Burn Up W Review

Hi everyone. Well, it's time for part 3 of my ADV Films (R.I.P.) Essential Anime Collection. I'm gonna be a bit quick with this review, considering that most of you (including myself) are getting ready for Thanksgiving. Here, for your reading pleasure, is the review for the sleeper hit Burn Up W. I'm sorry if this isn't up to my usual standards.

Directed & released in 1996 by Hiroshi Negishi, and dubbed in 2001 & 2004 (the 04 was a remastered re-release) by ADV Films (R.I.P.), Burn Up W tells the story of Team Warrior, Neo-Tokyo's elite police force. The girls composed of the team represent are the toughest that the police have. At the beginning of the first episode, a group of terrorists take over a hotel where a group of key political figures in the Japanese government are meeting. At first, the regular police are trying to get in, but are held at bay by the terrorist's threats.

Meanwhile, Rio, who first appeared in the original Burn Up, is stuck at the station doing boring paper work. After waiting to do...something, she is finally called upon to perform her duties as the top member of Team Warrior. There is more to the terrorist attack at the hotel than meets the eyes, but revealing it here would ruin it for you. Suffice it to say, the twist at the beginning of the show carries itself to the end, and it'll leave you on the edge of your seat the entire time.

A note before the positive and the negatives. Burn Up W has a few faint connections to the original Burn Up. The original show isn't required to watch before Burn Up W, save for understanding how the two shows are connected. If fact, you could even ignore Burn Up if you wanted, but that imply that you're a masochist. That last comment doesn't work, does it?

To start things off, Burn Up W's first big positive is the rush of adrenaline & themes you get in each episode. All of them are loaded with guns, explosions, some robots, comedy (especially related to the fan service), and lots of female sex appeal and fan service. You even get to see some blood as the girls get in up close with the bad guys as the pummel the snot out of them. This show is not for kids, nor for the faint of hearted.

Burn Up W's second biggest positive are the girls that compose Team Warrior and their characters. Rio is the pointman of the team, and the one that gets a chunk of the screen time. Rio's also a blonde, hot and gifted in all the right places, and can't really hold onto money that shows up in her hands. Because of her money troubles, she's constantly looking for a wealthy guy to get hitched to and get out of her police job.

The other girls got a bit of screen time as well. Maya is a lot like Rio. She's got funky colored hair (green, to be more specific), and she hot. Maya is the sniper and gun nut of the team, and is a bit of a wacko. She joined the team because she wanted to shoot as often as she could, and if she doesn't get to fire off a gun, she feels something that must be similar to being sexual frustrated. In fact, the bigger the gun, the more she likes it. Lilica is the short, pink-haired cutie of the team. She's the master of computers, and can hack into just about anything. Nanvel rounds out Team Warrior as the tanned tech girl. She and Maya both have the hots for their respective areas, as Nanvel has a thing for mechanical stuff and robots. It's kinda hilarious, actually.

Burn Up W's 3rd positive is it's time length. At 4 episodes, it's a quick show that you can watch in one sitting. Some people might not like a short show, but if you want a quick anime fix, then 4 episodes isn't so bad. Surprisingly, the story fits into the length of time, and covers just about everything that's shown. What little is left over is saved for the sequel, but that for another review.

The 4rth and final plus to Burn Up W is it's story. The first episode sets up the events yet to come, the second episode continues things along while at the same time providing a bit of humor and slapstick, and the third & fourth episodes conclude it all, and provide a good twist at the end. Like I said during the show's time length, things somehow fit into 4 episodes, while leaving a little left over to go into Burn Up Excess.


It's sad to say that despite what Burn Up W has going for it, it has a bit going against it. Firstly, the show can be a bit difficult to find. As usual, I always get my DvDs from Amazon, and they usually have a good selection, whether it's used or new. In this case, my copy was used. New copies, at least as far as the remastered versions are concerned, are a bit expensive. They start at 30 dollars, which really isn't too bad, and end up at a whopping 90 dollars. God only knows why some of the copies are 90 dollars. Used DvDs far much better. Despite not finding many copies, used copies of the remastered edition start at 5 dollars, and used copies of the original 2001 release start at close to 2 dollars. It's rather strange, actually.

Secondly, Burn Up W isn't as good looking as many 90s animes tend to be. Truthfully, saying that the show isn't good looking is a little hurtful. The show itself seems to look a little rough around the edges, despite being remastered. What makes it more strange is that things far away in a scene seem more clear, while things up close (especially characters) look particularly jagged.

Burn Up W gets a 6.5 out of 10. It successfully mixes together a bunch of themes, the girls are fun to watch and fun to look at, the show doesn't drag on and on, and it has a good story, but copies are damaging to one's wallet, and it doesn't look as good as a lot of other 90s anime.

I'd like to make a quick apology. This review, compared to the others I've done so far, is a bit on the low quality scale. At a later time, I'd do a better one. Until then, stay Otaku.

New Cutey Honey Review

Hello there! I've my second Essential Anime Collection anime from ADV Films (R.I.P.) ready to go. Just like the last one, this show is a classic. Below is the review for New Cutey Honey, a series that practically has it all. BTW...Thanksgiving is only 12 days away "cue fatguy squee"!

Edited & released back in 1994 by the twisted mind of Go Nagai (who, in my opinion, should be nominated for sainthood) and released in the U.S. back in 2004, New Cutey Honey takes place 100 years after the original show. A lot has happened since the original show, and the only character to have survived is Danbei Hayami. He's now 150 years old, outfitted with various cybernetic implants, and a bit more pervy. As far as the city itself, things have become a bit darker, forcing some of it's citizens to associate with the darkness (as one character puts it).

Perhaps the three biggest influences on the city's criminal element are Dolmeck, Black Maiden, and Peeping Spider. These individuals control most of the crime and other vile elements within the city, but despite that control, there are a few things standing in the way, namely Mayor Light (the leader of the city), Chokkei Hayami (Danbei's grandson), Chokkei's parents (reformed criminals), and Honey. Together, they fight back against Dolmeck and his minions, but release another evil in the process (more on that later).

For such an old show, New Cutey Honey really does have a lot going for it. For starters is Honey herself. She mixes two things that you don't always find in anime girls: brains & sexiness. She outwits every opponent that she comes across, and looks good (hot or sexy would be better terms to use, but good works) doing it at the same time. Honey is also one of the biggest hopes that she has to offer, as she is constantly hopeful about the future, and has a heart that shines more brightly than the sun.

The rest of the cast have equally interesting personalities. Danbei still acts a lot like his old self from the original show: perverted, loud mouthed, yet oddly caring. Chokkei is a lot like Honey: hopeful, kind, and brave. Chokkei's parents are the dirtiest (especially the father) & twisted tag-team to have graced the world of anime. At times they still embrace their criminals elements, but when it comes to their son, they put crime aside just for him.

As for the villains, they are all evil. Dolmeck practically runs all of the dark elements in the city, and has a sinister vibe about him. Black Maiden is equally sinister, and hides a old secret (more on that later). Peeping Spider is the only member of this trio that can sorta be liked. He's not quite as sinister as Dolmeck, and has an element of perviness to him (if he wasn't so evil, he and Danbei would be friends).

An interesting plus for New Cutey Honey is it's length. The show runs at 8 episodes, which fits right in the medium range of show lengths. It's actually works out well, as just about anyone can watch the full show in one or two sittings. Despite the turn in story and loss of a 9th episode (more on that later), 8 episodes of a sexy girl fighting evil and outsmarting them at the same time, is quite okay.

Another positive aspect of New Cutey Honey is it's animation. Despite being a early 90s show, everything is actually quite fluid. Considering that a good portion of the show is fast paced, the quality of the animation really stands out. The characters (whether major or minor) look really good, and that especially applies to the girls. The environment definitely invokes feelings of despair and darkness, despite looking a tiny bit goofy.

Voice Acting is also a plus for this show. Jessica Calvello, the voice of Honey, was personally handpicked by Go Nagai to voice her. If you're recommended by a legendary anime editor to voice an equally legendary character, chance are you really impressed the guy. The other voice actors do an equally impressive job, with David Nance giving a young, hopeful tone to Chokkei, and Tristan MacAvery provided a pervy yet wise voice to Danbei.


Yet, for all of it's positives, New Cutey Honey has some pretty big negatives. For starters, New Cutey Honey is actually pretty hard to find. With ADV Films (R.I.P.) out of the picture, no new copies have been released. If you're looking to find a new copy, then you're pretty much out of luck. The best bet for you is to head over to Amazon, a pick up a used copy. As I'm typing this, there are currently only 10 used copies on Amazon. Prices of these copies range from a little over 15 dollars, to about 33 dollars. The link below provides the complete list of used copies.


http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B003ZKC2JY/ref=dp_olp_used?ie=UTF8&qid=1321132942&sr=1-6&condition=used

In case you were wondering how much my used copy cost, I can tell you that while I got it as a Christmas gift back in 2009, it was still in the 15 dollar range.

A second negative of New Cutey Honey is the 2nd half of the story. If you haven't watched the show, you may want to look away if you don't want to spoil the show for yourself At the very end of the first half after Dolmeck is defeated, it's discovered that Black Maiden is Honey's ancient foe Panther Zora (the main villain from the first Cutey Honey show). From there, things kinda take a nose dive as far as the story is concerned. Instead of having a single solid story, the second half of the show takes on a monster-a-day theme. What makes all of that interesting is that despite Panther Zora coming into being once again, she actually takes a back seat to what's going on, despite (sorry for using the word again) clearly having some kind of influence as to what's going on.


New Cutey Honey's 3rd negative aspect is the missing 9th episode. From what I've been able to uncover during my research, there was supposed to be a 9th, Christmas themed episode. Whether it concluded the show or not, I'm not sure. However, this 9th episode was never made. Instead, the episode was converted into a drama CD that, to the best of my searchings, can't be found anymore. Ironically, the script for the 9th episode can be seen on the DvD.


This final negative aspect of New Cutey Honey is perhaps the one thing that impacts it the most. New Cutey Honey is the only anime of that specific story that has ever been picked up by a U.S. company. You can't find any other cartoon in the Cutey Honey universe for sale, at least as far as a U.S. release is concerned. Your only choice if you want to watch the older & newer shows is to go on website like youtube or veoh and look it up, and that's if you want to do it legally. 


New Cutey Honey gets a 7 out of 10. The characters have eye-catching personalities, a nice medium length, an equally nice animation quality, and good voice acting, but it's difficult to find, the 2nd half of the story is weak, the 9th episode is missing, and no other Cutey Honey series has been acquired by a U.S. company.

Okay everyone, stay tuned until my final review from the ADV Films (R.I.P) Essential Anime Collection. Until then, stay Otaku!

Ruin Explorers Review

Happy November! With Thanksgiving in just 19 days, I figured I'd treat you to a feast of reviews this month. Since just about everyone who reads my reviews know my love for ADV Films (R.I.P.), I figured I review some shows from the Essential Anime Collection that they released last decade. I've got 3 shows from that collection, and all of them are big hits, especially in old school anime fan's opinion. So, for you, here's the review for Ruin Explorers!

Directed by Takeshi Mori back in 1995, released by ADV Films (R.I.P.) in the late 90s on tape, and re-released in 2004 on DvD, Ruin Explorers tells the tale of Fam and Ihrie, two adventures out on a quest for the Ultimate Power. The Ultimate Power is a fantastic magical energy said to grant the wish of anybody who finds it. Ihrie desires it because of a curse placed on her by her former master (more on that later), and Fam desires it so she can create a place where she & her spirit friends can live in peace. At an inn one day, a greedy merchant by the name of Galuff tells them a tale about a possible location for the Ultimate Power, and happily gives them a map to it's location...for a fee, of course.

Fam and Ihrie set out to the location where the Ultimate Power is supposedly located. While they wander around, they run into numerous traps, including a pair of armored golems. They finally come across what they believe is the Ultimate Power, but before they can obtain it, another pair of explorers comes in, along with Galuff, who was using them this entire time. This group of explorers is composed of the sorceress Rasha, a rather arrogant yet beautiful woman, and Miguel, a swordsman who's not incredibly smart, but incredibly strong. After a quick battle, Fam & Ihrie are temporarily defeated, and the other explorers take what everyone thinks is the Ultimate Power.

Rasha, Miguel, and Galuff travel to the ceremony room, and attempt to summon the Ultimate Power. While they successfully managed the summoning, they don't quite get what they expected. Instead, they called up the queen of the castle they're in, and she tells them that the object they used is part of a 3 piece set that calls up the Ultimate Power. After this, Fam & Ihrie corner them once again, and successfully take back the item. Since they heard the whole thing, they set out on a journey that is much bigger than themselves or anybody (well, just about anybody) else they meet.

As usually, there's a whole list of positive things about the show that I'm obviously going to put down. This time, however, things are going to be put in a different order. Hopefully it won't trip you up too much.

First positive thing about Ruin Explorers is it's characters. Fam & Ihrie are the first two that we meet, and right off the bat, you know exactly what kind of people they are. Ihrie is a no-nonsense tomboy, who'd rather rush into battle than plan things out. Despite her gruff exterior, she's a kind soul that would always do the right thing, and is loyal to anyone who gains her trust. To balance out her rougher side, whenever she casts a spell, she turns into a grey-haired mouse with blue eyes and a squeaky voice. Fam is just about the sweetest, perkiest girl you can come across. She'd rather play with the spirits and enjoy a peaceful life that be violent, but can be persuaded to join in on a fight if need be.

The other main characters are just as interesting. Galuff is exactly what you'd expect from a medieval fantasy merchant: greedy, cowardly (for the most part), would do anything to make a quick buck, and always on the lookout for someone new to sucker. His character is augmented by his dog, Gil. The two are never far apart, and they always seem to feed off of each other. Rasha is the haughty character in the show. She's pretty, powerful, and arrogant. About the only person that can stand her for any length of time is Miguel, who seems to have qualities of Rasha & Ihrie combined, minus a few brain cells.

There are two other characters in Ruin Explorers, but I can't get into them. Revealing too much about would ruin your experience when watching the show. Suffice it to say, they are crucial to the story. Even the story I can't really get into, cause I might ruin certain story pieces for you.

Secondly positive aspect of the show is the music & voice acting. An entire orchestra composed the music for Ruin Explorers, and it is some of the most impressive sounding stuff you'll ever here. There nice melodic pieces for the more tender moments, loud pieces for the show's numerous action sequences, and happy music for the happy scenes. It all feels very fluid, and is help a lot by the voice acting. Despite being dubbed in the late 90s, it transitioned well into last decade and the beginning of this decade. Each of the characters has a voice that is distinctly perfect for them, with Fam's voice in particular being especially charming.

The third and final positive aspect of Ruin Explorers is the setting. A fantasy fan in general is gonna like it, but if you're a DnD fan, you'll really like it. It has just about everything that's in Dungeons & Dragons: high action, intrigue, magic, swordsmanship, old ruins, some highs seas sailing, and one of the most infamous villains you'll ever encounter. All of it works well together, and it'll have you want to see more of Fam & Ihrie's world. It's tragic that all of this is stuffed into 4 episodes, but more on that in a little bit.

Now that the positives are out of the way, it time to take a look at the negatives of Ruin Explorers. We got 3 things on our plate and their not particularly appetizing.

First off is the show's length. Like is just said above, there are only 4 episodes, making this a show that you can watch in about a single sitting. It's not that the story is bad, cause it's actually a good one. It's just that you can tell and feel that the show could have been longer. Everything goes by fairly quickly, and you can see that certain things were left out. If the show was made into a 12 or 13 episode series, then certain aspects would be a bit more clear for viewers.

Secondly, Ruin Explorers isn't necessarily a widely available show. Given the fact that it was released in 2004 by ADV Films (R.I.P.), a new or used copy can be somewhat hard to come by. Your best bet is to go to Amazon (the best place to find old & new anime, in my opinion), and that's where things may get tricky. I got my unused copy back at the start of this year (I think it was the 3rd week of January, to be more specific), for a measly 10 cents. Now, although I didn't notice back then, but there must have been a surplus supply for it to be that cheap. As of right now, a unused copy of Ruin Explorers will set you back just $5.05, which isn't too bad if you ask me. Used copies are 3 cents cheaper, but with the price being that little apart, it really doesn't matter whether you buy a used or unused DvD. If you're an old schooler and want to go for the tapes (1 episode across 4 tapes), then you're in for an even harder time. The complete show isn't up for sale, and the tapes that do exist are only for the first 2 episodes. You are better off buying a used tape: it might be a bit more fragile than a fresh tape, but you are saving some impressive amount of cash in the meantime. How much saved money, you ask? Well, let's just say that you're saving a good chunk of change.

Ruin Explorers gets a 8.5 out of 10. It has a strong story & cast, a good music score & dubbing, and the setting is very fantasy, but the show's length can be off putting, and finding a copy can be a bit of a hassle.

See you next week when I review another Essential Anime Classic. Until then, stay otaku!