4.0. Anime Recommendations G-M
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This article is from the misc anime FAQ, by nikkou with numerous contributions by others.
4.0. Anime Recommendations G-M
Science Ninja Team GATCHAMAN. You may remember it as Battle of the Planets or G-Force. Forget 7-Zark-7.
GALL FORCE is a series of (7?) SF OAVs about cute girls with guns and space ships. All the men of the race died in the everlasting war with the Evil Paranoids, and there's nothing left but sexy young women who reproduce by cloning. But, they have a plan... Available subbed from USMC. A parody of the series called Ten Little Gall Force is available from AnimEigo.
GHOST SWEEPER MIKAMI is a spiritualist who'll put restless ghosts to rest... for the right price. Her lecherous assistant works for peanuts, and her ghostly partner gets nothing at all. Comedy TV series.
GIANT ROBO is a series of OVAs that embrace all the cliches of the giant robot genre, and wallows joyously in them. A fast-paced action romp with spiffy animation, sort of the Indiana Jones of giant robot shows. English release by Manga Entertainment with Pioneer releasing the LDs. GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES. A very sad tale of two kids trying to survive amid the wreckage of end-of-WWII Japan. Fantastic animation, not often shown at groups because of the tear-jerk factor. It is only slightly less grim than watching The Sorrow and the Pity. Available subbed from CPM (USMC's parent company)
HERE IS GREENWOOD. A light contemporary comedy about the antics of some high-school boys in a dorm named "Greenwood."
GUNDAM. In several series: TV series GUNDAM, ZETA GUNDAM, ZZ GUNDAM GUNDAM OVAs 0080, 0083, 3 Compilation Movies, movies Char's Counterattack and F91, and more recent TV series V-Gundam and G-Gundam, etc. etc. The giant robot (mecha) series, a futuristic SF series concerning disputes among inhabitants of lunar colonies, lagrange-point colonies, and earthers. Has a long, intricate timeline. Try ZETA-GUNDAM (TV series) or CHAR'S COUNTERATTACK (movie) for mainstream action, OVA 0083 for fantastic action sequences, or War in the Pocket (0080) as an nice self-contained side-story of 6 half-hour parts.
GUNBUSTER: Cute girls in convertible giant robots save the universe from evil invaders. Sort of wobbles between comedy and drama. The ultimate Zero-G jiggle anime. In 3 volumes (6 episodes, 2 per.) Available subbed from US Renditions.
I CAN HEAR THE SEA is a TV movie from Studio Ghibli (Miyazaki, Takahata.) A slow all-too serious tale of high-school love, nicely drawn.
ICZER-1. A three-part SF OAV involving hideous monsters from space, cute but lethal girls, and two giant robots. Meant to be taken only semi-seriously, but has some great slime-monsters that'll make your skin crawl. (Not to be confused with ICZER-3, the recent 6-part sequel.) Iczer 1 is available dubbed from US Renditions and Iczer 3 is available subbed from USMC.
IRIA - Zeiram, the Animation. Based on a live-action SF/horror flick, cute bounty hunter Iria battles nasty genetic monstrosity. Licensed for subtitled release by USMC.
IRRESPONSIBLE CAPTAIN TYLOR is the luckiest man in the universe. Without a clue, he bumbles his way to Space Fleet Admiral and war hero in this SF comedy. Available in subbed and dubbed formats from The Right Stuf.
JO JO BIZARRE ADVENTURE is a stylishly made contemporary paranormal OVA series about a group of powerful ESPers fighting nasty DIO.
JUBEI NINPOCHO is a ninja and sorcery movie set in feudal Japan. Nice story and art, a bit bloody for some tastes.
KIKI'S / WITCH'S DELIVERY SERVICE is another Miyazaki story for kids of all ages, about a 13-year-old witch who sets out to make her way in the world. Lavishly animated.
KIMBA THE WHITE LION, another old US import from the pen of Osamu Tezuka originally titled Jungle Taitei (Emperor). Note any similarity to Disney's Lion King? Nah.
KISHIN HEIDAN is an interesting admixture of World War II, an Alien invasion, and the giant robots captured alien technology makes possible. Fast-paced adventure, available from Pioneer dubbed or subtitled.
LAPUTA, Castle in the Sky, is a great fast-moving action adventure by children's film-maker Miyazaki, and features designs Jules Verne would approve (not to mention Swift.) Two kids flee pirates, the army, and other parties in a race to find the legendary Laputa. Great soundtrack, too. A Must See. (Dubbed to English by Streamline, but not available.)
LEGEND OF GALACTIC HEROES is a far-future SF epic in which two vast space-faring governments, the Empire and the Federation, vie for supremacy amid the sea of stars. Against this backdrop two young heroes on the opposing sides wage war with each other and politics with their peers.
In LOCKE THE SUPERMAN, an intergalactically famous superbeing lured out of voluntary seclusion helps save Earth from a group of elite ESPers bent on galactic conquest. The design sense is rather primitive but the story line is lean, exciting and propulsive, revolving around the title character, a powerful female ESPer, and an evil conclave. Admittedly, these are simple premises, but the action & storytelling are first-rate.
LODOSS WAR. OAV series based exactly on D& D. A party of adventurers (the usual fighter, cleric, mage, dwarf, elf, and thief) wander about opposing evil orcs, wizards & dragons. Available from USMC.
LUPIN III is a semi-modern series of (TV & OAV) stories about a stylish thief with a heart of gold and his gang. My personal favorite installment is CASTLE CAGLIOSTRO (see Miyazaki, above), although PLOT OF THE FUMA CLAN is one of the most action-packed and entertaining anime around.. Most LUPIN III is not by Miyazaki, but by a fellow who calls himself "Monkey Punch" (I'm not making this up, you know). Available from AnimEigo (under the moniker Rupan III) & Streamline Pictures
MACROSS: DO YOU REMEMBER LOVE is the feature-film version of the Sci-Fi MACROSS TV Series (part of the ROBOTECH saga in the US), but much better drawn than the TV show. A reasonable SF entry. Fan-subtitled versions exist. Minmei sings a lot. (Note: Although MACROSS is ROBOTECH, this is NOT the "Robotech Movie.") Other Macross projects include Macross II (available from US Renditions & Manga Entertainment), Macross Plus (available from Manga Entertainment) and the new TV series Macross 7.
MADOX-01 is a parody of mecha films, in which a young lad gets trapped inside a metal combat suit. The army wants the suit back, and the hero just wants to keep his date. Available from Animeigo.
MAISON IKKOKU - A delightful contemporary romantic comedy about odd assortment of people sharing an apartment complex. From Rumiko Takahashi. Coming soon from VIZ Video.
MANIE MANIE: LABYRINTH TALES - an "artsy" film like ROBOT CARNIVAL. It has three segments, one of which - "Order to Cease Construction" - is by Katsuhiro (AKIRA) Otomo. Available dubbed from Streamline Pictures as
MEGAZONE 23. SF. A bunch of bikers, a sentient world-controlling computer disguised as a rock singing idol, giant robots, and a rock soundtrack propel this popular story of folks entirely unaware they inhabit a giant space ship. In 3 parts (except part 3 is in two sub- chapters). Part 2 is in available in English as well as Japanese. (It's Megazone Two-Three by the way, not "Twenty Three".) Available dubbed from Streamline Pictures.
MOLDIVER. Is it a super hero? A super heroine? No, it's a comedy! Available subtitled or dubbed from Pioneer.
MIDNIGHT EYE GOKU. Futuristic detective fantasy. Private investigator Goku has a computerized eye that can interface with any electric device at will, as well as an expandable baton that enables him to skewer adversaries and vault across skyscrapers. Stylish animation with soft-core sex and bondage motifs.
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