[DerMensch24]

Megazone 23

Synopsis (Courtesy of MAL):
Spoiler (Click to View)Shougo Yahagi is a young motorcycle enthusiast living in a world of hot bikes, hard rock, and J-pop idols. The general populace go about their lives in peace, under the watchful eyes of a computer program in the guise of pop idol sensation Eve, unbeknownst to them. Shougo himself is mostly concerned with riding his motorcycle and picking up beautiful women like Yui Takanaka, who aspires to be a dancer.

Shougo's life suddenly changes when his friend, Shinji Nakagawa, shows him a top-secret project: the "Garland," an advanced motorcycle that can transform into a robot. Ambushed by the military, Shougo hijacks the Garland and escapes into the city. Evading the military with the help of Yui and her friends, he gradually discovers that their idyllic society is only an illusion.

Eps: 4 (OVA)
Studio(s): Artland, AIC, Artmic
Aired: Mar 9, 1985 - Dec 22, 1989
Genre(s): Action, Sci-Fi, Music, Mystery, Romance, Mecha
Source: https://myanimelist.net/anime/1935/Megazone_23
Sub/Dub: Both exist and are alright, what you'd expect for your average 80s cast

Trailer (you have to admit this is a pretty badass trailer):
Spoiler (Click to View)

Megazone 23 (pronounced "2" "3" instead of "23," idky just how it is) is an interesting case in anime. Over the span of 4-5 years, 3 studios and 4 different directors created 4 OVAs that attempted to encompass an entire plot line. As expected however, the visions, storytelling, cast, and direction of each OVA is related yet very different from its previous version. So I will try to administer critique based on each OVA in regards to those general topics, which essentially were broken down into Ep 1, Ep 2, and Ep 3-4.

The art for all four OVAs were done decently for an 80s anime. There are times where you can see poor transitions or hard sketching, however it remains fluid throughout. One of the highlights for this OVA series however is the nice blend of J-rock/pop with the soundtrack. While some 80s anime did include similar techniques in regards to implementing these genres, the OVAs do an excellent job applying them to the story and mood of the anime.

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Ep 1
This one is probably the best known one of the series, and probably the best of the four unfortunately rather than progressing into a better series, however that is to be expected with different directors. Directed by Noboru Ishiguro (LOGH, Space Battleship Yamato, Macross), Ep 1 really set the bar for this series however; it literally gave 0 shits about what was happening as long as it was being badass, that's really all there was to it. The plot centered on being a hot-headed punk youth giving the finger to the system, however it added the right twists and necessary plot devices to progress the film so it was not entirely blind-action.

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Ep 2
Here is where we start to diverge however. The character designs and names were generally changed, as well as the direction began to shift. This ep tries to expand upon the backstory that we are introduced to into the first ep, however it does seem to be a rather semi-lackluster ending. Nevertheless, the action still maintained itself throughout this ep.

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Ep 3-4
At this point in the OVA, we finally jump over the cliff. The story advances itself thousands of years into the future, and an entire new cast of characters, setting, and plot is introduced. Essentially Ep 1-2 become the "parent story" for this arc of the OVAs, where some prior knowledge is good but no longer a key component as it is entirely its own being now. The ending also seems somewhat vague and rushed as well.

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Nevertheless, while odd as it is Megazone 23 is still a decent watch. I do recommend this to anyone who is a fan of sci-fi, mecha, or 80s anime. I can at least guarantee that if you watch ep 1 you will have enjoyed a decent piece of anime ;)

[oscast]

Albeit it aired in '85 the trailer is really dope.

[DerMensch24]

Albeit it aired in '85 the trailer is really dope.

Ye, pretty much the trailer and Ep 1 will probably be the only two things anyone would watch from this series. Overall it wasn't too bad but it didn't reach its potential.

[oscast]

Ye, pretty much the trailer and Ep 1 will probably be the only two things anyone would watch from this series. Overall it wasn't too bad but it didn't reach its potential.

Now that I watch a little more closely I see the voice acting and lips don't sync up at all

[DerMensch24]

Now that I watch a little more closely I see the voice acting and lips don't sync up at all

Could be part of the trailer, but I wouldn't be surprised. The quality does slack a bit the further in, however overall its still a decent watch.