Amazing Nurse Nanako

Original Title: 菜々子解体診書
Romanized: Nanako Kaitai Shinsho
Literal: Nanako Disection Examination Log

Plot Synopsis

In a mansion on a military base somewhere in Japan lives a mad scientist, two martial arts masters, an old witch (literally), and the woman who works tirelessly to feed them and keep the house clean. That woman--Nanako--is also constantly threatened with being turned into the subject of one of the doctor's experiments, and forced to train in feats of strength and endurance. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, the doctor is watched over by powerful forces in the military and the Church, each with their own mysterious goals. Where does Nanako fit into this, and why is she the subject of so much attention? Who knows.

Review

Rating: 2 / 5
Reviewer: Marc
Review Date: 2004-10-27

What do you get when you combine a classic anime conspiracy plot with a classic dumb comedy? In the case of Amazing Nurse Nanako, the answer is surprisingly simple, and it's exactly what the picture on the front of the box implies: A T&A flick.

The story of Amazing Nurse Nanako is composed of almost exactly equal parts anime conspiracy drama and very silly comedy. On one hand, we've got mysterious fellows from powerful organizations meeting in dramatically underlit rooms to discuss things that the world at large isn't intended to know about. Then, on the other, we've got Nanako and the folks she's living with--a crew of misfits that would do any wacky anime comedy proud. At the center is a beleaguered and rather empty headed girl with a needy personality who's not good for much more than laughs, and has less of a clue about what's going on than the hapless viewer.

Sadly, the only thing you end up noticing is that nearly every minute Nanako is onscreen features extreme bounciness, slightly awkward camera angles, or gratuitous glimpses of underwear (or lack thereof) that goes well beyond standard fanservice. To be fair, there is also a lot of humor and a fair amount of plot in there as well, but I'm suspicious about whether there was ever much point to the whole thing past the obvious--at the least, Nanako's chest demands attention. (And if you have any doubt about what Pioneer thought the point was, check out the DVD notes.)

But although Nanako's gravity-defying breasts are probably the most memorable features of the show, there is a little more to it, and the series could build into something interesting as it continues. As of the first two episodes, though, the story is so mysterious and opaque that I have no idea whatsoever what is going on, and the main characters are so silly that you couldn't take it seriously anyway. Those folks are also confusingly devoid of backstory (par for everything else), but even so, they are a fun lot, and I've got to admit that I found the humor embarrassingly funny--a good thing since, despite the serious story, it seems to be the main theme of the show. Nothing brilliant, but still worth a couple of good laughs.

A big part of the reason I enjoyed the whole thing as much as I did was because of Nanako--and no, not because of her cleavage. As written, her character is dumb enough that it was a little difficult to empathize with her, but Maria Yamamoto's relatively deep voice and loose, natural (and still humorously over-the-top) acting gives the character a really fun, likable personality that I enjoyed a lot. Nanako easily steals the show, but the rest of the Japanese cast is fine--a couple of fun old fogies, and the doctor, whose slightly-off evil scientist personality ends up a little funnier because of his ultra-studly (and rather menacing) voice.

In the English dub, Nanako's voice is less memorable, though acceptable, but the dub cast in general is a little weak. I did like the English version of the mysterious religious leader--he's believably acted, and has a smooth tone and British accent that work very well. At least the English casting is good, and I probably preferred the doctor's higher-pitched voice to the better acted but slightly too deep and cool Japanese version.

The music isn't special one way or another--humorously overdramatic but otherwise not noteworthy background music, no intro theme at all, and a decent but unremarkable peppy end theme. It's worth noting that the background music in the dub is a lot quieter than in the sub, enough so that the whole production seems a little quiet, and the music loses any of its humorous effect.

Visually, Amazing Nurse Nanako is quite good. The dark, dramatic parts are, for the most part, indeed dark and dramatic, and although nothing wildly creative, they would easily pass for serious anime on their own. The action, though there isn't a lot of it, is rather graphic (when it isn't silly) and reasonably cool (in particular a spiffy laser ax-thing). Even the humorous parts are well done--properly exaggerated with smooth character animation and relatively attractive art. The character designs are pretty standard, but still attractive, the only standout being Nanako... and that's because she does, indeed, stand out. Seriously, her breasts are among the most exaggeratedly large that I've seen in an anime show with any pretense of legitimacy. On the topic, they're also animated--I can't exactly say well, but certainly a lot.

Well, in all, it's a little hard to say how the characters and plot of the series will shape up as it goes on--the story makes no sense so far, and the characters are equally unestablished, but both could come together as it moves along. However, as of the first third, there's a lot of over-heavy drama, a lot of silly comedy, and a lot of T and A. You shouldn't watch it for the first of the three, you should be quite pleased if you're into the third, but for me what made it at all worthwhile was the middle one--the humor is dumb but I did rather enjoy it, partly thanks to a memorable performance behind the Japanese Nanako. It's not going to appeal to everybody, but if it sounds like the sort of fun and slightly weird romp you enjoy, it's at least well enough built (as is Nanako) to make it worth a shot.

Related Recommendations

On the breast fetish count, Jungle De Ikou is a safe bet. For some reason it vaguely reminds me of Gestalt, and also has a tiny bit in common with the Battle Athletes Victory TV series.

US DVD Review

This is a nice disc, but frankly a bit embarrassing--I'm sure the people into Nanako's physique will be quite pleased. For one thing, the menus are nicely stylized, featuring pictures of Nanako... that bounce. Seriously--that's the only motion. Then there are the special features: A selection of character design sketches (mostly featuring Nanako in various stages of undress), and a short "Nanako Tronic" music video--the video end being the best of the best of Nanako's active bust. There are also a couple of short Japanese TV ads for the series thrown in. Other than those features, the disc is a standard, solid Pioneer production: The video transfer is sharp (though it might have a bit of color bleed if you're being very picky), both audio tracks are clear, and it includes everything there is to see video wise: both episodes, both previews, the full, unadulterated Japanese end credits, and then the English credits, which have both the Japanese and English voice acting.

Content Guide

A lot of light mature content, and also brief but very graphic violence, adding up to a 16-up rating.

Violence: 3 - Most of the violence is silly, but one short and very bloody scene.

Nudity: 2 - Only brief nudity, but a lot of "staring" with the camera.

Sex/Mature Themes: 1 - Mature themes, but mostly indirectly implied.

Language: 1 - Nothing much at all in the sub.

Notes and Trivia

The original version featured the somewhat nonsensical English subtitle "Nanako Kaitai Shinsyo Medical Comedy Love Action."

There was a 15-minute promotional video subtitled "News Flash: Sexual Biography" released shortly before the first volume. There is also a short manga adaptation by Yuu Mizuki, not available in English as of this writing.

Availability

Available in the US from Geneon (formerly Pioneer) on three bilingual DVDs containing two episodes each.

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