do with him, and his son doesn’t even return his calls). The series goes out of its way to depict him as a washed-out loser, miserably failing at flirting with girls half his age, and drowning himself in booze. He does get some sort of epiphany halfway through the first episode, although given that his idea of reconnecting with his family involves purchasing an overpriced cat for his daughter and burying himself into self-help books (with his cabin increasingly looking like a pigsty as he does so), I’m not too optimistic on his chances of success.

Laia, James’s up-to-no-good contact who sets him up with his shipment. It’s hard to look more shifty than this dude, and James has enough history with him to know better than taking the gig. But overpriced cats cost money, so he eventually relents. (It helps that Laia’s backup trucker wound up mysteriously shot dead mere hours after taking the job – although Laia’s not telling this to James, of course…)

Dolores, the cargo. A fifty-foot-tall mecha that behaves and speaks like a teenage girl. No, seriously, she’s even shy about having a man “down there” (into the cockpit).

There are of course some shady people looking into taking hold of Dolores, with enough connections to infiltrate the UN space patrols.

Production Values

Perfectly watchable, and there’s been a lot of care put into background details to make the setup feel grounded in reality. The score is a bit dated and MIDI-ish, but it does the job.

Overall Impression

Wow, that was fun. I don’t know if it’s the novelty of having a “mature” dude as a protagonist, but I really enjoyed this. It’s not exactly deep or subtle, but this looks like a madcap romp in a relatively grounded space sci-fi setting. Despite being a loser, James is a compelling protagonist, and he’s already got lots of chemistry with Dolores.

Google tells me this is a sequel to an OVA that itself spun off a videogame franchise, but it seems to stand perfectly well on its own.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2001 – Page 7.