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Area 88
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Animation - 6.5 |
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Sound - 7.0 |
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Story - 7.5 |
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Character - 8.0 |
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Value - 7.0 |
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Enjoyment - 7.7 |
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Average - 7.5 |
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| Average |
7.7 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| Nach der für mich sehr enttäuschenden TV-Serie von Area 88 hatte ich in diese OVA nicht gerade hohe Erwartungen gesteckt. Um so mehr war ich überrascht als ich festellte das Area 88 in dieser Version einen weit aus besseren Eindruck hinterlässt und so ziemlich ALLES was die TV-Serie falsch gemacht hat, richtig macht. Die Serie war komplett auf Action fixiert und machte den Eindruck als würde das ganze Drumherum nur zur schalen Zierde des Kampfjet-Geballers herhalten, doch das ist in dieser OVA grundlegend anders. Vor allem die Charaktere unterscheiden sich in punkto Darstellung und Entwicklung immens von den blutleeren Cardboard-Figuren die man in der Serie zu Gesicht bekam. Hat man es in der Serie noch versäumt die Gefühlswelt des Hauptcharakters zufriedenstellend auszuarbeiten und darzulegen wie erdrückend und verzweifelt seine Situation als Söldner ist der unwillens in einer Welt aus Skrupellosigkeit und Kaltblütigkeit gefangen ist aus deren Fesseln er koste es was es wolle entkommen will, bekommt man hier tiefe Einblicke spendiert und darf eine interessante Entwicklung seinerseits auf sehr emotionaler Ebene verfolgen. Auch der Rest des Casts kann ähnliches vorweisen, zwar bei weitem nicht auf dem Level des Protagonisten aber im Vergleich mit dem Dasein welches sie in der Serie als lahme Statisten fristen, ist das eine Steigerung um gut 180°! Auch der Verlauf der Handlung gestaltet sich hier weit spannender und dramatischer und überraschende Wendungen treten ebenfalls ein die den Zuschauer gehörig auf dem falschen Fuß zu erwischen wissen. Nicht zu vergessen der Tiefgang den die Story an den Tag legt. Wie der Krieg aus Menschen abgestumpfte Killermaschinen macht, welchen Wert Gefühle auf dem Schlachtfeld haben, die Frage ob man nach etlichen Monaten als Kriegssoldat wieder ein normales Leben führen kann, etc. etc. das ALLES wird thematisiert und ist dazu in der Lage nachdenklich zu stimmen. Die Serie hat es völlig verpennt das zu vermitteln und zeigt lieber haufenweise Explosionen und Luftkämpfe die von Bummbumm-Musik untermalt werden. Was nicht heißt das die Action in der OVA zu kurz kommt, oh nein es gibt auch hier einige wirklich ordentliche Aircombats (die mir sogar besser animiert vorkamen als in der Serie) zu sehen, welche sich animationstechnisch selbstverständlich nicht mit späteren Werken aus dem Kampfjet-Genre wie z.B. "Macross Plus/Zero" oder "Yukikaze" messen können aber trotzdem gut in Szene gesetzt werden. Aber in dieser OVA ist die Action mehr ein Bonus neben der Entwicklung der Story und des Casts und nicht umgekehrt wie in der TV-Serie. Fazit: Area 88 OVA hat: Tiefgang, komplexe Figuren, Dramatik und Spannung! Alles was die Serie nicht hat. Zwar gibt's hier keinen fetten Techno-Sound oder CGI-Jets, aber wer braucht sowas schon wenn das was wirklich entscheidend ist (Story, Charaktere) den Hauptteil zur Unterhaltung beiträgt!.
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petran79 |
(2008-01-21 08:08:33) 2007-07-02 15:45:52 |
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| Average |
8.0 |
| Animation |
0 |
| Sound |
0 |
| Story |
0 |
| Character |
0 |
| Value |
0 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| When a title is labelled a classic it means it can be watched by anyone and at any time, regardless if it was made in the 80s or 90s.
Though my introduction to anime began with other titles after watching Area 88, I recognize it as one of the best and most action-packed titles to come out of Japan.
Regardless that it was based on a manga and the story there went on, Area 88 anime combines many elements from dogfights, romance, industrial and political conspiracies as well and it also features very good direction for an actio oriented title.
If they had better computers back then they could perform wonders. Too bad computers now are wasted on mediocre titles.
I had only a slight problem with the first OVA but the other two were very enjoyable and the anime ended in an instant.
Characters demonstrate yet again why older animes have the edge over the newer ones, who just recycle the oldies, adding some CGI here and there to make them look new and original.
The dogfights were very well directed too.
This is one of the best animes with dogfights I watched. Better than Yukikaze, considering its age and lower budget and much better than Macross Zero.
I prefer to track the oldies I missed (and they're many) instead of the recent animes (with very few exceptions).
This is one of the titles a whole anime generation watched and grew fond of, so it deserves a little more attention.
But if you were born relatively late, in the age were cartoons and anime ceased to have that classic feeling, then you can skip Area 88.
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| Average |
6.8 |
| Animation |
6 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| Area 88, a somewhat typical plane-fighting anime with a liberal helping of characterization and plot, is actually hurt the most by the genre it is placed in. The gravest flaw this fairly long 3-installment OVA suffers from is that the combat sequences, though showing a great deal of detail and care for an anime nearing its second decade, are incredibly boring and drawn-out. They must have seemed like the most incredible things ever back in the 80s, but there were a variety of factors that eventually piled up into me wanting to skip every one.
One of those factors, surprisingly enough, is how good the plot and characters actually are. Not perfect, granted, but I was actually interested in the anime's writing aspects. Sure, the dialogue got a little bit hokey ("You're a KILLER, Shin!"), and the melodrama was as thick as any shoujo, but the pathos demonstrates a notable amount of effort and care. The plot and characters also suffer from a primary problem, however; the lack of completion in the OVA leaves everything dangling on a string. The viewer is left with innumerable questions about every single character and subplot...unless, of course, they read the manga. Stupid OVAs.
Another factor in my disinterest towards the combat was how tedious it became. There actually aren't that many on-screen casualties, and if there are, then they aren't worth mentioning. There's rarely music to complement the scenes (except for wonderfully hokey vocal tracks that you'd only find in the 80s) and, well, nothing happens. Add all this to the fact that the sequences run upwards of seven minutes at times, and you've got yourself some disarmingly boring crap to squirm through.
Furthermore, I always felt as if the anime was one step short in explaining a lot of things. Take Area 88 itself, for example. Characters rail on constantly about how the place is hell, horribly dangerous, a warzone to end all warzones, etc. To put it simply, I wasn't convinced. The terrors of Area 88 were no worse than any basic battleground one would see in a military/war anime...unless you count the formidable, terrifying WALL OF DEATH as something to fear. Seriously, any force using a retractable wall to defeat its airborne opponents must be on something or at least severely underfunded. That aside, however, Area 88 never struck fear in my heart or seemed to house any underlying threats, and that significantly affected how I viewed Shin's plight. Three years in the military, no matter where you're serving, would be kind of a downer, but at least try to make me feel like his life is in danger here...
But the interesting thing is that I was actually concerned for not only Shin, but also Ryoko as well. A great heroine by any standards, Ryoko's unwavering devotion to someone who she doesn't even know is alive colors her as a very worthwhile character. Shin seems rather archetypal and doesn't have too much of a personality, but is interesting for how he handles what's put in front of him and how these situations change him as a person. By the third episode, not only was I afraid that Shin or Ryoko would come into harm, but dying to know if they would ever see each other again.
Area 88 is an above-average OVA that happens to be very periodical. It is markedly 80s, between its direction, aesthetic elements and overall atmosphere; if you can tolerate archaic anime, then you're set to enjoy this one. For those who like to keep their aerial skirmishes modern, I recommend Macross Zero or Sentou Yousei Yukikaze...this is simply too campy for you.
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