Very nicely done review.IF only the series were as fun as reading this.
Bubblegum Crisis tv Review
Story & Characters
The original Bubblegum Crisis OVA became pretty popular quickly, gathering a fan following despite the studio's budget problems. They even planned another arc to tie everything up, but one of the production studios ran into some financial problems and it was never completed. Fortunately a new 26 episode TV series was negotiated and produced which took the Bubblegum Crisis story and made it into what I'm sure everyone envisioned from the beginning. Although die-hard fans of the original OVA might be a little disappointed in the design changes, I think that the overall production improvements and story expansion makes Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040 a faithful retelling of a great, yet troubled anime. This review is for Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040.
After a cataclysmic earthquake destroyed Tokyo, humans used Boomers, androids created to perform manual or menial labor, to rebuild the crippled city. It is now the year 2040 and the reconstruction of Tokyo is almost complete. Linna Yamazaki has just moved to the city searching for something. There are rumors of the Boomers going mad and creating chaos, and a team of ladies wearing state-of-the-art power suits that stop them. After running into Priss, the lead singer in the techno-grunge band "Sekiria", Linna discovers that the Knight Sabers are real and sets her mind to becoming one herself. Due to her great athletic abilities, the Knight Sabers accept her and she joins them in helping to stop the growing Mad Boomer threat.
The Knight Sabers team consists of Linna Yamazaki, the moral fiber of the group; Priss Asagiri, the no-nonsense tough girl; Nene Romanova, the young computer whiz; and Sylia Stingray, leader and founder of the Knight Sabers. One of the most welcome improvements over the OVA, each character's personality has received a facelift. From (my favorite character) Nene's naivety and eating habits to Priss' "I'm too tough to care but I really do" attitude, all the characters are believable and it's not too hard to relate to their struggles. Each character in turn deals with their issues throughout the series, and it's great to see them grow. There are quite a few supporting characters, and they are given the same treatment as the main characters. Everyone interacts well with each other and has a distinct personality and relevance to the series.
The main story has the Knight Sabers going up against the growing frequency of Boomers gone rogue, and the Genom Corporation who manufactures them. The head of Genom is Quincy Rosenkroitz, a mere shell of a man, kept alive only by complex machinery. He lords over his corporation from his geo-synchronous space station and dreams of a time when he will rule the world. His second in command is Brian Mason, a corporate shark with his own agenda. You see the conflict between these two early on in the series, and it develops in a way that isn't unexpected, but works well for the series.
There are a few twists and turns during the course of the story. The plot twists are easy to predict but they're
still entertaining and the overall story makes for a great series. Most people categorize Bubblegum Crisis as a
cyberpunk anime, but cyberpunk to me is more like Ghost in the Shell: a futuristic drama with plenty of long dialogue
full of techno babble, political and ethical debates, and plausible futuristic technological advancements. I see
Bubblegum Crisis as a sci-fi series. There are great action sequences with the Knight Sabers squaring off against
dangerous mutated Boomers, mixed in with the character and plot development. Science fiction series have a tendency to
rely more on flashy futuristic battles rather than the story, and I'm happy to see this one keeps the balance
between action and drama and (most importantly) both are equally interesting to watch.
Rating:
Art
Bubblegum Crisis first came out in 1998, and they utilized state of the art (back then) computer assisted animation. The characters are well defined, and the action scenes are fluid and crisp. There are a few shortcuts with wide shots being still frames, or using moving lights to replace fast-moving cars on the freeway, but these are minimally invasive to the immersion of the series. When you look at other series that came out during this time, Bubblegum Crisis is on-par or better in the animation department. Of course if you compare it with the digitally assisted animation of today, it's not as good. The design and setting of the rebuilt Tokyo fits the futuristic view of a metropolis. Tall buildings, "radical" structural designs, sterile interior environments, its all there. Everything seems to be in place in this series. It all has this dark feel to it, like there's a secret this new oasis of the future is hiding, and for good reason although I'm not going to tell you here.
The combat suits' design hasn't changed much from the OVA, and with good reason. They looked great already. You can notice a few miniscule changes but any change only enhances the look of the suits. The character's homes reflect their personalities perfectly, and the Knight Saber's HQ fits the vision of a secret vigilante's base of operations. There is a bit of similarity in the design of the Boomers, especially later on when there is more than one on-screen at a time, but it's not that bad considering they are all manufactured by the same company. Animation quality dips slightly at times but as I've said before, it never hurts the series.
The opening and ending animation sequences are polar opposites in terms of quality. The opening sequence follows a
generic anime opening formula; but it does this formula quite well, and I really enjoy it. From the characters posing
with a "day in the life" scene playing out behind, to the (always cool) "fade from day clothes to
skintight suit" shot, the opening has all you'd expect from a futuristic super-suit-wearing heroine anime. I
almost always watch the opening when I watch this anime, unlike the ending. The ending is as boring as you can get. It
reminds me of a creepy 80's music video. I don't know how to put it any other way. The only reason I've
watched it as much as I have (and I can count the number on one hand) is because it looks like Nene dancing toward the
end. Regardless, the ending doesn't have anything to do with the series, and its plain creepy at times. It's
what I call a "skipper." Trust me; you won't miss anything if you never watch it.
Rating:
Sound
A barely standard job for a sci-fi series, the sound effects fit the cause and nothing more. I think they could've done a much better job in this category. The sound is all very generic. From the standard "futuristic hum" of the motorcycle Priss always drives, to the "clank" of the suits and Boomers everything seems to be taken from a generic-sci-fi sound bank. I'm always interested in hearing distinct sounds for fictional creatures and machines, and with the cool look of the Powered Suits the Knight Sabers wear, I was expecting much more. Luckily it doesn't make it unwatchable, but this is the most disappointing/distracting aspect of the series.
The music is on-par with what I would expect from this type of anime. A lot of guitar and "techno-sounds", the
music just adds to the atmosphere of the series and it's always appropriate to the action at the time. The
opening song is a great choice for this series, and it makes the opening sequence even better. The ending song is at the
same level as the opening; however it is the only thing good about the ending, so if you're like me, you won't
be hearing much of it.
The Japanese voice actresses/actors do a great job portraying the character's personalities, and they all fit the
part nicely. The American VAs do a reasonably good job considering the year it was dubbed. The translation is different
at times (worded differently), nothing changes the story, but I prefer it when the translation sticks as close as
possible to what the Japanese were saying. Hilary Haag did quite a good job (one of her first major roles) voicing Nene,
as always. I love her voice and I think she does a great job on everything she's done, so maybe I'm a little
biased. Overall though, I prefer the Japanese audio track.
Rating:
Presentation
Considering the story, character development, and action sequences of this series, I think everything comes together quite well. It's an interesting sci-fi vision that's very cohesive, even more-so than the OVA. The music is implemented well and follows the atmosphere on-screen. Dissapointing sound effects take away from the series, making it almost cheesy at times. It could've been so much better. If you can look past that, then you will find a great science fiction story that is entertaining all the way through. The ending wraps up the main story of the series, but still leaves some strings untied. If you can't stand not having everything tied up nicely at the end, then that might frustrate you, but it didn't bother me one bit.
This series has a 15 or older age rating, and I agree. The Boomer battles can get a bit intense with (what to call it?) robo-violence? They cut off appendages and always crush the creatures "heart" to kill them; the Boomers mutate and deform, and fuse together which can be considered graphic. Also, in the English version more than the Japanese, the characters can really scream during battles and coupled with everything else could make it pretty intense to young viewers. There are also quick scenes of partial nudity, with the ladies changing and getting into their suits. Nothing too violent or too naked but you'll probably want to watch it without young ones around.
A great sci-fi series with an interesting story makes this an "essential anime" I had to add to my collection,
and I recommend it to any fan of sci-fi anime.
Rating:
Final Verdict
7.1667 (above average)
Reviewed by NovaProspekt, Mar 16, 2006
Comments
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UzY3L Mar 16, 2006
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shoujoboy Mar 16, 2006
Quote by UzY3LVery nicely done review.IF only the series were as fun as reading this.
I defintely echo that thought. I found myself sorely dissapointed with BGC 2040 when I watched it a few years back. But isn't that the great thing about anime, one persons trash is another persons treasure. Well done and thorough review.
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juansensei Mar 17, 2006
What I do believe is that, like the ADV films says, it is an essential anime series to watch.
Instead of many based in monsters or battles, or even cars or transformers robot, this series is based must on the work of the Sabers. And it has a lot of argument in it.
Definitly is not the best series to see... but is an essential anime to watch.
I do believe that most of the review is hard against the series... maybe the numbers may be a little higher... Story is like 8.5 or even a little higher.
Art definitly must be higher.
And what about the sound? The opening is well done and a nice music. Not the ending which I only saw once and hardly. I saw the series translated into spanish and that may help the series a little since the mexican translators are quite good on this. (Better than americans or french which definitly I do not like their work).
About the rating.... a 11 years old now has seen more violence that the boomer fight. I do not believe must be 15+... instead a 12+ could be good enough.
About the last chapter.... I felt sleeping.... sorry. I cannot stand it. Really mealous.
Well.... definitly.... I do agree with the review BUT not with the scores you have given. Anyway.... thats what life is.... different points of view... Don't you agree?.
Anyway.... your review is the first on this series in MT and that's what count.
Nice work and hope doesn't bother you.
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SentinelleBlondeDeCendre Mar 27, 2006
nice... i agree with youre reviews...
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rukasu04 Mute Member Feb 08, 2010
Nice review
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