Title: Dangaioh (OAVs) Cast: Pai Thunder ................................ Naoko Matsui Roll Kulan ................................. Akira Kamiya Description: A group of 4 young people with various ESPer abilities are told that they are the new weapon created by Professor Tarson. In reality, they were all kidnapped and their memories erased. Together, they can control a new superweapon/robot: Dangaioh. This is the story of how each discovers his/her past while being pursued by the "Bunker"...a space-based criminal conglomerate. A typical giant-robot story with unusual characters. US Release by: US Renditions (subtitled) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Dirty Pair (FILM,OAV,OAVs,TV) Cast: Kei ......................................... Kyoko Tongu Yuri ...................................... Saeko Shimazu Muhgi ................................... Naoki Makishima Samara (Affair of Nolandia) ............. Yoshiko Fujita Yurugis (Affair of Nolandia) ............... Banjou Ginga Musuni (Affair of Nolandia) .................. Keiko Han Orun (Affair of Nolandia) ............... Masaru Ikeda Description: If you're in **BIG** trouble, call on the World Welfare Work Association or WWWA. They can send out a team of highly trained and capable agents called Trouble Consultants who can solve your problem. Unless the team they send you is the "Dirty Pair"... (I *really* meant "Lovely Angels"). These two will fix your problem, but leave a lot of collateral damage...but its NEVER THEIR FAULT!! Entertaining comedy in the James Bond style. US Release by: Streamline Pictures (dubbed) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Dominion (OAVs) Cast: Leona Ozeki ................................ Hiromi Tsuru Megane .................................... Shigeru Chiba The Chief ................................. Ichiroo Nagai Annapuma ..................................... Yuhko Mita Unipuma ................................. Michie Tomizawa Description: Crime has gone rampant. (So has the pollution, but nobody really notices. :-)) In order to combat this crime wave, the police arm themselves with...TANKS! Now, it's the good guys (the Tank Police) vs. the bad guys (Buaku and his gang). Who will win? Who SHOULD win? A comedy from the creater of Appleseed. US Release by: US Manga Corps (subtitled) UK Release by: Island World Communications (subtitled) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Doraemon (TV) Cast: Description: This is a kids' show about a cat/robot/oversized possum (take your pick...even though he's *supposed* to be a cat) called Doraemon. He lives with a schoolboy whose life is pretty normal. In this group of friends, there is a local girl and a bully. Their lives are pretty normal for their age (elementary school), until Doraemon gets involved. Doraemon looks like a blue and white otter with a hormone problem. He has a pouch on his tummy which can produce just about *anything*. Shrinking guns, magic pools and a futuristic alarm system are among the things that he's pulled out of that pouch. Bizarre things start happening, particularly if the local bully gets his hands on the gadgets. The series is broken up into 2 15-minute segments per episode and is pretty much light entertainment. Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Dragonball (Z) (TV,FILM) Cast: Gokuu Son ................................. Masako Nozawa Gohan Son ................................. Masako Nozawa Tenshinhan ............................. Hirotaka Suzuoki Buruma ..................................... Hiromi Tsuru Vegita (Dragonball Z) ..................... Ryo Horikawa Piccolo (Dragonball Z) .................. Toshio Furukawa Trunks (Dragonball Z) .................... Takeshi Kusao Kuririn (Dragonball Z) .................... Mayumi TanakaIndex.......................... Shigeru Chiba ....................... Ichiroo Nagai Description: (by Curtis Hoffmann) This series is about Gokuu Son, a were-monkey whose original quest was to find the 7 Dragonballs. It is said that once all 7 Dragonballs are put together, a great dragon will appear and will grant 1 wish, after which the Dragonballs will scatter. There are actually two series so far: Dragonball - This followed Gokuu on his original quest. There are lots of silly gags and toilet humor, as well as some great character acting and pathos. Gokuu Son is based on the Monkey King legend, but is more naive and innocent than he is strong and valorous (which is saying a LOT). As his quest continues, he picks up lots of friends and enemies, which keeps the storyline fresh. Also, upon the completion of a quest, it must begin again since the Dragonballs are scattered, leading to new & even more bizarre adventures. Most villains belong to the "Red Ribbon" organization of which the most deadly assassin is...Kao Pai Pai. Dragonball Z - This differs from the 1st series in that Gokuu disappeared into a strange realm and emerged as a super- Saiyajin. Combat is now emphasized rather than the toilet humor and story of the last series. In recent storylines, the plot centers on 4 androids from the future who came to kill Gokuu and fights everyone who tries to protect him. Cell, one of the 4 androids, absorbs 2 of the others to become capable of destroying the universe. Gohan, Gokuu's son, is the only one who can stop him since he has been shown to be more powerful -- and faster -- than his father. This is arguably one of the most popular (and money making) anime TV series in Japan today. Rating: RECOMMENDED
Title: Everyday is Sunday (OAVs) aka: Mainichi ga Nichiyoubi Cast: Description: During a heavy downpour, a girl is running away from a boy. She crosses a street, not seeing the oncoming truck. He does, and pushes her away...bloodily injuring his hand. Frightened, she runs away from the scene. Much later, the girl, whose name is Yumi Takeshita, has grown up to become a rookie police officer. On her first day on duty, the overeager Yumi hears a scream and finds a purse-snatching victim. She sees a heavyset man running away and gives chase. She catches him and with her strength and combat skills, flattens him. Not only has she caught the wrong guy, but the scar on his hand shows that he's Tohru Ichidaiji, the young man who saved her so many years ago. To make it up to him, Yumi goes on a date with him. During the date, Tohru-san uses his magician skills to catch the real purse-snatcher, but he has an older brother...who bumps into Yumi. This is a very funny action series with a slight romantic touch. By Yuuzo Takada, the creator of "3x3 Eyes". Note that the anime Yumi is a redhead while the manga Yumi is blond... Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Etranger (FILM)
Cast:
Remy Shimoda ................................ Mami Koyama
Bundoru ................................. Kaneto Shiozawa
Description:
Remy Shimoda is in a hurry. She's on her way to a reunion with
the other members of the Go Shogun team, and she's late. A
police action with some robbers gets in her way, so she runs the
robbers off the road. Her vision blurs and she gets into an
accident. The movie splits into two with one plot following
Remy's slow decline at the hospital with the Go Shogun members
and former enemies at her side, and her experience in a strange
city where she, and the rest of the team have their deaths
foretold. Remy, herself, is plagued by visions of her death,
and visitations from a threatening girl and her panther-like cat.
The temple at the center of the city is the key, so the team
sets out to battle their way into it. Based on the giant robot
series "Go Shogun", this is a story focusing on Remy, the female
member of the team. Remy's mother was a French prostitute, so
Remy has a tainted and confused past. This aspect is played
upon in the movie where we see an older Remy, 30 years after the
"Go Shogun" series on the one hand, and the younger Remy in the
city. Whether the city is a dream or not is left ambiguous...
NOTE: "Etranger" is French for "stranger" and refers to Remy's
status as an outsider...
NOTE: The "Go Shogun" series was dubbed and released in the US
as 1/2 of the "Macron 1" TV series
Rating: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Title: Future Boy Conan (TV) aka: Mirai Shounen Conan Cast: Description: (by Enrique Conty) In the aftermath of a war fought by magnetic weapons which caused massive earthquakes, a young and spunky boy naned Conan gets involved in a grand adventure. Conan lives in a world that is mostly oceans; the major land masses having been destroyed by the weapons of the great war. He meets a young girl named Lana, and they eventually foil the plans of the city-state of Industria which wants to regain the lethal weapons. This 1979 26-episode liberal adaptation of Alexander Key's "THE INCREDIBLE TIDE" has been described as director Hayao Miyazaki's prototype for this later film "Laputa: Castle in the Sky". Rating: HIGHLY RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: The Five Star Stories (OAV) Cast: Amaterasu .................................. Ryo Horikawa Ladios Sopp ................................ Ryo Horikawa Fatima Lachesis .......................... Maria Kawamura Fatima Clotho ................................ Rei Sakuma Vord Bewlard ............................. Norio Wakamoto Colus III ............................... Kazuhiko Inouye Torohra .................................. Issei Futamata Peosche Nomien .............................. Shoo Hayami Grand Duke Yuuba .......................... Ichiroo Nagai Description: Among the 5 star systems known as the Joker Systems, there are many kingdoms. There are knights within the kingdoms and the knights control giant robots called Headliners. Bound to the knights are fatimas. Human in appearance and mind, the fatimas (mostly female) possess expanded physical capabilities and make it possible to control a Headliner. Fatimas cannot reproduce. All this is overseen by Emperor Amaterasu and his Mirage Knights. Rather than grasp at the epic proportions of Mamoru Nagano's manga, this OAV tells a simpler story of the fulfillment of two fatimas and, perhaps, questions their traditional roles... Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Golgo 13 (The Professional) (FILM) Cast: Golgo 13 ................................ Tetsurou Sagawa Leonard Dawson ............................... Goroo Naya Laura Dawson ................................ Reiko Mutoo Cindy/Doctor Zed ......................... Yoshiko Fujita Rita .................................... Kumiko Takizawa General T. Jefferson .................. Kiyoshi Kobayashi Description: Golgo 13 is an assassin for hire. He is the best in that once hired, he will kill the target no matter who it is. It doesn't matter how much protection is around the target. Golgo 13 is also a completely amoral man with few redeeming qualities. In this film, one of Golgo 13's targets is the son of a very power- ful man...who sends everything he can after the assassin. The suspense level is very high throughout the film, though the mood is very dark. Computer graphics are also used a lot. US Release by: Streamline Pictures (dubbed) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Legend of the Galactic Heroes (OAVs,FILM) Cast: Paul Von Oberstein ...................... Kaneto Shiozawa Description: The story of two mighty space empires is told from the viewpoint of two 'heroes': Rheinhardt Von Museal, Admiral of the Galactic Empire, and Yang Wenli, Admiral from the Alliance of Free Planets. Both men are military and tactical geniuses and are born survivors. The ambitious Rheinhart has the goal of getting enough power to be able to free his sister from her obligation as one of the Emperor's Court ladies. He is fairly ruthless in this which is tempered only by his aide: Siegfried Kircheis. Yang is a pacifistic man who, when necessary, will do his duty even if it means fighting against an enemy fleet (since he is a *soldier*, after all). The drama between these 2 men is played out against a backdrop of great space battles, inept commanders, frightened soldiers, personal relationships, corrupt politicians and the workings of two space empires at war with each other. This is a space opera on a very grand scale. Note that there is a very heavy Prussian influence on the series, especially present in the Imperial uniforms... Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Gall Force (OAVs) Cast: Eluza (Eternal Story) ................... Maria Kawamura Pony (Eternal Story) .................. Michie Tomizawa Exanon (Eternal Story) .................. Toshio Furukawa Lufy ....................................... Hiromi Tsuru Catty .................................... Naoko Watanabe Shildy (Gall Force 2&3) ..................... Mayumi Shoo Spea (Gall Force 2&3) ................... Yuko Mizutani Amy (Gall Force 2&3) .................... Chieko Honda Description: A great war between two interstellar powers: the Paranoid and the Solenoid. Among all the destruction, the crew of the Starleaf are told to go to Chaos. The Starleaf manages to escape the destruction, but, ultimately, all but one of the survivors are killed in true "10 little indians" tradition. Parts 2 and 3 of the series deals with a revived Lufy and another group of Solenoids 10 years later. US Release by: US Manga Corps (subtitled) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Gall Force: Earth Chapter series (OAVs)
Title: Gall Force: New Century series (OAVs)
Cast:
Soundy ..................................... Naoko Matsui
Melody ....................................... Eriko Hara
Score ...................................... Hiromi Tsuru
Anne ...................................... Yuko Mizutani
Catty .................................... Naoko Watanabe
Mitty ...................................... Chieko Honda
Fortin ................................... Maria Kawamura
Sally ................................... Michie Tomizawa
Description:
In the near future, man has found the capsule containing the
knowledge of Solenoid technology. Humanity created the MMEs
which turned on humanity and created an Earthly wasteland via
the nuclear weapons of the superpowers. Now, human rebel groups
fight against the MMEs to reclaim their planet. The mood here
is very "Terminator" like. "Rhea Gall Force" was actually the
first OAV using this setting. "New Century" continues the
story a century later.
Note: After "Rhea Gall Force", the "Earth Chapter" series turned
pedestrian. Starting with the stop-motion animation in part
1 to the silly resolution in part 3, I just got turned off.
Perhaps I was expecting too much..there are many good elements
in "Earth Chapter"(esp. #2), but overall it was a waste. "New
Century" is a total waste leaving me with a "huh?" reaction.
Rating: NOT RECOMMENDED (except for "Rhea Gall Force")
Index...
Title: Galaxy Express 999 (FILM,TV) Cast: Clea ...................................... Youko Asagami Metalmena (Adieu, GX999) .................. Youko Asagami Description: In the far far future, technology has advanced enough so that it no longer matters what a spaceship looks like. You can have a space express service with a ship that looks like a 19th century train. Imagine where you can go and what adventures you can have. We follow Tetsuo as he goes on these adventures. In "Adieu, Galaxy Express 999", the final chapter has Tetsuo as one of the human rebels fighting against the mechanicals. Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Battle Angel Alita (OAVs) aka: Gunnm Cast: Description: On a future Earth, there is a great floating city. Perhaps life is a futuristic paradise there...but we don't go there. Instead, we enter a city built underneath the floating city. In these slums, a cyborg engineer finds a discarded cyborg from the trash dropped from above. He rebuilds her and gives her a name: Gunnm. Gunnm awakens in a world where living conditions are poor, gangs roam the area, and "survival of the fittest" applies. Gunnm is apparently a child with no past...even to herself. Mysterious combat abilities are within her though and after a period of some confusion, Gunnm registers herself as a "hunter/warrior". The setting is very "Blade Runner" like in the depressing future and the dark city... NOTE: The Viz manga adaptation and the US video release both use the "Battle Angel Alita" title... US Release by: AD Vision (subtitled) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Giant Robo (OAVs) Cast: Description: In the near future, humanity has been granted cheap energy in the form of the Shizuma Drive. This has ushered in a new era of prosperity known as Third Energy Revolution. Behind the scenes, a struggle between Good and Evil still goes on as personified by the International Police Organization and Big Fire. To aid in the struggle against evil, the IPO have a great robot known as Giant Robo. A young boy named Kusama Daisuku controls Giant Robo and there is some mystery behind him. The OAV series explores Daisuku and his friends characters against the backdrop of a major plot involving the Shizuma Drive. It successfully combines the atmosphere and design of 1960's anime and those grand plotlines with modern animation techniques. It has to be seen to be believed. Based on the old live-action "Giant Robo" series which was dubbed as "Johnny Sokko and his Giant Robot". US Release by: US Renditions (dubbed) Rating: HIGHLY RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: GS Mikami (TV) Cast: Reiko Mikami ............................... Hiromi Tsuru Tadao Yokoshima ............................ Ryo Horikawa Okinu-chan ................................. Mariko Kouda Description: (by Hitoshi Doi) With all of the new buildings being put up in the city, there was no place for the ghosts to go. Naturally, the ghosts cause havoc, so a new job called GS (or Ghost Sweeper) was created. The body-conscious girl Reiko Mikami was the head of the GS office with Tadao Yokoshima as her assistant. Yokoshima worked at the GS office for only Y250/hour (about 2 dollars!). The reason he worked so cheaply was because he wanted to work with Reiko. His dream was to see Reiko naked. Also on the team was Okinu-chan who worked for only Y30/day (yes, that's 22 cents a day!). Of course, Okinu-chan had few needs since she was a 300 year old ghost. Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Gunbuster: Aim for the Top! (OAVs) aka: Top o Nerae! Gunbuster! Cast: Noriko Takaya ............................. Noriko Hidaka Kazumi Amano ................................. Rei Sakuma Jung Freud ............................... Maria Kawamura Description: Yes, it's time for Yet-Another-Alien-Invasion! The Earth is preparing to defend itself. Oblivious to this, Noriko Takaya, daughter of an admiral lost in space, tries to succeed in her dream: to become a Gunbuster robot pilot and go off into space like her father. This OAV series fluctuated between parody and drama and was notable for paying attention to Einstein and his Theory of Relativity as it pertains to near-lightspeed travel. US Release by: US Renditions (subtitled) Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Hello Kitty (TV) Cast: Kitty ................................ Megumi Hayashibara Description: A series for little kids. This follows the adventures of two kitty kids named "Kitty" and "Mimi". The series tends to be very straightforward and innocent. As an example: two jewel thieves get away with their loot and crashland near where the kids live. They meet the kitty kids (who think that the robbers are aliens from a UFO) and entertain the kids with stories while the kids tend to their injuries. In the morning, the thieves decide that it wasn't worth it, and turn themselves in...only after making sure that the kitty kids see their thanks and know that the 'aliens' went back to space. The series is very charming and almost fairy tale like... Rating: RECOMMENDED - Kids would love it...Index...
Title: Hime-chan no Ribbon (TV) Cast: Himeko Nonohara ............................. Ikue Ootani Erika ....................................... Ikue Ootani Pokota ....................................... Kazu Ikura Chappi ..................................... Kasuga Satou Daichi Kobayashi ............................... Ooki Yuu Aiko Nonohara .......................... Yuri Shiratori Yumeko Nonohara .......................... Chisa Yokoyama Manami Mori ............................... Katsuyo Endou Ichiko Kamikura (Icchan) ................ Minami Takayama Sei Arisaka ............................. Takehito Koyasu Hikaru Hibino .............................. Rin Mizuhara Yuka Hijiri .................................. Yumi Tohma Hatsune Yamashite (temp teacher) .......... Kikuko Inouye Description: Erika, queen of a magic world, is on Earth looking for the girl who looks exactly like Erika. She finds her in a tomboy named Himeko. Himeko (Hime-chan to her friends) is infatuated with an an upperclassman boy, has fun with her friends and is an ordinary girl in all ways. This changes when Erika gives her a magic ribbon which allows Hime-chan to change into anyone she wants to. As a side effect, her stuffed lion, Pokota comes to life and acts as Hime-chan's advisor. Showing her maturity, Hime-chan immediately uses the ribbon to get closer to her 'sempai'. A 'magical girl' series with a very ordinary girl in the lead role. Billed as a magical comedy. Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...
Title: Fist of the North Star (TV,FILM) aka: Hokuto no Ken Cast: Kenshiro ................................... Akira Kamiya Shin .................................... Toshio Furukawa Rei ..................................... Kaneto Shiozawa Description: After the Earth is devastated by nuclear war, society breaks down into a system where only the strong survive. Often, there are raids on normal people when 'the strong' decide that they need something. Into this desolate world comes Kenshiro, master of the Hokuto Shinken style of martial art. This style destroys the body from within by striking at one of the numerous acupuncture points. Kenshiro is a wanderer on a quest to find his lost love Yuria...taken from him in a battle with Shin long ago. The battle left Kenshiro with scars in the pattern of the Big Dipper. During his wanderings, Kenshiro defends the victims of 'the strong' for he is pledged by his art to defend the weak. Kenshiro is an extremely honorable, though somber man...almost the archtype of the tragic hero. The series is high in the amount of gore created, but the strong central characters seem to rise above that in audience appeal... Rating: RECOMMENDEDIndex...