This wasn't on my short list to review but with the tragic passing of Kazuki Takahashi today, I feel we should look at the work that made him a household name.
Ignoring a portion of Yu-Gi-Oh zero, the anime starts with the card game Duel Monsters, Yugi is the resident expert, able to transform into a more confident, taller and cooler persona when actually playing the game curtesy of his necklace, the Millennium Puzzle, this draws attention from many different villains including rich business mogul Seto Kaiba, Duel Monsters creator Pegasus, the thief Bakura and the rare hunters led by Marik Ishtar, Yugi quickly gets drawn into a card game thousands of years in the making as his confident persona reveals himself as the great Egyptian Pharoah Atemu.
Everything from god cards, millennium artifacts and the very souls of everyone involved, Yugi and friends embark on a card game adventure you'll never forget. It's time to duel!
Adventure is the right word for this behemoth of an anime, I don't think any other toy anime went this far into the lore that Yu-Gi-Oh did. The early episodes didn't quite gather the rule set for the card game until Battle City which was the anime at it's strongest, it was weakest when it had to think of filler arcs such as the Orichalcos and virtual world arcs.
Very much like Beyblade, it embraces the absurdity of it's cheese and creates an experience you won't forget.
4kids did dub this but it's actually their best dub especially Dan Green as Atemu and Eric Stuart as Kaiba, although Pegasus is wonderfully camp, Bakura incredibly sinister and Joey oddly Brooklyn; it's any wonder the franchise has become so meme worthy in recent years.
Final Verdict: What started as a violent manga about an ancient Egyptian gambler became one of the best loved card game franchises of all time and it wouldn't have been possible without the genius of Kazuki Takahashi the true King of Games.
Rest in Peace.
I have reviewed the OG Beyblade before but not it's other series, I'll save V-Force for a bad day and go straight to G-Revolution.
Tyson having twice become world champion is helping some kids learn Beyblade when he gets challenged by a scrappy kid named Daichi, the young Beyblader proving to be a match for Tyson. At the same time, the next World Championship is announced, Bladebreaker teammates Kai, Max and Ray decide to return to their homes with the intention of taking Tyson's title much to his surprise, left having to team up with Daichi, Tyson will face rivals old and new to reclaim his title, but a force known as BEGA awaits to disrupt the sport.
G-Revolution has no business being this awesome, it takes an already silly premise of battling spinning tops and turns it into a proper sports anime, it ups everything up to eleven with the battles, the characters and the ultimate edgelord Kai Hiwatari.
This is how you make your cheese world class, the type of cheese you only have with the finest wine.
Dub is still excellent and the commentators Brad Best and AJ Topper remind me of such duos as Wiz & Boomstick of Death Battle and Arin & Dan of Game Grumps.
Final Verdict: Ignore every other Beyblade season and just watch this one, you'll never see cheese like this ever again.
I can't believe I haven't reviewed this yet, it's Outlaw Star.
Gene Starwind and Jim Hawking run a jack of all trades business doing anything from bodyguarding to deliveries, Gene himself refuses to go into space after an incident that claimed his father's life, leaving a scar that would never heal.
A renowned outlaw named Hot Ice Hilda hires Gene as a bodyguard but after Hilda is killed, Gene finds himself in possession of her cargo, the spaceship, the Outlaw Star and it's bio android computer Melfina; the ship is said to be capable of reaching the Galactic Leyline, a place said to contain riches, power and knowledge.
Forced to face his fear knowing he now has a target on his back and needing money to operate the huge running costs of his ship and gun, Gene sets off into space with Jim and Melfina, then later joined by Twilight Suzuka and Aisha Clanclan to venture to the Leyline.
A worthy space adventure that really gives that late 90s feel and yet unfairly compared to Cowboy Bebop who came out at the same time, the two run on different energies.
The key difference is that Gene is not a Bounty Hunter and Outlaw Star as an anime is a continuous narrative, this suits Outlaw Star better as Gene and the rest grow with the series reaching to a satisfying climax, also you can't help but love the set pieces that includes Gene's Caster Gun, the most awesome gun in anime.
And of course that killer opening theme, a lot of fun can be had watching Outlaw Star.
Only minor nitpick is the occasional mood whiplash.
Dubbing is strong and worth a watch.
Final Verdict: Outlaw Star never feels bogged down by plot and lore, it's a fun space western that anyone can get into and a good anime to start for new fans.
Expect most of this weeks reviews to be earlier for posting, next up is Canary.
Based on a visual novel, Canary centers around a school rock band hoping to perform at a major beach festival but a combination of a band member walking away and the beach festival promoter not having enough acts creates problems for the band, clearly not phased by the difficult mountain to climb, Mika Katagiri tries to persuade the promoter to reconsider and band member Jun to return in a high speed bicycle chase and hijinks from the local science girl, by any means necessary, Mika's band will perform.
For one episode, Canary manages to squeeze in it's entire premise but lacks the edge of other music club anime, it's not terrible but I expected alot more colour from an anime like this to channel more of the character's energy.
No dub but wouldn't feel too out of place if it did.
Final Verdict: It's okay, the hijinks at least add some value but lacks the edge and a decent colour palette to really succeed.
Next up is Cosplay Complex.
Our anime is about the exploits of East Oizumi Cosplay Club as they compete in various cosplay contests, sometimes with other schools. Our lead is Chako, an enthusiastic pink haired cosplayer who has a magical fairy in bunny girl gear named Delmo to Transform into the best costumes.
Among the notable cosplays include Sailor Moon, Nadesico, Blackjack, Wedding Peach and Akazukin Chacha.
It never really had time to establish a plot at only three episodes with the series hinting at a deeper rivalry with Shin-Takarazuka Academy Cosplay Club in the future that never happened.
Cosplay Complex shines in it's dedication to the cosplay art form, it's fanservice that is just the right amount that doesn't go too far and then there's Goro the only male club member who can make Reika turn to jello by reading out smutty romance stories which is argubly the best joke in the anime. Props to the dub team also for delivering a good performance.
Final Verdict: Cosplay Complex is a fun little OVA that can be watched in one go, it's a combination of great comedy, good fanservice and great homages to great anime.
