GetBackers Vol 1: G & B on the Case
Synopsis
Everyone knows the feeling. Returning to find your home broken into. Your possessions thrown around. Dresser drawers ransacked. Everything you own having the unmistakable feel of a stranger’s fingers on them. The only thing worse than that is what isn’t there: The thing that once belonged to you that has been taken by creeps.
But now is not the time to despair. There is no time for anger. There is only time to call Ban and Ginji. They’re the GetBackers, and they live by a simple motto: “If it was taken, we’ll get it back.” No one will be refused. (At least not until that huge tab they’ve run up gets paid off!)
Prepare to meet your new heroes. The guys who will restore order where there is only chaos and justice where crime has run free.
They’re the Getbackers. They’re one phone call away, and they’re ready to take your case!
Review
“If it was stolen from you… don’t get mad… get it back!” is the slogan of GetBackers, and it manages to summarize the plot of the series perfectly. Of course, GetBackers is more a series of thrills, action, fanservice, and of course, the incomparable Ban Midou than it is of story, so who cares?
The first disc starts out with a few random cases for the GetBackers. The duo of Ban and Ginji, our heroes, work as professional GetBackers; people that (for a price) retrieve items that have been stolen from you. Due to some rather bad luck though, it seems that every case they take on results in both an abundance of trouble and a scarcity of cash.
This doesn’t phase our heroes though, as they aren’t your everyday muscle for hire. Ginji is a human battery, capable of dishing out heaping amounts of electricity upon his enemies. Ban Midou has the Snake Bite, his vise like grip which is capable of 200 kilograms of force. Alongside the Snake Bite, Ban also possesses the mysterious power of the Jagan, an eye technique he uses with devastating results.
Needless to say, returning a stolen Cat Trinket from a dirty cop and allowing an old man to see his daughter one last time prove to be easy, although somewhat complicated, work for people as talented as Ban and Ginji.
However, the third case is the first in which Ban and Ginji get to compete against fighters at their own level; and this is where the real meat of GetBackers kicks in. GetBackers is at it’s heart all about the fights. And With colorful villains like Kurodo “Dr Jackal” Akabane gracing it, there is no wonder why. Each fight scene is loaded with cool techniques, dramatic dialogues, and even a heaping dose of comedy.
The pacing of the show is another key element which makes GetBackers an entertaining watch. The series never takes itself too seriously, which keeps it from ever getting bogged down. Instead, it knows what it is and knows what it wants to do: make us laugh with some first rate comedy, and make us sit at the edge of our seat during each and every fight. This all comes together to make GetBackers a top notch ride.
The Breakdown
Overall story or not, GetBackers is a hell of a ride. From comedy to action, and even snippets of drama from time to time, GetBackers is a series that I would recommend to any action series fan looking to burn a few hours lost in a fun show.