Alan Takahashi's ANIME POCKET GUIDE
Dangaioh
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Dirty Pair
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Dominion
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Doraemon
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Dragonball (Z)
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 Tanaka
....................... 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
Index...
Everyday is Sunday
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Etranger
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...
Future Boy Conan
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 RECOMMENDED
Index...
The Five Star Stories
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Golgo 13 (The Professional)
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Legend of the Galactic Heroes
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Gall Force
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Gall Force: Earth Chapter & New Century series
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...
Galaxy Express 999
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Battle Angel Alita (Gunnm)
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Giant Robo
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 RECOMMENDED
Index...
Ghost Sweeper Mikami
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Gunbuster: Aim for the Top!
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Hello Kitty
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...
Hime-chan no Ribbon
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Fist of the North Star
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: RECOMMENDED
Index...
Richard Murdey : rmurdey.cs.mun.ca