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Shelf Life - The Sound and the Fuuri


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relyat08



Joined: 20 Mar 2013
Posts: 4125
Location: Northern Virginia
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 11:56 am Reply with quote
Question:

Can I watch the Patlabor movie without seeing the OVAs? Or is that not recommended?
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Merxamers



Joined: 09 Dec 2013
Posts: 720
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 12:17 pm Reply with quote
relyat08 wrote:
Question:

Can I watch the Patlabor movie without seeing the OVAs? Or is that not recommended?


i'd like to know as well; i hear the name 'Patlabor' thrown around a lot, just wondering what the best starting point is.

Looks like we won't have as compelling a debate in this week's forums as we did about PMMM3 last week Anime hyper I enjoyed this week's column, like i usually do. Too bad we just got mediocre 'Rental Shelves' to look at this week; those can't be as fun to review, i imagine.
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Alan45
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Joined: 25 Aug 2010
Posts: 9798
Location: Virginia
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 1:01 pm Reply with quote
If you have a choice and want to start from the beginning. Start with the first OVA series followed by the first movie. The OVA series will give you a much better understanding of the setup and the characters. That said, the movie is standalone as to plot and provides enough information to understand what is going on. OVA first is better but is not a bar if it is not available.

The TV series reboots the show from the beginning. The second OVA series (The New Files) is a continuation of the TV series.

The second movie continues from the first movie. The third movie is only marginally related to the franchise but does take place in the same world.
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Keichitsu0305





PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 1:03 pm Reply with quote
Yeah, the Patlabor series (from what I've seen) are mainly episodic. The OVAs are separated from the TV series which is separated from the Oshii films which is separated from the live-action but all have the same main characters, Patlabor Police Units, and all contain humorous moments. Except for the 3rd film which I haven't seen.

Wikipeda lists the timeline as such:
Film: 1988 7 part OVA (Studio Deen)-> 1st film ->3rd -> 2nd film (Production I.G)
TV series: 1989 47 ep -> 1990 16 ep New Files series (Sunrise)

Blegh, if I'm going to have a super bland release of Free! I might as well get it as dirt cheap as possible. I rather pay top dollar for Discoteks other series since they are older. Praying that Funimation gets the rights to the shorts and OVA.

The Unlimited Hyobu Kyosuke was fun to watch but for the life of me, I can't remember how it ended. There was his backstory during WW2, spoiler[the mole] with the power in his cybereye, the yacht, and other random scenes but the ending must not have landed a lasting impact on me.
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 1:40 pm Reply with quote
You can totally watch the movie without seeing the OVA or the TV series, the timeline is weird and complicate but all of the different media are sorta there own timeline but with the same character. So you might miss a bit of nuance with the character, but its still very enjoyable and most character aren't that complex anyway. I do rather like the 2nd movie better than the first one, but the first one is better introduction point.

My question is, if I already have the DVD, any reason to pick up the Blu-ray, is there a noticeable imporvment?
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jr240483



Joined: 24 Dec 2005
Posts: 4367
Location: New York City,New York,USA
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 3:10 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
Unlimited Psychic Squad reminds me of Jormungand to some extent: both series feature morally ambiguous main characters who travel the world with a loyal crew of mercenaries.


not quite. especially when it comes to the comparisons with hyobu and coco. for one thing coco is just loco while hyobu is "light yagami" loco and that's saying a lot. if there would be any comparisons with anyone it would be light since both have serious headcases going on their minds.
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Zoneflare



Joined: 11 Mar 2015
Posts: 521
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 3:14 pm Reply with quote
oh yay my pictures finally got posted
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Alan45
Village Elder



Joined: 25 Aug 2010
Posts: 9798
Location: Virginia
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 4:52 pm Reply with quote
meiam wrote:
Quote:
My question is, if I already have the DVD, any reason to pick up the Blu-ray, is there a noticeable imporvment?


If you are just asking about the movie, there is some but not a whole lot. The Bandai Visual version was very good (I can't speak to earlier versions). Though it is not a big investment to get the Bluray.

If you mean the OVA's or the TV series, yes there is a big improvement, it is like night and day.
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yuna49



Joined: 27 Aug 2008
Posts: 3804
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 5:55 pm Reply with quote
Might I suggest that you include the Japanese names of the titles you review as well as the English titles? I have no idea what Unlimited Psychic Squad is, for example. I don't care enough to look it up, but it would help to see the Japanese as well.
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Barbobot



Joined: 06 Feb 2007
Posts: 460
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 6:00 pm Reply with quote
Right now both links at the top of the article that are supposed to bring you to the the Sonico review and the Unlimited Psychic Squad review actually link to last week's Shelf Life.
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Alan45
Village Elder



Joined: 25 Aug 2010
Posts: 9798
Location: Virginia
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 6:53 pm Reply with quote
@yuna49
The first time the full English title of the show is given it will show up in green. That is a link that will take you to the Encyclopedia entry on the show. All alternative titles including Japanese are shown there.

In this case it shows up in the second sentence after the beginning of "Shelf Life Reviews"
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
Forums Superstar


Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 16935
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 9:04 pm Reply with quote
Alan45 wrote:


If you mean the OVA's or the TV series, yes there is a big improvement, it is like night and day.

I can second this. I just recently upgraded my original OVA collection and TV series collection to BR. The difference is quite noticeable to me. Only need tv series part 4 left and I'm done. Then it's time to upgrade the movies is the quality is worth it.
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Usagi-kun



Joined: 03 Jul 2013
Posts: 877
Location: Nashville, TN
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 10:29 pm Reply with quote
Zoneflare wrote:
oh yay my pictures finally got posted


Megaman looks lonely down there. Very Happy
Nice collection with all those single volumes, though. And the good news; Hayate has been licensed by Sentai, and you can avoid the dreaded volume 8 purchase.
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mewpudding101
Industry Insider


Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Posts: 2203
Location: Tokyo, Japan
PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 10:45 pm Reply with quote
Just a note:

Watch Zettai Karen Children (Psychic Squad)! it has a slow start, but is awesome. It is easily my favorite anime ever (of course, you couldn't tell that by my Kaoru icon...).

Second, while Unlimited was DECENT, it was a huge letdown for all non-fujoshi-who-don't-care-about-the-main-story fans. I mean, I love Hyoubu so much, I would marry him if I could, sure, but the balance of the cast and the balance of drama and hope is what makes Zettai Karen Children. Making this spinoff (and that stupid, stupid unlimited saiyan transformation) so depressing and DARK and GRITTY is like turning Banjo Kazooie into Call of Duty. -_-;
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Zoneflare



Joined: 11 Mar 2015
Posts: 521
PostPosted: Tue May 05, 2015 5:31 am Reply with quote
Usagi-kun wrote:
Zoneflare wrote:
oh yay my pictures finally got posted


Megaman looks lonely down there. Very Happy
Nice collection with all those single volumes, though. And the good news; Hayate has been licensed by Sentai, and you can avoid the dreaded volume 8 purchase.

thanks. All the shelves in my closet were custom ones that I put in personally and are 7ft long. I couldnt find a book shelf that would work so I had to improvise. Im planning of getting the hayate collection and donating the singles to charity.
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