Anime Thoughts: Leiji Matsumoto's Ozma

Summary

In a post-apocalyptic future where the Earth has become a desert, humanity is divided into the genetically-engineered Ideal Children of Theseus, who reproduce through cloning, and the Natura, who do things the old-fashioned way.

While out in the wastes one day, a young Natura named Sam spots a girl being pursued by sand-ships from Theseus. Like most young male protagonists in this type of story, he wastes no time with trifles like not knowing what the situation is and dives in to rescue the girl, whose name is Maya. During the pursuit everyone suddenly spots the legendary sand whale Ozma, whom Sam’s older brother Dick vowed to capture, only to disappear when he set out to hunt it.

Teaming up with his childhood friend Mimay and a group of sand pirates, Sam agrees to help Maya, who is also seeking Ozma. Pursued by the mysterious Captain Gido of Theseus, they head out into the desert aboard their ship, the Bardanos, to find the great whale, which holds the key to the truth about Maya and, perhaps, a brighter future for Earth.

Thoughts

Despite having a renowned anime and manga creator like Leiji Matsumoto attached to it, Ozma is a thoroughly unremarkable work. It’s a basic post-apocalyptic story about human folly and the need to protect the environment that deals with its themes in a cursory manner, opting to focus more on the pursuit of the Bardanos by Theseus. This is actually kind of interesting, because the civilizations in this setting has developed technology that allows ships to travel both over and under the sand as if it were an ocean, leading to a number of submarine vs. submarine and submarine vs. cruiser style confrontations, only in the desert, and with more obstacles (in the form of outcrops and rock columns) to contend with. But, while interesting, it’s still only a novelty that comes at the expense of things that could have made the show stand out. As a result the story is a basic ‘race to beat the bad guys to the MacGuffin’. There are a few twists, but you’ll either see them coming a mile away, or they’re so generic you probably won’t care. The setting doesn’t stand out at all. possessing nothing to distinguish it from every other post-apocalyptic setting out there. Even its signature element, Ozma, isn’t utilized very well, with no hints or element of mystery built up around it to hook the viewer.

Of course, a generic setting and story can be excused by interesting characters. This doesn’t have any. Sam’s more or less a blank slate who does what the plot requires, Mimay’s the spunky childhood friend who exists to give him the proverbial kick-in-the-ass when he’s down and glare jealously whenever he gets too friendly with Maya, who’s the stock-standard ‘Girl With a Mysterious Past’. The crew of the Bardanos get basically zero characterization, which could be forgiven in a six-episode series where space for more important things like the plot and the main characters is at a premium, but even Captain Bainas – Dick’s former girlfriend and presumably something of an adoptive big sister to Sam and Mimay (which is mostly speculation on my part because the pasts of these characters aren’t explored at all) – isn’t given much. The villains are just as bad, and while they are shown to be doing a particular thing that is quite despicable, they otherwise suffer from a lack of menace or anything that makes them a credible threat beyond having superior numbers.

Visually, it’s the same story. Hope you like indistinguishable desert landscapes, because you’ll get a lot of them here. And again, that would be fine if there’s something else interesting to look at, but the sand ships have generic designs that could easily pass for naval or space ships in a different setting (which, to be fair, is probably the point), and the villains have an equally bland military appearance, complete with mooks wearing face-concealing visors. The sand pirates get a little more flavor in their designs and look like they might actually be an interesting bunch to base a show around, but that’s really it. If you’re even passingly familiar with Matsumoto’s other work (which is all I am), many of the designs of the main characters will also be recognizable.

If you’re a devoted fan of Matsumoto’s work or if you have two-and-a-half hours to kill and nothing better to do it’s probably worth a watch; otherwise don’t bother. It isn’t bad, just forgettable.

Final Score: 5/10

Anime Thoughts: Tsuritama, Episodes 1-3

Summary

Long ago, a five-headed dragon lived in the sea and terrorized the coast around Enoshima Island, until a beautiful woman came down from the sky and saved the day.

In the present, Yuki Sanada lives with his grandmother Keito and moves around a lot because of her work, so he’s never had the chance to make friends in school. It doesn’t help that he tends to have panic attacks when put on the spot, giving him a snarling, red-faced expression that makes people assume he’s angry.

After they move to Enoshima, Yuki has a panic attack while introducing himself that earns him the nickname ‘demon face’ from his classmates. Right on his heels is a second transfer student named Haru, who cheerfully declares that he’s an alien and decides Yuki’s his new BFF. He has a water gun he can use to control people. And decides he’s going to live at Yuki’s house. Keito’s completely OK with this.

After school Haru drags Yuki to a fishing shop where their classmate Natsuki, a national-level fishing champion, works. Haru begs him to teach them to fish and he finally relents (with a little help from Haru’s water gun). Yuki is uninterested and clashes with Natsuki, but then he meets Haru’s sister, who insists the world will be destroyed if he doesn’t catch a particular fish for them. When she whips out her own water gun he relents and makes amends with Natsuki, who agrees to keep teaching them. After Keito is sent to the hospital Yuki seems to give up again, but his anxiety ends up spurring him to renewed efforts.

They’re being spied on by an Indian boy named Akira Agarkar Yamada, who transfers into their class. He’s actually 25, has a pet duck named Tapioca, and works for a Men in Black-type organization. It seems to have a duck motif.

Thoughts

I gotta admit, this seemed kinda ‘meh’ at first. I mean, it’s an anime about…fishing? Isn’t that right up there with golf and baseball in the list of sports that tend to get characterized as boring? Yuki even lampshades this quite succinctly when he thinks to himself “fishing’s for old guys; it seems so boring.” The characters didn’t start out that interesting either, and were mostly defined by a particular quirk. Yuki gets panic attacks when under stress, Haru’s obnoxiously cheerful and can control people with water, Natsuki’s uptight, and Akira, well…I get the ‘secret organization that monitors aliens’ part, but what’s with the duck?

After three episodes, however, it’s starting to grow on me. For one, the fishing stuff is actually pretty interesting. I know squat about fishing, so the exposition on things like tying a strong lure knot and doing a proper cast is proving to be very informative. At least, assuming it’s accurate; I assume the production team did their homework beforehand, but I wouldn’t know.

The characters are also a bit more understandable now that they’ve had a chance to become a bit better defined. It’s hard not to feel for Yuki after his grandmother his sent to the hospital – an irregular but ongoing occurrence. As far as we’ve seen she’s the only family he has, so he’d be in a pretty major bind if he lost her, and he’s clearly feeling that. It makes his embracing of fishing in episode 3 as a means of coping and connecting with others sympathetic and believable. His situation also gives something in common with Natsuki, who’s having family troubles of his own, in his case because his mom died two years ago and he disapproves of his dad dating again so soon (at least that seems to be the case). Neither seems to be good at dealing with others either (probably in some part due to their family issues) and both were dragged into fishing together unwillingly, so they clash because of it rather than because they actually dislike each other. Fortunately, Haru’s there to be the glue that binds everyone together. Sure, he’s manipulating them into doing what he wants, but it’s played for laughs and works because he’s never used it to make them do anything worse than a goofy dance, and there’s no worry about it being abused because he clearly doesn’t have a malicious bone in his body. His ditzy affability also has the effect of making him so charismatic and earnest that you can’t help but like him. Akira’s still mostly about his quirks, but they’re amusing enough to make him an enjoyable kind of weird.

Basically, it’s a show about a group of guys with disparate personalities who become closer through a common interest. Hardly an original premise, but it does throw in the (equally unoriginal) twist that they get to save the world too! It doesn’t take much guesswork to surmise that ‘five-headed dragon’ will turn out to be a reasonable description of the fish Haru and his sister want Yuki to catch, nor that they’re connected to the one who defeated the dragon in the past. Regardless, everything’s done in a light-hearted tone that fits the simple premise, and the use of bright colors for the animation complements it well. I’ll be keeping an eye on this one.

Anime Thoughts - Nyarko-san: Another Crawling Chaos, Episodes 1-3

Summary

Ordinary teenager Mahiro Yasaka is saved from a monster one night by a mysterious girl who declares that she is none other than Nyarlathotep, the Crawling Chaos. Unlike the terrifying, pharaonic sorcerer of Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos, Nyarko, as she calls herself, is a cute girl who promptly moves into Mahiro’s house. Good thing his parents are away on their honeymoon.

She explains that the deities of the Cthulhu Mythos are actually species, many of whom are members of an interstellar organization that protects Earth from aliens involved in human trafficking and smuggling (Earth entertainment is all the rage across the cosmos, but governed by strict import laws). Nyarko has been assigned to protect Mahiro because he seems to be a target. Rather, she begged for the assignment because she’s madly, and openly, in love with him.

After Nyarko transfers into Mahiro’s class the pair travel to R’lyeh and thwart an illegal auction (Mahiro was going to be bid on to be the protagonist of a yaoi film). While there they encounter a Cthugan girl named Kuuko, who is either Nyarko’s long-time rival or the bearer of unrequited love for the latter, depending on which of them you ask. Kuuko promptly joins Nyarko’s organization and transfers into Mahiro’s class as well.

Together, they are assigned to investigate the recent murder of some of the gods of the Dreamlands. Unbeknownst to them the culprit is Nyarko’s jealous older brother, who is promptly defeated when Nyarko accidentally stubs his toe. Nyarko and Kuuko are assigned to stay on Earth and help the surviving Dreamlands gods, which involves Kuuko also moving into Mahiro’s house with a similar non-asking of permission. And now his mom’s called and says she’ll be home in less than a minute…

Thoughts

After watching this I imagined Nyarko pulling the exact same thing with Lovecraft eighty-some years ago, which caused him to go insane and write the Cthulhu Mythos stories. Which apparently is the case, more or less. Makes sense to me.

Lovecraftian trappings aside though, this series is a typical ‘normal boy meets weird girl’ romantic comedy. I suspect there will be a plot eventually, but the first three episodes revolved primarily around Nyarko being a spaz and openly failing to respect Mahiro’s personal space, when she’s not bloodily slaughtering monsters just out of view to protect him, and Mahiro stabbing her in the head with a fork whenever she gets out of line. To his credit, Mahiro doesn’t take any of this lying down (see the aforementioned use of a fork), but other than that theres’ nothing interesting about him, and while Nyarko’s over-the-top characterization no doubt has its appeal, I didn’t find it or any of the supporting cast so far particularly compelling either. There’s also the usual bits of fanservice – Nyarko trying to take a bath with Mahiro, Kuuko fighting naked (with red patches providing the strategic censoring), etc. – which is fine if you’re into that sort of thing but not going to hook you otherwise.

On the technical side, the animation was pretty good and shifted appropriately between bright and colorful during the comedic/slapstick parts and a more subdued palette with shadows and blood-red skies during monster attacks and Lovecraftian locations like R’lyeh and the Dreamlands.

I could go on about how this entire premise makes no sense when Lovecraft’s stories are about how humanity is an insignificant speck in the cosmos, which is populated by beings of unfathomable horror that can drive you mad just by looking at them. Nyarko even makes a nod to this when she says taking the kind of form Mahiro expects would cause him to lose Sanity (a reference to the Call of Cthulhu RPG). But that’s taking it way more seriously than it’s meant to be. The disconnect inherent in a Lovecraftian being having a blatant schoolgirl crush on a boy is clearly the entire point. Lovecraft is probably turning over in his grave, and if you prefer your Cthulhu Mythos dark and ‘humanity is an insignificant speck in the cosmos’, you probably won’t enjoy this, nor will you if you’re looking for an anime that breaks new ground. If you’re looking for a standard slapstick romantic comedy with an over-the-top protagonist, and a humorous take on the grim Cthulhu Mythos sounds like fun, you might wanna check this out. Me, it's not something I'll go out of my way to follow.

Anime Thoughts: Bodacious Space Pirates Episode 16 - The Hakuoh Pirates' First Job

Summary

Once the minor oversight of assigning rooms is resolved, everyone settles down for the night. On the bridge, Lynn is speaking with someone over the phone/comm-link/whatever. She’s obviously bothered about something. Grunhilde overhears some of it while coming to relieve her but doesn’t let on that she did.

The next morning Marika explains the basics of their job, a typical robbery of a luxury liner. The girls are a little intimidated by what’s involved at first given their inexperience, but they don’t back down. Sure enough, their docking and boarding are a bit rough, and boarding the ship in cosplay outfits – courtesy of a three-day no-sleep marathon by Mami – earns some initial surprise from the passengers. But, they quickly end up going with it and Marika is given private, official thanks by one of the ship’s officers.

During the victory celebrations – wherein Gruier’s suggestion that they try this on the Barbalusa sometime is firmly shot down by the resident grouch – Lynn slips out, which Marika notices. Later, the princesses come to her room to discuss their concerns with her and Chiaki. When Grunhilde tells them what she overheard Chiaki says she thinks Lynn might be a spy, hired by someone because of her hacking skills to do something to the Bentenmaru (this is the real reason Chiaki joined the club….apparently). Marika doesn’t think so and takes them to ask Lynn directly. She says she has a job for them – she wants them to kidnap Jenny…

Thoughts

Well that ended in an appropriately silly fashion. Except those two guys trying to hit on one of the middle schoolers – seriously, what the hell? Really, though, if these passengers are already going along with the whole ‘legalized theft of their valuables’ thing, having a bunch of teenage girls in cosplay outfits do it isn’t any sillier than what normally happens. Sure, the Bentenmaru is supposedly more traditional and business-like about it, but they’re still conducting their boardings dressed in stereotypical pirate garb for no other discernible reason than ‘it looks cool.’ To be fair, it does; Marika’s captains’ outfit is probably enough to sell the series on its own.

And what’s this about Chiaki originally joining the yacht club because she thought Lynn might be a spy? There’s been no indication that Lynn’s hacking got her anything beyond getting put on probation in middle school, or that Chiaki was actually around for a reason other than to keep an eye on Marika. I’m sure neither would exactly be advertising it if something more was going on, but that came a bit out of left field with no build-up whatsoever. It’s not the case so far as we know, and probably not implausible in-and-of itself; we haven’t seen much of it, but there’s certainly genuinely seedy types out there in space. Ah well, even if this is the first hint of something, it’s fine so long as Lynn doesn’t turn out to be a bad guy – I like her.

Anime Thoughts: Bodacious Space Pirates Episode 15 - Smuggling, Leaving Port, and a Big Jump

Summary

Marika didn’t tell Gruier and Grunhilde about the club’s plans because she’s reluctant to have them along on anything dangerous given their royal status, but they snuck on board the Odette II anyway. Grunhilde reminds her that neither of them is particularly interested in the latter and they’re useful to have around. They set the ship on autopilot and take the launch to the Bentenmaru.

At the hospital, Misa snoops around and finds out that the crew’s stay is being extended two weeks, which makes them worry about their licence. Then a monitoring camera on the ship picks up something and they discover that the Yacht Club isn’t going on that practice cruise Marika told them about. Misa calls Marika to mess with her a little but doesn’t trick her into admitting anything since she must have her reasons for not saying anything. Then they realize a bunch of amateurs are going to try and fly their tricked-out, heavily modified ship...

Show calls the Bentenmaru with the user manual he conveniently ‘found’ – secretly whipped up in a panic by the bridge crew – and they’re able to get the engines working. But now the Stellar Military is on the way to investigate their accidental firing of the ship’s cannons, and there’s nothing in the manual on how to do an FLT jump. Fortunately, they’re able to figure it out and get away on their own.

Chiaki, Gruier, and Grunhilde spot and destroy the camera on the bridge, agreeing not to tell Marika to avoid hurting her pride. Since Marika and the Club figured out how to do an FTL jump on their own, the bridge crew decides they’ll be fine.

Thoughts

Yeah, another set-up episode and I really don’t have much to say. It did have a few amusing moments (like Chiaki’s expression when the princesses brought out the sweets – if the others don’t bribe her with sweets, or something like a coupon for a free chocolate parfait, before the series is over, I’ll be very surprised), and I liked the expression on Grunhilde’s face when she and Gruier came up to the bridge – she was saying one thing, but her expression said ‘you’re not getting rid of us that easily.’ She’s sneakier than she looks, so in other words she’ll fit right in.

…Yeah, I think I’ll just move on.