Shelf Life

The Santa Claus

After spending an hour of my life sulking at my desk, I decided to clear my mind with some chicks who weren't desperate for a man's approval. I chose Burst Angel: Infinity, an OVA prequel to the Burst Angel TV series. Taking place before the start of the series, the OVA is a standalone episode that sends the girls chasing after a serial killer. It's a fun time, but it doesn't really add anything to the series or the characters' lives. And, since it only focuses on Jo and Meg, it's not really exciting as the original series, whose extra characters and tech toys makes the show a bit flashier and a bit more exciting. On a side note, I'm also fairly sure that a Japanese OVA is the only place a character could get away with calling a black guy, “the big hefty one with the gorilla mouth.”

At only 25 minutes, the episode is a bit of a let-down, but the disc does come with plenty of great extras. One of these is a short called “The Lightness and Darkness of Jo,” a special that was played at Anime Expo 2005. This shows how Jo first came to the group, and how she first started interacting with Meg, and quite frankly, this is much better than the feature OVA itself. It's also laden with fanservice. Although the actual history of Jo is told through a flashback, the setup features the girls at a water park, so there are breasts galore, a bounty of bulging flesh, and plenty of exposed butt-crack. The DVD also includes a “battle record” of all 24 episodes, which gives a quick and dirty run-down of all the fight scenes. Considering all the action in the show, this is kind of a fun special, although it isn't a terribly important addition.

Overall, the disc is a nice addition to anyone's Burst Angel collection. It isn't imperative to own, but it's well done, and the extra Jo special itself is worth the price of the disc. The OVA doesn't quite live up to the excitement of the series, but if you already own the show, you really have no reason not to really complete your collection.[TOP]

Wanting to keep that adrenaline running, I popped in Bandai Visual's release of Super Robot Wars OG: Divine Wars volume one.

First, let's get the obvious out of the way. It's already become tired and hackneyed to complain about the price of Bandai Visual releases, but since this is a standard definition release, it's worth noting that it's only the first two episodes at a staggering $39.99 MSRP. This is kind of unfortunate, because it's actually a really fun show, but with a price point like that, it's not exactly going to jump off shelves.

Super Robot Wars was originally a series of strategy-based role playing video games. It mixed various mecha from different anime titles, like Getter Robo, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Gundam. It's largely a giant in-joke, since it relies heavily on series references, but with the OG: Devine Wars anime series, no prior knowledge of any robot show is necessary. OG refers to Original Generation (which was released in the US for the GBA), which uses original robots.

The series leaps off to a fantastic start just by having some terrific animation. The fight scenes look sharp, and the CG blends seamlessly into every frame. Some of the character designs could possibly be described as either “ugly” or “really ugly,” but it's a fair trade-off for some seriously slick looking mech. The opening theme is fantastic, too, and has that old school Fight, Fight! spirit that made all the classic mecha shows so fun.

To let the story start as fast as possible, the main character is conveniently a robot enthusiast, whose biggest joy in life is playing a mecha simulator video game called Burning PT. After his disappointing loss at the national tournament, the arena is suddenly attacked by giant robotic insects. Because the government has been tracking his statistics and his possibly piloting abilities (of course), they don't blink an eye when he chances upon a top-secret military robot and climbs into the cockpit. Being the aspiring pilot he is, he takes out a few bad guys, and is immediately drafted into the military, where he's recruited to be a pilot. Within the next episode, viewers learn that some evil shadowy organization has captured some of the other video game superstars for their own uses.

While the story is fairly standard mecha fare, it's really well done. The production values are high, and it's truly a very fun show to watch. Divine Wars doesn't appear to have the same political slant or intricate backstory that some of the older Gundam series have had, but it's only been two episodes. Already, it's off to a great start. Yes, there's the possibility that it'll end up being nothing more than some washed-up good guy vs. bad guy robot, but right now, it's a hell of a good time.

For anyone who wants a brainlessly entertaining story about a scrappy young pilot who saves the world, this is a good one to rent for the weekend. I don't know that I'd ever pay two Jeffersons for only two episodes of this thing, but it's definitely worth a rental. It's got action, it's got oomph, and it requires minimal synapse firing to understand. In short, it's a great way to take your mind off some of the more serious things in life.[TOP]

Want more straight-up badass? Consider Manga/Bandai's release of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG – Individual Eleven. Following up on the heels of the Laughing Man compilation released a month or so back, this disc strings together all episodes that make up the “Individual Eleven” story arc.

Considering it's just a bunch of individual episodes shoved together, it's surprisingly cohesive. Following the activities of the terrorist organization known as Individual Eleven, the OVA does a decent job of burning through some exciting stories in under three hours. Without the ability to really focus on the characters' insights and their internal monologues, viewers don't get the same sense of understanding, and they might miss some of the series' themes of technology vs. man, but it's a good way to introduce newcomers to the series. Like a gateway to the full series, it highlights some of the better action scenes and the more enlightening conversations, but chances are, if you show someone this compilation, they'll be begging you for the full series.

Individual Eleven comes as a two-disc release. The first disc includes the OVA, while the second one includes a horde of extras, including commentary from the Japanese voice actress of Kusanagi and the director. It also includes the Tachikomatic Days that were included in the original TV release.

Although I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who already owns the entire 2nd Gig, it's a good introduction for people who are either too lazy to watch the series, or who want to decide if they're willing to invest their time into the series. It gives just the right amount of teaser without compromising the series too much. This could even be a great way to introduce your friends to anime, so consider renting it.[TOP]