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Bubblegum Crash
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Title Info
- seen: 1-3 of 3
- type: OAV
- grade: watchable
- made: 1991
- Review created: A while ago, i'll revise it eventually.
- mod: none
This series effectively has to be placed near bubblegum crisis, because it is almost literally the same show. The original production effort fell apart before the creators felt they had completed the story, and this is their `conclusion' piece. Since it is both closely related, but has a different flavor, it is an interesting experience. The anime features both episode stories and a story thread to link them all together. It must be said that the stories are not that complex (they weren't in crisis either), but the addition of a link story makes it seem much richer. The main difference is that the stories have changed from being `human' centered to technology centric, especially related to the technology of boomers. This combines with enhanced dialog (priss, for one, is much more chatty) and some good situation writing to make the stories feel solid and the world more real (and just as dark). As an example there were a couple of comments from cops in the AD Police which actually explained how the world looks from their position, which really enhanced my understanding of the situation. Some similar insights are also offered into the members of the Knight Sabers, which is good fun.
Along with this the producers seem free to fully indulge in their love of tech. The battle suits have been enhanced, there are lots of gadgets, and the machinery is richly detailed and more believable than in crisis. Lingerie van and motorbikes have been replaced by a much more militaristic VTOL craft which seems much more fitting and is indicative of the reduction in the humor of the series. This is well demonstrated by some agressive hardsuit action. As a final bonus the animation seems considerably stronger, even a computer graphic opening, although some acceptable shortcuts (such as boomers exploding when killed) are still taken.
The main disadvantage is the duration. There is only so much that can be done in three episodes, and this hits most savagely in the concluding episode which feels like it has been brutally compressed, and indeed does not make much sense. The attempted conclusion is on the epic scale, it is just a shame that more episodes were not possible to fully complete it. Still, if you liked Bubblegum Crisis I can't see any reason why you wouldn't want to check this out as well. Negative points for having a `cute' ai, but many positive points for Nene being a more sane character.
The Anime Movie Guide provided the information that BG Crisis was supposed to be 13 episodes and fell apart before that. It gives this the same rating as the original (3 stars). Apparently other serious critics give this the big thumbs down. The only review is from THEM and say, "not as good as Crisis, but still fun". It points out that the production team was different, as was priss's VA. There is also criticism of boomers suddenly being `dumb' but it could also be said that this is done for plot reasons, since the main plot involves a new boomer AI. The Anime Critic had heard bad things about the title, but sums it up as "bubblegum crisis-lite" in this review. This is due to the absence of the `gritty' tone he found in the original series.
Words by Andrew Shelton, Web by Ticti, Last Compile: Wed Aug 5 12:39:16 WST 2009