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The artwork, music, plot, detail, subliminal hints, and character interaction in this piece are unparalleled. This is a must see of anime and is also a good way to introduce people to the genre. Only Evangelion surpasses this work as far as plot goes, but not by much. It begins in Top Gun fashion as you witness a hot shot pilot blasting away Zentraedi mechs with reckless yet precise maneuvers. Meet Isamu Dyson the cocky fighter pilot. After a brief encounter with his commanding officer and the subsequent dismissal of his current post it is found that Isamu is to be the new test pilot for one of two planes competing military funding. The plot thickens as Isamu finds that one of his old friends and rivals, Guld, (look at the synopsis if you want little more depth) is the competing pilot.
This has to be the best dub I have ever seen. It almost feels like it was intended to be in English. Manga video did well on this one. Oh I just want to point out one other thing. If you have the chance and the time, there is a scene where a bus is driving up to a terminal. If you look closely and quickly (it only appears for about a half second) you will see an advertisement complete with personal logo for AFX (AphexTwin) selected ambient works volume 23. WOOHOO go Richard!!!!! I passed a brick when I saw that. For those of you not in the know Aphex Twin is a prodigy of modern music who not only writes performs and produces all his own music but also creates the technology to perform it. Basically he writes the majority of the software and makes from scratch the majority of his musical instruments. Enough of that tangent.
Art/Animation: (9) Wow this contains a beautiful blend of CG and hand drawn animation. Some of the best ever. Story: (8) Top Gun in Macross world with a love triangle and a terminator insane computer program. Pretty good. Imagery: (9) Only reason it didn't get a 10 was that I had Evangelion to compare it to. Sound/Soundtrack: (10) This is THE soundtrack. Go buy it NOW. Dub: (9) I'm not sure a dub can get a 10 but this one came dang close. The best out there. Drama/Comedy: (9) You'll be floored by the last OAV. As you find out what really happened. Overall: (90) |
Macross Plus
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First off I suppose I should give a content warning. This is for the
4 part OVA series not the movie (which I have not seen as of yet).
There is light cussing, a few depictions of blood from what look like
Zentraedi mechs, and in the 4th video there is nippleless female nudity
of the holographic form of Sharon Apple. This show also contains a
complex interaction based on repressed memories from one of the main
characters involving rape. So as far as subject matter goes the kids
most likely won't understand what's going on as references are not
blatant but better safe than sorry so keep the children away.
That's all I'll say as the rest of the movie/series is for you to
watch. The main plot centers around an AI program that has the ability
to subliminally manipulate humans, especially because currently it (the
AI program) is the biggest Pop star in the galaxy. You find out as you
watch.
Bottom line is see this without a moments notice and after you've
seen it a few times run out and at least buy volume 2 of the
domestically released soundtrack. This soundtrack is beautiful and
contains my favorite haunting choral arrangement (only 1:20 seconds long
though) A sai en.