(continued from part 5)
MAI-HIME: 16 year old Mai Tokiha and her younger brother Takumi
are transferring to their new school, the Fuuka Academy, by ferry.
After an eventful journey involving mysterious ****ning red stars and a
frenetic fight between the sword-wielding Mikoto and the gun-toting
Natsuki, Mai discovers that she is a HiME, a girl with special powers
who must defend Fuuka against Orphans, monstrous creatures that menace
the area. As more and more HiMEs are discovered, the stakes hot up
with mysterious prophecies, the consequences of their powers and
several insidious organisations wanting to control the HiMEs - or
destroy them.
Studio Sunrise throws several cliches together - high school comedy
drama, some bishoujo (and occasional bishounen) fanservice,
superpowered action with "mecha" - and surprisingly manage to make
something that sticks together fairly well. MAI-HIME is fairly
unoriginal in execution, but the fact that there's something for
almost everyone, coupled with excellent animation and strong
characterisation, means it's almost bound to be enjoyable in some
respects.
At the time of writing, MAI-HIME is still running in Japan, with 18
episodes of 26 aired - the Japanese Region 2 release has begun with
the first two episodes on DVD.
[Entry by Andrew Hollingbury]
MAISON IKKOKU: A young man in love struggles to achieve his
impossible dreams. The widow who can't forget her beloved husband
knows she has to move on. The handsome, worthy tennis instructor vies
for the widow's love. The harpy-like friends keep the young man and
the widow apart. That, in a nutshell, is MAISON IKKOKU: a slice of
everyday life in a seedy suburban Tokyo boarding house.
Real life is the setting for this romantic comedy from Rumiko
Takaha**** (RANMA 1/2, INU-YASHA). Godai is a "ronin", a young man who
failed to get into college. While he struggles to pass his entrance
exams, he moves to a boarding house closer to Tokyo and gets
neighbours right out of a wacky sitcom, who drive him to distraction
and tease him mercilessly. The day he swears to leave Maison Ikkoku
forever, the love of his life shows up to become the new manager,
Kyoko Otona****.
Kyoko is a young widow who hasn't recovered from her loss. Her
father-in-law offers her the resident manager position at this
boarding house he owns until she decides what she wants to do with her
life. So begins the impossible dream for Godai.
This love story is interesting because it breaks the rules. Godai
is *not* the perfect hero. The rival, Shun Mitaka, isn't a complete
jerk. It feels more realistic than other romance stories, yet is also
a very typical one. The story is filled with laughter, touching
moments and wonderful characters. And when the ending unfolds, it is
a wonderful moment that just about breaks your heart. Even guys who
hate romantic stories love this series. Advisory: Mature situations.
Ages 13+.
Available from Viz.
[Entry by Travers Naran, edited by Rob Kelk]
MAJO-NO TAKKYUBIN: see KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE
MAMONO HUNTER YOHKO: see DEVIL HUNTER YOHKO
MAO-CHAN: Aliens have targeted Japan, but they've done their
homework. They know that the cuter the invaders are, the more likely
human public opinion will rise against the defenders if they "bully"
the invaders. What's needed are even cuter defenders ... Thus are
Mao, Misora, and Sylvia - three cute eight-year-old girls - drafted to
defend Japan from the cute aliens.
On the surface, this is yet another entry in the magical girl genre
so popular in anime, and youngsters will happily take the show at that
level. Look deeper, though, and you'll see a parody of the genre and
a satirical look at military inter-service rivalry, along with a
comment on creator Ken Akamatsu's inability to come up with different
character designs (in the crossover episode with LOVE HINA).
Available from Geneon.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
MARIS THE CHOJO (a.k.a. SUPERGIRL MARIS): Unlike the other RUMIK
WORLD stories by Rumiko Takaha**** that have been turned into anime,
this OAV is not at all serious. Maris is a super-strong
troubleshooter who just can't stay out of debt. (She dreams of
getting rich, or at least breaking even, but fate conspires against
her.) One day, she's assigned to track down the kidnappers of one of
the richest eligible bachelors in the galaxy ... This OAV is one of
the few anime to have a Jackie-Chan-style "blooper reel" under the
ending credits. Was available from USMC.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
MARMALADE BOY: Miki is your typical teenage anime girl, popular in
school, star of the girls' tennis team, happy with her life. Until
the day she came home from school and her parents told her they are
divorcing. Not just divorcing, but also swapping partners with
another couple they met on their recent vacation. And this is just
the first 5 minutes of episode 1! Based on the manga by Yo****zumi
Wataru, MARMALADE BOY follows Miki, Yu, the teenage son of the other
couple in the partner-swap, Meiko, Miki's best friend, Ginta, Miki's
tennis teammate, Arimi, with her ever-present group of male followers,
Suzu, famous teen model, and others through 76 episodes of high school
romantic comedy/drama that often has viewers semi-suicidal with its
unexpected plot twists and turns.
Licenced by Tokyopop.
[Entry by Jeanne Hedge]
MARTIAN SUCCESSOR NADESICO (a.k.a. MOBILE BATTLE****P NADESICO):
Aliens attacking Martian colonies. Dead parents leaving orphaned
children to defend themselves. Doesn’t sound funny does it? How
about a mech pilot who keeps hiding from the fights so he can cook? A
Cyber girl with a deep depression? An anime fanatic who screams
battle cries from his favorite anime? It all makes NADESICO one of
the funniest anime around. There are even some good spoofs on just
about every type of fan. Anime, Manga, and even action figure
collectors are not spared. Stereotypes are used to enhance the humor
and not because the writer was lazy. A space comedy of the best kind.
Available from ADV Films; the "Essential Anime" release has had the
original video readout animations restored.
[Entry by Shawn Granger, edited by Rob Kelk]
MASTER OF MOSQUITON: (OVA, 6 episodes) This dark comedy set in the
1920s follows the adventures of 17 year old girl named Inaho
Hitomebore who continues her now two year search for immortality via a
device known as the Opar assisted by the vampire (Alucard von
Mosquiton) she has awakened and his two elemental servants Honoo
(Fire) and Yuki (Ice). Complicating her search is Gregoria Rasputin
who assisted by Mosquiton's old foe Sangermaine want to use the Opar
as a weapon against the Star Lords, and former wife Camille Inaho
Camilla who just wants Mosquiton.
The OVA is full of little references that fans of 30s' and 40s'
horror fans will quickly get (for example Alucard is one of the alias
often used by Dracula in films of the period) The OVA inspired a TV
series called MOSQUITON 99 which is set in 1999 and has Inaho after
the Opar for monetary gain rather than immortality.
Previously released on VHS in North America by ADV; the North
America DVD licence is held by Media Blasters.
[Entry by Bruce Grubb]
MATANTEI LOKI RAGNAROK (a.k.a. MYTHICAL DETECTIVE LOKI): The
Enjaku Detective Agency is run by the child-like Loki and his
mail-order obsessed servant Yamino - together with the mystery fanatic
Mayura Daidouji they solve any paranormal crime they come across.
However, Loki is not what he seems - banished by Odin, Lord of the
Gods, to Earth in a childlike form, he is hunted down by his fellow
Norse gods, from the maniacal Heimdall to the idiotic Freyr.
MATANTEI LOKI (or MaLOKI) is an odd blend of random slapstick
humour and occasionally dark drama, which never quite gels together.
The episodes (which usually follow a "mystery of the week" format) are
frequently very repetitive, although often pretty funny, highlights
including an "Iron Chef" parody and most of Freyr's antics (he rides
around on a mechanical pig, Gullinbursti, attempting to woo Mayura on
a regular basis). The show is at its best in its dramatic moments,
however, particularly the action-packed confrontations between Loki
and the other gods. Perhaps best described as DETECTIVE CONAN crossed
with a magical girl show (Loki summons his magical staff or casts a
spell with stock footage in most episodes).
MaLOKI is licensed by ADV Films for a Region 1 release - the manga
is already available from them, but only the second season (the
RAGNAROK season) - ADV were unable to license the preceding 8 volumes,
and as such the manga in US release is fairly incoherent.
R1 official website: <http://www25.advfilms.com/titles/loki/>
[Entry by Andrew Hollingbury]
MEGAZONE 23: MEGAZONE TWO THREE is a three part mecha anime OAV
series (with some cyberpunk overtones). Part One was one of the first
anime OAVs ever, and helped spark the OAV trend (in which movies were
made directly for video release, instead of first hitting TV or
cinema). Although the MEGAZONE OAVs are numbered Parts One, Two, and
Three, they were actually entirely separate productions, related but
released several years apart (like the first "Star Wars" trilogy).
In Part One (aka just plain MEGAZONE 23), a Tokyo teen named Yahagi
Shogo (inexplicably changed to "Johnny Winter" in the Carl Macek dub)
comes into possession of a huge red motorcycle called variously the
Garland, Garand, or Bahamode depending on what source you listen to,
and is chased all over town by the military and government agents who
want to get it back for their own nefarious purposes. In the
meantime, there is a war going on with a hostile alien force, and the
city of Tokyo is not all that it appears to be ...
This OAV was redubbed and edited into part of the spectacularly
unsuccessful ROBOTECH cinematic movie.
Part Two picks up where the first part left off, but with character
designs and animation style so dramatically altered that it is
difficult to believe they are the same characters. This OAV follows
the decline and final fall of the Tokyo Megazone as an ancient weapon
of last resort comes into play.
Part Three, the most cyberpunk-influenced, picks up decades or
centuries later, with a new generation of rebellious teenagers and new
Garland battle bikes piloted by virtual reality. It seems that
mankind did not learn its lesson from the Megazones' past.
The third MEGAZONE 23 was not very successful, and no further
episodes have been made to date.
Available in North America from ADV.
R1 official website: <http://www25.advfilms.com/titles/megazone/>
[Entry by Chris Meadows]
MELLOWLINK: see the entry for VOTOMS
MERMAID FOREST and MERMAID SCAR: Horror stories released in Japan
as part of the RUMIK WORLD series by Rumiko Takaha****. Most people
who eat the flesh of a mermaid die. The unlucky ones live forever,
most becoming horrendously malformed in the process of gaining
immortality. Two people were lucky enough to gain immortality without
being changed. Now they wander through Japan, searching for others
who might eat the flesh of a mermaid ...
USMC and Viz have released the OAVs, and Viz has collected the
translated manga into three volumes.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
METAL ANGEL MARIE: see MY DEAR MARIE
MEITANTEI CONAN (a.k.a DETECTIVE CONAN or CASE CLOSED): Since
early 1996, Japanese families in great numbers have been tuning their
TVs at 7:30 PM on Monday nights to watch a tiny, bespectacled
detective solve mysteries in a classical detective story manner. No
matter if you call the show MEITANTEI CONAN, DETECTIVE CONAN, or CASE
CLOSED; if you like mysteries of all sorts, but in particular enjoy
mysteries revolving around crimes of greed or passion, Edogawa Conan
is your "man" of the hour.
Brilliant seventeen-year-old rich kid Kudou ****nichi ("Jimmy Kudo"
in the dub) is learning to enjoy his fame as a "great detective" as he
solves crimes that adult detectives can't solve. But fate takes a
hand in his life as ****nichi runs into more than he can handle one
night while he is spying on a mysterious gang. ****nichi is surprised,
knocked out and given a special poison that causes his body to "de-
age" to that of a 7 year old boy. With his faculties still intact but
his body now that of a small child, ****nichi has to try to hide the
knowledge of his survival from that gang in order to protect his
family and friends, and takes on the guise of a not-so-ordinary grade
school kid, Edogawa Conan.
Without revealing his secret, "Conan" convinces his former
girlfriend, Mouri Ran ("Rachel Moore" in the dub), to take him in to
live with her and her father, the not-very-successful private
detective Mouri Kogorou ("Richard Moore"). Armed with some high-tech
help from his inventor friend Dr. Agasa, Conan is able to continue his
passion for detective work by enabling Kogorou to unknowingly get the
credit and fame for solving tough crimes and mysteries that Conan
actually solves, all the while hiding the secret of ****nichi/Conan
from all but a few people.
Over the years MEITANTEI CONAN has been able to maintain its appeal
and freshness by having stories that are firmly grounded in the heart
of the traditional detective mystery genre by developing a strong cast
of characters who all add balance to the show, and by having an
ability to alternate smoothly between episodes that are aimed at the
youngest viewers and episodes that are aimed at the adult viewers who
are watching along with their children. There has also always been a
solid, professional sound track and the animation has gradually
improved with time while maintaining its unique style. In addition to
the 400-plus TV episodes there have also been eight theatrical movies.
MEITANTEI CONAN is a must see for all "detective show" fans.
Licenced by FUNimation in North America. Official MEITANTEI CONAN
website: <http://www.ytv.co.jp/conan/index_set.html>.
Official CASE
CLOSED website: <http://www.caseclosed.com/>
[Entry by Dave Baranyi]
MIAMI GUNS: In a city that barely resembles a particular
metropolis in the USA, police officers Yao Sakurakoji and Lu Amano
work to keep the peace. Too bad Yao's no good at the job, except for
the gunfights and car chases, but that's okay - she's rich!
MIAMI GUNS is very much in the EXCEL SAGA style of comedy, but not
nearly so manic or profane; it's safe to show this title to people in
their mid-teens (but not to younger folks). They parody practically
everything, including but not limited to "2001", "Friday the 13th",
"Die Hard", INITIAL D, NEON GENESIS EVANGELION, COWBOY BEBOP,
professional wrestling, beauty pageants, and themselves, so there's
something for practically everyone to enjoy.
13 episodes, released on 4 DVDs in North America by AN
Entertainment.
R1 official website: <http://www.an-entertainment.com/miamiguns/>
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
MIDORI NO HIBI (a.k.a. MIDORI DAYS or MY DAYS WITH MIDORI): A
fantasy with what is essentially a "dirty joke" as its central point
turns out to be a sweet and funny story of the search for love.
Seventeen-year-old "tough guy" Seiji would really rather have a
girlfriend than another fistfight, but he doesn't know that he has a
silent admirer - Midori - a rich girl from a different high school.
But magic brings their two fates together as one morning Seiji wakes
up to find that his "invincible" right hand has been replaced by a
miniature living version of Midori from the waist up. Now they have
to figure out how to "live together" with this very bizarre situation
without being turned into a freak show. Great pacing and
characterizations together with very sharp comic timing make MIDORI NO
HIBI a minor classic in the realm of fantasy romances.
13 episodes, available in R1 from Anime Works.
[Entry by Dave Baranyi]
MIGHTY ATOM: see ASTRO BOY
MOBILE BATTLE****P NADESICO: see MARTIAN SUCCESSOR NADESICO
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: see GUNDAM
MOLDIVER: He has an overdeveloped Sense Of Right And Wrong, an
incredible brain, and not much else to recommend him. So he invents a
superhero suit! Too bad his sister found out and accidentally changed
the design ... Now they share the identity of "Moldiver" (although
she gets to use it more often than he does) in battle against their
arch-enemy - but is the arch-enemy evil, or just misunderstood?
Starts as a comedy, but becomes more serious near the end. A six-OAV
series available from Geneon.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
MONSTER RANCHER: Another POKEMON-motivated "monster" kids show.
Energetic young kid Genki is trans****ted to a world populated by
humans and intelligent monsters, where he joins Holly, a young girl
with a mysterious pendant, and a small band of monsters on their quest
to stop Mu by finding the Phoenix, the only monster capable of
fighting him.
English dubbed episodes televised, and available on video from ADV.
[Entry by "Royal Orange"]
MONONOKE-HIME: see PRINCESS MONONOKE
MOON PHASE: see TSUKUYOMI MOON PHASE
MOSQUITON: see MASTER OF MOSQUITON
MOSQUITON 99: see MASTER OF MOSQUITON
MS TEAM 08: see GUNDAM
MY DEAR MARIE (a.k.a. METAL ANGEL MARIE): Brilliant, nerdy Hiro****
creates an android replica of his dream girl, but finds things a
little trickier than he'd planned when she turns out to have
self-determination. Some may be turned off by the iffy nature of the
***ual subtext (Android Marie has a definite 'thing' for her creator,
despite him insisting on being her 'brother') but others may be
intrigued by Marie's attempts to deal with her origins and her
feelings. Three OAVs, released on a single tape from ADV Films. The
third OAV is especially hilarious for all the references the sharp-
eyed can spot to other famous anime.
[Entry by Antaeus Feldspar]
MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO (a.k.a. TONARI NO TOTORO): Two girls move out
to the country with their father (their mother is in the hospital).
They discover the joys of nature and the power of family thanks to
some unusual new woodland friends. Was available from FOX Video; now
licenced by Disney.
[Entry by Catherine Johnson]
MYSTERIOUS CITIES OF GOLD: It is the sixteenth century. From all
over Europe great ****ps sail west to conquer the New World. The
Americas. The men, eager to seek their fortune, to find new adventure
in new lands. They long to cross uncharted seas and discover unknown
countries. To find secret gold on a mountain trail high in the Andes.
They dream of following the path of the setting sun that leads to El
Dorado and the Mysterious Cities of Gold. (opening theme)
So begins the story of 12 year old Esteban, his new friends Zia and
Tao, and the older sometimes ally/sometimes enemy Mendoza with his
sidekicks Pedro and Sancho. A story of action, adventure, intrigue,
mystery, trust, betrayal, discovery, prophecy, mysticism, and strange
powers. Not to mention a little science fiction.
Esteban is lured to the Americas where he is ****pwrecked. The rest
of the story is how he is caught up in navigating his way around the
conquistadors and the various native tribes throughout Central and
northern South America, searching for his origins and the cities of
gold. They are caught several times, but manage to escape to
eventually find the four cities of gold.
Included all through the adventures are mini-history lessons.
Nothing overt, but if you have a smidgen of knowledge of the area it
deepens enjoyment of the story. Our intrepid heroes contact the Inca
at Machu Picchu, the Aztecs at Tenochtitlan (Mexico City), the Maya at
Central America, an Amazon tribe, and other lost civilizations all
while trying to stay one step ahead of the conquistadors.
A 1980's anime serial aimed for a 'tween audience, although the
story and subplots make it interesting for an older audience and
overcomes the dated animation.
The last time I saw this on the shelves it was in the year 2000 on
VHS. I have no idea whether or not it's been released on DVD or what
distributor. My copies are the dubbed version that I recorded from
Nickelodeon in 1986-87 on BETA.
[Entry by D.Eric Wilson]
MYSTERIOUS PLAY: see FU****GI YUUGI
THE MYSTERIOUS THIEF SAINT TAIL: see SAINT TAIL
MY DAYS WITH MIDORI: see MIDORI NO HIBI
MYTHICAL DETECTIVE LOKI: see MATANTEI LOKI RAGNAROK
N
NADESICO: see MARTIAN SUCCESSOR NADESICO
NADIA (a.k.a. SECRET OF BLUE WATER): Set in 1889 and extremely
loosely based on Jules Verne's "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", NADIA
tells the story of Nadia, a girl who's trying to find out about her
past, Jean, a boy who wants to build a flying machine, and the Blue
Water, a mysterious gem of Nadia's with strange powers. Their world
is home to two shadowy groups in conflict: Neo-Atlantis, who want to
rule the world, and the crew of the submarine Nautilus, who have sworn
to oppose Neo-Atlantis. These two plots are not unconnected ...
ADV has translated this 39-episode TV series and the sequel movie
(which is not as well received as the original).
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
NA****A 6/17: 17 year old Kirisato Na****a is a somber, serious
student who is so obsessed with becoming an adult that she's alienated
all of her classmates, including her childhood friend (and would-be
romantic interest) Nagihara Nenji. When Nenji gets angry enough to
tell her he never wants to see her again, she faints and falls down a
flight of stairs. When she wakes up, she has no memories after age 6,
and she believes that she, Nenji and her father have been affected by
magic from her favorite "magical girl" anime, "Magical Domikal".
Nenji and Na****a's father agree to keep her amnesia a secret, but her
romantic rival finds out, and (even though she tries not to be) is
touched by the sweet-natured, friendly, and innocent "6 year old"
Na****a. Na****a's new attitude and behaviour puzzles her classmates,
but she wins them over while she tries to fit in as an "adult". But
what happens when her 17 year old memories start to come back? Can
she win over her new romantic rival, her 17 year old self?
[Entry by Captain Nerd]
NARUTO: Naruto is an orphan growing up in a ninja village. When
he was a baby, the spirit of a demonic nine-tailed fox that had been
destroying his village was sealed up inside him to defeat it. Twelve
years later, our story starts with Naruto struggling not to fail in
his ninja academy class. The head of the village has issued an edict
to the villagers not to discuss the nine-tailed fox incident, not even
to their children. In spite of that, both those who know the story
and those who don't shun Naruto as an outcast. His clownish antics
and miserable academic performance don't make it any easier on him. In
spite of all the strikes against him, Naruto perseveres, and the
outcast becomes the center of attention.
Alternating between comedy and drama, NARUTO is a coming of age
story. We follow him and his friends through school and on their
subsequent adventures and travels. Strong on character development,
it shows memorable people overcoming adversity. Even if you are not
predisposed to like ninja stories, NARUTO is likely to win you over.
If you do like ninja stories, this has everything going for it from
fights to laughs. Of course, every good ninja story must have
top-notch villains and NARUTO delivers in spades. Some of the
villains are defeated, some of the villains are reformed, and some of
the villains are not really villains but souls gone astray.
[Entry by Phil Yff]
NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND: A thousand years after the
fall of technological civilization, the people of the Valley of the
Wind make their homes in their sheltered valley, near an area where no
human can live unprotected. When the Valley of the Wind is caught
between two warring powers, Princess Nausicaa is forced to set aside
her pacifism and act to save her people from both sides while
discovering one of the greatest secrets of her world.
NAUSICAA was based on Hayao Miyazaki's manga of the same name, and
directed by Miyazaki in the middle of the manga's run. Technically,
this is not a Studio Ghibli film; the success of NAUSICAA provided the
money to found Studio Ghibli and the credibility to get Studio Ghibli
movies into theaters in Japan.
A poorly-received edited translation, WARRIORS OF THE WIND, was
released some years ago but is no longer available. (The edits made
to NAUSICAA to create WARRIORS OF THE WIND are the direct cause of
Miyazaki's insistence of a "no cuts" clause in North American
distribution contracts of his movies.) Disney has released a newer
English translation of NAUSICAA.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]
NEKO TARUTO: see MAHOU SHOUJO NEKO TARUTO
NEON GENESIS EVANGELION (a.k.a. ****N SEIKI EVANGELION): Fifteen
years after the Second Impact that wiped out half of humanity, Ikari
****nji is recruited by his father to fight alongside Ayanami Rei and
Asuka Langley Soryu to save mankind from the invading mechanical
Angels. This psychological drama amongst a cast of flawed characters
filled with intrigue, deception, and carnage has two vastly different
endings.
North American availability: ADV Films has released the 26-episode
TV series, and is re-releasing a "Platinum Edition" of the TV series
with improved video quality on DVD. The two movies "Death and
Rebirth" and "End of Evangelion" (an alternate ending to the series)
were released by Manga Video.
Official website:
<http://www.gainax.co.jp/anime/eva/evaindex-e.html>
R1 official website: <http://www25.advfilms.com/titles/evangelion/>
[Entry by Rob Maxwell]
NERIMA DAIKON BROTHERS: see ORO****E MUSICAL NERIMA DAIKON
BROTHERS
NEW CUTEY HONEY: This is an eight part OAV that is based on the
1970 TV series CUTEY HONEY (sometime romanized as Q-TEY HONEY). In
the TV series, Cutey Honey is a high school girl, the only daughter of
an elderly single-parent scientist. When her father is murdered, she
finds out that she is not human but an android that he created. She
has the ability to transform herself into different superheroes, each
with her own special abilities and equipment. She avenges her
father/creator's death and defeats an extensive crime syndicate.
The OAV takes place many years after Cutey Honey has graduated from
High School. Being an android, she has not aged. Because she had
lost her memory, she had not been active as a superhero. When the
powers of evil resurface, she recollects who she once was and, as
before, battles a monolithic crime syndicate that employs the dark
arts to subjugate the city. Some of the characters from the TV series
resurface. Unlike Cutey Honey, they have aged considerably.
To a western audience, the OAV is very risqué. There is brief
****ity and suggestive ***ual innuendoes. To a Japanese audience, this
aspect is much less pronounced. The OAV was marketed in such a way as
to capitalize on viewer nostalgia; in many ways, it was just a
grown-up form of a show that men and women had watched as children.
The TV show (which catered to all ages) had some brief ****ity itself,
although it was much more subdued in comparison to the OAV. The OAV
mixes light-hearted action with cutting satire. It makes extensive
in-jokes, assuming that the viewer is familiar with the TV series and
with a wide range of anime and manga (especially the magical girl,
superhero, and mecha genres). However, if the non-Japanese viewer is
able to accept the cultural differences, CUTEY HONEY has a certain
charm and can be appreciated for its entertainment value if not for
its satire and wit.
[Entry by Phil Yff]
NIEA_7: Meet Mayuko, a poor, introverted, hard-working student who
lives in a rented room above an old-style Japanese community bath.
Her roommate is an "under 7" category alien called Niea who freeloads
off of Mayuko while doing nothing really. In this alternate version
of our world, an alien spacecraft crash-landed near Tokyo almost a
decade ago and brought humanity's first contact with aliens, but the
series isn't even really about that.
The series is kind of odd, because there is no major arc or plot
through the series. It's just a look into a year in the life of
Mayuko and Niea and a particular period of change for both of them.
Even the supposed back story of the alien crash is barely mentioned;
aliens are part of modern-day Japan and people just accept it. The
main thrust of the series is observing the people of this small ward
somewhere in Tokyo's sprawling suburbs.
There are two surprising things about this show. The first is the
way it examines changes in Japanese culture over the last 50 years
almost allegorically, and the subtle way it develops of the
characters. The aliens' arrival on Earth and their integration into
Japanese society seems to reflect Japan's experience with a flood of
foreign people and culture after WWII. A lot of the issues in the
series are familiar to foreigners living in Japan: alien registration,
culture clashes, aliens trying to out-assimilate the locals,
multi-culturalism, trying to increase the status of aliens in society,
etc. It's also just looking into the lives of some very normal
characters. Mayuko is introverted and painfully shy, but so is her
childhood friend who would like to confess his feelings for her, but
can just never say them. Even Kaana, an alien, finds herself
attracted to the same boy. But this entire subplot is done without
dialog. It's just watching people's reactions to each other and
situations, something you very rarely see in anime.
With NIEA_7, don't expect a lot of action. It's very
"Seinfeld"-like in being a show about "nothing". There is no grand
arc or exciting payoff. It's just the passing of life and enjoying
the journey.
[Entry by Travers Naran]
NINJA SCROLL (original title JUBEI NIMPUUCHO): The original title
translates as "Story of wind-ninja Jubei". This epic tells a
semi-historical story about Kibagami Jubei, well known in Japan as a
master swordsman and special agent. Once he was missing for a dozen
years, and it was believed that he was on special duty. There were
many versions, and here is one of them: Jubei was fighting with Eight
Demons of Kimon, evil fighters/sorcerers under command of Hideyo****
Toyotomi, who was believed to be a demon in Japan.
The movie is licenced by Manga Entertainment in North America and
the UK, and by Madman in Australia. The TV series is licenced by
Urban Vision in North America, and by MVM in the UK.
[Entry by Andrew V. Tupkalo and Terrence Walker]
NO NEED FOR TENCHI: see TENCHI MUYO
NOEIN: At the start of the summer holidays in present-day
Hakodate, Japan, Haruka Kaminogi seems to be an ordinary 12 year old
girl, with ordinary problems like her best friend Yuu Gotou being
forced into studying to go to Tokyo by his mother. However, all this
changes when a mysterious group of super-powered beings called
Dragoons appear in Hakodate, claiming to be from a parallel universe
15 years into the future called Lacrima; and while one of them,
Karasu, claims to be Yuu in Lacrima, Haruka herself manifests the
"Dragon's Torque", a mysterious neck bracelet that can control space
and time.
Confused? That's not the half of it. NOEIN's plot twists and
turns all over the place, incor****ating simple stories of first love
with complex quantum psychobabble and parallel universe theories.
While the slightly bug-eyed character designs (from the same man who
did LAIN and ARJUNA) and the rough, experimental animation choices are
an acquired taste, the incredibly kinetic action sequences (thanks to
Kazuki Akane, director of ESCAFLOWNE) and the amount of imagination
that goes into the show more than make up for any possible flaws.
While the series has finished airing, only the first 20 episodes
are currently available on fansub; the DVD release in Japan is
ongoing.
[Entry by Andrew Hollingbury]
NOIR: Noir is a 26 episode TV series about two female assassins,
and their search to uncover the conspiracy that threatens their lives.
Mireille is a beautiful French professional assassin who is haunted by
a childhood tragedy. Kirika is a Japanese schoolgirl with deadly
skills and no memory of her past. The series takes place in
France/Europe, and features a stunning soundtrack, stylish gunplay, a
twisting plot, and lots of bodies at the end of each episode. Despite
this, the series isn't graphically violent - the fight scenes usually
don't even have blood in them!
The series has received raves for being daring and different, as
the two main characters willingly kill lots of people (this isn't
SAILOR MOON, folks) with minimal angst. The main complaints are that
the pacing is too slow and the show suffers from "main characters gun
down bad guys too easily" syndrome. The pacing and tension do pick up
as the series progresses, with a solid ending that asks whether
killing can ever be justified in the name of good. Some people dislike
the main characters, due to their seeming coldness, but NOIR has good
character development so that you care about these people to a
surprising extent in the end.
Warning: If you're looking for fan service, the show is
surprisingly free of it, considering what a babe Mireille is. C'est
dommage.
Licenced by ADV.
R1 official website: <http://www.projectnoir.com/>
[Entry by Scott Fujimoto]
NOW AND THEN, HERE AND THERE: Shu is an ordinary, cheerful
Japanese boy until one day when he meets a mysterious, ethereal girl
named Lala Ru and is accidentally brought to a hellish future. There
he must struggle to survive and keep his ideals through slavery, war,
and the tyranny of an insane would-be conqueror. A deep and powerful
but extremely depressing show, which goes into some detail about the
inhuman brutality created by war.
DEFINITELY NOT FOR CHILDREN, as there are onscreen depictions of
torture, some fairly graphic deaths, off-screen rape, and other
nastiness.
13 episodes, available now from Central Park Media.
[Entry by Blade]
NUKU-NUKU: see ALL PURPOSE CULTURAL CAT-GIRL NUKU-NUKU
(continued in part 7)
--
Rob Kelk <http://robkelk.ottawa-anime.org/>
e-mail: s/deadspam/gmail/
"I'm *not* a kid! Nyyyeaaah!" - Skuld (in "Oh My Goddess!" OAV #3)
"When I became a man, I put away childish things, including the fear
of childishness and the desire to be very grown-up." - C.S. Lewis
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