I’ve been meaning to do this post for quite a few weeks now. The reason I haven’t up until now was because most of my energy was being put into this big fan fiction trilogy I’ve been working on. But now that I’m currently in between stories (and because I’m annoyed with all the recent bugs happening on FanFiction.Net), I’ve decided to go ahead and get it done. So for this little review, I’ll be covering a little piece of futuristic sci-fi anime from the 90s. Presenting Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040.
Plot: As the title implies, the year is 2040. In this not to distant future, the people of Tokyo have handed less desirable tasks such as janitorial work to robots with organic components known as Boomers. But as convenient as these Boomers are, they have a tiny little design flaw. They tend to go berserk and kill any human they see. Thus a group of four young women known as the Knight Sabers dawn suits of armor like the ones used by Iron Man to destroy these rogue Boomers and bring peace back to the city.
I had first heard of Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040 back when I had first started getting into anime, but I had never gotten a chance to check it out. So when I found that the series was streaming on Netflix when I went to go browse, I was quite curious. I was actually expecting this series to be pretty bad going into it, but it turned out to be a whole lot better than I had expected. Tokyo 2040 is actually a remake of the Bubblegum Crisis OVA made back during the 80s. I’ve never seen said OVA, nor do I really have any wish to. But while there may be some who would probably argue with me on this point, I think the Tokyo 2040 anime may be a whole lot better.
Pros: Both the art and animation of Tokyo 2040 is very well done. The series also has a pretty good cast of characters, although some of the characters seem a little better developed than others. One quality of the show that really appealed to me though was the “monsters”, the Boomers. Rather than just being the normal berserk robot with red eyes, the Boomers mutate into horrid monstrosities. One final thing I should mention before moving on is that there is a bit of fan service is Tokyo 2040, but it’s actually pretty well done. In my opinion, it’s a lot more tasteful than some of the content seen in more recent anime shows.
Cons: One of the biggest flaws with Tokyo 2040 is that the first half has a huge pacing problem. Being what is pretty much a super hero series, the show follows the old monster-of-the-week format for a good while. And while it is interesting seeing the different Boomer mutations, this format also causes these episodes to get a little repetitive. Even so, the show’s cast of characters and the deeper mystery going on makes waiting through these episodes worth it. The other big flaw of Tokyo 2040 is that the ending not only leaves a lot of things unresolved, it also raises a few unanswered questions. This is one show that’s certainly in need of a sequel or at least some kind of epilogue.
Overall: It’s probably safe to say that Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040 will never be considered the greatest anime series in history. Yet despite a few storytelling problems, this is a series that I recommend watching at least once. In fact I wouldn’t mind seeing this series again myself. Some probably consider this show a classic, and I don’t blame them. They just don’t make anime like this series anymore.
Rating: 3.8 out of 5
