Megazone 23 Part III Anime Review
Megazone 23 Part III
/ OVA / Action / 15-up
Bottom Line
Only this far from perfection.
It’s Like...
...The Matrix with more cyberpunk, less crazy philosophy.
Vital Stats
Original Title
メガゾーン23 PART III
Romanized Title
Megazone 23 Part III
Animation Studio
AIC
US Release By
Genre
Cyberpunk Action
Series Type
OVA
Length
2 53-minute episodes
Production Date
1989-09-28 - 1989-12-22
What's In It
Categories
Look For
- Giant Robots
- Classic J-Rock
Objectionable Content
- Violence: 3 (significant)
- Nudity: 3 (significant)
- Sex: 1 (mild)
- Language: 1 (mild)
Plot Synopsis
When Earth was devastated by humanity's greed and carelessness, the human race left their planet on gigantic space-faring cities called Megazones. Only Megazone 23 survived to return to the regenerating Earth, and now the remnants of humanity live sealed up in the city of Eden, awaiting the SYSTEM's decision that humanity is responsible enough to be let out and repopulate the rest of the planet. Ruled over by the SYSEM, most of Eden's inhabitants live in security, except for a small group of renegades called netjackers, who appear intent only on causing chaos.
The story focusses on Eiji Takanaka, an ex-hacker turned hotshot computer games player, who has just got a job in E.X., the group that serves the SYSTEM. But Eiji begins to discover disturbing things, things that affect the fate of Eden itself. Who will Eiji side with in the upcoming conflict for control of Eden? Who is the mysterious Sion? Is the virtual idol Eve just computer generated entertainment, or is she a real person? This is one hell of a ride!
Quick Review
First off, I must explain a few things. Only one tape of Megazone 23 has been released in Australia, in a movie format. After a bit of snooping, I discovered that it is actually the two episodes that make up the third and final part of the Megazone 23 OAV series condensed into a single movie. The first part is available to you over in America (from Streamline), although I don't know if the second part has been released outside of Japan. [Editor's note: Since this review was written, the entire series was released on DVD by AD Vision.] But this makes a great movie and it's all I have to work with, so I'll review it as a movie.
Okay, let's get started: This is a GREAT movie. It starts a little slow, but the story is extremely good once it gets started, and the action is excellent! The plot is absolutely great, with mystery after mystery being discovered--Sion, Eve, Project Heaven, the SYSTEM--and the climax is possibly the best, most engaging most action-packed ending to an animated film that I have ever seen--and that does include AKIRA! The mecha designs, while probably not very original, look extremely cool, and they fight great! This is a well done movie on the visual side, with great backgrounds and city design. Most of the characters look pretty good, especially Sion, although Eiji's friends are almost all losers (Bird being the main exception).
On the audio side of things, Megazone 23 does not let you down. Although some of the voice cast is a bit suspect, most of them are good in their roles, though Eiji's friends are once again a letdown. But the soundtrack, (something I far too often neglect when I review anime) is incredible. I will definitely be picking it up on CD. No, seriously, this film has a soundtrack up there with AKIRA and Macross Plus! No joke!
Although the plot is excellent and engaging, it is a tad complex, and you may have to watch this a few times before you understand everything. But if you have the mind for Ghost In The Shell, you should be able to get this without too much difficulty.
All in all, Megazone 23 (Part III if you insist) is only THIS far away from perfection. See it, without delay, even if you can't see the rest. DO IT!
Notes and Trivia
None.
Availability
The entire Megazone 23 series--parts 1, 2, and 3--are available in the US from AD Vision on three hybrid DVDs. Part 1 (only) was originally available from Streamline on dubbed VHS.
Looking to buy? Try these stores:
RightStuf (search) |
AnimeNation |
Amazon