[INFO] The Anime Primer, or "What Anime Should I Watch Now?" (2/10)

(continued from part 1)

ANGELIC LAYER: Mizaki Suzuhara is moving to Tokyo. Upon arriving
at the train station, she gets lost (it's her first time in Tokyo) and
wanders outside, where she witnesses a battle that wows her on a
gigantic screen. It turns out that the battle was part of Angelic
Layer, a game that's very popular. She gets drawn into the game and
goes on a wild adventure. This series has something for everyone,
from the comedic wiggly-squiggly Icchan, to more heart-felt moments,
and even intense battles. So go out now, and see the series that one
of the voice actresses calls "DRAGON BALL Z for Girls!" Available
from ADV films.
R1 official website: <http://www.angeliclayerdvd.com/main.php>
[Entry by Bill Martin]

AOZORA SHOUJOTAI: see 801 T.T.S. AIRBATS

ARIA: In Neo-Venezia, despite a backdrop of science fiction
technology, life has returned to simpler times. Akari Mizunashi is
living in Neo-Venezia (a recreation of the city of Venice) on the
planet Aria (a terraformed Mars). She is employed by Aria Company as
a "Single" or trainee Undine, the name given to gondoliers in
Neo-Venezia. Together with her friends and fellow would-be Undines
Aika and Alice, Akari spends her days learning to become a
full-fledged Undine and experiencing the joys of life, love, and
friendship among the canals of her adopted home.
ARIA is a laid-back slice-of-life story that shows the "Magic of
everyday life" through Akari's eyes. Cooked from the same recipe as
YOKOHAMA KAIDASHI KIKOU, Aria's episodic pace and lovely background
music can best be described as relaxed. Warm and fuzzy feelings are
the order of the day for ARIA.
ARIA spans three seasons - ARIA THE ANIMATION (13 episodes), ARIA
THE NATURAL (26 episodes), an OVA and the final ARIA THE ORIGINATION
(13 episodes). It is based on the two manga series "Aqua" and "Aria"
by Amano Kozue. The first season has been licenced by RightStuf.
[Entry by Abraham Evangelista and Robert Sneddon]

ARJUNA: see EARTH GIRL ARJUNA

ARMITAGE III: In the future, mankind has terraformed and settled
Mars. We've also developed a line of human-like androids with
designations of "first," "second" and "third". Ross Sylabus, a police
detective from Earth with an antipathy for androids, has transferred
to Mars. What he finds there is a political conspiracy that covers
two planets and involves his colleague, the child-like female
detective Armitage. Well drawn and animated, with moments of both
levity and action. Some violence. Four episodes, or one movie which
is the episodes edited together with some omissions. Subbed and
dubbed both available. From Geneon, and Madman in Australia.
[Entry by Ben Cantrick]
[There is also a sequel movie ARMITAGE III - DUAL-MATRIX, which
contains spoilers for the original ARMITAGE III story. - Rob Kelk]

ARSLAN SENKI (a.k.a. THE HEROIC LEGEND OF ARSLAN): 5 part OAV
running approximately 4 hours total. Slow paced historical fiction.
The kingdom of Pars is overrun by a neighboring kingdom, with inside
help. The king is imprisoned and it's up to the young prince and his
loyal retainers to win the kingdom back. The story is more sword and
political intrigue than it is sword and sorcery, not much fighting, no
comedy, full of shoujo-esque character designs, and is unfinished, the
remainder of the story is available in novel or manga form. Original
novels by the same author as LEGEND OF GALACTIC HEROES. DVD box set
includes all OAVs. By U.S. Manga Corps.
[Entry by MimiE]

ASH WINGS ALLIANCE: see HAIBANE RENMEI

ASTRO BOY (originally TETSUWAN ATOMU/MIGHTY ATOM): The first real
Japanese anime TV series aired in 1963, ASTRO BOY was made by the
anime "God" Osamu Tezuka. It is a story of a little robot boy, who
ages and becomes mature through the series. It was the first anime
which featured familiar things such as continuous story and plot for
the entire series, character development, and so on. And remember, it
was the first TV anime series!
(This description refers to the original series, not the later
remake.)
Licenced by The Right Stuf International in North America, and by
Madman in Australia.
[Entry by Andrew V. Tupkalo]

AURA BATTLER DUNBINE: Motorcycle racer Show Zama is pulled into an
alternate world where he is drafted as an Aura Battler. An Aura
Battler is a person from Upper Earth (our world) that has the aura
power to control the insect-like mechs this world uses to fight its
wars. While the natives can also drive these things they cannot do so
with the proficiency of Upper Earthers. Show finds himself involved
in a war of conquest led by Drake Luft and soon decides he's on the
wrong side. It's quite an epic from the man who gave the world
GUNDAM.
Licenced by ADV Films.
[Entry by Kyle Thomas Pope]

AZUMANGA DAIOH: Popular 26 episode comedy series which follows the
fortunes of seven girls, two teachers, and one dog through the three
years of senior high school. Much of the story centres on Chiyo-chan,
a ten year old genius who has been put in their class and whose
combination of cuteness and superior academic ability inspires
ambivalent feelings amongst her considerably older classmates. Each
character is sharply defined and a lot of the humour arises from our
anticipation of their inevitable behaviour, from the narcoleptic Osaka
who lives in a dream to the manic Tomo whose hijinks go a little too
far. The animation is minimal and at times repetitive, but the images
are beautifully drawn with a refreshing look and equally good
background music.
Available from ADV.
Note: the AZUMANGA DAIOH "Movie" (included on the sixth ADV DVD,
not included in the box set) is actually just a five minute widescreen
short which reworks a few scenes from the series.
R1 official website: <http://www25.advfilms.com/titles/azumanga/>
[Entry by Shez]

B

BAKUEN CAMPUS GUARDRESS (a.k.a. COMBUSTIBLE CAMPUS GUARDRESS or
CAMPUS GUARDRESS): Girl is sister to boy who is the reincarnation of
a man whom the girl's previous incarnation loved. He died last time
saving the world for evil monsters from another dimension who are bent
on world conquest. And now it's happening all over again. How will
the girl ever manage to save her brother and the world at the same
time, how will she deal with her incestful feelings for her brother,
and how can she deal with her mother making moves on her boy?
This is a bimodal show with characters and input from Hagiwara, the
author of BASTARD! DESTRUCTIVE GOD OF DARKNESS. As such, it is a
combination of the sublime and the profane in a very cute mix. The
attack names are a wonderful throwback to some of the spells in
BASTARD!, and have such names as "Thousand Slices of Radish Attack" or
"Puppy Dog Attack".
If you liked BASTARD!, you'll like this one.
[Entry by Anand Chelian]

BAMBOO BLADE: After making a bet with a senpai from his
high-school days, Muroe High School's kendo club instructor Ishida
Toraji desperately needs five female club members for a match with the
kendo club led by his senpai. Freshman Kawazoe Tamaki almost
perfectly fits the bill, since she turns out to be a kendo prodigy.
But Tamaki is pretty reserved and can't think of kendo as a hobby, so
she refuses. However, when an older member of the kendo club starts
bullying some of the new members, her sense of justice makes her join
temporarily to fight him off.
[Entry by Ansgar "59cobalt" Wiechers]

BASTARD!: It was an age of lawlessness
Of disorder and Chaos
Blood and steel, flesh and bone
An age of Magic
The four kingdoms are under siege from the evil dark armies of
Chaos. The only one who can save them is the evil wizard who nearly
conquered the world 15 years ago.
BASTARD!!
A tale of sorcery and combat, of scantily clad maidens and a more
scantily clad hero. *High Shonen Fantasy at its most extreme. Enter
a world of action, excitement, danger, and ... laundry.
Available from Geneon in North America.
[Entry by "Akodo Bob"]

BATTLE ANGEL (a.k.a. BATTLE ANGEL ALITA or GUNNM): The Scrapyard
is the name given to a large decaying city that exists due to the
garbage dumped from the floating city above it, named Zalem. Humans,
androids and cyborgs live in this dark and dirty place, all
intermingling. Living with each other, trading with each other,
sometime mugging each other. Ido, A brilliant cyber-doctor, discovers
the wreckage of an extraordinary cyborg in one of the city's junk
piles, and restores it to full health with his skills. She has no
memory of her past, so he names her Gally and raises her as his own
daughter. However, there is more to her than meets the eye ... Good
artwork and animation. From the much-acclaimed manga of the same name
by Yukito Kishiro. Contains violence, gore, nudity.
Was dubbed and subbed from ADV Films, but is no longer available in
North America (possibly due to an expired license). However, BATTLE
ANGEL ALITA is still listed in the Madman catalog, so Australians can
still obtain this anime.
[Entry by Ben Cantrick, edited by Rob Kelk]

BATTLE ATHLETES VICTORY: Battle Athletes Victory chronicles the
trials of a 15 year old athlete, Akari Kanzaki. Akari's dream is to
become the Cosmo Beauty, the title given each year to the greatest
athlete in the Solar System. The title is fought for at the
University Satellite, a space station that orbits Earth. Akari lives
in the shadow of her mother, Tomoe Midoh, who was widely regarded as
the greatest Cosmo Beauty ever. Akari's journey begins at a training
school in Antarctica, but stretches past the University Satellite ...
Available from Geneon.
[Entry by Matt Huber]

BATTLE FAIRY YUKIKAZE: see YUKIKAZE

BATTLE SKIPPER: A new intake and the usual scrap for the best by
the school hobby clubs, but three young girls end up taking the fast
track into the secret world of one particular club, a cover for some
pretty heavyweight mecha in the usual clash of good bot meets bad
bot ... apparently the folk who did PLASTIC LITTLE had much to do with
this title. (CPM/USMC)
[Entry by Chika]

BETTERMAN: Mix a high school odd couple (childhood friends who
fell out of touch) with him as the geeky nerd and her as the popular
but secretly insecure type due to being orphaned by family
disappearing under mysterious circumstances, giant mechas produced by
a genius businessman and inventor, his sickly psychic daughter, a
handpicked crew of pilot teams and support personnel, mysterious
beings of unknown, possibly evolutionary/mutation origin, and a virus
or other factor that is behind a serious of threatening events. Then
stir in some hard science without any ST speak, and give the viewer
room to figure out what is going on without talking down to 'em.
You'll have control!
Shares a universe and some characters with the series THE KING OF
BRAVES GAOGAIGAR. 26 episode series produced by Sunrise (Studio 7),
originally aired on TV Tokyo April - September 1999. Issued in Region
1 by Bandai (six disks) and broadcast on the now-defunct Tech TV's
"Anime Unleashed."
[Entry by Aje RavenStar]

BIG O: Roger Smith is a Negotiator, an agent for hire in the
amnesiac city of Paradigm, enclosed in giant glass domes. Alongside
his mysterious Megadeus (giant robot), the Big O, the deadpan android
R. Dorothy Wainwright and his ever reliable butler Norman, he polices
the city where the military police cannot. Yet Paradigm City holds
many secrets, "Memories" of what happened forty years ago before all
the residents of Paradigm lost them, and there are those who will stop
at nothing to gather them - and Roger's Memories may be some of the
most important of all.
Highly influenced by "Batman", this odd mecha series owes its
success partly to the US Cartoon Network, who funded the second
season. Written by the ever confusing Chiaki Konaka (LAIN), the
fairly superfluous (although very well animated) mecha fights take a
back seat to the utter madness of the plot, particularly in the
superior second season. High production values and interesting
characters - R. Dorothy is a particular fan favourite - contribute to
make an intriguing addition to the mecha genre.
Available from Bandai in Region 1 on seven DVDs, with two extremely
inexpensive collections available of both seasons.
[Entry by Andrew Hollingbury]

BIGWARS: Man has colonised Mars and an alien race doesn't much
care for that. This is a tale of Man's struggle against the odds as
the alien, who styles itself as a kind of god, uses awesome weapons to
beat back the expansionist humans. It's now down to one last
chance ...
(CPM/USMC)
[Entry by Chika]

BINZUME YOSEI: see BOTTLE FAIRIES

BLACK HEAVEN: see LEGEND OF BLACK HEAVEN

BLACK LAGOON: On a business trip in Roanapur, Thailand, Japanese
salaryman Rock gets double-crossed by his boss and left in the hands
of a mercenary group called The Black Lagoon company. Originally
kidnapped for some extra ransom, Rock bonds with the crew and becomes
one of them. But this series has a little more going on than "girls
with guns" and a lot of swearing. The series rips apart Rock's almost
hypocritical world view of Good and Evil and shows him that it's
simply a world where people are trying to get things or die trying.
What good is loyalty if everyone has a price? And how can he consider
himself a good guy when he's up to his neck in crime and murder? This
is a thinking man's action series, and has a lot more to offer than
explosions and violence.
Age: 14+. Lots of swearing (especially in the dub), smoking,
drinking, extreme violence and nuns with bad habits.
[Entry by Travers Naran]

BLACK MAGIC M66: A side story to Masamune Shirow's manga BLACK
MAGIC, this movie tells the story of one of the first combat androids
ever built. Unfortunately, the military scientist who designed it
used his daughter as the test subject for the android to target. Even
more unfortunately, the android has escaped from the aircraft
transporting it from the test facility ... If you liked "The
Terminator", you'll probably like M66. The anime was previously
available from Manga Video (the licence has expired), and the
collected comic is available from Dark Horse.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]

BLACKJACK: He's called Blackjack, and he is a practitioner of
"underground surgery". A Tezuka character of old, in this story he is
caught up in a mystery concerning the appearance of "Super Humans",
and the lethal secret behind it. BLACKJACK is based around a manga
where he is a character that appears, performs surgery that no
legitimate surgeon would consider, charges high fees for it then
vanishes. Released by Manga in North America, and Madman in
Australia.
[Entry by Chika]

BLEACH: How far would you go for your friends? Would you even
challenge the Gates of Heaven? BLEACH is a Shonen Jump adventure
story with well-crafted characters more real than your average shonen
anime, great visuals and really interesting ideas.
Ichigo Kurosaki is a 15 year old high school student with a
penchant for trouble and protective of his little sisters. One night,
a ferocious demon called a Hollow appears, drawn to Ichigo's spirit
power. For reasons he does not understand, he can *see* the demon,
and more importantly, the Death God (shinigami), Ruchia, pursuing it.
In the fight for his life, Ichigo borrows Ruchia's power, becoming a
Death God himself, and defeats the Hollow. But this just begins a
sequence of events that leads him on a journey that will test his
spirit to the brink of death and beyond.
The series derives its strength from its well written characters.
You feel loyalty to Ichigo: a sarcastic delinquint who will literally
bleed for his friends. You care about Ruchia: the young Death God who
tries to be a serious professional, but is still an awkward teenage
girl. You want to protect Orihime who is delightfully ditzy, but not
as weak as she seems. Their adventures test them and help you bond
with them while leading up to their biggest challenge. A story more
epic than the initial episodes would lead you to believe.
Age: 12 and up (if they can handle horror movies, they'll be OK)
PARENTAL: Swordplay, violence and some coarse language. Scary
scenes for young children.
[Entry by Travers Naran]

BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE: Demons called Chiropterans are living
among humanity, preying on humans for their blood. However, a secret
US government organization is after them. Their main weapon is a
seemingly young girl called Saya, who is said to be "the only
remaining original." On the verge of the Vietnam War, she's sent to a
US air base in Japan which probably is infested by Chiropterans.
A very dark, atmospheric movie that mixes suspense and action
elements.
Available in North America from Manga Entertainment, in Germany
from Panini Video.
[Entry by Ansgar "59cobalt" Wiechers]

BLUE SEED: Momiji is a high-spirited 15-year-old girl who is the
current inheritor of the Kushinada bloodline, and has spent her life
being prepared for the possibility that she may have to be sacrificed
to protect Japan if the Aragami return to the world. The Aragami are
a kind of monster that is mutated by a "blue seed," called a mitama.
One day, Kusanagi, a strange young man who has many mitamas, appears,
tells her a sister she never knew she had is dead, threatens to kill
her, and then apparently protects her from some sort of dragon
creature. Two other people from the TAC (Terrestrial Administration
Center), the group that had raised her sister in preparation for the
return of the Aragami threat, appear and rescue her. Later, after
Momiji's school is attacked by an Aragami, Momiji joins the TAC for
protection and to help them fight for the survival of Japan, and
possibly the world.
Available in North America from ADV.
[Entry by "HiEv"]

BLUE SONNET: There have been many stories about making a humanoid
"ultimate weapon". This is one of those, in that Sonnet is a cyborg
that has awesome psychokinetic powers. However it is known to her
creator that somewhere out there is an even greater power lying
dormant. In fact the person in question becomes a classmate of
Sonnet's. While this girl discovers her hidden power, Sonnet
discovers her lost humanity in a background of corporate domination.
(USMC)
[Entry by Chika]

BLUE SUBMARINE #6: The world is at war with aliens. Most of the
world is covered in water. But not everything is as it seems. There
is a lot of action in this series and some interesting twists. It's a
combination of hand drawn and computer animation which in my opinion
worked nicely. The episodes are short and only one episode per DVD.
Still cheaper than the old way of buying a dub and a sub version of
the VHS, but in today's DVD age it seems a bit expensive. An single
disk is also available with the violence edited out. The dub is
alright but is better watched in original. Available from Bandai in
North America, and from Siren in Australia.
[Entry by Shawn Granger]

BOOGIE POP PHANTOM: This is a sci-fi horror story within a story
involving an urban legend of a cloaked murderer who's turned the city
into a killing field while the inhabitants begin expressing
frightening powers that are beyond their control. The episodes are
connected but in a very loose, convuluted chronology and the series is
done in washed-out, bleak tones so it's not for everyone. Still, what
the series sets out to do, it does extremely well. It disturbs by
presenting the helplessness of humans in the face of unnatural forces
and also in giving a despairing, microscopic view of the uglier side
of life and family.
Licenced by ADV in North America and the UK, and by Madman in
Australia.
[Entry by Michael Lo]

BOTTLE FAIRIES (a.k.a. BINZUME YOSEI): Based on Yuiko Tokumi's
"reader-participation manga" in Magi-Cu Premium magazine, this
thirteen episode TV series tells the month-by-month adventures of four
tiny naive fairy girls, Sarara, Kururu, Chiriri and Hororo who live in
glass jars on the desk of Sensei-san, a young college student. Each
show covers a month in Japanese life with the fairies learning about
what it is to be human, assisted by Loose Cannon Tama-chan, their
highly-opinionated six-year-old neighbour who is *never* wrong.
In the wrong hands this could have been saccharine beyond belief
but the scripts and storylines belie the basic idea and make each
episode delightful as the girls use their imagination to try and
figure out the world. The equally-delightful ending songs are sung by
the fairy seiyuus, with a different seiyuu and song for the three
shows in each "season".
Licenced by Geneon in North America.
Official manga website: <http://www5b.biglobe.ne.jp/~hakka-ya/>
Official anime website:
<http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/binzume/>
[Entry by Robert Sneddon]

BRIGADOON: Marin Asagi is an orphaned outcast living in a tenement
building in 60's Japan. Her life changes when a mysterious glowing
world appears in the sky and a giant machine called a Monomakia falls
from the sky attempting to kill her - she is only saved by a blue
android called Melan Blue that she discovers concealed in a shrine.
Together Marin and Melan need to fend off the continuing Monomakia
attacks - but why are they after Marin, and why has this strange
world - called Brigadoon - appeared?
Brigadoon's deceptively cutesy exterior hides an extremely dark
show - there seems to be no end to the amount of sorrow inflicted on
Marin over the course of the series. This, plus some slight
fanservice which may put off some due to the characters being only 13,
means Brigadoon has become something of a niche show - however, it has
a lot to recommend it, from its stirring Celtic-influenced score to
its excellent animation (the Monomakia fights are particularly well
done, and Marin isn't totally passive either, a refreshing change for
shows of this type) and likeable characters, although the somewhat
erratic switching from hyperactive comedy to dark drama mitigates this
somewhat.
Available in Region 1 from Tokyopop on 6 DVDs.
[Entry by Andrew Hollingbury]

BROTHER, DEAR BROTHER: see ONIISAMA E

BUBBLEGUM CRISIS: A classic cyberpunk tale of a corporation gone
rotten and a group of hi-tech vigilantes that seek to bring the worse
elements and deeds of that corporation under control.
Mega-Tokyo is a corporate town built on and around the ruins of
Tokyo which was mostly destroyed some years before the story opens by
an earthquake. The corporation that helped to rebuild the town is
Genom, a multi-national that, among other things, builds "Boomers".
These robotic creatures are used for both good and evil, and where the
latter is involved, the Knight Sabers will tackle them, especially as
their leader, Sylia, has a past connection with these creatures.
Often praised for its musical content and some of the designs, the
show is seen as styled after the US movie "Blade Runner", and
continues to have a following many years after the show was completed,
though it has produced spin off shows including AD POLICE, BUBBLEGUM
CRASH and BUBBLEGUM CRISIS TOKYO 2040.
Available in the US from AnimEigo, in Australia from Madman.
Originally available from Anime Projects in the UK, now licenced to
MVM.
[Entry by Chika]

BUBBLEGUM CRISIS TOKYO 2040: BGC2040 is a 26-episode TV series
that "borrows" certain elements from the original BUBBLEGUM CRISIS,
but changes them enough to make it an alternative retelling of the
original story. The basic concept is the same: Four women use powered
armor to fight a secret war against renegade androids (Boomers) and
the shady corporation who makes them (Genom). Some things (such as
Priss being a biker chick and singer of a rock band) remain the same
from the original series, but most other aspects are completely
different, ranging from the personalities of the characters to the
nature of the technology they use. As a result, the show has a
different feel than its predecessor - at times it feels more like
EVANGELION than "Blade Runner". Many (but not all) fans of the
original series dislike this show intensely. Much of the criticism
has to do with certain plot twists that strike some as implausible.
However, BGC2040 has its own fans as well. It's probably best to
judge the show on its own, rather than comparing it against its famous
predecessor. Available from ADV Films in North America, and Madman in
Australia.
[Entry by Scott Fujimoto]

BURN UP W: Surrounding a group of specially selected (female)
police who, when called into action, display special skills (and a lot
more in those inevitable skin tight costumes!) This series runs
through a number of side plots but is essentially concerned with an
underworld plot to control the minds of various powerful folk using an
addictive device. Available from ADV Films in North America, and
Madman in Australia.
[Entry by Chika]

C

CAMPUS GUARDRESS: see BAKUEN CAMPUS GUARDRESS

CARDCAPTOR SAKURA (a.k.a. CARDCAPTORS): A sweet and charming
'magical girl' show by the popular CLAMP team, built on the framework
of a collectable card game. 4th grader Kinomoto Sakura (renamed to
"Sakura Avalon" in the dub) accidentally releases a number of magical
cards from an ancient book. With the aid of the cards' guardian,
Keroberos, who appears as a winged toy bear, and her adoring
girlfriend Tomoyo (called "Madison" in the dub), Sakura must recapture
the cards and return them to their book, using the captured cards'
powers to help her. Complications ensue with the appearance of other
seekers of the cards. CARDCAPTOR SAKURA is as much about the joys,
vicissitudes and perplexities of growing up, of what friendship really
means, of how to be brave in the face of danger, as it is about its
frame story of the chase after magical cards. As with all CLAMP
shows, the character and costume designs are utterly charming, and as
with all CLAMP shows, there are hints of homoeroticism.
This show is commercially available in the US (from Geneon) in two
formats: CARDCAPTOR SAKURA has Japanese language and English
subtitles only, and has not been edited for content; CARDCAPTORS, with
an English dub only, is the version that was shown on American TV, and
is heavily edited. Only the latter is available in Australia (from
Madman).
[Entry by Slithy Tove]

CARRIED BY THE WIND: see TSUKIKAGE RAN

CASE CLOSED: see MEITANTEI CONAN

CASTLE IN THE SKY: see LAPUTA

CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO: see the entry for LUPIN III

CAT-GIRL NUKU-NUKU: see ALL PURPOSE CULTURAL CAT-GIRL NUKU-NUKU

CHAR'S COUNTERATTACK: see GUNDAM

CHARCOAL FEATHERS FEDERATION: see HAIBANE RENMEI

CHILD'S TOY: see KODOMO NO OMOCHA

A CHINESE GHOST STORY: A naive tax collector is surprised to find
that he was assigned to work in the land of ghosts and spirits. Too
late, he already fell in love with a beautiful ghost who wants to
harvest his soul for her mistress. He can resist her spell and wins
her love, but now the two lovers find themselves in the middle of a
battle between the three best ghostbusters of the land. Loosely based
on the same Chinese fairy tale as the popular live-action Hong Kong
movie of the same name. Beautiful character design and 2D animation,
badly mixed with ugly, overdone 3D computer graphics that brings down
the overall experience. Yet the great (very Chinese) humour and a
cute story save the film.
[Entry by Hanno Mueller]

CHOBITS: Can a machine be alive? Can it have a broken heart? How
does it change us to have our ideal partner, but with none of the
challenges that a real person brings? CHOBITS can be mistaken for a
shallow seinen (college student) story about a boy who finds a
beautiful "Persocom" girl robot, but this story came from the
all-female Osaka manga team Studio CLAMP, and nothing is ever what it
seems with them.
A country boy, Hideki Motosuwa, moves to the big city to get an
education and comes across Chi, a Persocom left in the garbage. In
this near future, Persocoms are walking personal assistants, PCs and
cellphones, made to look like beautiful humans, and of course people
begin to become obsessed with them. In finding out the history of
Chi, Hideki learns the secret history of Persocoms and that Chi may be
the legendary "chobits" model: a model that has true emotions. And
who is the mysterious author of those children's books that seem to be
talking about Chi and Hideki?
The story works on so many levels. There's the wonderful (and
ultimately platonic) love story of Hideki and Chi, but the series also
asks interesting questions, like "How do people change when we can
have a relationship with a robot?" and "What happens when we forget
about the humans we used to have relationships with?" From a silly
exploitation premise, CLAMP manages to create an intriguing
philosophical love story.
ADVISORY: Mature content and very suggestive scenes; 16 years and
up.
Licenced by Geneon in North America, and by Madman in Australia.
[Entry by Travers Naran]

CHRONICLE OF TWELVE COUNTRIES: see JUUNI KOKKI

CHRONICLES OF THE HEROIC KNIGHT: see RECORD OF LODOSS WAR

CHRONO CRUSADE (a.k.a. CHRNO CRUSADE): It is the late 1920s,
America is experiencing a boom economy, and the rich keep on getting
richer... and with all that money, they find they have time to pursue
other things, and number one on the list... Devil worship. That's not
jake, so Sister Rosette Christopher, her demon friend Chrono, and the
other members of the Holy Order of Mary of Magdelene must combat this
terrible new menace. Rosette has her own reasons for fighting the
demons, as she searches for her long lost brother, Joshua. This is
definitely not a kid's show, however, the Christmas episode is a heart-
warming one, definitely worth sharing. This series starts off
slightly dark, switches to comedy every now and then, but can and will
get very dark, very fast. So don't be a Mrs. Grundy, go out and watch
this show.
Note: Of all the anime I've seen, this is the one that uses
Christian symbols most closely to their true symbolism, and even
though it seems to be just a Nuns With Guns show, it's much deeper
than that.
Licenced by ADV in North America and the UK, and by Madman in
Australia.
R1 official website:
<http://www25.advfilms.com/titles/chronocrusade/>
[Entry by Bill Martin]

COMBUSTIBLE CAMPUS GUARDRESS: see BAKUEN CAMPUS GUARDRESS

COWBOY BEBOP: A jazzy group of bounty hunters meet up and travel
the galaxy. Lots of great individual episodes as well as a main
storyline running through them all. Sharp animation that shows how
well the hand drawn and computer mixed can look. Great music and even
the dub is actually pretty good. Instant classic which appeals to a
wide audience, otaku and non-otaku alike. Available from Bandai in
North America, or Madman in Australia.
[Entry by Shawn Granger]

CREST OF THE STARS: CotS (a.k.a. SeiMon from Seikai no Monshou) is
a hard sci-fi story set amidst an era of interplanetary empires and
galaxy-spanning war. Humanity has colonized the stars, and the
resulting new order has become one of vast, conflicting empires. The
male lead is the son of a free planet's president who "sold out" his
people to the ABH empire when they came to invade. Now nobility
himself and all but deprived of friends, family, and homeland, Jinto
must enter the ABH military in the hopes of eventually assuming his
rightful place in the nobility. His first contact with the
genetically enhanced ABH is Lafille, a *very* special young woman
whose identity and significance to the political fabric of the empire
becomes only gradually apparent.
The show hits all the bases: politics, deeply imagined culture and
futuristic technology, action both in person and between space
fleets ... and most importantly character development, as Jinto and
Lafille grow up as individuals while growing together as people. The
chemistry between them is the focal point of the animators for this
show, and they pull it off with style. Visuals aren't bad at all
either, as expected of Bandai's frontline animators at Sunrise.
If you want something fluffy, something with major fanservice,
something hyperkinetic, or can't take serious sci-fi, SeiMon is
probably not the anime for you. If the above description sounds
interesting, however, I recommend picking up the first volume and
seeing what you think.
Available from Bandai in North America, and Madman in Australia.
[Entry by Mark L. Neidengard]

CRIMSON PIG: see PORCO ROSSO

CROMARTIE HIGH: You know something strange is afoot when the
opening warning of an anime says "Kids, imitating this will get your
thrown in jail" instead of the usual "Step Away from the TV and turn
on the lights".
CROMARTIE HIGH chronicles the misadventures of a delinquent
high-school class whose misfit members more resemble traveling circuis
attractions than students. With a cast that includes a gorilla, a
singing robot, and a student with more than a passing resemblance to
Freddy Mercury, CROMARTIE HIGH is sure to entertain fans of wacky
low-brow comedy.
Available in R1 from ADV.
R1 official website: <http://www25.advfilms.com/titles/cromartie/>
[Entry by Abraham Evangelista]

CRUSHER JOE: Old-style comic-book action from the writers that
later went on to create DIRTY PAIR: Feature movie and two OAV
episodes available, from the TV series about team Crusher and their
leader Joe, four mercenaries (and one robot) who'll tackle any job in
the galaxy that needs doing, no matter how impossible ... *especially*
if impossible. Available from AnimEigo.
[Entry by Derek Janssen]

CYBER CITY OEDO 808: In a world dominated by the criminal element,
the forces of law and order turn to setting criminals up to work off
their penalties by becoming unwilling foot soldiers in the march
against crime. Three such criminals are followed in this series, each
with a mission to complete within a given period of time, otherwise a
device locked on their necks will make sure they do not get another
chance. With each successful mission, a portion of their sentences is
erased. (Manga)
[Entry by Chika]

(continued in part 3)

--
Rob Kelk <http://robkelk.ottawa-anime.org/> e-mail: s/deadspam/gmail/
"I'm *not* a kid! Nyyyeaaah!" - Skuld (in "Oh My Goddess!" OAV #3)
"When I became a man, I put away childish things, including the fear
of childishness and the desire to be very grown-up." - C.S. Lewis