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Synopsis
Explore the world of otaku, the devoted fans of Japanese animation. Since the introduction of Speed Racer to the U.S., these men, women and children have built a community based on their common love for this uniquely imaginative medium. Through conventions, fan clubs, online forums, and more, they have expanded otaku fandom into a highly popular cultural phenomenon.
Otaku Unite! is the first documentary to follow the evolution of this phenomenon from its humble beginnings to its current state as a major influence of pop culture today.

Review
What is an Otaku? The term otaku in my terms represents a person who is a complete zealot of anime and manga. They would travel around the world just to attend an anime convention or in an even extremer case, make it a habit to spend hours boiling DVDs or comics. In a sense, if you are reading this, you have a bit of otaku you in. I have some in me. And even though the Japanese do not interpret the term otaku as something one should take pride in, we as Americans have evolved the word to our likings. And this documentary here, is just the right show for your curiosity if you have ever wondered to yourself how Japanese animation got so big in a country where Superman, Batman and Spiderman ruled the land.

Otaku Unite, other than a pretty self-explanatory title, digs into anime and how it has changed so much in a decade. I do not know about you… I am not old, but even I still remember the days of anime on copied VHS tapes and the means of distribution was through friends. I liked how this documentary went into this fact. It brought me some fond memories of those days begging to borrow an anime video, and those urges for more. Anime is like crack in a way, but worst. Why would I say that? Well, think of it this way. Crack addicts can go through rehab and all, but where do anime addicts go? Once you are in this community, you are a member for life. Best example I can give is myself. I was an anime fan since I was born. Then there was a time in my life where I have not watched any anime at all for at least a good seven to eight years. Talk about cold turkey. Anyways, somehow this form of art, crept back into my life and ever since I do not feel like what had happened earlier in my life would ever repeat itself again.

This DVD is truly great. It features interviews from various guests that have taken some part or another in the growth of this hobby. For an example, the creator of the infamous anime web links directories webpage, Anipike.com; if you do not know what that website is, take that otaku tag off and go home please. This documentary ventures into the beginning, the days of Robotech and Speed Racer. The information this title delivers is great. For those who just got into this hobby, you are now able to learn a part of why anime has taken such a big leap from small fry to big man on campus all on one DVD.

The Breakdown
Otaku Unite is a fun filled documentary from coverage in Kaiju wrestling to following an anime otaku around to various conventions. I do not know if it was on purpose, but finding an absolute nerd like guy to follow around in anime conventions was a bit… umm… stereotypical. I mean, that guy represents almost every single anime extremist stereotype there is, if he did not fill a certain stereotype, another fan who was interviewed did. I really do not see this as a negative, but in the end, this documentary refreshed me, and it gave me a new perspective to view anime in general. There is more to it than just buying DVDs. Anime is life. It changes on a constant pace. To look back at this hobby and reminisce its growth overtime is astonishing and I thank Central Park Media for bringing us Otaku Unite! Yay!

Cherry Blossoms (sakura)

Cherry blossoms are used extensively in the anime world. These trees are classified under the family Rosaceae and grow wildly in the mountainous regions of Japan. These species of cherry trees are appreciated more for the beauty of their blossoms rather than other cherry blossoms used for their fruit. The wood can be used to make furniture and carvings. The form and color of the blossoms have long symbolized traditional values of Japanese purity and simplicity. Because it flowers briefly then scatters, they have also come to symbolize the ephemeral nature of beauty.  

Historically in the Helian period, 794-1185 AD, cherry blossom flower viewing parties (hanami) were popular among the aristocracy and by the Edo period, early 17th century, the custom spread to the common people. Today, picnicking and drinking with friends and family beneath the flowering cherry blossoms remains a popular rite of springtime in Japan.

Sakura is the most common Japanese female character’s name. The most beloved is the Sakura from Card Captor Sakura/Tsubasa Chronicles. With the growing popularity of Naruto in the United States, the second Sakura to come to mind is pink-haired and has a complex over Sasuke. She becomes much stronger and useful post-time jump. There’s also the sword wielding Sakura from Sakura Wars (Sakura Taisen), the short and blond Sakura from Da Capo, the purple haired Sakura from Fate/Stay Night, and even Sakura from Street Fighter Alpha.     

(’cherry, flowering’ & ‘hanami’ Japan an Illustrated Encyclopedia. 1993)  

(All info is currently from the Japanese R2 release)
Tenchi Muyo! GXP has concluded its 26 episode run on Japanese television and has a current DVD release date of Jan. 2004.. Set one year after the conclusion of the Tenchi Muyo OVA series, the show follows a young man named Seina Yamada who, at the age of 15, applies to join the Galaxy Police after a series of bizarre coincidences. None of the original Tenchi Muyo! cast will star in the series (not even Mihoshi and Kiyone), but there are some cameos. New characters in the GXP series include Mihoshi’s mother and a pair of Galaxy Police officers.

http://www.tenchimuyogxp.com/ - U.S. Official Site

http://www.tenchi-web.com/ - Japanese Official Site

Japanese Staff/Cast:
Director: Shinichi Watanabe
Cast: Shigeru Mogi (Seinen Yamada), Mariko Suzuki (Amane Kaunaq), Sakuma Kumi (Kuriko Masaki), Yuko Mizutani (Mitoto Kuramitsu), Aya Hisakawa (Ryoko Balouta)

Release Information:
Running Time: 95 mins.
DVD Video
Color
Layers: single-sided/dual-layered
Aspect Ratio(s): 4:3
Regional Encoding: 2
NTSC Format
Japanese/Linear PCM/Stereo

Thoughts:

Alpha:
Tenchi GXP is strictly for fans who have questioned, ‘What has happened to the Tenchi series?’ Shin Tenchi (Tenchi in Tokyo) was not a success and the series has deteriorated over time since the original Tenchi Muyo OAV. Tenchi Muyo was entertaining and it attracted as much fans as it did as a result. There are Tenchi zealots… but then again, there are always zealots for everything heh. So let us go to my views on this new installment of Tenchi Muyo, Tenchi GXP.

First of all, Tenchi Masaki is no longer the main character. Second of all, if you are looking forward to watch all the wackiness of Ryoko, Ayeka and crew, pass on, as they only make guest appearances here and there. And third of all, GXP could be considered if not a side story of Tenchi Muyo. The thing that catches my eyes of course is the animation quality, character etc. All the visuals, duh! I did say eyes hehe. But seriously, I believe GXP has a lot of potentials to be a great series in the states. Why? Well, considering the Tenchi fan base we have in the United States and the amount of anticipation this series has given me thus far.

I believe most fans have already questioned why, FUNimation picked up this title as to why Pioneer Animation did not pick this title up seeing that they have been releasing the Tenchi saga in the states. To tell you the truth, I would prefer Pioneer Animation over FUNimation in releasing Tenchi GXP. If you are wondering why I prefer Pioneer Animation… well only because I own more of their products than FUNimation :). FUNimation is not bad, do not get me wrong, I am sure Kiddy Grade will be a heck of a title and I sure as hell will be looking forward to that too!

Dark Wind:
Tenchi Muyo! GXP is the latest anime series in the Tenchi universe. It’s not the coming 3rd OVA though, Tenchi GXP is simply a side story involving characters related to the main Tenchi cast. If you want to see characters like Ryoko, Ayeka, and Tenchi, don’t count on it, as they only make cameo appearances here. I’ve read that this show isn’t even able to keep the humor of the excellent Tenchi Muyo! and Tenchi Universe anime series, and is much like the poor Tenchi in Tokyo.

What I’ve heard of so far disappoints me, and even more disappointing is that FUNimation picked up the license for US release. While they are a great company, I would have liked Pioneer, who has released everything else Tenchi so far in the US, and know how to treat such a great license. I’ll be waiting for this on TV, probably Cartoon Network, but I’m not in anticipation. I’ll hold off on getting excited about Tenchi until the Tenchi 3rd OVA comes out in September in Japan.

Piro^kun:
Seina Yamada has the worst luck in the galaxy. He brings it upon himself, family and friends anywhere he goes. But he must have something good going for him. Thinking Seina to be like the next Tenchi Muyo (because he attends the same school), Kaunaq of the Galaxy Police pays an visit to Seina and asks, “Wanna join us?”.

Is it destiny or just mistaken identity? If all goes well for Seina he just may end up being the most eligible bachelor in the galaxy. I really like the look of this. It reminds me more of the original Tenchi OVA, and helps to get rid of the nasty aftertaste of Tenchi in Tokyo. Maybe, I’m biased by my love for the Tenchi series as a whole, but I’m really looking forward to this!

 
Stikz:
I’m the biggest fan of the Tenchi Muyo OAV series. But, I’ve only been a partial fan of the spin-offs. This one doesn’t even have anyone from the core cast of the original. But after reading about GXP and watching the trailer. My opinion is changing on this one and my thumbs are starting to turn up. I will check this one out, if you’re a Tenchi fan then I believe you should too.

Oh, and I shouldn’t even have to tell you to pick up Tenchi Muyo OAV 3 later this year.

 
Alpha: What do you think of this edition of The Watcher? Comments? Suggestions? E-mail us!

 
Tenchi Muyo! GPX Screen Caps:

http://www.samurai7.tv/ - U.S. Official Site

http://www.samurai-7.com/index.html - Japanese Official Site

Licensed by Funimation
Animated by Gonzo

DVD release date 08-23-2005

Cast
Romi Paku as Katsushiro Okamoto (Dragon Drive as Oozora Reiji, Fullmetal Alchemist as Edward Elric)
Shinichiro Miki as Kyuzo (hack//SIGN as Crim, Bleach as Urahara Kisuke, Initial D as Takumi Fujiwara)
Fumiko Orikasa as Kirara Mikumari (Bleach as Kuchiki Rukia, Saikano as Chise)
Takehito Koyasu as Ukyo (Initial D as Takahashi Ryousuke, Excel Saga as Ilpalazzo-sama, Mahoromatic as Ryuga-sensei)

Credit to ANN for the staff list.

Thoughts:

Stikz: You know I’m a sucker for Gonzo releases and I’m also a sucker for samurai titles. Samurai 7 has both of those in check, so off we go with my initial impressions. So I go to the site and check out the trailer. What’s this I see? an onslaught of mechs and explosions? Exactly…not what I was expecting. None the less it was beautiful and after seeing countless samurai shows focusing on the Edo period and those fundamentals I guess the surprise of this vision was perplexing but also interesting.

One of the areas I focus on is the character design. Every character is drawn with just that, character. Before they even speak they have tons of personality. As the trailer seems to focus on more traditional settings, I start to get a feel for it. The action looks great and wonderfully animated. The music heard so far is pretty run of the mill. It’s not bad, just something you’ve heard countless times in the genre. So even with the questionable choice to merge mechs and samurai together, I am very interested in seeing this. Just for the simple fact that the characters look interesting. FUNimation picked up the license for an U.S. release. They really are shaping up to be a company to reckon with with their recent releases.

hinatasou:
In honor of the 50th anniversary (last year, 2004) of Akira Kurosawa’s masterpiece Shichinin no Samurai (Seven Samurai, 1954), Gonzo has produced the 26 episode anime series Samurai 7. The original film, starring Toshiro Mifune, is among the top ten best Japanese films of all time. It was a breakthrough in Japanese cinematography with its magnificent large-scale battle scenes. Samurai 7 recreates Kurosawa’s jidaigeki epic (dating to Edo period: 1600-1868) of an embattled farm village that hires a disparate group of seven unemployed samurai to protect it from bandits, who have taken both their rice and their wives. The anime sets in a future feudal period where the armaments of warfare are giant mechanical machines, laser cannons and rifles, machine guns, and of course the weapon of choice - swords. Scenery varies from floating battleships, elaborate palaces and daimyos (castles), and the rural fields of the countryside, to the scorching desert, underwater caves and pathways, and the mercantile slums of the city. Knowing Gonzo (the makers of Last Exile), expect to see spectacular 3D animation. Like the original movie, I forewarn you that main characters die. The opening theme by Nanase Aikawa is called Unlimited; a fitting title for the anime has limitless possibilities. The ending theme entitled Fuhen is oriental.

Piro^kun:
Now that Chrno Crusade has ended, here comes another sweet looking anime from Gonzo. Samurai 7 is based on Akira Kurosawa’s most fantastic movie, The Seven Samurai.

Far distant future, on a planet that might have been called ‘earth’, there was a war between samurai who mechanized their bodies. After the long war, people have returned a modest peace.

Now people in Kanna Village are suffering from the Nobuseri, who are the ruined samurai. After the war ended, they lost their purpose for fighting, and they’ve been robbing the village of their crops and women. Because they don’t have any way to fight against them, the villagers have to obey Nobureri’s order.

One year, before harvest season, Gisaku, the head of the village, proposes that they will hire samurai to protect them from Nobuseri.
Riki, who is a young boy full of energy, along with Kirara and Komachi, twin priestesses, go to a town to look for samurai to help them.

For me, just for being made by Gonzo I expect it be at least good and the story sounds like an interesting interpretation of the original story. I for one am going to check it out as soon as possible.

Dark Wind:
To be honest, I don’t know much about Samurai 7. From what I’ve read and from trailers I’ve seen, it looks awesome. It is animated by GONZO, so that’s to be expected. Apparently, they dropped an enormous amount of money into the project, and it certainly shows. The music also sounds pretty good, and if it stays consistent in the actual show than I think I will be buying the soundtrack. I’m really just hoping to be pleasantly surprised by this one as it’s released. It’s loosely based on Akira Kurosawa’s classic film, Seven Samurai. I say “loosely” because there are mechs and flying ships and guns in Samurai 7, which were not there in Seven Samurai. It sounds like an intriguing twist to me, and so long as the story is well-developed and the characters interesting, then I think this is one to watch out for.

Samurai 7 Screen Caps: