I'm not a fan of Star Wars, Star Trek, Transformers, Video Games, Sports, Power Rangers, or even Anime. Yet, I get questions about all of those subjects all of the time.
I should clarify, though, that while it is easy to not be a fan of something as specific as Star Wars, Anime is a difficult thing to not like entirely. Truth is...I do like an anime...but in it's state of neglect and inactivity, it's just easier to say that I don't like anime.
If you follow me on Twitter, you probably have picked up on my recent rediscovery of the hilarious show called "City Hunter". It has been nearly six years since the last time I breezed through all 140 episodes from the four series produced (City Hunter, City Hunter 2, City Hunter 3, and City Hunter '91). This recent revival in interest really stems from two things. First, because I finally have some free time to watch stuff again. Second, because last month a new Korean Drama called "City Hunter" started airing.
I caught wind of this new Korean Drama being produced about four years ago. It felt like the project had been shelved until earlier this year. News came out that it'd air in late May and ofcourse, I told my wife that this fucker was finally coming to fruition. She was interested in watching the anime with me, which was like giving a recovering addict a free bump. Oh yes, i'm hooked all over again!
So after watching a few episodes of the anime, I asked her what she thought and if it drew any similarities with the new Drama. She thought it was funny, but really didn't see the connection between the two outside of the title. She said the show was more of a revenge story. My memory of that conversation being "...sounds like Kill Bill...". Compound that with Jackie Chan's weak, but OK attempt at a City Hunter film and a few other attempts from Hong Kong and it is totally safe to say that if a Live Action City Hunter comes along, walk away. Walk away quickly.
I've also been told that the anime is inferior to the Manga. I am willing to give the Manga a shot in the future, but I do have a couple of hang ups with that. The first being that it is 35 volumes. Sure, I could buy them all used for a very low price, but shipping is probably a beast for 35 books. No complete adaptation has been released in America. One company attempted, and only got something like five volumes in. Also, the manga is missing a crucial component that makes City Hunter great: Akira Kamiya, the voice of Ryo Saeba.
Which brings me to my ultimate point.
Seeing that this show is a gem of the late 80s with adult themes, there is niltch in terms of merchandise. I guess there was nothing wrong with this, but it would've been cool to have something outside of the odd book or two they published. December of this year, this all changes.
Oh. My. God...
Worth the wait! If only there was also a 1/6 Scale Mini for him to drive in. There is also a figure of the ultimate cocktease, Saeko Nogami, which is cool...but why her? Why not Ryo's partner Kaori Makimura?
Yes! Ryo! My obscure little anime finally has some awesome merchandise from the same company responsible for handling many higher profile franchises.
I preordered my figure already, I might come back for Saeko at some point, but for now it's all Ryo. Yes, there will be a review. Granted, it might not be a popular one, but it has been a dream to review anything from City Hunter for a very long time.
Check out the anime if you like fantastic voice acting, comedy, action, and just a fun time. It's truly fantastic. This is coming from someone who doesn't like anime, so that must be worth something...
Mokkori Hips!
-CC
No comments:
Post a Comment