This Week - Topless Girls... No, Not *That* Kind, You Pervert

Remember back in August when I said I was burned out on anime and that I just wasn’t interested in animated entertainment made for Japanese teenagers anymore? Remember how I said that it was watching FLCL that basically made me realize that almost nothing was going to live up to its sublime magnificence? Well, leave it to the company (Gainax) and director (Kazua Tsurumaki) of that masterpiece to smack me in the face once again with anime awesomeness. Oh, and make it the sequel to one of the greatest anime ever made. Ahhhhh. Ladies, gentlemen and space monsters, I give you

OVA, 2004-2005

Director: Kazua Tsurumaki

Story

Nono is a robot girl who desperately wants to be a Buster Machine (!GIANT ROBOT!) pilot and go into space (sound familiar?), but she ends up instead working as a waitress in a bar near the local Martian spaceport. One day she is saved from the attentions of some lecherous robot pilots by Lal’c, a member of the Topless, the elite teenaged Buster Machine pilots with psychic powers. Pledging her eternal devotion to her new “onē-sama” (sound familiar?) Nono goes into space to help fight the space monsters (sound familiar?) and aim for the top(less)!

Review

If I made the story of Diebuster sound a lot like the story of Gunbuster, that’s because, well, it sort of is. *However*, there are enough twists and turns to this OVA that make this a unique experience – for example, Nono being a robot (and I won't spoil any more...) – both recalling and expanding the original story. And since this was made sixteen years after Gunbuster a new generation of anime and giant robot tropes have to be parodied, played straight and turned up to eleven (although some of the older ones are taken on too, so don’t despair). And turn it up to eleven Gainax does, going even beyond the original in some areas (although it is kinda hard to beat destroying the center of the galaxy). Everything in Diebuster is *more.* MORE space battles! MORE cute girls! MORE cool giant robots! MORE awesome animation! MORE fanservice! Yes, for your pleasure there is generous helping of fanservice from the studio that revolutionized it in the first place (how many other companies can you think of have the bouncing motion of animated breasts named after them? I didn’t think so).

The animation in Diebuster is superb too, although by this point I expect no less from Gainax. It does look and act a lot like FLCL – which isn’t shocking – but I also detected hints of Evangelion in this as well (the Buster Machines for instance are semi-sentient with humanoid faces) which is also not surprising. The computer animation here is not garish nor does it stand out like a sore thumb compared to the 2-D animation, and I liked that very much.

But the heart and soul is the story, and – for the most part – it is well done. It is confusing in a few spots and there are a few tiny plot holes but the revelations and aforementioned plot twists will leave you delighted, and the emotional content – while over the top at times – is genuine and touching. Some who do not like latter-day Gainax may not like it so much, but I loved it. One element that has been discarded from the original Gunbuster is the subplot about time dilation at the speed of light. I guess the creative team for Diebuster felt that it really didn’t have much to do with the story they were trying to tell, and its exclusion is no big loss (besides which, as intriguing as it was in the original, Hideaki Anno and his team got it wrong – Noriko would not have experienced months-worth of dilation going to the edge of the solar system and back considering that Pluto is light-hours, not months away from the Earth – at most it would have been the better part of a day lost, but that’s not dramatic, is it?).

In conclusion, while I didn’t enjoy it *quite* as much as the original Gunbuster – or FLCL – I found Aim For The Top 2: Diebuster to be a very worthy successor to the original and a fun way to spend three hours of my time. I recommend it highly.

Screenshots

Get used to it.  Nono does a lot of this.

And this.

Lal'c.  Hmm, she looks familiar... now where have I seen her before?

Ohhhhh.

In the future, even baseball will involve giant robots.

Psychedelic!

Wait, why does a robot need to exercise?

More broadsides... IN SPACE!

For Teh Fanservice!

Next Time: Adventure In The Desert

I'm Not Quite Dead Yet

I said in my last post that this blog was on hold for a while.  Well, a while has passed and it’s time to do a review again, because I don’t want to go on the cart just yet.  It’s going to be a (relatively) small review, because my life is still very busy and it will probably be another while before the next review proper, so here goes.  I just had to review today’s title – I was anticipating its release this month:  I have always wanted to see it and it has been a long time out of print (and at stupid used prices online – DAMN YOU AMAZON SCALPERS!).  Well, now it’s finally available, I’ve watched it and I love it.  Prepare yourself for

FLCL

OVA, 2000-2001

Director: Kazua Tsurumaki

Story

Naota is your typical Japanese 12 year old… except for the fact that an alien lady shows up one day, crashes into him with her Vespa scooter and whacks him upside the head with her Rickenbacker bass guitar.  And the fact that his brain is now missing.  Oh, and the fact that he now has robots springing out of his head.  How does it all tie together?  Hell if I know!

Review

Wow, is this an awesome anime series.  I know that the statement I just made is not a very eloquent or objective thing to say about something, but I’ll say it again.  Wow.   This OVA is one of the most creative, unique things I have ever seen... in any medium.  My plot synopsis and other reviews of this show make FLCL seem like nothing more than some spastic animated comedy, but it is so much more than that.  It is in fact many things at once: comedic and dramatic, wistful and witty, hyperactive and tranquil, bizarre and natural, realistic and fantastic, comfortable and unsettling.  There's enough ocular candy to make any animation enthusiast's eyes bleed, enough humor to tickle the funny bone of anyone in a funk, and enough convoluted themes and symbolism to make over-analytical academics positively orgasm in delight before writing whole books and dissertations (Susan Napier, I'm looking at you!).  Even the soundtrack is unique and extraordinary, consisting almost entirely of rock music by Japanese rock band The Pillows.  In short, FLCL is the whole of anime wrapped up into one big happy package and shoved into your brain for the ultimate animated high.  And this is as it should be, as it was Japan’s two greatest animation studios who brought you this thing – Production I.G. and (mainly) Studio Gainax.

Ah, Gainax.  After showing teenage girls being eaten alive by giant gruesome cyborgs and depicting the entire world being turned into orange tang in End of Evangelion, the maestros at Mindfuck Factory, Inc. must have wanted to do something lighter and less traumatizing.  First they tried making His and Her Circumstances, based on a shojo rom-com manga, but the original author threw a tantrum about their emphasizing the comedy over the romantic melodrama.  So they decided to do something lighter and original (so they wouldn’t have to deal with bitchy creators).  And FLCL is both very light (in tone, not density) and original (in story if not homages and references).  This Ova shows Gainax getting back to their roots as the preeminent superfans of anime, using their patented Gainax Homage System^™  in their references to their favorite animated classics: 1) Reference a trope or show 2) Mercilessly parody it  3) Celebrate it 4) Turn it up to 11.

Another way Gainax (and Production I.G.) makes this show so bold and innovative is through their awesome animation.  Different art styles and animation techniques are combined to give the viewer a one-of-a-kind experience.  Only Gainax would suddenly turn a scene into a manga, complete with panels… during a dinner conversation.  Just like with everything Gainax has ever done (where they have a budget, anyway) their love of animation itself is reflected in their work for all to behold.

However (as I said in my earlier Gunbuster review – also Gainax!) well animated crap is still crap.  What makes FLCL truly special are the great themes running through it.  The main theme of this show seems to be that adolescence suuuuuuuuuucks.  And it does.  Anyone who has gone through puberty will be able to sympathize with Naota, what with all of the changes his body goes through and his increasing alienation from those around him.  Oh, and his dealings with women (well, maybe men will be able to sympathize with him more).  In any other story (not just anime) Haruko would be this wonderful, carefree girl who showed up in the morose hero’s life to bring him out of his shell and show him how to believe in himself, love life, teach him all about the wonders of sex, and etc. etc. etc.  Well in THIS story Haruko does help Naota develop and come out of his shell, but although generally nice and sometimes maternal she is far from a wonderful dream girl – in fact she is self-serving, weird and can be downright vicious and infuriatingly enigmatic.  And as far as sex goes, she DOES teach Naota a thing or two – namely that sexual desire can be painful and confusing, as well as make robots randomly pop out of your head.

Well, before I start overanalyzing this thing and have something pop out of my head, let me conclude by saying that Gainax made another anime classic when they put together FLCL.  It is over a decade old at this point and it still seems fresh and modern.  If you like Studio Gainax or Production I.G., watch this.  If you like weird anime, watch this.  In fact, if you like anime at all you should probably watch this at least once to witness a group of animation masters practice their craft, completely unfettered by corporate concerns or audience expectation.  This is quite possibly the greatest anime OVA ever.

Screenshots

Mabase: just your typical Japanese town.

I am sure that the first thing that most of you noticed 

in this picture was that Haruko's Rick is left-handed.

Absolutely no disturbing psycho-sexual symbolic imagery going on here....

Haruko: the very image of delicate, ladylike femininity.

Yes, Canti, there is a silicon heaven.

There's a Vespa on the loose!  Run!!

FLCL: Now in exciting Mang-A-Vision!

-Ouch....

I think that's sort of cheating, Haruko....

Just an example of the subtle, nuanced humor in this show.

  

Next Post:  More mini-reviews.

How Was This Post Written? Hard Work And Guts!

I know I said at the end of the last review that Nosferatu would be next, but my one comment in my last anime review for Bubblegum Crisis - "Why do I suddenly have the urge to watch Gunbuster?" - made me think, "Hey, why not watch Gunbuster?"   After the disappointment that was Bubblegum Crisis, I needed a good OVA that actually lives up its hype.  I'm still going to continue the Kinski-thon and review Nosferatu at the end of the week, but first a quick detour with Gunbuster.

Gunbuster
OVA, 1988-1989
Director: Hideaki Anno



The Story

Noriko is the daughter of a space admiral who died fighting mysterious space monsters sevral years ago.  Now she is a student at a girls' giant robot pilot high school - I did not make that last bit up - and longs to become an ace pilot like her idol Kazumi so she can go into space like her father.  In order to do that though she'll have to endure rigorous training from Coach, who is determined to make her into the best she can be.  Can Noriko survive Coach's exercise regimen, become an ace and go into space to fight the evil space aliens?  Of course!  There she'll find love for the first time, meet a mercurial red-headed rival Soviet pilot and, oh yeah, help determine the fate of humanity with its ultimate weapon - the new awesomely powerful giant robot, Gunbuster.  Well, she certainly has her work cut out for her!

Review and Analysis

Wow.  Sometimes you see a work that shows not only that the creators loved making it but a love for the medium itself.  Such is the case with Gunbuster.  This OVA is not only a classic piece of animated science fiction, it's a joy-filled love letter to anime itself.  All of the standard tropes and cliches of anime, giant robot and otherwise, are parodied, played straight, then turned up to 11.  This was made by people who love animation, and this shows in the animation itself.  It’s still impressive today – when Gainax actually has a budget (see also: Wings of Honneamise) they can produce some of the best animation in the world.  It’s well known that the founding members of Gainax were massive nerds, and that also shows in Gunbuster: everything an otaku could possibly love is lovingly drawn and animated – giant robots, spaceships, laser cannons, monsters, instrument displays, breasts….  Yes, breasts.  Gunbuster is infamous for introducing the “Gainax Bounce” into anime: before this was made women's breasts didn’t really move in Japanese animation… so, as you can see this is a truly revolutionary anime!  Haha.  Anyway, lechery aside, I was actually impressed by the amount of fanservice in Gunbuster, as in, “not that much.”  Yes, as I said this introduced bouncing boobies into anime, but the actual amount of fanservice in this OVA is actually restrained and tasteful (especially compared to the legions of fanservice oriented anime that would follow).  It doesn’t really distract from the rest of the show.  Personally I was distracted by the rest of the animation, especially the space battles.  These are exciting and very well done.  Many directors looking to film outer space battle sequences (cough  George Lucas cough) should watch Gunbuster to see how it’s done.  Gainax knows how make the little things shine, too.  Even things as minor as the instrument displays in the giant robots are rendered and animated in the finest detail.  And the displays are back-lit!  I’m not sure, but I think that this might have been the first time this was done in an anime.

But for all my gushing about the animation, how does the story hold up?  After all, well-animated crap is still crap.  The answer is: pretty damn well, thank you.  It may have a few flaws but the story of Gunbuster is one that is moving and deeply affecting.  Yes it gets a little overwrought with the emotions a few times but those emotions are genuine.  Part of the story of Gunbuster involves the effects of time dilation in light-speed travel:  every time Noriko goes into space her friends on Earth age while she does not.  This adds a very bittersweet flavor to the show as Noriko is forced to deal with the people she loves aging and the world changing as she fights to defend both the people she loves and the world from the ravenous star-destroying space monsters.  It is the ultimate sacrifice in a way, and one of the best bits of characterization I’ve seen in sci-fi in recent times. Given the short length of the OVA (six episodes) characterization itself was rather rushed and could have used some room for improvement, but it’s not bad considering.  Noriko herself does tend to whine and cry a lot in the first half but gets better in the second half, where she screams a lot (but that’s awesome because that’s during the most awesome parts).  It’s also interesting to note that the main characters are female:  Noriko and Kazumi are in roles normally reserved for boys.  The giant mecha genre up to that point had seen a dearth of female leads.   Hell, sci-fi anime in general (and actually sci-fi period) had seen very few lead heroines – only Dirty Pair, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and Bubblegum Crisis (something I guess I forgot to credit that show on in my review of it) come to mind.   The mecha show Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross had a woman as a main character, but that show wasn’t all that popular and was prematurely cancelled.   It wasn’t until Gunbuster was released in 1988 (along with Patlabor the same year) and became popular that anime audiences began to accept the idea of girls taking the lead and piloting the big robots.  Now, the animators may not have had this intent – they probably just liked animating pretty girls – but they still revolutionized anime by doing this.

Gunbuster may be a little rough around the edges but it is still an anime science fiction classic.  It has gorgeous animation, awesome action, genuine emotion and an ending that will leave you in tears.  Sisterhood is beautiful.  See it today.

Screenshots

You know it's love at first sight.  How?  Sparkles.

Get used to it.  Noriko does a lot of this.

And this.

I'm sure this is what Neil Armstrong wanted to see
when he walked on the moon.

Broadsides... in SPACE!

A back-lit display.  The attention to detail in "Gunbuster" is awesome.

The final episode is widescreen, and in black-and-white,
so you know it's artistic.

 
The DVD

I had seen Gunbuster before on VHS.  Those tapes were pretty good, but WOW the image quality on the DVD edition blew me away.  This DVD release from Honneamise (the pricey Bandai Visual label that also released… Wings of Honneamise) lets you see every detail in the wonderful animation.  They really did a good job remastering this.  It does have one flaw though:  a white line is present for the whole runtime on each disc on the left side of the picture.   This is especially noticeable on widescreen monitors and televisions, and doubly so for the final letterboxed episode.  I have included a screenshot below to demonstrate.

Make sure to watch with the overscan on your TV or computer DVD player turned on.  Another thing about the DVD set that bugs me:  like the Animeigo Oh My Goddess! OVA boxset, Gunbuster comes on three discs, when it could have been squeezed down to two or possibly even one.  There’s not even that many extra features on the discs, so I don’t know why they need three discs for this except to drive the price up.  These are my only quibbles though.  The DVDs come in a very nice fold-out case contained in a nice box with a nice booklet.  A warning though in that this boxset is normally very pricey, so you should probably wait until it’s on sale somewhere before you pick it up.  But you should definitely pick it up.