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KYOTO VIDEO Quarterly Report (Nov. – Jan.)
Published: November 1st 2019, 2:25:07 pm
2019 is winding down and we will soon enter a decade full of mystery and the unknown. This up-coming holiday season will provide us with a much-needed respite before we have to confront time inching slowly forward as our collective youth drains from us with each passing millisecond. This certainly has nothing to do with the fact that I turn 30 next year. No sir!
Anyway, while you grapple with your own mortality whilst eating turkey or sipping eggnog, why not check out the latest episode of KYOTO VIDEO that are on the way!
November 14th – Armitage III
We’re not done with 90s cyberpunk just yet! We’ll be looking at the forgotten classic Armitage III, a story about a grizzled cop and his new partner, a cute young lady by the name of Naomi Armitage, investigating a murder and uncovering a conspiracy involving the Martian government, feminism and the last country singer in the Universe. Learn about the OVA’s themes, its story and its shockingly complex and fraught localization brought on by a company trying to make it the next Ghost in the Shell.
November 28th – Desert Rose
An obscure gem of an OVA that was overshadowed by the likes of Gunsmith Cats and Burn Up!, Desert Rose tells the story of the fabulously wealthy Rose Marie who uses her vast wealth to establish and lead an anti-terrorist task force consisting and other beautiful women. And while we could end up discussing whether or not this anime endorses the practice of PMCs, we may also talk about hard hitting facts like Irene being best girl!
December 13th – Sherlock Hound
In the early 80s, a specter was haunting Europe and that specter was anime! Many joint productions between Japan and Europe created some great all-time classic children’s anime but none so good as Sherlock Hound! Taking Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s work into a world of dogs was something that only the brilliant minds at TMS could deliver and they did with flying colors. We’ll talk about Hayao Miyazaki’s contributions, how Mrs. Hudson is a boss-ass bitch and how the anime was tragically cut short thanks to copyright bullshit.
December 27th – Angels Egg
We finish of 2019 with a trip into surreal with unconventional and nigh-inaccessible Angels’ Egg. Being what some people call “arthouse anime,” Angels Egg was an anime that pushed the boundaries further than any anime was doing in the OVA era. This slow-paced, cryptic and extremely symbolic anime is anime that is begging for a deep examination and I plan on giving it just that. Plus, we might also talk about how this anime nearly ended Mamoru Oshii’s career as director.
January 10th – Dirty Pair: Project Eden
Let’s ring in the new decade by checking back in with our favorite pair, the Lovely Angels. We’ll be taking a look the Angels’ first true starring role with Dirty Pair: Project Eden. It’s well animated, reeking with 80s anime energy and some even say it’s the best starting point for any new Dirty Pair fan. However, it’s plot and characterization have been a point of contention for some fans of the Lovely Angels. So we have to ask: is it really the best starting point when it’s also considered the weakest of the franchise’s output?
January 24th – Giant Robo
We celebrate Kyoto Video’s 2nd Anniversary by taking a long look at Giant Robo. An ambitious , operatic epic of momentous size that spanned the course of six years, this anime was designed specifically as tribute to legendary manga-ka, Mitsuteru Yokoyama. Given the scale of this production, we’ll be taking no half-measures in our analysis of it. We’ll discuss Giant Robo’s style, it’s themes and how it drew inspiration from multiple sources such as German literature, Chinese folklore and Hong Kong action cinema.
That's all for now!
Thank you all for donating! And hopefully KYOTO VIDEO will continue on into 2020 and beyond! Plus, keep your eyes out for some new projects on the horizon! Stay tuned!