The Reverse Thieves are a blogging duo made up of the stylish Narutaki and the indomitable Hisui. With a detective theme they report on and analyze all aspects of anime and manga fandom with the hope to promote critical analysis and an overall love of Japanese pop culture. Their complementary eclectic tastes, over all positive attitude, and emphasis on character studies make their reviews a unique voice in the blogging community. The duo can frequently be found puttering around East Coast anime conventions and presenting panels on a wide variety of subjects. They also like to orchestrate large-scale projects that bring together various elements of the blogosphere and the fan community including the Otaku Diaries and the Secret Santa Project. You can visit them at http://www.reversethieves.com.

Whether you are just curious about the mecha genre but don’t know where to start or you are a seasoned fan hoping to recruit others, this guide is for you! (cue cheesy infomercial music and scrolling 800-number) Some mecha fans are pretty much born that way by virtue of the innate appeal of robots. But many people have to be coaxed into the fandom. This is a guide for the self-starter and/or the recruiter.

Our beginner level shows have a strong robot presence but the stories mostly focus on the characters or comedy and keep the robots more in the background. These are great shows to introduce your friends or yourself to the world of robot anime without being overwhelmed by the hardware. Check the robot level on these shows to see just how much is in each. When you or your friend has watched enough of the beginners shows to be not only comfortable but curious, take up the intermediate category. While these stories still focus on the characters and plot we also have increased the amount of robot action present, hence no robot level necessary. If all goes according to plan, after finishing an intermediate show or two anyone will be comfortable enough to try any number of other robot shows and judge them without taking off points just because there are robots prominently featured. But let us emphasize that this guide is to help people see the variety of robot anime, not necessarily make a mecha-head out of them.

Before we dive in, we’d like to give some general tips to those who are trying to recruit others! Most important is to think about who the person is and picking a show that is right for them, not right for yourself. It is all too easy to fall into the trap of picking your personal favorite while ignoring two shows better tailored to your friend’s taste. You may love Full Metal Panic! but the fantasy setting of Escaflowne might work better for someone who reads Pern books. Another great strategy is watching shows with a group. The more the merrier! Some shows are born to be watched with others, it has the ability to make things more funny, more suspenseful, or more whatever the feeling the show is exuding may be. And finally, remember, in the end you know your friends better than us. You don’t have to pick these shows, but try to apply our ideas of character focus of comedy as a great lead in to the robot genre! These are more guidelines to get you thinking rather than hard and fast rules.

BEGINNER LEVEL

Eureka Seven: When Renton meets Eureka, he decides to join a group of outsiders who are trying to disrupt the government and to awaken the people to what has been kept hidden from them. The colorful cast of characters, their growth, and both the friendships and relationships are central to this show. The series shines as it takes a look at love from new to mature. Eureka Seven’s character designs, music, and surfer culture all give it a very hip feel. And the unfolding of the many mysteries encountered is capturing. (more information) (full review) Robot level: Medium

Code Geass – Lelouch of the Rebellion: Lelouch becomes a revolutionary to free Japan after he gains the ability to control people’s actions. With its slick character designs and animation its obvious that Code Geass has modern appeal. While this series has a lot of battles the focus is on Lelouch out thinking his opponents and the tricks up his sleeve. There is also a great deal of intrigue, politics, and moral ambiguity that are touched on in the series that give it much needed spice. (more information) Robot level: Medium

The Vision of Escaflowne: Hitomi is an ordinary girl until she is transported to a magical world where she must help to over throw an evil empire. Escaflowne has story elements and characters that appeal to both guys and gals by mixing the action and romance and keeping not only Hitomi at the forefront but also Van and his struggles. There are plenty of battles but many take place outside of mechas. Music by Yoko Kanno. This series boasts more of fantasy vibe than a mecha one making it a good bridge between the two. (more information) Robot level: Low

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080 – War in the Pocket: A soldier behind enemy lines befriends a young boy as they both discover the true price of war. This is a Gundam series so of course the robots are important, but more to move along the plot which is demonstrated by there being only a couple of fights in the entire show. 0080 is heavily focused on themes such as moral decisions and how war affects civilians. This is also by far the shortest series on the list which can help to sell it. (more information) (full review) Robot level: Low

Full Metal Panic!: Military officer Sagara has to go undercover to high school in order to protect Chidori and her secret power. Don’t take the “protecting the girl” part of this series too seriously, Chidori is strong and capable. Full Metal Panic! has a high comedy factor that mostly stems from Sagara being a complete fish out of water and socially awkward to the extreme. This creates a serious juxtaposition between the action and the school life scenario. (more information) Robot level: Medium

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann: This is sort of an exception to our rules since it has high robot content, but its popularity with non-mecha fans can’t be denied. This comes from many reasons including its bold but enjoyable archetypal characters and its incredibly over the top theatrics and fights. The sweet/sour approach to comedy and action is worked very well. Plus plenty of Yoko service for the guys, but also Kamina, Viral, and Simon score high for girls. The show has plenty of homage and themes but can easily be overlooked by newcomers. (more information) Robot level: High

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL

The Big O: Roger Smith is a negotiator in a city where everyone has lost their memories a mysterious happening that Roger is looking for answer to. With its distinctly Batman vibe, The Big O easily reaches out to a western audience. This is also accentuated by its striking visual style and its world that draws the viewer in. The characters are bold, broad stroked archetypes but made immensely enjoyable. (more information)

RahXephon: After Ayato is rescued from Tokyo which is occupied by alien invaders from another dimension, he is recruited into fighting to overthrow them. RahXephon is a very character based drama where the robot fights are more of a punctuation of the emotions. There is also a strong romantic plot as its centerpiece. You can see strong elements of symbolism throughout but it can be ignored if the viewer wishes. (more information)

Vandread: In a universe where men and women are at war, the two factions must come together on one ship to fight an alien threat. Vandread can easily be sold to people who watch shonen romance while sneaking in a good deal of robot action on the side. A mostly female, easy on the eyes, crew is an easy selling point to guys. The series for the most part is light and breezy comedy but counterbalanced with enough action and tension to keep the pace brisk. (more information)

Turn A Gundam: Loran becomes torn between two worlds which pushes him to try to find a peaceful resolution to a war between the Earth and the Moon. While this is part of the Gundam franchise, there will sometimes be episodes without any robot fights at all. Turn A focuses more on complex and compelling character based political drama. Music by Yoko Kanno. Turn A Gundam is a unique mecha show whose protagonist is primarily a man of peace. (more information) (full review)

Giant Robo – The Day the Earth Stood Still: Daisaku works with the Experts of Justice to foil the evil organization Big Fire’s plans for world domination. This series is over the top in many ways including high energy fight scenes not involving robots which will hook conventional action fans. The quality of the production is apparent in its powerful full orchestral soundtrack that grabs your attention, the meticulously detailed animation, and some superb storytelling. (more information)

Aim for the Top! Gunbuster: Teenager Noriko joins enters a training school where she must learn to pilot a giant robot to fight invaders from beyond the solar system. This show has a gradual build from comedy to drama that invests the viewers in the story and just may surprise them. Gunbuster has amazing OAV quality animation that makes it great eye candy and a short running time that adds to it’s accessibility. (more information)

Now before we wrap this up, let us mention a few shows that are loved, that are great, but may not be the best thing to throw at someone or yourself if you are just starting out. And be aware that people will praise them, they may even say you should watch them, but it could be folly. In general, the “super robot” genre is a precarious one for people new to the scene. The robots are like the main characters in most super robot shows so you better like robots if you watch them. Series like The King of Braves GaoGaiGar, Mobile Fighter G Gundam, and Shinkon Gattai Godannar!! which lift heavily from the subsect, and Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z Hen all land a spot here for this reason. There are also shows like Armored Trooper Votoms and Mobile Police Patlabor that are character intensive but the robot stuff is so heavy that you have to want it, you can’t ignore it. And lastly, be careful of older shows in general, design/animation can really work against you. So a classic like Mobile Suit Gundam are best to hold off on till later.

Please realize we are talking in broad strokes here. Nothing will work for everyone and likewise some of the things we say to avoid may actually bring in a new fan here and there. At times I am absolutely convinced that we watch robot show for completely different reasons than then average mecha enthusiast does. We watch robot shows for the characters and love the robots. Most mecha enthusiasts watch shows for the robots and love the characters. But this unique perspective on the genre is what made us want to compile this guide!

It’s not even Christmas yet, but for me 2010 has already got off to a good start. January 1st sees the publication of my story Havana Augmented – a tale of globalization, celebrity gamers, augmented reality and non-existent mech battles. If you have an interest in video games, science fiction or anime then hopefully you’ll enjoy it – you can check out a brief extract below.

The story is being published as part of the M-BRANE SF anthology Ergosphere, and you can pre-order a copy over at their website right now. In fact, get over there quickly, as if you get your order in before Christmas Eve they’ll give you a year’s subscription to their monthly magazine for just a couple of bucks extra – which is a stupidly good deal, as the mag is always a fascinating read. Plus there is also a discount if you buy it with their previous anthology Things We Are Not – but time is limited, so get over there before they come to their senses.

Havana Augmented is accompanied in the book by a couple of illustrations from my good friend and artist WEIGY – one of which you can see at the top of this post – and I’m hugely grateful to him for his work, as I am to M-BRANE head honcho Chris Fletcher and guest editor Rick Novy for giving me this opportunity and being so enthusiastic – thanks guys.

Havana Augmented – Tim Maughan (2009)

Translucent windows hung in the air around Alphonso’s towering frame, linked to various parts of his heavily armoured body, each displaying differing statistics and data; ammunition levels, servo status, temperature readings. Glancing over the figures it was clear to Paul that Marcus had clearly made some important performance boosts already. Paul smiled. Looking at Alphonso always made him smile. Mainly because Alphonso looked fucking bad-ass.

Want to read more? Then go and buy a copy.

Something a little different today – something not directly related to anime or manga – but something I’m pretty sure you’ll agree is pretty damn cool.

A few years ago, whilst innocently browsing for mecha reference images for one of my sci-fi writing projects, I stumbled across Bryan Krueger’s mecha kit images on his Mashine Krieger site. It would be no exaggeration to say that my jaw dropped; not only were the models so skillfully made and painted, but the mech designs themselves were not quite like anything I’d seen before. Gone where the Macross/Patlabor style sleek curves I was so familiar with from anime, replaced instead with gritty, industrial designs, the clear World War II influence giving them a certain instant, bulky realism, whilst still looking distinctively Japanese.

Intrigued, I dug deeper. I was expecting to find out there where a spin-off of some obscure anime or manga I hadn’t yet come across, but instead their origin was even more interesting. The Maschinen Krieger ZbV 3000 Wikipedia page gives a great overview:

Maschinen Krieger ZbV 3000 is a science fiction universe created by Japanese artist and sculptor Kow Yokohama in the 1980s. It originally began as the science fiction series SF3D which ran as monthly installments in the Japanese hobby magazine Hobby Japan. To develop the SF3D storyline, Kow collaborated with Hiroshi Ichimura (story editor) and Kunitaka Imai (graphic designer). The creators drew visual inspiration from their combined interest in WWI and WWII armor and aircraft. Kow built the original models from numerous kits including armor, aircraft, automobiles and real space. The designs were predominantly of powered armor suits, but Kow also created two legged walking tanks, anti-gravity flying aircraft, and automated robot walkers. Hiroshi Ichimura and Kunitaka Imai added the graphic style and created the background story for the new models. Together they created a unique series with a very different visual style from the typical “Giant Robot” series in Japan at the time.

The actual plot of the series – a story of a post-apocalyptic world war some 800 years in the future – is pretty average sci-fi stuff – but the designs, and in particular Bryan’s modeling skills, are still some of the most compelling mecha images I’ve seen. As such, I feel very privileged that Bryan has allowed me to showcase some images from his two-decade spanning collection here – his painting and customisation work on Yokohama-san’s original designs instantly reminding me of the powered armour suits from Heinlein’s original Starship Troopers and Joe Haldeman’s The Forever War novels. Plus you can’t help but wonder if they’ve more recently influenced the mech designs from both James Cameron’s forthcoming Avatar and Neil Blomkamp’s stunning District 9.

Again, I can’t thank Bryan enough for letting me use these images here; head over to his site right now to check out the massive gallery of his work.

With the anime industry facing recession and accused of creative stagnation, a common recent tactic has been to take two well established genres and weld them together, often with questionable results. Satellite Studios‘ Basquash! pulls the same move, merging sports drama and mecha action to depict a futuristic world where basketball is played with giant robots.

Let me just say that again: basketball played with giant robots. While Basquash! is ostensibly a kids’ show, some of you may – like me – be unable to resist watching something based on that concept whatever your age. Set on the planet of Earth Dash, it is centered around Dan JD, a teenage street basketball player that inadvertently becomes the hero of the sport. I say inadvertently because Dan actually hates the giant robots (or ‘Big Foots’ as they are known) – partly because the basketball they play is slow and uninspiring – but mainly because an accident involving one left his little sister crippled. However, when he accidentally re-invents the sport as a high speed, skillful street game he finds himself thrown into prison for a year, emerging to a world obsessed with his new creation. Egged on by his friends, and seeing an opportunity to raise enough cash to take himself and his sister to the Moon – where their advanced technology will allow her to walk again – he reluctantly agrees to take the controls again and play.

So far it sounds like a pretty standard teen action anime show – but there a number of things about Basquash! that make it stand out from that, pretty large, crowd. The first one that strikes you is it’s incredible production values. The world of Earth Side is incredibly fleshed out – its messy but always sunny urban setting is a beautifully rendered playground meets junkyard, infinitely detailed and teaming with life. It is reminiscent of Studio 4°C’s high budget movie Tekkon Kinkreet in many ways, especially in how it manages to convey the feeling of a believable, lived-in world that always feels like cartoon fantasy. The background art is astonishing throughout, especially the iconic, vast, hologram-festooned, neon-jeweled Moon that hangs in the sky both day and night, dominating not only the city visually, but also the lives of its inhabitants economically and psychologically – the source of their oppression and the object of their desires. It is the show’s defining image, both beautifully mesmerising and threatening in equal measures.

Similarly the character designs grab the attention immediately. While obviously drawn up with the teen market in mind; their street-wise urban look also seems just clumsy enough to feel convincing. Even their kawaii genetically engineered pets – seemingly only there to provide an opportunity to shift more collectible capsule toys – don’t grate to hard. But of standout interest are the designs of the Big Foot mechas themselves – instead of going with the almost generic, current trend for post Gundam and Evangelion style of gleaming, ultra hi-tech robot designs the show goes in the completely opposite direction. Scrap built and awkward looking – with their cockpits fashioned from scrapped retro car bodies – each Big Foot looks unique and customised, fitting perfectly with the shows junk yard aesthetic. In fact, almost every aspect of the show’s visuals suggests a staff that, while still ensuring they ticked every box on the marketing checklist, managed to maintain consistent artistic vision throughout the long, laborious production process and apparently with a considerably higher than average budget. A true rarity in the current climate, and making Basquash! worth checking out for this alone.

And there are other ways in which Basquash! is slightly unusual. One of it’s most baffling is the amount of sexual content in the show. Fanservice is, perhaps regrettably depending on your viewpoint, not uncommon in modern anime TV, but there seems to be something qualitatively different about the show some fans are already calling Boobsquash! There seems to have been an attempt to make the shows sexual side fit naturally – as though its an essential part of the chemistry that fuels the shows playful, energetic pulse. It takes the form of more than just the familiar T&A close-ups – though there’s no shortage of these either – there’s a strong, explicit sexual energy amongst some of the key characters, with one female player seemingly orgasming when she loses to a male rival. It’s hugely suggestive but done in a stylistic, knowing way that implies eroticism rather than screams it, but while its a device employed skillfully in past shows like Cowboy Bebop and Michiko to Hatchin, theres no denying that giving Basquash! a sexual edge feels jarring at times – even considering how differently Japanese pop culture treats sexuality – in a show that seems so primarily aimed at children.

And that is perhaps Basquash!’s biggest enigma – what exactly is it’s intended target demographic? It’s common anime industry marketing practice to create child-orientated product that also appeals to wealthier 20-something otaku – but Basquash! pushes it so far at times that it almost feels like, perhaps unintentional, satire. With some interesting things to say thematically about social inequality and the media, hopefully this is part of the writers intentions, and we’ll have to watch some more of the following 21 episodes to see if it lives up to this deeper potential. What is clear is that they intended to create a show that oozes cool, street smarts and above all fun – and whatever you think of Basquash!, it’s hard to disagree that they have, so far at least, succeeded.

The first thing about Shinji Aramaki‘s Viper’s Creed to grab my attention when scanning through last season’s schedules was that it is a mecha series that deals with life within a Blackwater style Private Military Company, or PMC. Set in the crumbling, flooded Fort Davia, a fictitious city attempting to rebuild itself after the devastation of global warming and a subsequent world war, it follows a squad of ‘Blademen’ – mecha pilots employed initially by Arqon Global Security (AGS) to defend the city from rogue, discarded automated weapons. However, as the plot unfolds events become far more complex, with the main characters finding themselves embroiled in conspiracy and the object of hatred from a dissatisfied public.

Not that you get even a hint of that from the first episode, which is nothing but pure action. The squad is sent out in their shiny, transforming bike-mechs to take down a BugMech, a rogue robot walking tank that’s speeding towards the crowded city. What we get as a result is 23 minutes of high octane CGI mech-fighting and colorful explosions while a wholly inexplicable and logically unnecessary gaggle of moe office girls – sorry, ‘operators’ – look on spouting similarly unnecessary encouragement and advice. Sadly the whole thing feels a little a studio not wanting to take to much of a risk of alienating it’s audience – as if it’s saying ‘yes, this might look a bit serious – but we have got pretty girls and big robots kicking the shit out of each other, honest. Oh, and here’s some big-breasted fan-service for you – in the opening credits.’ And it’s a message the show seems to be trying to get across quite a bit in the first few episodes.

Which is a shame, because even in these early shows there’s some quite interesting themes emerging. With the AGS troops facing not only the bug mechs but also terrorists, kidnappers and civilian protests at their activities, there’s obviously the potential here for what could be an interesting critique of the role insurgent facing US troops and PMCs play in Iraq and Afghanistan. For example, the squad run into trouble in episode 3 when they inadvertently kill some of the civilians they are trying to protect, causing a backlash from the already downtrodden public. But again there’s the feeling that, as the anime industry stares the cold, dark reality of Japan’s recession in the face, that producing studio Sony Pictures doesn’t want to take any risks, and that someone, somewhere, did everything they could to try and make this just another mecha drama.

Sadly, one of the places where this is most obvious is in Viper’s Creed visual style. While the automated, disposable BugMech’s have a believable, Shirow-like industrial design, the transforming ‘Maneuver Blades’ deployed by AGS look far less realistic, much more plastic and a little too much like they were drawn up with toy sales in mind. Similarly, the character designs are unimaginative and predictable, and the entire pallet of the show seems to feel a little too light and brash for a show with such a potentially dark subject matter. Too often it feels like the show, at some point in it’s development and production process, has been dumbed down from a tense political drama into yet another easily digestible shonen/teenage drama. For example, do we really need to see shots of our battle-hardened mercenaries boarding their mechs by running down corridors and sliding down pointless elaborate theme-park tubes like something out of Thunderbirds?

In all reasonableness, I may well be being too harsh on Viper’s Creed. The show has just finished it’s TV run in Japan, and I’ve still got eight episodes to catch up with, so it’s early days still. Normally I would probably have ditched this show by now, but there’s something about it that has me holding out hope. There is potential here. I was expecting something tenser, deeper and perhaps similar to early Patlabor in it’s merging of drama, mechs and corporate politics, and maybe, after a few weeks of settling in, the scripts can push it a little more in that direction. Depending on time and what delights the spring season has to other, I’m pretty sure I’ll be back to Viper’s Creed at some point to see if my hunch is right.

(Note: This is the third and final part of an ongoing review of RideBack. Read the first and second parts.)

As Japan’s winter anime season ends, so too does what was arguably it’s highlight: Atsushi Takahashi’s 12 part series RideBack. A refreshingly unique take on the teenage mecha genre, it’s merging of dark politics, ballet and reluctant heroes – while also rejecting anime standards such as fan service and obligitary romance – seemingly dividing fans and critics. It seems partly this was due to show’s gentile, graceful pace – a result perhaps of Takahashi’s Ghibli background, and his wish to never let the viewer forget his main protagonist’s ballerina past – and while it became the show’s trademark, it seems to have left some commentators craving a little more action, along with a quicker moving plot. It’s interesting then, that the director hasn’t shied away from this style, even in the concluding episodes of the show’s finale.

That’s not to say that some of the brutality shown in earlier episodes is absent. Earlier in the series we saw Rin’s kid brother tortured by the corrupt GGP regime, and in episode 10 this is surpassed when one of her friends is mistaken for her at a political rally, with devastating and fatal results. In many ways it’s here that the show is at it’s strongest – it’s depiction of Japan under the control of a global totalitarian authority is one of a seemingly normal and familiar society – until lines are crossed. What we are seeing here is a very 21st century dictatorship; hidden, friendly and nothing for you to worry about – as long as you stay in line. In many ways it feels like Takahashi is holding up modern day politics to us and asking us to face our own apathy towards those things we’d rather not bother ourselves with; civil rights infringements, surveilance, the news nedia and the questionable aspects of the war on terror.

If this is the show’s intention, then central character Rin Ogata is it’s purest embodiment. She never once shows an interest in politics – throughout the series her main motivation seemingly being to find something to replace dancing in her life, and even when ridebacks seem to fill this void she rejects them when the situations around her become too complex. Reluctant heroes are nothing new in anime – the unwitting, angst ridden teenage mecha pilot saving the world has been a standard archetype since Neon Genesis Evangelion, and perhaps even earlier – but Rin seems to take it even further. She rejects the role of symbolic figurehead to the protest movement and abhors violence and the use of RBs as weapons, getting involved in the action only when she sees her friends or family are being threatened. Even in the final episode – while resistance fighters and GGP forces clash elsewhere in what is by far the bloodiest battle of the series – Rin finds her own way of resisting, allowing her friends to escape as she defeats a squad of unmanned mechs using a series of ballet moves. It’s an unusual, but powerful and beautifully animated sequence, and while some fans have expressed disappointment at Rin’s lack of violence considering what she has endured at the hands of the GGP, it brings the show full-circle thematically, and fits Rin’s character perfectly and believably. She is, after all, a ballet dancer and not a terrorist. As she fights the unpiloted mechs on the ground where her friend was brutally killed, it feels like her actions are driven as much by self expression and a desire to not be made into something she is not, as they are by revenge or a quest for political justice.

It’s easy to understand why some viewers will feel disappointed though – while RideBack personally ticked key boxes for me, it’s mixture of political dissatisfaction and calm pacing reminding me in some ways of the first two Patlabor films – for others a more explosive ending would have felt more comfortable, more familiar. That aside, there’s still so much to recomend the show – along with it’s beautiful animation and it’s skillful use of both electronic and classical music, it features what is possibly the most accurate portrayal of computer hacking depicted in an anime show to date. It’s unclear whether there will be attempts to extend the franchise – while the GGP has been driven out of Japan, the rest of the world still lies in it’s grip – but in many ways it feels like Rin Ogata’s story is very much over, with the finale’s final frames showing us yet again, in amongst all the chaos and violence, what she really values the most.

(Note: This is the third and final part of an ongoing review of RideBack. Read the first and second parts.)

(Note: This is the second part of an ongoing review of RideBack. The first part can be read here and the final part here.)

If you read my review last month of the first three episodes of Atsushi Takahashi‘s teenage mecha series RideBack then you’ll remember that I was pretty impressed with it, especially it’s more mature take on what is quite an established genre. One element that intrigued me was the way the show’s political backdrop was being slowly introduced; news reports and media clips played out in the background, while it’s teenage protagonists seemed blissfully disinterested. Well, you can only ignore global totalitarian regimes – and the inevitable insurgents that spring up in reaction to them – for so long; both have a habit of making you pretty damn aware of them sooner rather than later. And usually not in a good way. It’s certainly fair to say this is true for ex-ballerina Rin Ogata and her college pals by episode 4, when they start to find it pretty hard to ignore those news reports – especially as they’re in some of them.

For a start, when Rin breaks through an army blockade on her RideBack to get her roommate out of a terrorist attack on a shopping mall, she doesn’t just grab the attention of the media, police and the GGP (the aforementioned, shadowy fascistic regime) but also the piqued interest of the so-called terrorists themselves. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg; despite pleas from club boss Tenshirō Okakura to keep her head low, things start to take a turn for the even more serious when her kid brother Kenji falls in with a gang of RideBack riders on an Akira style rampage, and she steps in to try and bail him out, not realising that the whole stunt has been a set-up to allow the GGP to publicly show off it’s new (distinctly Patlabor like) police RideBacks. It doesn’t end well, with her arrested and being forced to watch her brother being tortured by GGP secret police. With just that one brief scene, both the tone and focus of the show shifts permanently.

I won’t say too much more – I’m not here to give a you a blow by blow account of what happens in every episode or reveal spoilers – just to say that Rin gets busted out by some new allies, we learn some more about Okakura’s murky background, the GGP flexes it’s military muscle, and Rin decides to never ride a RB again. Well, presumably until another friend or family member is danger again in episode 10, at a guess. We also, unsurprisingly, get to see a lot more of the RideBack’s in action – including combat – as well as learning a little about the software and hardware that makes them work, and why young Rin has such a natural talent for riding the things. While the designs – like the initial premise of the show – seem a little outlandish at first, the way the RBs move and operate is fairly convincing, the whole concept of a mech balancing on two tyres and being controlled by its pilot shifting their weight might might seem harder to swallow if we weren’t all familiar with the sight of a Segway and its advanced balance control systems.

And that’s still RideBack’s biggest win: taking a typically unlikely anime premise and making it believable and compelling. If there’s one concern it’s where exactly does the plot go from here – its only just got into gear, and there’s only three more of it’s initial 12 episode run left. It seems that so much as been started that can’t be finished that quickly – or is Madhouse betting on the series being popular enough to get an extended run, a second series or an OVA? Time will tell. Check back in a few weeks when the season has ended and I’ll be sharing my final impression and concluding thoughts.

(Note: This is the second part of an ongoing review of RideBack. The first part can be read here.)

(Note: This is the second part of an ongoing review of RideBack. The first part can be read here and the final part here.)

There was a point, just a few minutes into the second half of the first episode of RideBack, when I finally decided that it was the first show I’d seen worth following this year. As the main protagonist races her fusion of motorcycle and mecha through her college campus, her skirt bellows in the wind and we hear a passer-by shout “I saw her panties!”. But we, the audience, see nothing. It’s a brief moment, but one that speaks volumes about the series’ intentions.

While almost any other mecha-and-girls anime would have have been rammed full of panty-shots fan service by this point in it’s opening episode, director Atsushi Takahashi‘s (whose impressive credits include assistant director on Spirited Away) decision to make it instead a joke at the audience’s expense hopefully shows a desire for turning what first appears quite obvious material into a witty, mature, intelligently written show.

Well, I say obvious material. To the blissfully uninitiated the story of a beautiful teenage ballet prodigy fighting a fascist state while riding a robot that transforms into a motorbike may sound ludicrous at first. Unfortunately, it could be considered a pretty formulaic, generic, box-ticking plot in today’s conservative, recession hit shonen anime industry.

Produced by Madhouse and adapted from the manga by Tetsurō Kasahara, RideBack is set in 2020 and tells the story of 19 year old Rin Ogata. The daughter of a famous ballerina, she was expected to follow in her mothers footsteps, but quit at the age of 16 due to a fractured foot, and instead enrolls in Musashino University. The first half of the first episode deals with the pretty but shy girl’s experiences on the first day of college, and comes across at first as pretty standard issue shōjo anime; Rin wants to just fit in with everyone, but to her embarrassment she keeps being recognised, and the unwanted attention seems to be causing some jealousy issues with her best friend and roommate. So far, so..well, slightly dull. But there’s something else going on – through cleverly and subtly shown TV news clips in the background, that none of the characters ever seem to be watching or care about, hints emerge of a possibly authoritarian global regime, and the actions of opposing ‘terrorists’.

As soon as we come back after the mid-way ad break things start to get really interesting. One day after classes Rin wanders into the University RideBack Club, where she encounters for the first time the eponymous class of mech, an interesting (and convincingly believable) robotic motorbike able to raise itself up on to 2 legs. Urged on by club member otaku-mechanic Haruki Hishida, she reluctantly agrees to take the RB for a spin – which quickly turns into the shows first brilliantly animated, frenetic, high speed action sequence. The sudden, quite extreme shift in pace grabs your attention instantly, but it’s Rin’s emotional response that draws you into the scene – her own surprise that she’s exhilarated rather than scared by the experience makes it clear to both her, and the viewer, that she may have finally found something to fill the hole left in her life by quitting the stage.

In fact, it turns outs as the episodes continue, that Rin has an almost prodigious talent as a RideBack pilot. Again, not much of a surprise to anyone who’s seen a teenage mecha drama before, but again the show portrays it in a convincing and subtle light – basically, due to her years of dance training, Rin’s sense of poise and balance enables her to override some of the mech’s automatic control systems, giving her a competitive edge. She’s soon recruited into the club by it’s two most senior members – RideBack racing champ Tamayo Kataoka and the older, moody Tenshirō Okakura, whom it would seem, through some very subtle indications, may possibly have links to the aforementioned ‘terrorist’ movement.

The animation throughout the show matches the quality of the script, with some bold character designs that play with established stereotypes, and backgrounds that make a nod towards Shinkai, but it’s the action and race scenes that really make an impact. They successfully and instantly convey a feeling of speed and flight, aided by a pounding electronic soundtrack, which although maybe a little acid-trance for my own tastes, certainly fits the on-screen action. The mecha designs are cool yet realistic looking, with the CGI used to animate them again subtle and convincing, thankfully. It seems that both budget constraints and industry fashion dictate now that it will be very rare to see hand drawn mecha again in a modern anime project – in itself not necessary a problem if the integration of CGI and 2D art is done well enough, and while still noticeable, it largely is here. At least it works much better than many recent examples, such as last years’ slightly dismal looking Blassreiter.

At just 3 episodes in of a planned 12, it’s still relatively early days for RideBack. It seems to have got the necessary charcter introductions out of the way in a pleasingly subtle manner, and already started to hint at some darker, deeper plot arcs. It’s up to the production team to keep up the momentum now, and prove that the show can develop into a mature and memorable take on an established genre. I’m certainly going to be keeping an eye it for the next few months and letting you know what I think, so stay tuned for more.

(Note: This is the first part of an ongoing review of RideBack. The second part can be read here.)

Here we go – the final set of art books I picked up in Tokyo, and by far my favourite purchases from there.

Patlabor has been my mecha franchise of choice ever since I first saw Oshii‘s beautifully paced, politically complex movies, and when I stumbled across this Patlabor 3D Show book in Mandarake Complex I started to silently freak out. It wasn’t until I got it back to the apartment and looked at it properly that I realised it was actually the third of a three volume set, and it suddenly became my primary mission to see if I could track down the other two volumes. I didn’t hold up much hope, considering their age (they were first published between 1990-1993, and were now all out of print), but I shouldn’t have bet against Mandarake Shibuya and their huge achieve of second hand stock.

All three were special editions published by the famous model enthusiasts’ magazine Hobby Japan, and feature dioramas depicting scenes from the films, TV series and manga, built from then widely available (but at times heavily modified) commercial model kits. What makes them special is not just the quality of the kits’ assembly and paint jobs, but also the fantastic photography that’s been employed to capture them. It’s clear that some of Hobby Japan’s best staff have been involved in putting all three volumes together.

While the third volume is in a slightly larger, more expensive feeling, format and is made up almost entirely of photographs, the first two also have extensive articles on modeling/painting tips and instructions for specific kits. Although all of the text is in Japanese, there another diagrams and images to make these books useful to Patlabor fans or mecha kit hobbyists in general.

The fourth book I picked up is more conventional; the This is Animation Patlabor 2: The Movie design book. Entirely printed in black and white, it’s 128 pages of character sketches and designs for everything in the film from weapons and equipment through civilian vehicles up to the labor mechs themselves.

Of particular note are the dozens of pages of storyboards and concept artwork from the film, making this yet another fascinating read for Headgear and Oshii fans, with enough material to ensure hours of fanboy-glee pouring over them. In fact I’ve just decided: I’m going to stop writing this right now and go and pend some quality time with all four of these beautiful books.

• Too many good images to upload here, so go and check out the high-res slideshow over on Flickr.