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KYOTO VIDEO Quarterly Report (Aug. – Oct.)

Published: August 1st 2019, 4:01:46 am

It’s the dog days of summer and I, like many of you, cannot wait for fall to come around so I can start wearing flannel in comfort again. These days are best spent inside watching videos about anime, specifically my videos about anime. And luckily for you fine folks, we got ourselves a diverse slate coming up filled with cute 80s waifus, integrated CGI and one legendary horror icon!

Here's what Kyoto Video has in store for you!

Dream Hunter Rem – 8/15/2019

First, we’ll kick things off by falling back into the 80s where the OVA market was just emerging as the juggernaut it would be for the rest of the decade. One of these first OVAs was Dream Hunter Rem. Beginning as just a simple hentai OVA, it unexpectedly found mainstream success as a legit property. Telling the story of Rem Ayanokōji, the titular “dream hunter” who enters peoples’ dreams and fights the nightmare-causing demons within, Dream Hunter Rem is a gorgeous OVA that seamlessly blends elements of mystery, horror, science fiction and magical girl into one whole. So check out this video if you want to learn about this strange little OVA that surprisingly still has some legs to in Japan, even today.

Usagi-chan de Cue!! – 8/29/2019

We’ve discussed a lot of “violent” trash anime in this series that we’ve completely neglected its sister genre, the “sexy” trash anime. Luckily for me, it’s the kind of sexy trash I like! The simple story of a big-breasted delinquent girl who gets possessed by the spirit of a rabbit and turns her into blonde bimbo bunny, Usagi-Chan de Cue!! is an anime that wears the title of “guilty pleasure” proudly on its sleeve. It’s an anime that’s just as dumb as its own protagonist, but there may or may not be merit beneath all the bouncing breasts. Leave your cultural tastes at the door. You won’t be needing it.

Blue Submarine No. 6 – 9/12/2019

In 1998, an ambitious studio by the name of Gonzo made their mark on the anime world with the OVA Blue Submarine No. 6, a post-apocalyptic anime animated in then-revolutionary hybrid approach by combining traditional digital animation with 3D computer animation. Now, it’s only remembered as that “submarine anime that aired on Toonami that one time.” It would stand to reason that the animation of Blue Submarine No. 6 would look incredibly dated now thanks to the march of technology. Is there any value beyond the PS1-FMV-style horizon or does this anime need to sink below the lovingly-rendered waves?

A Wind Named Amnesia – 9/26/2019

Author Hideyuki Kikuchi is mostly known for his works in the genre of horror and fantasy. However, he did write a science-fiction book that dealt with some pretty cerebral and philosophical subject matter. Couple years later, his friends at Madhouse would later make it into a film titled A Wind Named Amnesia. Telling the story of Earth being a reduced to a wasteland thanks to a mysterious wind that wiped away everyone’s memories, A Wind Named Amnesia is anime film that carries with it a mixed legacy. Some have called it creative and thought-provoking. Others have called it pretentious drivel. And I guess I’ll be adding to that legacy. I can tell those Philoshphy 101 classes are gonna finally pay off!

The Curse of Kazuo Umezu – 10/14/2019

When people talk about Japanese horror icons, they usually talk about Junji Ito. But what most people don’t know is that Junji Ito would not be around if it wasn’t for the works of one Kazuo Umezu. Kyoto Video kicks off the Halloween season by venturing into the life of an influential horror manga-ka and quite possibly his only foray into the field of anime with The Curse of Kazuo Umezu. Is the anime just as scary as the man’s manga? Or will the obviously low-budget make this anime seem more silly than spooky? 

Genocyber – 10/28/2019

Halloween will continue to roll on with a video devoted to one of the most controversial, most horrifying and most violent-as-all-get-out anime of the 90s. Picking up where we left off with our friend Koichi Ohata, Genocyber is a dark, nihilistic cyberpunk anime revolving around a young psychic girl who also happens to be a destructive bio-weapon. It’s an anime that lives in infamy alongside such peers as Angel Cop and Mad Bull 34. However, there have been some otherwise-credible anime critics that say there is some deeper meaning to it beyond the schlock and the angst. Is that true? We’ll just have to wait and see. Be careful, there will be intestines strewn all about this OVA. 

And that’s all for now! 

Once again, thanks to all you Patrons for donating. You really help me out and help keep this channel chugging along. Stick around because next quarterly report will promise even bigger and better videos in the future!