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[series:1541#628] | ||||||
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(All episodes watched): While rewatching some old VHS tapes recently, I stumbled across trailers for the original Dancougar series and became curious. Then, lo and behold, episode one of this new series appeared at AnimeSuki--nice timing! Basically, exactly one hundred years in the future, two young men and two young women find themselves somehow transported to a strange base on a remote island. They are offered a fantastic "contract": they are to serve as the new crew of Dancougar, an incredible robot about which there are many rumors but very few hard facts. The OP sequence was quite snazzy and left an immediate impression of neat animation and artwork. The series as a whole clearly had a limited budget, but they did a good job with what resources they had. I couldn't help giggling and enjoying myself as I soaked up the first episode's mix of mecha combat (twice), Formula One racing, and a drug bust to boot! Though I was somewhat skeptical going in, since the original series doesn't exactly seem to be a classic, this opening episode quickly grabbed my interest, which never flagged as I watched it. Having seen some of the original version, the impression I get is that the 1985 version of Dancougar was largely designed as a sell-mecha-toys-to-kids show, whereas this one appeals to the tastes of the same (now adult) viewers. It's kind of amusing, actually, you might say it appeals to the kid within all of us. Dancouga Nova follows a radically different plotline--no alien invasion in episode one, for one thing--and I'd classify it as a spinoff. Also, it does get pretty funny at times, such as when the new candidates are shown to their quarters. Plenty of action and adventure, needless to say--no signs of angst, which is fine with me. It's hard to put into words, but I like the style of this show--the dialogue, artwork, timing--and especially the way it skillfully maintains a high level of excitement. The sheer coolness of this show is overwhelming--provided you can take Dancougar's transformation into animal modes seriously (it only happens once or twice, probably because the makers felt obligated to maintain a link to the old TV series). Whereas Dancouga Nova got an average grade of around C+ at another website, as for me this was one of the handful of shows which I enjoyed so much that I was seriously tempted not to watch the final episode, because I never wanted it to end. Not a particularly original series, but instead one which deftly uses tried-and-true techniques just the way they work best. (See Hidaka Aoi and Tachibana Kurara's montages at the Mecha Chicks and Cute Girls with Guns pages!) My favorite line: "That's what you get for wasting food!" --Kurara Last updated Friday, October 29 2010. Created Wednesday, February 28 2007. | ||||||||
Other Sites
| Name | URL |
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| Production Reed's Production Reed's Juusou Kikou Dancouga Nova page | http://www.pro-reed.com/works/tv_series/w041.html |
