Sakura Wars

Original Title: サクラ大戦
Romanized: Sakura Taisen
Literal: Sakura Wars

Plot Synopsis

The story takes place in Japan of the 1920s... sort of. In this world, after the great demon war, humanity took to technological development, and steam technology reigns. Humanity has not sat idly by as the demons prepare secretly for a new assault--an internationally agreed upon, semi-secret organization has been formed to defend Tokyo, and only the best and brightest will join its ranks. At the heart of this organization is the Uba Spirit Armor, robotic suits developed by Kanzaki Heavy Industries powered by the operators' own spiritual energy. Only one problem: No one in the army seems to be up to the task. Fortunately, a handful of people are.

Hence, Ikki Yoneda and Ayame Fujieda set out to round up the world's most impressive group of misfits--the only ones with enough spiritual energy to mobilize the armor: Sumire Kanzaki, the spoiled granddaughter of old man Kanzaki and a highly trained warrior, Maria Tachibana, a deadeye Russian markswoman, Kanna Kirishima, a good natured street brawler and Karate master with inhuman strength, Iris Chateaubriand, a young girl with some very capable telekinetic abilities (plus a teddy bear and a cute streak a mile wide), Sakura Shinguji, a girl in training to become the master of a powerful ancient weapon, and Ri Kohran, Hong Kong watchmaker and steam-powered-weapon fanatic... er, specialist. Oh yeah, and there's also Ichiro Ohgami, who spends the early part of the series mopping the decks of a boat and reading about the fledgling group's exploits in the paper, but he eventually gets cooler.

The group is going to have a heck of a time not killing each other before they start saving the world...

Review

Rating: 3 / 5
Reviewer: Marc
Review Date: 2003-07-05

Sakura Wars is yet another game-turned-anime series, but other than an initially confusing glut of characters, this one feels pretty good in terms of plot, and the setting is original. It unfortunately has the teeny problem of having no conclusion to speak of and a rather weird final episode, but there's plenty of steampunk goodness to whet your appetite for the series that follow this one.

Having no prior knowledge of the game, I was a bit confused by the number of character introductions that took place in the first episode, but I definitely didn't get that "this guy's only here because some people liked him in the game" feeling that sometimes follows certain characters around in similar series, and it helped that none of the characters were silly or seemed too much like caricatures (well, Kohran was a little silly, but she wasn't around much and seemed to work anyway--every secret organization worth its salt needs a steam-bazooka toting mad scientist). After things got going, they meshed into a diverse and enjoyable group with some rather unique dynamics, and very nearly made the story worth watching on their own.

To me, though, the most interesting character was the world that the story is set in; an odd take on early 20th century Japan, it feels a little like the Wild Wild West series (and movie), and seemed to work quite well. I've always loved the idea of steam powered robots and the like, and this does it pretty well, with a hefty helping of demons and supernatural powers thrown in. Not everybody's thing, but it was done properly and I liked it very much (if you enjoyed the "Tale of Two Robots" section of Robot Carnival, you're almost certain to love this).

The story was rather slow to get going and kind of vague, though the latter isn't necessarily a bad thing--I liked not having the whole history of the alternate timeline laid out early on. Don't expect a whole lot of action, though--we get one good fight in the first episode, but most of the second part centered around mastering a sword technique--interesting, but not action intensive, though things do perk up some by the end of the series. The first two episodes basically had two stories going on: the introduction and training of the group in Tokyo, which was pretty light hearted (though not quite comedy per se), and the story of Sakura's training, which was much more serious.

An interesting blend, to be sure, but it left the story in a slightly awkward place between a high spirited action adventure and one of those personal growth/martial arts training stories; both have merits, but they seem a tad at odds with each other. This general trend continued throughout the story, but the focus clearly turned more toward character-building issues (centering on Sakura, but involving everyone) than demon fighting. Definitely not what I was expecting, but it worked fairly well. Just don't come looking for a wacky comedy or action-fest (though there is a bit of both).

I do have one very major complaint about the series: The plot basically went from A to B to D to some Greek letter that nobody can pronounce and isn't anywhere near the end of the alphabet. The first two episodes flowed pretty well, and although the third jumped ahead a bit, it still fit. The fourth not only seemed to skip a large chunk of story (which can be acceptable), but it brought a lot of rather odd symbolism and almost surreal stuff to the series that just wasn't there before. Worse, that was the abrupt end of it. Now, there's only so much you can do with a four-part series, but not only was it not an end, it didn't conclude anything at all. Heck, even the evil-sounding plans put into motion by the main bad guy (who only showed up twice) were just sort of dropped.

The lack of a large scale plot was kind of annoying throughout the series; it's fine that the series was really more about the main characters and their work in a theater troupe, but it short-changed the potential of the world and external conflict in the story. What we ended up with was basically a light character drama, but it could have had that and tied it together with something on a grander scale. It seemed like they were setting it up for that sort of story early on, but somewhere along the line they realized that there wasn't enough time to conclude anything, so they just picked a few vignettes from the game (I don't know if they actually were, or just seemed that way) and gave us those. While fans of the game might enjoy this, it was kind of annoying, and just left me desperately wanting more, or at least more coherent plot (time to buy one of the sequels, I guess).

Getting to more technical aspects, the series is built on solid ground. The character designs are memorable and well done, as are the backgrounds. The costumes are even better--lots of detail, and they capture the mood and culture of the era beautifully, from elaborate kimonos to flashy military uniforms. All of this is drawn very well, too. The animation is not particularly high budget (leading to slightly rough frame-rates), but it is nonetheless done very well, with nicely executed character animation and good looking action when there is any. The monster designs are worth pointing out mostly because they seem to be ripped straight from Alien, with wings added--right down to acidic spit. Scary enough, but you'd think that somebody could have come up with a slightly more original demon. The robot samurai later on were better, and I kind of liked the spirit armor: it was clunky looking and seemed appropriate for the time. One slight down side to the action was in the scene toward the end, which was generally pretty cool, but peppered with very "from a video game"-style moves, a couple of which were just silly.

The acting in the dub is, for the most part, quite good. There are lots of accents (and even a few bits of Russian or Chinese dialogue, for which we get to see both the original Japanese subtitles and the new English ones), which range from pretty good to "where's she supposed to be from again?" Most of the main characters are done quite well (and I particularly liked Tachibana's Russian accent), but Ri Kohran and Ayame Fujieda just didn't seem to cut it. Note that (and I at least thought this a bit ironic) the Japanese characters all had American accents, while the foreigners (to Japan) spoke in their countries' respective accents.

The acting in the Japanese was top notch, with a lot of high-profile talent. Backing the diverse collection of characters, most of the casting was quite good and at the very least distinct. I was quite fond of Tachibana's dry voice in the Japanese, although Kanna's voice took some getting used to--it was much higher-pitched than you'd expect, and although I ended up liking it, I could imagine some people just being annoyed. As in the English version, there was a spot of Russian, French, and some English, too, and even though it amounted to about 75 seconds of screen time, I'm going to take a minute to harp on it. Orikasa Ai fans take note--although her character doesn't have a big part and is probably a bit overacted, you do get to hear her taking a shot at English (and French) dialogue. More impressive was the fact that I would have been willing to believe that Tachibana had a Russian accent for the few English lines she had (her Russian sounded convincing, too). As for the rest of the foreign dialogue, they may not pass for natives (not that most of them should), but it was actually believable for a change (I've heard some pretty sad attempts at English dialogue by Japanese actors).

The one thing that I can say without qualification is that the music in the series was just plain great; the opening theme was a lively and appropriately grand song (plus it was actually about the series, rather than a random love song), and the end theme was a mellow jazzy piece that takes advantage of Orikasa Ai's sultry voice. But it was the background music that really stood out. Again keeping with the duality of the setting, there were two basic feels to the music--traditional Japanese to accent the spiritual training of Sakura, and a light, old-fashioned sounding movie score to go with the bustle of life in a thoroughly modern Tokyo, with occasional hints of Japanese themes at the right moments. To enhance that classic movie feel it was all played by a full orchestra. The music both set the scene and enhanced the feel of the world, and worked marvelously in my opinion.

In summation, Sakura Wars is a well done series with a blend of fun alternate-past demon fighting and more serious character-driven themes. The characters are great (and well acted), the art is top notch, and the animation is solid. Unfortunately, the plot only touches the surface of the large-scale themes, has essentially no conclusion, and takes a turn for the weird at the non-end, leaving you wishing there was more to it. But, it's worth a look for anyone who likes steampunk-style stories of alternate pasts, or goes for the motley demon hunting crew stuff. Be warned, though, that the series starts off a little slow, and you might not see as much action as you would expect. If you did have fun, though, you can look forward to another OAV series, a TV series, and a movie.

Related Recommendations

Would fit right in to the world of "A Tale of Two Robots," from Robot Carnival. Very different, but has some themes in common with the sci-fi series Iczelion and Battle Athletes. There is also a follow-up OAV series, as well as a TV series.

US DVD Review

This DVD is a big step up from ADV's first attempt, but not perfect. The video transfer is sharp, bright, and generally quite impressive, as is the audio (although the volume tends to jump around a little). This one includes both the Japanese and English soundtracks, and (unlike ADVs first disc, Tekken) it has real subtitles, rather than the "dubtiles." On the down side, the subtitles seemed to kind of freeze up a couple of times, and although it wasn't severe, it was definitely annoying. The credits were a bit on the creative side, with two sets of opening credits--depending on which angle you have set, you get the Japanese or English version. Unfortunately, for some reason they didn't feel like doing the same for the end credits, so while you can read who the primary voice actors were in either voice track, if you want to know who all the minor players were, you'll have to settle for the dubbed cast only. The menu is animated and soundtrack-equipped, and includes an animated chapter index as well as a large selection of ADV trailers.

Content Guide

A little bit of violence and conflict (and some relatively scary monsters), but not much objectionable. Probably deserves a 10-up rating.

Violence: 2 - Not terribly violent, but has it's share and is fairly realistic.

Nudity: 1 - A nightshirt or two.

Sex/Mature Themes: 0 - Zip.

Language: 1 - Mild.

Notes and Trivia

Based on a 1996 video game from Sega, which was a combination dating simulator (you played Ichiro, who interacted with the various ladies) and RPG-style combat simulator. The series is huge, now consisting of 13 games (5 of which are connected plot wise, the rest are spin-offs), two OAV series (this one and a second), a TV series, and a movie released toward the end of 2001. There is at least one more major game in production as of this writing (Sakura Taisen 4), and things show no signs of letting up.

If you enjoyed the music in this series, you're in for a treat, because one of the defining features of the franchise is its assortment of character-themed songs. There are quite a variety of lively songs with international overtones--everything from jazz, to traditional Japanese, to Chinese. My personal favorite of what I've come by is a vocal version of Kana's theme: a slightly Okinawa-flavored boogie that's so catchy you can't help but tap your foot (I'd rank that near the top of my all time favorite anime songs, in fact).

If you want a detailed rundown on the plot, here it is, just because I felt like it:

Act 1

We begin the story by witnessing the inaugural test of the Uba Spirit Armor with an unlikely pilot, and the formal creation of Tokyo's new self defense force. We then get to meet the first three members of said defense force, and the christening of the first three suits of (rather colorful) Spirit Armor (dubbed the Pansy brigade, of course). The trio's first assignment seems to be an easy one--just see the sights of Tokyo and enjoy the beautiful weather. Well, that would be fine and dandy if it weren't for one of those pesky demons who's just itching to mess up a perfectly nice walk in the park. Meanwhile, we are introduced to a miss Sakura Shinguji, who lost her father when he left home to battle the demons, and now begins her training to become the wielder of the spirit sword Arataka--but will the sword accept her as its master?

Act 2

The theater house that will be the base of the newly formed defense force is nearing completion, and the current members are put to work on their next assignment--learning to dance (hey, they've got to do something to maintain their cover and keep the natives happy, right?). Things are going acceptably well, until Sumire Kanzaki joins the team--let's just say that her rather pampered upbringing doesn't mesh with one of the free spirits on the team. Meanwhile, back at the ranch... er, dojo, Sakura has been accepted by her father's sword, and instructed by it to travel to Tokyo, but she must master the ultimate technique before she leaves, which proves to be more difficult than it would first appear.

Act 3

The team is almost complete, but now that Sakura's finally made it to the team, things have gotten a little messy behind the scenes... literally. You see, Sumire is more than pleased with her own performance in the team's recent stage productions, but Sakura wants to be more than just a stage hand: she wants to act! Maria, the current team leader, decides that this is the best way to improve on Sakura's lack of self-confidence, but Sumire is outraged. Worse yet, the team's first encounter with the robotic legions of darkness is on it's way, and no one knows how the Spirit Armor will fare...

Act 4

The Flower Brigade has a new leader, Ichiro Ohgami--apparently the only guy with enough spirit energy to get the armor movin'. He's doing his best to please everybody, but that is no easy task, and he ends up feeling more like a world-class gopher than a leader. But, things are going pretty well as their next production approaches. Until, that is, the forces of darkness decide to attack on opening night. What will become of the team, its new leader, and their production of A Midsummer Night's Dream?

Availability

Available in the US from ADV on "anime essentials" bilingual DVD (buy from RightStuf). There was a previous DVD release that was essentially identical save for 5.1 audio, and a collection that combined both this OAV series and the two following ones into one set; both are out of print. Even earlier, there were two subtitled or dubbed VHS volumes of this series (only).

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