Dezaki Month continues with the first two episodes of an anime OVA that pits Tezuka’s mysterious black-garbed unlicensed surgeon against a strange disease that dessicates and the latest drug epidemic: wacky cacty (cacti)! All the while he exposes a young girl made out of a teratoma to the gruesome disfigurements of his patients or keeps her trapped in a cabin. Huh, that really paints this as a different kind of anime, doesn’t it? Black Jack isn’t some creep, but that doesn’t stop a wide range of ladies from throwing themselves at him. And he gives them the D… octoring.
anime
Otaku Evolution Episode 92 – Lupin III: Pursuit of Harimao’s Treasure
It’s the beginning of Dezaki Month here on Otaku Evolution! What happens when you pit the world’s greatest thieves against the world’s greatest (retired) secret agent and throw in some Neo-Nazi scum? You have canal chases, slide puzzle-traps, grabby tourist children, train and helicopter fights, jet packs, submarines, and dipictions of queerness of both the subtle and problematic! It’s Dezaki’s last Lupin effort, but is it any good? Find out in this episode of OE!
Lupin III: Blood Spray of Goemon Ishikawa
*****SPOILER-FREE SYNOPSIS*****
Synopsis: Lupin, Jigen, and Fujiko inflitrate a high stakes gambling boat owned by the yakuza to rob them of their lucre. However, as usual, the heist becomes complicated, when a large man with metal teeth targets our merry band of thieves and slights the honor-bound Goemon who was hired to protect the casino. While this steel-capped assassin, known as “Hawk”, is after Lupin’s life, Goemon is after his, determined to avenge the man who hired him. But Hawk proves to be more than formidable, he’s actually more skilled then our favorite samurai friend! Can Lupin evade the “Ghost of Bermuda” long enough for Goemon to make him a real ghost? Or will the gravestones made by Jael Okuzaki be fulfilled? Leave it to Goemon to cut through the uncertainty (and a lot of flesh) with deadly precision!
Otaku Evolution Episode 91 – Mobile Suit Gundam III (Movie)
Live (taped) from a secluded Antarctic base’s officer’s club, it’s my review of the final movie in the original Mobile Suit Gundam movie trilogy! Featuring state-of-the-art animation techniques (lol) and all-star cast of nobodies! I talk a bit about Newtypes, call out Sayla Mass for her lack of awareness, show a mess of clips from the Gundam franchise, all of which I had to shorten frustratingly, and actually utilize more than two sound effects! So strap into your mobile suits and step onto the launch platform, it’s time to finish off the One Year War!
Otaku Evolution Episode 90 – Tenchi Muyo! OVA 2
Anime’s favorite harem returns in six more episodes of Tenchi Muyo!, an OVA increasingly about one character (Washu), and also increasingly not about Tenchi whatsoever. There truly is no need for Tenchi when you’ve got the Greatest Scientific Genius in the Universe, a cute little bundle of trouble house guest, a hive mind creature, a robot clone, a octopus-bearded jerk, and a whole lot of inbred royalty! Oh, and I guess the boy in question occasionally does something.
Otaku Evolution Episode 89 – Space Pirate Captain Harlock: Endless Odyssey
What do you get when you take the writer of Kino’s Journey, the director of Metropolis, and the characters of Leiji Matsumoto? You get an honestly good Captain Herlock… er, Harlock series with only a few annoying eccentricities. Sounds like a low bar? Well, yeah, I guess if you judge it compared to Harlock Saga, it is, but it’s actually just good on its own. Though I guess with it not being available, you may have to… pirate it.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans Season 2 Episode 25 [FINAL] – A Rustaling of the Jimmies
SPOILERS
I had a feeling that I was gonna use the article title a week ago when I came up with it. I just did not expect to see it come to light in the way shown in the final episode.
The entire first half is dedicated to the last stand of Tekkadan, with the tunnel successfully made, with the remainder of the family sans Akihiro and Mika escaping by the skin of their teeth. Despite being the finale to a Gundam show, the ultimate bookending battle is bereft of any ideological waxing of various ideas like understanding one another and becoming a better humanity. It is just Akihiro and Mika laying waste to the myriad grunts of Gjallarhorn as they delay them long enough for their comrades to escape. Due to this lack of high-falootin’ conversations, it means a long winding episode of this battle is not in the cards, and pretty much ends when Rustal lets loose one final barrage of Dainsleif weapons on their base. Once you see the Barbatos and Gusion damaged from this one attack, the battle is pretty much over. Yet within all the well-done one sided killing, there is some catharsis to be had. Akihiro crushes Iok to death after recognizing who he was, and thus gives us *A* scalp to have despite the aftermath ending with Julieta killing Mika, decapitating the Barbatos and showing the head off as a trophy for all to see.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans Season 2 Episode 24 – The G-Wrekketsu-ning
SPOILERS
I don’t know why I even bother really. Every time an emotional event happens in this show, I expect it to be the ONE Mika has a reaction similar to everybody else breaking down and weeping. Within minutes after the opening occurs (which was led into by Mika being informed of Orga’s fate), Mika instead has his own St. Crispin’s Day speech. Despite Mika’s lack of flair, it is filled with determination, rallying the remainder of Tekkadan to follow through and escape while he and a small contingency of MS delay Gjallarhorn’s advance. Yes you can see a bit of sadness in Mika’s eyes, but his moments in this episode show how he doesn’t really harbor much delusion that he’s totally useless without Orga.
Otaku Evolution Episode 88 – Babel II (OVA)
Based on a Mitsuteru Yokoyama manga, but not lucky enough to get adapted by Yasuhiro Imagawa, the four-part Babel II (that’s Babel The Second) OVA has all the ass-pulling superpowers and sudden giant robot appearances you get from Giant Robo, but without the thematic or character-driven gravitas. Which means that while it is compellingly weird, it’s a bit of a trifle. It was still fun to review, though!
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Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans Season 2 Episode 23 – Viva Orphans Namida
SPOILERS
Welp, despite the surrounding of their base by Gjallarhorn, Orga remains undeterred in his plan to get all of Tekkadan out of Mars. After watching this episode, and thinking about what I said this past week, I think I am in error in my perception of conviction then running away. Tekkadan for better or worse may be fighters, and will kill with impunity, but they are not conquerors. Even during Orga’s “I’m gonna be King of the Martians!” phase he is never shown to succumb to greed and ambition, nevermind the rest of Tekkadan. The title is merely a means to an end, and unfortunately for Tekkadan, that means is no longer viable in the long run.