Video Backlog: Week 4, 2011

"Dairugger XV"
Publisher: Anime Works (Media Blasters, USA)
Format: Region 1 DVD, NTSC, Japanese Dialogue with optional English Subtitles
Length: 52 Episodes x 24 minutes
Production Date: 1982 - 1983
Currently in Print (as of writing): Yes

This show is the second half of “Voltron” and is the only reason it has received an English language release. Right off the bat, I’m going to get stuck into Media Blasters. This disc was nearly three months late. Seriously the market is softer than hell at the moment and one would assume that keeping existing fans buying discs would be a priority. So what the fuck is up with all these constant delays? It really gives me little hope for the US industry if practically no studio can release anything on time. I think this’ll be the last Media Blasters disc I’ll ever buy. There’s nothing else in their upcoming catalogue which interests me (thankfully), and the delay really shat me.

Now the reason why I bumped this show up to the top of backlog was that I really enjoyed “Go Lion” (the first half of “Voltron”) and thought this show would be crazy bat shit insane as well. Unfortunately it’s not. While the promotional material and cover pictures attempt to sell the show as an ultra-violent sleaze fest (like “Go Lion”), this show is much more realistic and level headed. Basically the Rugger Guard goes from system to system surveying planets using their impractical Rugger machines which form the robot Dairugger. This is where the main problem of the show lies. Whereas “Go Lion” only had five pilots, here you have 15. Even with 52 episodes, you hardly get to know any of the pilots. Sure, a few have whole episodes dedicated to a single pilot, but that’s only a handful of the pilots. There’s also the question as to why you would need such an impractical system of surveying planets with such machines which for some reason can combine and transform into a robot. Yes I know it’s just to sell toys, but placed around what is a fairly serious drama story, it makes very little sense. The character designs are pretty stock standard and look like they came out of the late 1970’s.

The Galveston Empire, which the Rugger Guard encounters, are one of the best elements to the show. In particular I liked the fact the military commanders were fighting each other over how to deal with the Earth forces and how the political struggles within the military. In a way it’s kind of similar to Earth and Gamilus in “Yamato” to a degree, except there is a group who does not want to fight with Earth, but negotiate instead. Unfortunately a lot of this is just reduced to endless almost identical looking battles in which Dairugger wins every time. Comparing this show to others which aired at the same time like “Macross”, “Votoms” and “Dunbine”, it’s easy to see why this show has been relegated to the dustbin of history. Well, except in the minds of “Voltron” fans that is. Unlike the perverse cruelty and weirdness of “Go Lion”, this show is pretty much devoid of violence. And humour and just about anything else which would make an interesting show. There’s also the fact the quality of the prints are pretty shocking. The grain on the first few episodes is just woeful and the print has a lot of scratches and other blemishes which seems to have been poorly and cheaply “fixed up”. To round off the problems, the animation is a little dire and really shows its age. Still it was a decent show and did almost win me over at a couple of points. Not bad, but terribly mediocre. 6 out of 10.

"Laputa: Castle in the Sky"
Publisher: Buena Vista Japan
Format: Region 2 DVD, NTSC, Japanese Dialogue with optional English Dub and English and Japanese Subtitles
Length: 124 minutes
Production Date: 1986
Currently in Print (as of writing): Yes

With my last order from Amazon.co.jp, I have finally completed buying all of the Ghibli films I didn’t own on DVD. Only took me nearly a decade. Anyway, on to the last three. Now I haven’t seen this film in nearly a decade. Right away I noticed the film had aged massively. Normal for a film in its 25th year, but I think it’s aged a lot more than “Nausicaä”. I must admit I think this film is one of Miyazaki’s weakest. For one his trademark of strong female characters is really missing here. Apart from the old female air pirate Dola, that’s it. It’s mostly a male dominated affair. Sheeta is quite weak and a bit of a damsel in distress. Even in the boys only adventure of “Porco Rosso” you have two really strong female characters. Here they’re pretty much non-existent. Kind of strange for a Miyazaki film. You can’t beat the designs and the story, they’re exciting and top notch. It’s a really beautiful looking film. You just get the constant niggling feeling something is missing. The extras are interesting. You get a clean opening and closing credits as well as all the usual trailers and TV spots and complete story boards. A dub is included and I think it’s the old Streamline Pictures dub from around 1989 or so. This film got a small US theatrical release, but not a video release (until Disney), which was odd from Streamline. Overall it has aged substantially and is probably a makeover of “Future Boy Conan” to a degree, but it’s s till a fun fantasy film, just not as great as Miyazaki’s other films. 8 out of 10.

"Heisei-era Tanuki War Pom Poko"
Publisher: Buena Vista Japan
Format: Region 2 DVD, NTSC, Japanese Dialogue with optional English, French and Japanese Subtitles
Length: 119 minutes
Production Date: 1994
Currently in Print (as of writing): Yes

Easily Isao Takahata’s best film and probably his most commercial. Yeah, I don’t mind “Grave of the Fireflies”, but it’s an extremely hard film to watch and also for me a hard film to like due to the really grim subject matter. I prefer “rus: Prince of the Sun” and “Only Yesterday” to that film. I recall watching “Pom Poko” at the local anime club some 13 or 14 years ago (god, is it that long ago?). Having very little idea as to what the film was about (the anime club always provided little info about what they were playing), I kind of dreaded sitting through the film based upon what I initially saw. The opening scenes make it look like some sort of animated animal documentary, but once the anamorphic antics kick in, it’s great fun. Isao wins us over by portraying the Tanuki as rather whimsical, a bit gullible and fun loving. I think the usage of a narrator works really, really well. It is rather heavy on the environmental message, but the drama and the humour in the lives of these creatures makes you forget all of that. The film is almost like a Disney film with all of its talking animal characters, but grounds itself in modern day (1994) Japan with the expansion of humans into their habitat. It also doesn’t go for a big happy ending. It’s a more realistic ending which I’m sure Hollywood film makers wouldn’t even think of creating. As I’ve said before, the Japanese rarely talk down to their audience, especially in children’s animation. I wish the English adaptation team would have the guts to respect the audience’s intelligence and not keep calling the animals raccoons, because they aren’t. At the very least call them by their proper English name of raccoon dogs. They aren’t racoons. It’s a completely different animal. And by the way, look out for the Porco Rosso and Totoro cameos. In closing, a fun Ghibli film by Takahata. 8.5 out of 10.

"Whisper of the Heart"
Publisher: Buena Vista Japan
Format: Region 2 DVD, NTSC, Japanese Dialogue with optional English and Japanese Subtitles
Length: 111 minutes
Production Date: 1995
Currently in Print (as of writing): Yes

I think to a large degree Ghibli hit their creative peak in the 1990’s. They released more films than they had before or since in any decade, some of their most varied work and it was a time period where they had the most directors. Watching this film, it is really a crying shame director Yoshifumi Kondo died soon after its release. Like “Ocean Waves (I Can Hear the Sea)” and “Only Yesterday”, it’s a coming of age tale sent in a modern age with little fantasy and whole dose of reality. While the story is fantastic and a lot of fun, the visual here are pretty top notch. The attention to detail is quite stunning. I picked up a lot more from watching the DVD than I did from the old VHS fansub and anime club screenings from about 14 years ago. It’s just so beautiful and rich. While the story could be horribly sweet and schmaltzy, the director has really pulled back (though what probably helped a lot was Miyazaki’s script). It feels really natural and free flowing. While I doubt kids in year six or seven would be thinking about becoming artisans, at least it’s presented as a quite believable story. While watching the movie this time and after viewing some of the extras on other Ghibli DVDs I had recently bought, I cynically thought that maybe Ghibli now represents an alternative to latte sippers for their kid’s viewing. In other words instead of Disney or Pixar films, they take them to Ghibli films. I know, I’m a bit nasty… Also while watching this film, I got the distinct feeling that it was a bit of a middle class fantasy of sorts. Yeah, I’m being overly nasty again. I also questioned what kind of girl in mid 1990’s Japan would find wearing a straw hat like that to be acceptable. Seems like an adult projecting their own ideas on to child. Despite those rather minor niggling complains, this is one beautiful and satisfying film. Just remember to take extra special care in watching the animation in the closing credits. 8.5 out of 10.

Remaining Backlog: 20 months (it's much easier this way than listing the number of discs).