Hey there,
So I've just finished watching the first OVA again, and there's that feeling again.
I don't know how to explain it. You know when you watch a film / TV show, or experience a story and it leaves you speechless, like in a daydream. How you are just silent in pure awe? Well, this anime did it to me yet again.
My thoughts are going to be more like a ramble, but I'll try and keep it short. This anime is still great. It's not perfect, but great.
I'll go through the negatives first - the dialog in this anime (the English dub) is just terrible. Not to be confused with the voice acting. The voices for all the characters are perfect, and these guys do the absolute best with the script they've got.
But the writers and translators put in some truly awful dialog to help keep the voices lip synched. Every episode, you see characters repeating phrases and plotpoints, because they can't think of anything original to fill in the lip movements in places. You also get awkward pauses between sentences because of this. One such inconsistency is how Miz mentions to Fujisawa about the pair of them having a wedding, for which Fujisawa thinks little of her words. She mentions them marrying at least one other time and there is no reaction from him. Despite this, when she's in her bed recovering with Fujisawa by her side, mentioning the two of them getting married suddenly causes him to go ape. It's clear this is an inconsistency brought about due to the translators either having a hard time writing a script, or being liberal with changes, which made such affects as this.
The story does sort of drag down at around the middle. The 4th episode, where they're awakening Ifurita, is by far the most boring part for me. It's still good, but I just can't help but feel it drags on a bit.
But then, towards the end, everything goes at breakneck speed. Too fast perhaps. I was expecting them to keep the intensity going a little long i.e. when the bugrum have almost conquered all of El Hazard. But maybe it's better if they leave the audience wanting more.
Final thing; is it me, or does the animation and detail take a hit at the latter half of the ova? The first episode looks absolutely beautiful, but as the series goes on, the animation gets choppier, the detail loosens, and they just seem to be cutting corners.
Well, that's about it. That's the only negatives I can think of with this anime right now.
As for the great things, where to begin.
The story is just fantastic. It can't be appreciated until watching the final episode, where certain things come together i.e. the motivations behind the shadow clan, how Ifurita suddenly becomes a nice persona, and of course, explaining the casual time loop and how the earthlings got to El Hazard in the first place.
As an aspiring writer myself, I really understand and celebrate how very well the plot of this anime is put together. It's complex, but not to the point of being overbearing to the audience, where they can't understand what's going on.
The characters are so well defined here. Their character traits, although somewhat typical, are presented so fantastically. Fujisawa dropping his alcohol and crying "don't blame me, I'm just weak", how Miz constantly goes on about the wedding. Ifurita is the best example. If you really study this story, her character is barely fleshed out at all (not surprising as a robot), and yet, damnit this anime finds a way to make you relate and feel for her with so little. And that's really it. This entire anime seems to achieve a level greater than the sum of its parts in many ways.
I like how it sets things up for the sequel. The shadow clan vow to be back, and Jinnai maintains his ambitions to become the world ruler. Such a pity the OVA2 doesn't take advantage of this, and just creates some terrible fanservicy sequel for those who loved Ifurita.
Despite what I said about the animation taking a hit, this anime is still beautiful. El Hazard is the kind of place one dreams of experiencing. I think I mentioned in a very old post, but I found out about this anime from a 1995 issue of Anime FX. I remember seeing screenshots and being mesmerised with how beautiful and fantastical this anime looked. 20 years later now, and nothing has changed. This anime, during its best moments, is like a dream.
The main music themes are still beautiful. It's a shame the OST is inconsistent though. Some great tracks mixed with a number of forgettable ones.
I still love this anime. I also really liked the alternate world, despite the various anomalies. I guess I'll watch OVA 2 now. I remember being really disappointed with that one. Whilst I'm blown away by this first OVA, it also makes my heart sink how this series' fate went the way it did. If only they'd have jumped straight to the Alternate World as OVA2 (but had written it more coherently), and then created a third OVA to finally explain how Makoto found his way back to Ifurita.
One final thing. I don't know about you Mr Icy EyeG, but I'm a huge video gamer, and I suddenly realise my love of certain games comes from my love of El Hazard. For instance, some of my favourite story driven games include Final Fantasy XII and Nier; the former of which in particular has that Arabian Nights quality sprinkled with Japan's unique influences.
I own El Hazard a lot. It introduced me to anime which in turn caused me to move to Japan many years later.
That would be a good thing, but I think you mean it has been forgotten due to the huge variety of new Anime that comes out, right? Also I would imagine that the popular Anime genres and styles changed in the last decade, and El-Hazard doesn't fit those anymore.
Well, it's a good and bad thing. For instance, there are anime shows out there that aren't around anymore, but still get frequent praise. Evangelion or Cowboy Beebop for instance. They don't make anymore episodes of those, but they're still vividly remembered by many, and continue to be watched by newer generations. El Hazard, sadly, falls into the category of those that are truly forgotten, and not even mentioned in passing.
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